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Wildwood Crest keeps beach-box program, changes 2026 rentals to phone-based waitlist and prioritizes residents
Summary
Recreation staff said Wildwood Crest will keep its beach-box rentals for 2026 at the current inventory level, move renewals online in mid-January, handle new rentals by phone-based waiting lists beginning Feb. 9, and prioritize residents and property owners; transcript shows inventory at 297 boxes (594 rental units).
Wildwood Crest’s beach-box program will continue in 2026 with a new registration process intended to make access fairer for residents, Recreation presenter Brian Kiff told the commission on Dec. 3.
Kiff said the borough currently maintains 297 beach boxes along its shoreline, which he described as 594 rentable units because each box has two doors. He told the commission that holders who rented boxes in previous years will have a renewal window in mid-January and that new rentals will be processed differently this year: beginning Feb. 9 recreation staff will accept phone calls to be placed on a waiting list by street and location, then contact people if openings become available. Kiff said the program will be limited to Wildwood Crest residents and property owners; longstanding nonresident box holders who have been in the program since it began will be allowed to remain.
On pricing, Kiff stated in the meeting transcript that “the cost of a beach box this year will be $55 plus a processing fee. And so that'll take the total to $520.15.” That phrasing appeared in the live transcript and combines the per-box fee with a referenced total; attendees and staff should confirm the posted fee and any processing fees before registering.
Kiff told commissioners the rental season will run from the Friday of Memorial Day weekend through Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026. He said renewals for returning renters will open in mid-January (renewals to begin Friday Jan. 16 and close Jan. 30 in his timetable) and that staff will follow up directly with previous renters who do not respond to renewal notices. New rentals will be accepted by phone and placed on street-specific waiting lists; staff will notify callers when and where boxes become available and register them over the phone.
Commissioners praised recreation staff for running the program and noted the boxes generate meaningful local revenue; one commissioner called the program “a penny on the tax rate” benefit. Kiff said past practice of first-come, first-served online registration led to very short sellouts and created barriers for older residents, prompting the phone-based waiting list change.
Next steps: the recreation office will send renewal emails to prior holders and begin taking phone requests for new renters in early February. Residents should watch the borough’s official channels for exact renewal and registration dates and fee confirmations.
