Ocean City announced new beach rules Tuesday that officials said are meant to put a stop to disruptive “gatherings of drunken teens” threatening the Jersey Shore city’s family-friendly reputation.
Mayor Jay Gillian said he signed the orders — which include closing the beaches at 8 p.m. and an earlier curfew for minors — to send a strong message to residents and visitors after a rowdy Memorial Day weekend in which police responded to hundreds of incidents involving alcohol.
Under the new rules, Ocean City’s beaches will close at 8 p.m. and carrying backpacks on the beach and boardwalk will no longer be permitted after 8 p.m.
Bathrooms on the boardwalk will close at 10 p.m. and the curfew for juveniles has been moved from 1 a.m. to 11 p.m, officials said.
While the new rules were designed to address unruly teens, Gillian acknowledged they will impact beachgoers of all ages.
“I understand that these new directives will affect many people who are not teens, but it’s important that we stop this type of behavior now,” Gillian said in a press release.
Videos on social media showed large crowds of teens throughout Memorial Day weekend on the Ocean City beach and boardwalk. In some of the videos, young adults appear to be drunk.
In one video, hundreds of teens gathered on the beach in the dark.
Over the weekend, Ocean City police responded to 999 incidents, an increase over last Memorial Day weekend, local officials said. In addition to underage drinking, Gillian said police responded to incidents involving vandalism, assaults, shoplifting, confiscation of a firearm, and a variety of other offenses.
There were also “several incidents involving teens who drank to the point of unconsciousness, assault victims, mental health issues and other incidents,” Gillian said.
This Jersey Shore town is closing its beaches at 8 p.m. in an effort to stop large gatherings of unruly teens, like the crowd seen here over Memorial Day weekend.
Gillian said the new policies were also a response to “the continuation of a trend that began when statewide legislation largely stripped police officers of the ability to question juveniles, search juveniles, and confiscate alcohol.”
In 2020, the state attorney general’s office issued new rules built on juvenile justice reform. The reforms were meant to “eliminate longstanding disparities that have prevented young people in Black and Brown communities from reaching their full potential,” Gov. Phil Murphy said at the time.
Murphy’s office Wednesday said the governor will work with local municipalities to combat issues like those in Ocean City.
“Our office understands that large-scale youth gatherings have raised public safety concerns over the past few years,” the office said in a statement.
“In order to ensure that the safe enjoyment of the Jersey Shore is available to every family and resident, this Administration will continue to work with the local elected officials and law enforcement officials of our shore towns to address this issue fairly and responsibly.”
Ocean City has tried to find other ways to crack down on unruly behavior, local officials said. In December, the city passed an ordinance that allows police officers to detain minors for a wide variety of infractions — including littering, vandalism and setting off illegal fireworks — as “breach of peace” violations.
Under the local law, teens can be taken to the police station and their parents will be called to pick them up, even if they are not charged.
Other Jersey Shore towns have implemented new rules aimed at teens in recent years.
After a series of rowdy pop-up parties, Toms River’s beach communities added a curfew in 2020 that prevents anyone under 18 from roaming the streets after 10 p.m. without an adult. Toms River officials recently announced they would be reinstating the curfew this summer.
Some local officials said they were motivated to implement new rules partly because of last summer’s unsanctioned H2oi car rally in Wildwood, where two people were killed during a chaotic pop-up event that drew large crowds.
Ocean City’s mayor said the new rules will come with additional police, more announcements on the boardwalk and a public awareness campaign.
“In the end, protecting our reputation as ‘America’s Greatest Family Resort’ will benefit everybody in Ocean City,” Gillian said.
There will be an emergency meeting of the Ocean City council at 1 p.m. Thursday at City Hall to discuss the new rules, officials said. Afterward, Gillian and Police Chief Jay Prettyman will hold a press conference at 3 p.m. at Ocean City Music Pier.
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Jackie Roman may be reached at jroman@njadvancemedia.com.