Manahawkin Bay Bridge

Ship Bottom is a borough situated on the Jersey Shore, within Ocean County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 1,098, a decrease of 58 (−5.0%) from the 2010 census count of 1,156, which in turn had reflected a decline of 228 (−16.5%) from the 1,384 counted in the 2000 census. The borough is located on Long Beach Island and borders the Atlantic Ocean. The summer population can climb as high as 20,000.The borough's name was derived from a March 1817 incident in which a woman was saved from a wrecked ship that had capsized as her rescuers used axes to cut through the bottom of the hull.What is now Ship Bottom was originally incorporated as the borough of Ship Bottom-Beach Arlington by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 3, 1925, from portions of Long Beach Township, based on the results of a referendum held on May 23, 1925. The borough name was shortened to Ship Bottom in 1947.The borough is known as the "Gateway to Long Beach Island", as Route 72 provides the sole road access from Manahawkin in Stafford Township, ending in Ship Bottom as it crosses Manahawkin Bay via the Manahawkin Bay Bridge (formally known as the Dorland J. Henderson Memorial Bridge).

The Long Beach Island Consolidated School District is a regional consolidated public school district which serves students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade from five communities bordering the Atlantic Ocean on Long Beach Island, in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Communities served by the district are Barnegat Light, Harvey Cedars, Long Beach Township, Ship Bottom and Surf City.As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of two schools, had an enrollment of 215 students and 30.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 7.0:1.The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "FG", the fourth-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.As part of an effort to reduce costs associated with multiple aging facilities, the district announced in 2016 that it was considering closing the Long Beach Island Grade School and consolidating all students at Ethel A. Jacobsen Elementary School. The plan would require a $16 million bond to cover the costs of expanding and upgrading Jacobsen School to add two new wings, which would add about $50 per year in property taxes for the average homeowner, excluding any contribution from state aid or revenue from the sale of the old building.Students in public school for seventh through twelfth grades attend the Southern Regional School District, which serves the five municipalities in the Long Beach Island Consolidated School District, along with students from Beach Haven and Stafford Township, as well as students from Ocean Township (including its Waretown section) who attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship. Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Southern Regional Middle School with 902 students in grades 7–8 and Southern Regional High School with 1,975 students in grades 9–12. Both schools are in the Manahawkin section of Stafford Township.

Long Beach Island (colloquially known as LBI, The LBI Region, or simply The Island) is a barrier island and summer colony along the Atlantic Ocean coast of Ocean County, New Jersey, United States, on the Jersey Shore. Aligned north to south, the northern portion generally has more expensive low-density housing, whereas the southern portion possesses higher-density housing and considerable commercial development. Long Beach Island is 1-2 miles away from Mainland New Jersey. The primary industries include tourism, fishing, and real estate. The only access point to the island by land is a single causeway. The island is home to about 10,000 people on a year-round basis. The population is distributed among six separate municipalities, the largest of which is Long Beach Township. However, the island's population swells significantly during the summer months and reaches about 100,000 people, including part-time residents and tourists, who are often referred to as "shoobies". The island's close-knit communities are largely affluent and contain vacation homes for wealthy individuals who reside elsewhere, primarily New Jersey as well as New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut.The island and its properties and economy are expected to be severely affected by sea level rise. By 2013, sea level had increased by six inches and is expected to rise at least another six inches by 2030. Most projections suggest over a meter of sea level rise by 2100 and would require significant climate change adaptation to survive, making both property protection and an engineered retreat economically unattractive.

Manahawkin Wildlife Management Area (Manahawkin Bottomland Hardwood Forest) is a 1,642-acre (664 ha) wildlife management area near Manahawkin, Stafford Township, Ocean County, New Jersey. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in January 1976. It is known for its mature bottomland hardwood forest which contains examples of American sweetgum, red maple and black gum trees.

Beach Haven West is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) constituting a part of the Jersey Shore community of Stafford Township, in southern Ocean County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the CDP's population was 4,143, an increase of 247 (+6.3%) from the 3,896 recorded at the 2010 census, which in turn had reflected a decrease of 548 (−12.3%) from the 4,444 counted in the 2000 census.

