Sea Isle City is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

Cape May County Cape May County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Much of the county is located on the Cape May peninsula, bound by the Delaware Bay to its west and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and east. Adjacent to the Atlantic ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. The city, and all of Cape May County, is part of the

South Jersey South Jersey, also known as Southern New Jersey, comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located between Pennsylvania and the lower Delaware River to its west, the Atlantic Ocean to its east, Delaware to its south, ...

region of the state and of the Ocean City metropolitan statistical area, and is part of the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

- Wilmington- Camden, PA-NJ- DE- MD combined statistical area, also known as the Delaware Valley or Philadelphia metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's year-round population was 2,104, a decrease of 10 (−0.5%) from the 2010 census count of 2,114, which in turn reflected a decline of 721 (−25.4%) from the 2,835 counted in the 2000 census. Visitors raise the population to as much as 40,000 during the peak summer season from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Sea Isle City is located on

Ludlam Island Ludlam Island is a barrier island in southern New Jersey, on which Sea Isle City and Strathmere, a part of Upper Township, are located. Geography Ludlam Island is a barrier island along the Atlantic Ocean between Corson Inlet on the northeast, a ...

, which also contains the Strathmere section of Upper Township. Sea Isle City was originally incorporated as a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

on May 22, 1882, from portions of Dennis Township, based on the results of a referendum held six days earlier. The borough was reincorporated on March 31, 1890. In March 1907, portions of Dennis Township and Upper Township were annexed to Sea Isle City. In April 1905, portions of Sea Isle City were annexed to Upper Township. On April 30, 1907, the area was reincorporated as the City of Sea Isle City, based on the results of a referendum held on April 20, 1907.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 115. Accessed May 30, 2024. The name derives from its location on the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

History

Sea Isle City was founded in 1882 by

Charles K. Landis Charles Kline Landis (March 16, 1833 – June 12, 1900) was a property developer in South Jersey, who was the founder and developer of Vineland, New Jersey, Vineland and Sea Isle City, New Jersey, Sea Isle City. Career His first foray as ...

, who was also the founder of

Vineland, New Jersey Vineland is a City (New Jersey), city and the most populous municipality in Cumberland County, New Jersey, Cumberland County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey. Bridgeton, New Jersey, Bridgeton and Vineland are the two principal cities of the ...

. The main street in town, Landis Avenue, is named for its founder. The oldest building in Sea Isle City is The Colonnade Inn, a

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

building dating back to the 1800s. From 1885 until 1924, Sea Isle City was the location of Ludlam's Beach Lighthouse. The structure was moved to the corner of Landis Avenue and 35th Street (3414 Landis Avenue), and was a private residence (offered for rental) for many years. A non-profit group, The Friends of the Ludlam Beach Lighthouse, was unsuccessful in its efforts to raise enough money to save the building from demolition by moving it to a new location and restoring it. It was demolished on September 21, 2010, to make way for new town homes. The

oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk cargo, bulk transport of petroleum, oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quant ...

MV ''Sea Isle City'' was renamed for this city when it was reflagged and registered in the United States in 1987 during

Operation Earnest Will Operation Earnest Will (24 July 1987 – 26 September 1988) was an American military protection of Kuwaiti-owned tankers from Iranian attacks in 1987 and 1988, three years into the Tanker War phase of the Iran–Iraq War. It was the largest na ...

. It was struck by a

Silkworm missile The SY (), and HY () series were early anti-ship missile, anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCM) developed by the People's Republic of China from the Soviet Union, Soviet P-15 Termit missile. They entered service in the late 1960s and remained the main ...

off

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

on October 16, 1987, wounding 18 crew members and seriously damaging the ship.

Coastal storms

There have been many hurricanes and huge storms that have hit the small island of Sea Isle City, New Jersey. The storms of the 1890s, 1920s, and the 1944 Great Atlantic Hurricane have been some of the worst natural disasters to hit the coast of New Jersey. The

Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 The Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 occurred on March 5–9, 1962 along the Atlantic Ocean, mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. Also known as the Great March Storm of 1962, it was considered by the U.S. Geological Survey to be one of the most des ...

