Wildwood wants to close its boardwalk after 1am — and I’m fine with that

I'll be honest. When this story crossed my screen last night I didn't read past the headline. I didn't need to. Wildwood wants to close its famous boardwalk to the public between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. starting this summer.

My immediate reaction: great idea.

I grew up going to the Wildwood boardwalk. I know what it is. I know what it means to a summer. The rides, the food, the noise, the energy — there is nothing else quite like it anywhere on the Jersey Shore. I am not here to take that away from anyone.

But nothing good is happening on that boardwalk at 2 a.m. Other than maybe a little romance, I cannot think of a single responsible or community-friendly reason for someone to be out there at that hour. And based on what has happened the last few summers, Wildwood's city government cannot either.

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What Wildwood has already been dealing with

This is not a new problem and the city has not been sitting on its hands.

Two summers ago, Mayor Ernie Troiano declared a state of civil unrest after midnight crowds of young people overwhelmed the boardwalk and the police department. Last summer they brought in officers on horseback to control Memorial Day weekend crowds. They banned backpacks on the boardwalk after 8 p.m. They installed AI-enabled cameras. They fined parents — up to $1,000 — when their kids were picked up violating the existing 10 p.m. juvenile curfew. They warned schools in Philadelphia and other communities ahead of the season.

And still the problem persisted.

Mayor Troiano referenced the 2025 truck attack on Bourbon Street in New Orleans as a moment that changed how cities think about overnight crowd security. Wildwood has already installed bollards at boardwalk ramps to block vehicles. The new ordinance — Ordinance No. 1350-26 — passed its first reading on April 8. The second reading and final vote is scheduled for April 22 at City Hall. If it passes, the boardwalk closes to the public nightly from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., year-round. Emergency personnel, city employees, contractors and vendors are exempt.

Troiano put it plainly: during summer the city becomes the third most populous place in New Jersey after Newark and Jersey City — with a fraction of their police force.

The "get off my lawn" disclaimer

I know how this sounds. I know I am a guy in his sixties writing about closing a boardwalk at night. Trust me, the irony is not lost on me. Hey you kids, get off my boardwalk.

But let me be clear about what I am actually saying — and what I am not.

I have zero problem with well-behaved teenagers gathering on a boardwalk, enjoying each other's company, having some laughs, eating pizza and ice cream. That is exactly what a Shore town boardwalk is for. That is what I did. That is what your kids should be doing. The Shore is one of the great gifts New Jersey gives its families and I want every kid in this state to experience it.

What I have a problem with is the free-range teenager. The kid who is out past midnight with no curfew, no accountability, no parent who knows where they are or who they are with — while mom and dad are back at the shore house having a perfectly enjoyable evening on the deck with their friends.

And before anyone says the parents deserve a vacation too — yes, absolutely. That is fair. Nobody is saying parents cannot relax at the Shore. But your first job is not to party with your friends. Your first job is to know where your kid is, who they are with, and what time they need to be home. That does not stop being your job in July.

The honest truth about where the problem really is

Here is what the 1 a.m. closing will and will not fix.

It will clear the boardwalk during the hours when enforcement is most difficult and when the most serious incidents have occurred. It will give Wildwood's police department a tool they currently do not have. It is a step in the right direction and I support it.

What it will not fix is the 9 p.m., 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. problem — the crowds that families with young children are already avoiding, the fights between rival groups, the behavior that drives good visitors away from what should be one of the most welcoming places in New Jersey.

That part is not Wildwood's to fix. That part belongs to parents.

The city is doing what it can with the tools it has. The rest of the solution lives in the homes those kids come from — not in any ordinance passed in a City Hall meeting.