Seawalls and Bulkheads in Seaside Heights, New Jersey
Seaside Heights is a compact 0.74-square-mile borough on the Barnegat Peninsula, a barrier peninsula that separates Barnegat Bay to the west from the Atlantic Ocean to the east, reached via NJ Route 37 and the Toms River. This page does not state a current bulkhead or seawall permit cost, a specific construction material or height standard, or an NJ DEP engineering requirement for Seaside Heights, because none was confirmed during this research pass, and guessing at one could cost a property owner real money or a failed inspection. What is documented is why shoreline protection is a real, lived concern here: on October 29, 2012, Hurricane Sandy caused substantial boardwalk damage and flooded much of the borough, and the Star Jet roller coaster on Casino Pier fell into the Atlantic during the storm, becoming one of the most widely photographed images of the entire disaster. For current permitting requirements, standards, and costs, go directly to Seaside Heights' own Construction Office and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJ DEP).
A 0.74-Square-Mile Borough Between Bay and Ocean
Seaside Heights sits on the Barnegat Peninsula, a narrow barrier landform separating Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean, reached from the mainland via NJ Route 37 and the Toms River Bridge, completed October 23, 1914. The borough's total area is just 0.74 square miles, a footprint that puts nearly every property within a short distance of open water on one side or the other. That geography, bay on one side and ocean on the other, across less than a square mile of land, is the reason bulkheads, seawalls, and boardwalk-adjacent structures are a genuine, recurring concern for property owners here rather than an abstract one.
The two sides of the peninsula function differently for shoreline-protection purposes. On the bayside, facing Barnegat Bay, bulkheads are typically the relevant structure for private waterfront property, holding back land at the edge of individual lots along calmer, tidal water. On the oceanside, facing the Atlantic, the borough's roughly 2-mile boardwalk, along with Casino Pier and the site of the former Funtown Pier, each extending about 300 feet into the ocean, plays a partial protective role of its own by standing between open beach and the developed blocks behind it, distinct from a residential seawall or bulkhead.
Hurricane Sandy and the Fallen Star Jet
The clearest, best-documented illustration of why shore protection matters in Seaside Heights is not a construction spec. It is Hurricane Sandy. The storm's impact began October 29, 2012, and it caused substantial damage to the boardwalk along with flooding across much of the borough. Both Casino Pier and Funtown Pier sustained major damage, with amusement rides collapsing as the storm hit.
The single most widely recognized image of that damage is the Star Jet roller coaster, which stood on Casino Pier and fell into the Atlantic Ocean during the storm. Partially submerged in the surf, it became an internationally recognized symbol of Hurricane Sandy's destruction and drew visitors as a tourist curiosity before it was demolished on May 14, 2013. A new coaster was later built at Casino Pier; a 2017 replacement has been reported (WGBH/NPR), and more recent reporting (CBS New York) also references a further, newer "Hydrus" coaster. Both facts are presented honestly as reported, without asserting a single current ride lineup as of 2026, since ride offerings change from year to year and no current ride list was independently confirmed for this research pass.
What Bulkheads and Seawalls Actually Are, in General Terms
In general shore-protection terminology, a bulkhead is a retaining wall built at or near the water's edge, meant mainly to hold back land behind it and prevent erosion, commonly used to mark the boundary between a developed lot and open water on a bay or lagoon, the kind of structure most relevant to Seaside Heights' Barnegat Bay-facing side. A seawall is generally a more substantial structure, built to absorb and deflect direct wave energy, more typical of ocean-facing property. A boardwalk itself, elevated and built along the beach as Seaside Heights' is, is not engineered primarily as a shore-protection structure, but it does sit between the open Atlantic and the developed blocks behind it, giving it some incidental buffering role that a purely residential bulkhead does not have.
This page does not describe a specific material, height, footing depth, or approved design for a bulkhead, seawall, or boardwalk-support project on any particular Seaside Heights parcel, because current construction standards and NJ DEP coastal-zone requirements were not confirmed in this research pass, and those requirements vary by exact location, bay or ocean proximity, and flood zone, and change over time. Property directly on Barnegat Bay can face different requirements than property near the boardwalk or the former Funtown Pier site. Anyone planning new construction, repair, or replacement of a shoreline structure in Seaside Heights needs current, parcel-specific answers, not a general description like the one above.
Not Seaside Park: A Distinct Neighboring Borough
Seaside Heights shares its barrier peninsula, and part of its boardwalk history, with its immediate neighbor to the south, Seaside Park, but the two are separate boroughs with separate records. The September 12, 2013 ten-alarm fire that swept the Funtown Pier area is documented in detail on the Seaside Park side of the shared boardwalk, including the specific businesses lost and the extent of that borough's own damage; this page does not restate those figures as Seaside Heights' own, since Seaside Heights' portion of that fire's damage is described only in general terms in the research behind this page. Anyone comparing the two towns' shoreline or storm history should treat Seaside Heights and Seaside Park as adjacent but separately documented boroughs, not interchangeable stretches of the same peninsula.