, a major

Nor'easter A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below) is a large-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. Typically, such storms originate as a low ...

that hit on March 6, 1962, tops all other storms that have hit the area in the recent past, with three days of continuous rain. Many people evacuated in time to save their lives, but came back to find their homes and assets destroyed. Eventually, the only way out of town was the causeway, and when that flooded, rescuers had to use helicopters to evacuate the rest of the town. It was categorized as a "100-year storm," in which almost every beachfront home or property was destroyed or damaged. About a week later when the storm had subsided, Sea Isle City citizens moved back into their homes and began the needed revisions. As a result of the storm, a "dune line" was formed, and this caused beachfront businesses and homes to move back from the shoreline an average of one block.

Tourism

Sea Isle City has long been popular with summer visitors. In 2002, the printed message on its signature water tower was changed from "Welcome to Sea Isle City" to "Smile! You're in Sea Isle City". The word "City" was later removed from the message in 2018. The "Sara the Turtle Festival" is one of the city's annual festivals, celebrating a

fictional Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

turtle named Sara. Aimed towards families with young children, the festival features live animal exhibits and face painting meant to educate children about the local environment. The city hosts a

Polar bear plunge A polar bear plunge is an event held during the winter where participants enter a body of water despite the low temperature. In the United States, polar bear plunges are usually held to raise money for a charitable organization. In Canada, pol ...

every February, holding the 25th annual event in 2019, featuring many participants dressed in costume. In 1999, the city's only amusement park, Fun City, was closed and the land was sold for development of beach homes. In 2009, a new amusement park called Gillian's Funland was opened on JFK Boulevard by the bay as a public-private venture between Sea Isle City and neighboring Ocean City mayor Jay Gillian. Funland was permanently removed, however, following the 2013 summer season for financial reasons in part due to losses from

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...

. In 2011, Sea Isle City began a $14 million makeover to create a public corridor from the bay to the ocean. Plans included a new boathouse on the marina, installing a new playground and basketball courts on JFK Boulevard and erecting a pavilion and band shell at Excursion Park on the city's Promenade overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Sea Isle City became one of the first municipalities in New Jersey, along with

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada * Salem, Ontario, various places Germany * Salem, Baden-Württemberg, a municipality in the Bodensee district ** Salem Abbey (Reichskloster Salem), a monastery * Salem, Schleswig-Holstein Israel * Salem (B ...

and

Egg Harbor City Egg Harbor City is a city in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The city, and all of Atlantic County, is part of the Atlantic City- Hammonton metropolitan statistical area, which in turn is included in the Philadelphia-Reading- ...

, to implement LED streetlights powered solely by wind and solar energy. The lights were installed at the Promenade at JFK Boulevard by the South Jersey Economic Development District and the

New Jersey Institute of Technology New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) is a Public university, public research university in Newark, New Jersey, United States, with a graduate-degree-granting satellite campus in Jersey City. Founded in 1881 with the support of local indust ...

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city had a total area of 2.75 square miles (7.13 km²), including 2.20 square miles (5.71 km²) of land and 0.55 square miles (1.42 km²) of water (19.93%). Sea Isle City is a beach town with most of its housing used for vacation rentals and second homes. It has a beachfront promenade starting at 29th Street and ending on 57th street and several arcades, shops, restaurants and bars in the center of town. The epicenter of the town is John F. Kennedy Blvd. (41st Street). Sea Isle is not an "island city" as it shares its land on

with Strathmere, which is part of Upper Township. Neighboring Ocean City, however, is an island city as it includes the entire island.

Unincorporated communities An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

, localities and place names located partially or completely within the city include Ludlam Beach and Townsends Inlet (located at the south end of Ludlam Island). Sea Isle City borders Avalon Borough, Dennis Township, Middle Township and Upper Township, along with the

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 2,114 people, 1,041 households, and 646 families in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 6,900 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 98.63% (2,085)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.09% (2) Black or African American, 0.24% (5)

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

, 0.19% (4) Asian, 0.00% (0)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.47% (10) from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), ...

, and 0.38% (8) from two or more races.

