TOMS RIVER, NJ — The Downtown Toms River Business Improvement District will work with Toms River officials to host five fireworks displays during the summer of 2024, BID Executive Director Mairin Bennett announced Wednesday night.
The announcement came as the Township Council introduced a resolution to set a date for a public hearing on the 2024 budget for the Toms River Special Improvement District, the formal name of the BID.
The agenda for the meeting was not available on the township’s website. A copy of the resolution setting the date for the public hearing has been requested from Toms River Township via an Open Public Records Act request.
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Bennett, during public remarks, said there will be 68 permitted events along with five fireworks displays.
“These events not only serve as catalysts for economic growth but also to provide invaluable opportunities for community engagement, cultural enrichment and joyful celebration,” Bennett said.
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Bennett on Thursday said details and logisitics for the fireworks are being worked out in the coming weeks.
The agreement came after more than two weeks of rumors of a conflict followed by a March 6 letter released publicly by Robert Shea, president of the BID, saying the organization was refusing what he said was Mayor Daniel Rodrick’s demand for $70,000 to be carved out of the BID’s operating budget for fireworks.
The BID, created by township ordinance in 2002, is funded by a special tax on downtown commercial properties. Bennett and three other employees are responsible for organizing events and activities including the Downtown Farmers Market, the multiple street festivals on Washington Street, the annual Christmas tree lighting celebration and the weekly classic car shows in the spring and summer.
Bennett also organized the Downtown Night Out as a way to help struggling restaurants during the pandemic.
“I would like to thank the BID for deciding to try something new,” Rodrick said at the meeting. “I believe fireworks will supercharge all businesses south of Route 37. Fireworks will bring in people from all over the place. They’ll come in from the island. Vacationers in the summer will be coming back to the mainland to eat and watch the fireworks.”
Rodrick has criticized the efforts of the BID, saying only a handful of businesses are benefitting from the events that are put on each year.
Read more: Mayor Demands Fireworks Funding From Toms River BID
Rodrick had sought 10 fireworks displays, on Fridays from June through August.
“I’m very thankful we could work this out as a negotiation,” Councilman George Lobman said.
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