Politics & Government
Ocean County To Review Park Closures Amid Gov. Murphy's Decision
Phil Murphy announced Wednesday that he will allow state and county parks to reopen.
OCEAN COUNTY, NJ — Now that Governor Phil Murphy will allow county governments to reopen their parks, Ocean County has a decision to make.
The County opted March 31 to close all its parks and public lands until further notice. Ocean County made the decision before Murphy's executive order to close state and county parks. Read more: Ocean County To Close Its Parks During Coronavirus Outbreak
Murphy announced Wednesday that he will lift the ban on state and county parks and golf courses. Read more: Gov. Murphy To Reopen State, County Parks, Golf In NJ Coronavirus
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Ocean County officials will soon announce how this will affect county parks, according to County Public Information Officer Donna Flynn.
"Ocean County will review the Governor’s executive order and will release information on this later today or tomorrow," Flynn told Patch in an email.
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The County operates 27 parks, holding more than 4,000 acres of parkland and 30,000 acres of natural lands. Popular county parks include Jakes Branch County Park, Beachwood; John C. Bartlett Jr. County Park at Berkeley Island; Wells Mills County Park, Waretown; Ocean County Park, Lakewood; Cattus Island County Park, Toms River; and the Barnegat Branch Trail which travels from Barnegat Township north through Berkeley Township.
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The County closed its parks partly because it became difficult to monitor social distancing.
"We cannot police everyone who does not want to change their behavior during this very turbulent time," Freeholder Virginia E. Haines said March 31. "Closing down our open spaces will, I hope, result in people staying home unless they are essential workers or need to get to a food store, drug store or health care provider."
State officials have reported 6,523 total cases and 367 coronavirus deaths as of 1 p.m. Thursday.
Patch will update this article with any decision from the County.
Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know
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