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While many use the terms interchangeably, for example, the United States Census Bureau ...

of any race were 2.41% (51) of the population. Of the 1,041 households, 9.8% had children under the age of 18; 50.0% were married couples living together; 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present and 37.9% were non-families. Of all households, 34.1% were made up of individuals and 16.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.54. 10.7% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 13.2% from 25 to 44, 37.6% from 45 to 64, and 32.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 58.1 years. For every 100 females, the population had 97.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 97.4 males. The Census Bureau's 2006–2010

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

showed that (in 2010

inflation-adjusted In economics, nominal value refers to value measured in terms of absolute money amounts, whereas real value is considered and measured against the actual goods or services for which it can be exchanged at a given time. Real value takes into acco ...

dollars)

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $54,715 (with a margin of error of +/– $9,859) and the median family income was $80,219 (+/– $21,265). Males had a median income of $66,771 (+/– $34,710) versus $44,087 (+/– $6,534) for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the borough was $47,174 (+/– $10,684). About 3.1% of families and 7.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including none of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census there were 2,835 people, 1,370 households, and 794 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 6,622 housing units at an average density of 1, 162.2/km² (3,006.9/sq mi). The racial makeup of the city was 97.88%

, 0.28%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.39%

, 0.35% Asian, 0.04%

, 0.07% from

, and 0.99% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.06% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Sea Isle City city, New Jersey

. Accessed October 17, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Sea Isle City city, Cape May County, New Jersey
,

. Accessed October 17, 2012. As of the 2000 Census, 30.5% of Sea Isle City residents were of Irish ancestry, the 34th-highest percentage of any municipality in the United States, and sixth-highest in New Jersey, among all places with more than 1,000 residents identifying their ancestry. There were 1,370 households, out of which 15.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.0% were non-families. 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.07 and the average family size was 2.71. In the city, the population was spread out, with 15.7% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 20.8% from 25 to 44, 31.4% from 45 to 64, and 27.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 51 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males. The median income for a household in the city was $45,708, and the median income for a family was $62,847. Males had a median income of $42,713 versus $31,375 for females. The

for the city was $28,754. About 6.4% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the

, including 13.7% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

Since July 1, 2007, Sea Isle City has been governed within the

Faulkner Act The Optional Municipal Charter Law or Faulkner Act (, et seq.) provides New Jersey municipalities with a variety of models of local government. This legislation is called the Faulkner Act in honor of the late Bayard H. Faulkner, former mayor ...

, formally known as the Optional Municipal Charter Law, under the Mayor-Council form of government. The city is one of 71 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form of government. The governing body is comprised of the Mayor and the five-member City Council. The mayor and council members serve four-year terms of office and are chosen

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...

on a

non-partisan Nonpartisanship, also known as nonpartisanism, is a lack of affiliation with a political party and a lack of political bias. While an ''Oxford English Dictionary'' definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., ...

basis as part of the May municipal elections. Either three council seats or two council seats and the mayoral seat are up for election in odd-numbered years.''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'',

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy The Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy of Rutgers University (The Bloustein School) serves as a center for the theory and practice of urban planning, public policy and public health/health administration scholarship. The sc ...

, March 2013, p. 8. Prior to 2007, Sea Isle City had been governed under the

Walsh Act The Walsh Act is a piece of legislation in the U.S. state of New Jersey that permits municipalities to adopt a non-partisan commission form of government. The legislation was signed by Governor of New Jersey Woodrow Wilson on April 25, 1911. The ...

form of New Jersey municipal government, by a three-member commission, starting in 1913. , the Mayor of Sea Isle City is Leonard C. Desiderio, whose term of office ends on June 30, 2023.Office of the Mayor
Sea Isle City. Accessed July 17, 2023. Members of the City Council are Council President Mary L. Tighe (2025), Frank P. Edwardi Jr. (2027), J. B. Feeley (2025), Jack C. Gibson (2025) and William J. Kehner Sr. (2027).City Council
Sea Isle City. Accessed July 17, 2023.2023 County & Municipal Elected Officials Cape May County, NJ -- July 2023

Cape May County, New Jersey Cape May County is the southernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Much of the county is located on the Cape May peninsula, bound by the Delaware Bay to its west and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and east. ...

, August 3, 2023. Accessed August 23, 2023.Cape May County Statement of Vote 2023 Cape May County Municipal Election

, updated May 17, 2023. Accessed Jul 17, 2023.Statement of Vote 2021 Cape May County Municipal Election

, updated May 18, 2021. Accessed April 28, 2022.

