Lavallette's Boardwalk Gets New Boards This Winter, Starting at Dover Avenue

Lavallette's boardwalk is scheduled to start getting new decking this month. The first section is at the south end, where the walk begins at Dover Avenue, and the work runs north from there. No outside contractor is doing the job. The borough bought the lumber, and its own Public Works employees will pull up the old boards and lay the new ones.

That choice explains nearly everything about how the boardwalk will change over the next few years. A town crew working through a lumber order goes a few blocks at a time. It works in the off-season, and how far it gets each year depends on what the council budgets. The boardwalk will be replaced in yearly installments, and this winter's installment covers the blocks closest to Dover Avenue.

What the First Phase Covers

In September the borough council approved a $47,645 contract with 84 Lumber of Lakewood to supply the wood, Shorebeat reported. The resolution was on the council's September 8 agenda. According to the borough's Boardwalk Replacement page, the first phase "will begin on Dover Ave and go as far north as the current lumber allows, somewhere around Elizabeth Ave is the current estimate." Shorebeat put the reach of this year's wood somewhere between Elizabeth and Jersey City avenues.

Here is the job in numbers:

At a day or two per block, a four-block phase takes roughly a week of good weather. That keeps the disruption on any one stretch short. Councilwoman Joanne Filippone told Shorebeat that the schedule would be announced on the borough's website and that residents should also watch the progress in person. The next council meeting is November 16.

The new boards are a step up from what went down after Superstorm Sandy. Filippone said the grade of lumber bought this time is an upgrade over the decking laid when parts of the boardwalk had to be replaced after the storm. She added that the main benefit is a better surface for walking and bicycling.

Why It Goes Four Blocks at a Time

The pace comes down to budget. "The plan is for us to do three to five boards per year," Filippone told Shorebeat, meaning blocks. "It's all dictated by money – if we get more, we'll do more."

This year the money went to water. "With a $6 million well we were paying for this year, we couldn't also have a $2 million boardwalk project," she said. Compare that $2 million figure with this fall's lumber order of under $48,000. The first phase is a small down payment on a much larger job. The borough's plan states that "Larger sections may be added in following years as budgeting allows."

The council is considering a larger replacement as a capital project in next year's budget. Filippone told Shorebeat, "Next year we may be able to do more because we'll budget for it." The price of wood could push either way. Shorebeat noted that lumber costs have risen in recent years and could climb further if a trade war with Canada escalates.

For anyone who walks the boardwalk daily, the practical result is that it will be a patchwork for a while. New decking will start at Dover Avenue and work north, and the older boards beyond the latest phase will stay in place until the budget reaches them.

The Inscribed Boards Come Up First on the South End

Over the years the borough has sold boards inscribed with personal dedications, and these are the part of the project with the most personal stakes. Because the work moves north from Dover Avenue, people whose boards sit on the first few blocks are the first who will have one to collect.

Crews will cut the boards in two pieces. "The plan would be to cut off all the inscriptions – the first two feet separately – and then go get the rest of the board," Filippone told Shorebeat. "If they take the whole board at one time, they think there will probably be more damage to the board. There's no guarantee – if it breaks it breaks – but anything salvageable they will keep."

Here is what to know about getting one back:

1. Salvageable inscribed boards will be kept at the Lavallette Public Works garage for owners to pick up.
2. The borough says it will make every effort to remove them without damage but cannot guarantee it.
3. Filippone estimated the boards would be held for about a year.
4. The work schedule will be posted on lavallette.org, and that page is the place to check when your block is due.

A one-year window at a few blocks per year means owners of boards farther north may wait several seasons before theirs comes up. Owners near Dover Avenue need to act this winter.

The Work Shares the Season With a Full December

The boardwalk crews are working during the busiest stretch of the off-season calendar. The borough's 2026 Fall/Winter events flyer and the Lavallette Business Association list these dates:

The tree lighting is the centerpiece. The LBA's event page lists festivities from 6 p.m. at Borough Hall, with Santa, hot cocoa and Mueller's sugar cookies. The borough flyer has caroling starting at 7 p.m., with Santa and refreshments afterward courtesy of the Lavallette Business Association and the Lavallette PBA. Hometown Christmas Weekend opens at 11 a.m. on December 4, according to Ocean County Tourism.

The NYC bus trip costs $30 per person. It drops passengers near Duffy Square and Rockefeller Center and leaves the city at 7 p.m. Reservations go through Jim at 732-330-4559, and the flyer warns that tickets go fast. At The Crab's Claw Inn, the December 13 party includes ugly-sweater prizes, complimentary pass-around food, happy hour, giveaways and entertainment by Bob O'Connell.

Two quieter items are on the borough calendar too. Dune grass will be available for pickup in November, and the borough will post the date on its website. Recreation aerobics classes run Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8:30 a.m. at the Magee Avenue bayfront basketball courts, weather permitting, and move to Union Church in bad weather. Classes are $5 per person.

Coffee and Dinner After a Walk to Dover Avenue

Anyone heading to the south end to check on the new decking will find a short list of places with posted off-season hours along Grand Central Avenue.

• Lava Java lists fall hours of 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Monday and Thursday through Sunday. It is closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Lenny's Pizza & Italian Grill at 406 Grand Central Avenue lists hours of 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. In December 2025, Shorebeat reported that the borough had approved the owners' plan to turn the former Rite Aid building into a larger second location.
• The Crab's Claw Inn serves food from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
• La Costa at 1404 Grand Central Avenue opened in April 2026 on the same avenue as Borough Hall.
• Colonial Bakery has finished its season, and its website says "See you May 2027!"

Colonial Bakery is due back in May 2027, and next year's capital budget will decide how far north the following phase of new decking reaches.

At Critelli Realtors®, we follow Lavallette's boardwalk work block by block, from the Dover Avenue start through each year's budget decision. If you'd like to know how borough projects like this one affect a home you own on the island, or one you're thinking about, schedule a free consultation with our team.