SEASIDE PARK, N.J. – After winning a decades-long fight to leave Berkeley Township, residents of South Seaside Park are adjusting to life in their new hometown—starting with a simple but unexpected purchase.
Their own garbage cans.
As municipal services officially transition to Seaside Park following the historic annexation, borough officials have notified residents that they will need to provide their own trash containers because the borough’s sanitation system operates differently than Berkeley Township’s.
The change is one of the first visible signs that the 10-block neighborhood is now fully part of Seaside Park after more than five decades of legal battles and political debate.
Last month, Berkeley Township began confiscating its muncipal robocans in the borough, as residents switched to the Seaside Park municipal waste services.
A different way of collecting trash
Unlike Berkeley Township’s automated collection system, Seaside Park sanitation crews manually collect household garbage.
That means residents are responsible for supplying their own trash cans. Borough officials say containers with wheels and attached lids are permitted and encouraged.
The new collection schedule includes:
- Garbage collection every Monday and Thursday
- Recycling pickup every Wednesday
- Bulk trash collection every Thursday
- Bulk items require a sticker purchased through the borough’s Code, Construction and Zoning Office
For longtime residents, it’s a small adjustment compared with the years spent fighting to become part of the barrier island community they always considered home.
End of a 53-year battle
The garbage can requirement follows one of the most significant municipal boundary changes in recent New Jersey history.
South Seaside Park spent more than 50 years seeking to leave Berkeley Township and join neighboring Seaside Park, arguing that geography—not politics—made the case.
Although historically technically part of Berkeley Township, the neighborhood sits on the barrier island alongside Seaside Park and is separated from Berkeley’s mainland by more than 13 miles and seven municipalities.
A routine trip to Berkeley Township Hall often required a drive of 30 to 45 minutes, even though Seaside Park municipal offices were only minutes away.
Residents argued for decades that police, public works, code enforcement and other municipal services would be more efficiently provided by Seaside Park.
Supreme Court cleared the way
The annexation became possible after the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in July 2025 that the deannexation could proceed, ending years of litigation over the proposal.
In March, the Seaside Park Borough Council unanimously voted 5-0 to officially annex South Seaside Park, completing a process that had stretched across five decades.
The move officially united the two communities on the barrier island under one municipal government.
For many residents, one symbolic change came almost immediately.
They could finally remove the word “South” from their mailing addresses.
Taxes expected to decline
The annexation is expected to deliver financial benefits beyond convenience.
Officials have projected that combining the communities under Seaside Park’s municipal government will reduce overall municipal taxes by approximately 8.02% for former South Seaside Park residents.
Supporters also pointed to faster emergency response, closer municipal offices and more efficient public services as reasons for pursuing annexation.
Small changes mark a big transition
While purchasing a garbage can may seem like a minor inconvenience, it reflects the practical realities of transitioning from one municipality to another.
Street maintenance, sanitation schedules, permits, municipal ordinances and public services are all being integrated into Seaside Park’s operations as borough departments assume responsibility for the neighborhood.
Residents are also adapting to new service schedules, local offices and municipal procedures after decades under Berkeley Township governance.
A community finally united
For generations, South Seaside Park residents lived on the same barrier island as Seaside Park but belonged to a municipality located across Barnegat Bay.
That unusual arrangement often complicated everything from municipal services to civic identity.
Now, with the annexation complete, the neighborhood is becoming fully integrated into Seaside Park.
If that means buying a new garbage can, many residents are likely to view it as a small price to pay after waiting more than half a century to officially join the community they always considered home.