Federal, state and county representation

Sea Isle City is located in the 2nd Congressional DistrictPlan Components Report

New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington ...

, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020. and is part of New Jersey's 1st state legislative district.Municipalities Sorted by 2011-2020 Legislative District

New Jersey Department of State The secretary of state of New Jersey oversees the Department of State, which is one of the original state offices. The Secretary is responsible for overseeing New Jersey State Council on the Arts, artistic, cultural, and New Jersey Historical Com ...

. Accessed February 1, 2020.''2019 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government''
New Jersey

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

. Accessed October 30, 2019.

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 2,060 registered voters in Sea Isle City, of which 340 (16.5%) were registered as Democrats, 1,090 (52.9%) were registered as

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

and 629 (30.5%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There was one voter registered to another party. In the

2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...

, Republican

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Utah from 2019 to 2025 and as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 ...

received 60.4% of the vote (916 cast), ahead of Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

with 38.7% (587 votes), and other candidates with 0.9% (13 votes), among the 1,532 ballots cast by the city's 2,082 registered voters (16 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 73.6%. In the 2008 presidential election, Republican

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...

received 58.6% of the vote (977 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama, who received 40.1% (669 votes), with 1,668 ballots cast among the city's 2,041 registered voters, for a turnout of 81.7%. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

received 61.7% of the vote (1,041 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

, who received 37.0% (625 votes), with 1,687 ballots cast among the city's 2,177 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 77.5. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...

received 81.2% of the vote (936 cast), ahead of Democrat

Barbara Buono Barbara A. Buono (born July 28, 1953) is an American politician who served in the New Jersey Senate from 2002 to 2014, where she represented the 18th Legislative District. She served from 2010 to 2012 as the Majority Leader in the Senate, succ ...

with 17.9% (206 votes), and other candidates with 1.0% (11 votes), among the 1,172 ballots cast by the city's 2,033 registered voters (19 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 57.6%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 59.6% of the vote (753 ballots cast), ahead of both Democrat

Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006, and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran f ...

with 32.4% (409 votes) and Independent

Chris Daggett Christopher Jarvis Daggett (born March 7, 1950) is an American businessman who is the president and CEO of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, one of the largest foundations in New Jersey. A former regional administrator of the United States En ...

with 4.6% (58 votes), with 1,264 ballots cast among the city's 2,094 registered voters, yielding a 60.4% turnout.

Education

Cape May County Library Sea Isle City Branch

Resident public school students had been served by a school operated by the Sea Isle City School District until the end of the 2012 school year. Merger discussions with the

Ocean City School District The Ocean City School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Ocean City, in Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2022–23 school ...

in 2008 ended after the Ocean City district indicated that it did not want to accept Sea Isle City's tenured teachers, which it would be required to do under state law. Sea Isle City had been spending as much as $35,000 per student and hoped to see savings through the merger, even after adding in transportation costs. The Sea Isle City district graduated its last eighth-grade class in June 2009 and with the 2010–2011 school year, students from Sea Isle City started attending the Ocean City schools starting in fifth grade. As of June 30, 2012, Sea Isle City School District no longer operates any schools, in the face of an order by the commissioner of the

New Jersey Department of Education The New Jersey Department of Education (NJ DOE) administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered ...

that was based on declining enrollment and budgetary issues. In March 2023, the Sea Isle City Public School was demolished to clear ground for a planned $20 million community center due to be completed in 2025. All Sea Isle City students in public school for

pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...

through

twelfth grade Twelfth Grade (also known as Grade 12, Senior Year, Standard 12, 12th Standard, 12th Class, or Class 12th or Class 12) is the twelfth and final Educational stage, year of Formal education, formal or compulsory education. It is typically the final ...

are served by the

. As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 2,056 students and 220.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

student–teacher ratio The student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio refers to the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers or staff in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that ...

of 9.3:1.District information for Ocean City School District

National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the principal federal agency responsible for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data on education in the United States. Established under , it operates within the Institute of Education S ...

