TOMS RIVER, NJ — Toms River could position itself as New Jersey’s next entertainment industry hub under a new vision put forward by council candidate Justin Moran, who is running in Ward 4 this fall against incumbent pro-downtown apartment supporter David Ciccozzi.
Moran says the township should abandon Ciccozzi’s plans for apartment towers and instead tie its downtown future to the surge of film and television production now taking shape in New Jersey and the greater New Jersey region.
Netflix recently invested nearly $1 billion to build a massive production hub at Fort Monmouth, and Moran believes that investment can fuel growth in surrounding communities. He noted that major productions often spend the majority of their budgets locally, generating jobs and business activity. “When movies and TV shows film in an area, 80 percent of the production budgets go into the local economy,” Moran said, pointing to Disney’s Avengers: Endgame, which brought more than $280 million into the Atlanta area.
Moran said that Toms River is well-positioned to capture some of that economic energy by developing its downtown and waterfront as destinations for both residents and visitors, including industry workers looking for dining and entertainment outside Monmouth County. He said a revitalized district could showcase “who we are as Toms River” while attracting new business.
The plan, Moran added, would also give younger residents access to well-paying career paths in a growing field. “We can tell our kids, ‘learn to lay wires, get behind the camera, and here’s $80,000 a year out of college,’” Moran said. “It’s a real opportunity that landed on our feet. We have four years of lead time. Let’s rise with the tide and not sink beneath it.”
Moran’s proposal stands in sharp contrast to the vision promoted by former Mayor Mo Hill, who sought to transform downtown Toms River into a city-style district dominated by high-rise, high-density apartment buildings. That plan was supported by current council members David Ciccozzi and James Quinlisk, who, along with Councilman Tom Nivison, have opposed township efforts to challenge developer Capodaglia in court. The three voted against the township’s lawsuit against the developer and have recently refused to fund the litigation by voting against payment of the township’s legal bills.
In 2023, voters decisively rejected the high-rise development approach when Mayor Dan Rodrick and his council running mates Craig Coleman, William Burns, Justin Lamb, and Lynn O’Toole swept into office on an anti-overdevelopment platform. The ticket won by a margin of 70 to 30 percent, campaigning on a pledge to stop the apartment tower projects and preserve downtown Toms River’s character.
Rodrick reiterated that stance in response to continued support for high-density projects from members of the previous administration.
“No matter how much the Mo Hill gang fights us to build these apartments, I believe the people in Toms River spoke loud and clear, they do not want downtown Toms River to become a city, and we’ll continue blocking their efforts to do that,” the mayor said.
