Right time for a fresh start in Sea Bright

It is likely that few, if any, other towns in Monmouth County had a 2003 anything like that in Sea Bright.

Before the calendar turned a single page, the town dealt with a familiar foe in rising flood waters and the Borough Council faced a rising tide of resident animosity over the potential use of eminent domain in a proposed redevelopment plan.

In a packed gym at the municipal building the council heard a stream of objections to the proposal and, not surprisingly, shortly after that abandoned it.

In addition to residents’ wrath on the redevelopment plan, the council had a very full plate that included dealing with a 50 percent jump in charges for the town’s sewer service and giving consideration to creating a municipal swim and beach club. It also continued its seemingly endless battle with Shore Regional High School and went through a long dance with the state Department of Environmental Protection and John Mulheren over a proposal to trade pieces of property.

Oh, and after 20 years of operation the borough’s zoning official decided that a site used for the take-off and landing of helicopters in the north end of town was illegal.

While all of that was going on, the borough went through a bizarre run-up to this fall’s mayoral election which included the candidacy of a person who does not live in town and the withdrawal of incumbent Gregory Harquail just six weeks before the general election.

The good news for the borough and Mayor Jo-Ann Kalaka-Adams is that it is all but impossible for a more difficult year to follow the one that just passed.

And, it is worth noting, that almost all of the most contentious issues of 2003 have been dealt with.

The redevelopment plan is off the table, the land swap is off and new pumps promise to give the borough a fighting chance against flood waters.

Undoubtedly 2004 will have its own challenges, but Sea Bright residents have to be happy to see 2003 come to an end.