. Accessed February 15, 2022. Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the

) are Ocean City Primary School with 299 students in grades PreK-3, Ocean City Intermediate School with 468 students in grades 4-8 and

Ocean City High School Ocean City High School (OCHS) is a four-year comprehensive high school, comprehensive state school, public Secondary education in the United States, high school located in Ocean City, New Jersey, Ocean City, in Cape May County, New Jersey, Cap ...

with 1,274 students in grades 9–12. Students from Corbin City, Longport and Upper Township attend Ocean City High School for

ninth In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second. Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...

through

s as part of

sending/receiving relationship A sending/receiving relationship is one in which a public school district sends some or all of its students to attend the schools of another district. This is often done to achieve costs savings in smaller districts or continues after districts hav ...

s with their respective school districts. Students are also eligible to attend

Cape May County Technical High School Cape May County Technical High School, located in Middle Township, which provides vocational and technical education to students in ninth through twelfth grades from Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as part of the Cap ...

in the Cape May Court House area, which serves students from the entire county in its comprehensive and vocational programs, which are offered without charge to students who are county residents. Special needs students may be referred to

Cape May County Special Services School District The Cape May County Special Services School District (CMCSSSD) is a special education public school district headquartered in Middle Township, in Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The district's schools offer educational and the ...

in the Cape May Court House area. The

Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden The Diocese of Camden () is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It consists of 62 parishes and about 475,000 Catholics in the South Jersey counties of Atlantic, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, ...

operates Bishop McHugh Regional School, a Catholic K–8 school, in the Ocean View area, Dennis Township, which has a Cape May Courthouse postal address. It is the parish school of Sea Isle City Catholic Church and three other churches. Cape May County Library operates Sea Isle City Branch Library.

Transportation

Roads and highways

The city had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality and by Cape May County. Exit 17 on the southbound

Garden State Parkway The Garden State Parkway (GSP) is a Controlled-access highway, controlled-access toll road that stretches the north–south length of eastern New Jersey from the state's southernmost tip near Cape May, New Jersey, Cape May north to the New York ...

in Dennis Township provides access to Sea Isle City via Sea Isle Boulevard ( County Route 625), which becomes JFK Boulevard. Landis Boulevard ( County Route 619) follows the ocean and forms part of Ocean Drive, traversing across the city, from the Strathmere section of Upper Township in the north to

Avalon Avalon () is an island featured in the Arthurian legend. It first appeared in Geoffrey of Monmouth's 1136 ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' as a place of magic where King Arthur's sword Excalibur was made and later where Arthur was taken to recove ...

in the south. Turtle awareness is an important aspect in Sea Isle City. There are numerous signs in the city to watch for turtle crossings in order to prevent further endangerment of the species. One of the more common species of turtles located on the island is the

diamondback terrapin The diamondback terrapin or simply terrapin (''Malaclemys terrapin'') is a species of terrapin native to the Brackish water, brackish coastal tidal marshes of the East Coast of the United States and the Gulf of Mexico coast, as well as in Bermuda ...

. Due to coastal development, natural turtle nesting areas have deteriorated, leading the turtles to create their nesting areas on highway embankments and increased risk of being struck by a motor vehicle. From 1989 to 1995, a total of 4,020 turtles were killed in Cape May Peninsula.

Public transportation

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. I ...

offers the

315 __NOTOC__ Year 315 (Roman numerals, CCCXV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known in Rome as the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinianus (or, less frequently, year 1068 ''Ab urbe c ...

inter-city bus route that runs through the town three times a day and shuttles people to and from

, and the

319 __NOTOC__ Year 319 ( CCCXIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantinus and Licinius (or, less frequently, year 1072 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denominat ...

route to the

Port Authority Bus Terminal The Port Authority Bus Terminal (colloquially known as the Port Authority and by its acronym PABT) is a bus station, bus terminal located in Manhattan in New York City. It is the busiest bus terminal in the world by volume of traffic, serving ab ...

Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan, serving as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Building, the ...

. However, due to weight restrictions on the Townsend Inlet Bridge, New Jersey Transit 315/319 bus service only stops on Central Avenue and JFK Boulevard. Service was previously suspended due to summer traffic until a deal has been reached. Sea Isle City used to have a trackless trolley service that operated along Landis Avenue. Since 2013, Atlantic City Jitney has served Sea Isle City with a route running along Landis Avenue from June through September. Rail service was provided to the island by both the

Atlantic City Railroad The Atlantic City Railroad was a Philadelphia and Reading Railway subsidiary that became part of Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines in 1933. At the end of 1925, it operated of road on of track; that year it reported 43 million ton-miles of ...