Seaside Heights is also a genuinely different market from the Long Beach Island boroughs already built on this site, Ship Bottom, Surf City, Harvey Cedars, and Barnegat Light. Those towns sit on a different barrier island entirely, reached via Route 72, roughly nine miles south of the Barnegat Peninsula that carries Seaside Heights and is reached via Route 37. Their own storm-damage figures and shoreline-protection histories belong to those specific boroughs and are not restated here as Seaside Heights' own.
Where to Get Current, Authoritative Answers
For anyone who owns or is considering buying property on the bay side, the boardwalk side, or anywhere in between in Seaside Heights, the two places to get current, binding answers about bulkhead, seawall, or boardwalk-adjacent construction, repair, replacement, permitting, and cost are Seaside Heights' own Construction Office, which administers local construction permitting for the borough, and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which regulates coastal and waterfront construction activity under state law. Neither office was the source of a specific figure or standard cited on this page, and that is deliberate: this page's job is to explain why shore protection is a real, well-documented concern in this specific borough, not to guess at what either office would tell a specific property owner.
A local real estate agent familiar with Seaside Heights' bayfront and boardwalk-area blocks, and a contractor licensed for New Jersey coastal shoreline work, are the other two practical resources worth involving before budgeting any bulkhead- or seawall-related project, since a lot's exact position relative to Barnegat Bay or the Atlantic can meaningfully change what is required and what it costs.
Adding It Up: What Is Real, and What We Will Not Invent
What is confirmed and real here: Seaside Heights is a 0.74-square-mile borough on the Barnegat Peninsula, bordered by Barnegat Bay to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, reached via NJ Route 37 and the Toms River Bridge; its roughly 2-mile boardwalk includes Casino Pier and the former Funtown Pier, each extending about 300 feet into the ocean; Hurricane Sandy's impact beginning October 29, 2012 caused substantial boardwalk damage and borough-wide flooding; and the Star Jet roller coaster fell into the Atlantic during that storm, becoming a globally recognized image of the damage before its demolition on May 14, 2013.
What we could not find, and will not fill in with an invented figure: a current Seaside Heights bulkhead or seawall permit cost, a specific construction material or engineering standard, a current NJ DEP coastal-permitting requirement or timeline, or a Seaside Heights-specific dollar-value or percentage home-damage figure for Hurricane Sandy. Get current bulkhead, seawall, and boardwalk-adjacent permitting requirements, standards, and cost estimates directly from Seaside Heights' Construction Office and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and a current flood-zone determination from FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, before budgeting any shoreline-protection project. Nothing on this page is legal, engineering, or financial advice.
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Get a Free Agent Referral →Independent research. No ads. No sponsored listings. Data drawn from research on Seaside Heights, New Jersey, including its location on the Barnegat Peninsula separating Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean, reached via NJ Route 37 and the Toms River Bridge (completed October 23, 1914); a total area of 0.74 square miles; a roughly 2-mile boardwalk including Casino Pier and the former Funtown Pier, each extending about 300 feet into the Atlantic; 2020 census population of 2,440, down 15.5% from 2,887 in 2010; Hurricane Sandy's impact beginning October 29, 2012, which caused substantial boardwalk damage and flooding across much of the borough, with major damage to both Casino Pier and Funtown Pier and amusement rides collapsing; the Star Jet roller coaster's fall into the Atlantic Ocean during that storm, its status as a widely photographed, internationally recognized symbol of the disaster, and its demolition on May 14, 2013; reported replacement-coaster history at Casino Pier (a 2017 opening per WGBH/NPR, and a further newer "Hydrus" coaster per CBS New York reporting), presented without asserting a single current ride lineup as of 2026; and the September 12, 2013 ten-alarm Funtown Pier-area fire, whose detailed damage figures are documented on the Seaside Park side of the shared boardwalk rather than Seaside Heights' own page. This research pass did not confirm, and this page does not state, a current Seaside Heights bulkhead or seawall permit cost, a specific construction material or engineering standard, a current NJ DEP coastal-permitting requirement or timeline, or a Seaside Heights-specific dollar-value or percentage home-damage figure for Hurricane Sandy. Get current bulkhead, seawall, and boardwalk-adjacent permitting requirements, engineering standards, and cost estimates directly from Seaside Heights' Construction Office and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, and a current flood-zone determination from FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, before budgeting any shoreline-protection project. Nothing on this page is legal, engineering, or financial advice.