OCEAN COUNTY – Like birds migrating, people flocked to local parks again as soon as they were re-opened, glad to finally have a change of scenery.
And what scenery! The first weekend that parks were open had gorgeous weather, sunny and just the right temperature. Many – but not all – parks were open for passive recreation. This means hiking, biking, walking or other activities that you can still do while social distancing.
Drew Chabot was happy to let his 21-month-old son, Landon, finally get out and run around in a park again.
“I was here the day before they closed the parks, and I only saw one person, who was being respectful and we kept our distance,” he said.
Most people seemed to be doing that, too, on that first day. Some folks had masks. Some didn’t. Of the ones who didn’t, they mostly appeared to be from the same household.
People spoke about some of the measures they’ve had to endure throughout this pandemic.
“My father is in his 80s, so we’ve been keeping it tight for his safety,” said Charles Draper of Toms River. He was pushing a baby in a stroller while his son Charlie walked with his wife, Kristyn. They said it was good to finally get out.
They were with Gary Filippone of Barnegat, who was also pushing his baby in a stroller. “The thing I miss is the coffee shops, the little stores. I know a lot of those people are hurting so bad,” he said.
There were a few times that first weekend where parks had reached capacity and people were being turned away.
Gov. Phil Murphy signed an Executive Order reopening all state parks. He also let counties choose whether to open their parks and golf courses.
It was a small step forward, but perhaps bigger than it seems given that New Jersey is the second-hardest hit state for COVID-19.
A lot of local officials were pushing for him to do it.
At the most recent Berkeley Township Council meeting, for example, the council passed a resolution. It stated “in the short term, their closure may help to slow the spread of COVID-19 but the long-lasting effects of such closures are detrimental to the public’s mental and physical health.”
The township’s beach, in South Seaside Park on the barrier island, remained open. Councilman James Byrnes was concerned that if Island Beach State Park stayed closed, people would flood into the closest beach – South Seaside Park – and crowd out the locals.
Councilman Angelo Guadagno, who liaisons with the township recreation department, said Berkeley parks are open for passive recreation. However, ball fields and the skate park, and places like playgrounds where social distancing is impossible, were closed.
He said there was an incident where a man’s truck got stuck on the beach in South Seaside Park. Two locals went into their home, put on masks, and then helped him out.
Ocean County reopened two golf courses and several parks, but not all of them.
Parks and courses that were reopened as of press time were:
- Wells Mills County Park, Waretown
- John C. Bartlett Jr. County Park at Berkeley Island
- Jakes Branch County Park, Beachwood
- Ocean County Park and Lake Shenandoah County Park, both in Lakewood
- Patriots County Park, Jackson Township
- Freedom Fields, Little Egg Harbor Township
- The Ocean County Golf Course at Atlantis, in Little Egg Harbor Township
- Forge Pond County Golf Course in Brick Township
- The Barnegat Branch Trail which starts at Burr Street in Barnegat Township and travels north toward Toms River also will be open to the public.
“I am pleased to announce the reopening of several of our county parks starting Saturday. This includes our two golf courses and our natural lands,” said Ocean County Freeholder Virginia E. Haines, Chairwoman of the Ocean County Department of Parks and Recreation. “There will be restrictions in place as we go forward to maintain social distancing. These restrictions are for the health and safety of everyone returning to our parks and open spaces.
The parks had been closed since March 31.
“It’s important to note that this action in no way means the coronavirus pandemic is over,” she said. “Rather we want to provide safe and large open spaces for our residents to spend time outside, especially with warm weather coming, and these steps will allow that.”
Parks will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Golf course hours will be from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
These spaces are open for passive recreation only. In other words, activities like walking, jogging, and biking. It’s not for team sports or playgrounds.
“Our playgrounds, public bathrooms, nature centers, and pavilions will remain closed to the public as will the dog parks and some of our smaller parks,” Haines said. “As per the Governor’s executive order there cannot be any large gatherings, no sporting activities or picnics allowed at this time.”
In order to enforce social distancing, parking will be capped at 50 percent, Haines said. Wearing face coverings is strongly suggested.
“We encourage everyone to adhere to the requirements we have put in place to reopen the parks,” she said. “In time we look forward to reopening all of our parks. We think this is a good start.”
Haines noted that residents can use the county golf courses by prepaid reservation only with restrictions including no groups larger than twosomes.
“If you want a tee time you need to make a reservation,” Haines said.
“We are following Gov. Murphy’s requirements that he outlined for reopening the state parks,” said Ocean County Freeholder Director Joseph H. Vicari. “It’s important that we do this right. We want to see the numbers continue to trend downward of people getting COVID-19. We need to stay the course but we also realize people need opportunities for passive recreation for their overall health.
“It’s important that we continue to follow social distancing rules. We all need to remember that our actions don’t affect just us, they affect our family, they affect our health care workers, they affect our emergency responders, they affect the workers at our grocery stores,” Vicari said. “We need to all continue to do our part to stop the spread of this virus.”
The Ocean County Sheriff’s Office and Ocean County Security Department will continue to patrol all the county parks during this time.
Monmouth County also reopened their parks and golf courses.
“We are glad that the Governor heeded our plea to reconsider the closure of county parks and golf courses in New Jersey,” Monmouth County Freeholder Director Thomas Arnone said. “The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders has felt, throughout this entire pandemic, that our county parks are essential for our residents’ mental health and a great choice for passive recreation.”