, a subsidiary of the

Philadelphia and Reading Railway The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered rail transport, railroad that provided passenger and freight transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states from 1924 until its acquisition by Conrail in 1976. Commonly called th ...

, and the

West Jersey and Seashore Railroad The West Jersey and Seashore Railroad (WJ&S) was a railway company in the U.S. state of New Jersey with a connection to Philadelphia. It was formed through the merger of several smaller roads in May 1896. At the end of 1925 it operated of road ...

, owned by the rival

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...

. The Atlantic City Railroad's line was a continuation of its line to Ocean City, running across Corson's Inlet and through Strathmere. The West Jersey and Seashore Railroad tracks branched from the Cape May Line at Sea Isle Junction, and entered the city at 41st Street, from where it continued south to

Stone Harbor Stone Harbor is a borough in Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The borough, and all of Cape May County, is part of the South Jersey region of the state and of the Ocean City metropolitan statistical area, which is part of the ...

. The train was in use from the early 1900s until the mid-1930s after the merger of the two railroads when the tracks were removed and the streets were paved due to increased use of cars.

Climate

According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Sea Isle City has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(''Cfa'') with hot, moderately humid summers, cool winters and year-around precipitation. Cfa climates are characterized by all months having an average mean temperature above , at least four months with an average mean temperature at or above , at least one month with an average mean temperature at or above and no significant precipitation difference between seasons. During the summer months in Sea Isle City, a cooling afternoon

sea breeze A sea breeze or onshore breeze is a wind that blows in the afternoon from a large body of water toward or onto a landmass. By contrast, a land breeze or offshore breeze is a wind that blows in the night from a landmass toward or onto a large ...

is present on most days, but episodes of extreme heat and humidity can occur with

heat index The heat index (HI) is an index that combines air temperature and relative humidity, in shade (shadow), shaded areas, to posit a human-perceived equivalent temperature, as how hot it would feel if the humidity were some other value in the Shade (s ...

values at or above . During the winter months, episodes of extreme cold and wind can occur with

wind chill Wind chill (popularly wind chill factor) is the sensation of cold produced by the wind for a given ambient air temperature on exposed skin as the air motion accelerates the rate of heat transfer from the body to the surrounding atmosphere. Its va ...

values below . The

plant hardiness zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most widely ...

at Sea Isle City Beach is 7b with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of . The average seasonal (November–April) snowfall total is , and the average snowiest month is February which corresponds with the annual peak in

nor'easter A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below) is a large-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. Typically, such storms originate as a low ...

activity.

Ecology

According to the

A. W. Kuchler August William Kuchler (born ''August Wilhelm Küchler''; 26 July 1907 – 17 June 1999) was a German-born American geographer and naturalist who is noted for developing a plant association system that has become widely used in the United Sta ...

U.S.

potential natural vegetation In ecology, potential natural vegetation (PNV), also known as Kuchler potential vegetation, is the vegetation that would be expected given environmental constraints (climate, geomorphology, geology) without human intervention or a hazard event ...

types, Sea Isle City would have a dominant vegetation type of Northern

Cordgrass ''Spartina'' is a genus of plants in the grass family, frequently found in coastal salt marshes. Species in this genus are commonly known as cordgrass or cord-grass, and are native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean in western and southern Eu ...

(''73'') with a dominant vegetation form of

Coastal A coast (coastline, shoreline, seashore) is the land next to the sea or the line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. Coasts are influenced by the topography of the surrounding landscape and by aquatic erosion, su ...

Prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

(''20'').U.S. Potential Natural Vegetation, Original Kuchler Types, v2.0 (Spatially Adjusted to Correct Geometric Distortions)
Data Basin. Accessed March 18, 2020.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Sea Isle City include: * Richard M. Atwater (1844–1922), chemist and glassmaker, who served as mayor of Sea Isle City from 1913 to 1917 *

Angelo Cataldi Angelo Anthony Cataldi Jr. (born March 13, 1951) is an American retired sports radio personality for 94.1 WIP in Philadelphia. Cataldi began his career as a sports journalist for ''The Philadelphia Inquirer''. From 1989 until 2023 he hosted The W ...

(born 1951) is a

sports radio Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sport, sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often-low comed ...

personality for

94.1 WIP WIP-FM (94.1 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by Audacy, Inc. and broadcasts a sports radio format. The WIP-FM offices and studios are co-located in Audacy's corporate headq ...

Jeff Carter Jeffrey J. Carter (born January 1, 1985) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played 19 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets, Los Angeles Kings, and Pittsburgh Penguin ...

(born 1985), professional hockey player for the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

Steve Corino Steven Eugene Corino (born May 29, 1973) is a Canadian professional wrestling trainer and former professional wrestler. , he works for the American professional wrestling promotion WWE as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center and as a produ ...

(born 1973), professional wrestler who works for

Ring of Honor Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011; the promotion was subs ...

Alexis Dziena Alexis Dziena is an American actress. Early life Dziena grew up in New York City and is of Irish, Italian and Polish descent. Career Television Dziena made her acting debut in TNT's '' Witchblade'' (2002). Guest roles followed in other ...

(born 1984), actress *

Joe Flacco Joseph Vincent Flacco (born January 16, 1985) is an American professional football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers and the Delaware Fightin' Blue ...

(born 1985), quarterback for the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

Charles Lewis Fussell Charles Lewis Fussell (1840–1909) was an American landscape painter in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Fussell lived near Philadelphia for most of his life and studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts with his close friend, ...

(1840–1909), landscape artist *

Chris Gheysens Chris Gheysens (born March 31, 1971) is an American businessman who serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Wawa Inc., a privately held chain of convenience store and gas stations with over 1000 locations along the East Coast of t ...

(born ), president and chief executive officer of Wawa Inc. * John C. Gibson (born 1934), former member of the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

* Ann J. Land (–2010), member of the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council is the legislative body of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is composed of 17 councilmembers: ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large from throughou ...

from 1980 to 1992 *

(1833–1900), property developer in South Jersey, who was the founder and developer of

Vineland ''Vineland'' is a 1990 novel by Thomas Pynchon, a postmodern fiction set in California, United States in 1984, the year of Ronald Reagan's reelection.Knabb 2002 Through flashbacks by its characters, who have lived during the '60s in their youth ...

and Sea Isle City *

Josh Mathews Joshua Matthew Lomberger (born November 25, 1980), better known by the ring name Josh Mathews, is an American professional wrestling producer, former play by play commentator, and former professional wrestler. He is signed to All Elite Wrestlin ...

(born 1980), play-by-play commentator with

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

and later,

Impact Wrestling Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (abbreviated as TNA Wrestling or TNA) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment, a Canadian media company owned by busine ...

* John Stevens (born 1966), former defenseman who has coached in the NHL at various levelsServalli, Frank
"Kings' Stevens enjoys reunion"
''

The Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...

'', December 31, 2010. Accessed October 23, 2011. "Sometime after watching the team he coached earlier in the year lose in the Stanley Cup finals last June, John Stevens was relaxing at his shore house in Sea Isle City when he received a call.... From a father's perspective, Los Angeles is 2,873 miles from his home base in Washington Township, N.J. For a tight-knit family man like Stevens, 44, who would be forced to leave his wife Stacy and hockey-loving sons John and Nolan behind, the decision wasn't an easy one." *

Jason Kelce Jason Daniel Kelce ( ; born November 5, 1987) is an American former professional football center who spent his entire 13-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). Kelce played college football for the Cinci ...

center for the Philadelphia Eagles, Super Bowl champion, fan favorite and philanthropist.

References

External links

Sea Isle City web site

Sea Isle City Beach Patrol

Sea Isle City Tourism Commission

Sea Isle City Chamber of Commerce

The Upper Township Gazette serving Sea Isle
Local community newspaper {{Authority control 1882 establishments in New Jersey Cities in New Jersey Cities in Cape May County, New Jersey Faulkner Act (mayor–council) Jersey Shore communities in Cape May County Populated places established in 1882