Surf City is a borough situated on the Jersey Shore in southern Ocean County, within the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 1,243, an increase of 38 (+3.2%) from the 2010 census count of 1,205, which in turn had reflected a decline of 237 (−16.4%) from the 1,442 counted in the 2000 census. The borough borders the Atlantic Ocean on Long Beach Island. What is now Surf City was originally formed as Long Beach City borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on September 19, 1894, from portions of Stafford Township, based on the results of a referendum held the previous day. The borough was renamed Surf City by a resolution of the Borough Council as of May 26, 1899. The name was changed to avoid confusion with other places on the island and along the Jersey Shore.

The Stafford Township School District is a community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade from Stafford Township, in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States.As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprising five schools, had an enrollment of 2,198 students and 190.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.6:1.The district participates in the Interdistrict Public School Choice Program, having been approved in July 2002 to participate in the program. Seats in the program for non-resident students are specified by the district and are allocated by lottery, with tuition paid for participating students by the New Jersey Department of Education.The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "DE", the fifth-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.For seventh through twelfth grades, public school students are served by the Southern Regional School District, which serves the five municipalities in the Long Beach Island Consolidated School District — Barnegat Light, Harvey Cedars, Long Beach Township, Ship Bottom and Surf City — along with students from Beach Haven and Stafford Township, together with students from Ocean Township who attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Ocean Township School District. Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Southern Regional Middle School with 934 students in grades 7–8 and Southern Regional High School with 1,952 students in grades 9–12. Both schools are in the Manahawkin section of Stafford Township. At the time of its founding in 1957, the Southern Regional School District had a roughly equal number of students from Long Beach Island and Stafford Township. By 2016, the overwhelming majority of students were from Stafford Township, accounting for nearly 90% of enrollment. These demographic changes have led to significant discrepancies in the cost per pupil sent to the district from each community, with Harvey Cedars and Long Beach Township paying more than $200,000 per pupil, while Stafford Township's costs are $3,600 for each student. These widely different costs result from a formula that uses the taxable property value in each municipality to apportion costs, which means that municipalities with relatively high property values and small numbers of students pay a higher share of total district costs. Some residents of Long Beach Island communities are seeking to amend the formula to take advantage of a 1993 law that allows districts to use both property value and enrollment to allocate property taxes, though that would require passage of referendums in each municipality.

Manahawkin Bay is a bay in the U.S. state of New Jersey in Ocean County, located between Long Beach Island and Manahawkin, on the mainland. It is a part of the Intracoastal Waterway.

The Stafford Township Arts Center is a theater located in the Manahawkin section of Stafford Township, New Jersey. The Stafford Township Board Of Education now programs and manages the Stafford Township Arts Center (STAC.) STAC has offered performances by legends such as Rita Moreno, Joy Behar, the Garden State Philharmonic, and Anthony Rapp. The Stafford Township Arts Center is no longer managed by the Education Foundation. The Arts Center is now operated by the Stafford Township School District Board of Education. The venue is managed by Marybeth Weidenhof (STBOE). The Current Technical Director on Staff is Taylor Brennan (STBOE). The Stafford Township Arts Center was formed to serve as a cultural center for the arts, and to act as a resource for children, adults and artists who seek to improve their lives thourhg arts education and programming. The Stafford Township Arts Center is both a live theater facility and a performing arts conservatory. As a live theater facility, the STAC provides opportunity for local artists as well as featuring top rate national acts.

Cedar Creek is an 18.9-mile-long (30.4 km) tributary of Barnegat Bay in Ocean County in the southern New Jersey Pine Barrens in the United States.

Manahawkin is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Stafford Township, in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the CDP's population was 2,413, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 110 (+4.8%) from the 2,303 recorded at the 2010 census, which in turn had reflected an increase of 299 (+14.9%) from the 2,004 counted at the 2000 census. Manahawkin has been thought to be a Lenape word meaning "land of good corn", although this has been disputed by recent scholars claiming that it translates to "fertile land sloping into the water."Manahawkin is the gateway to the resort communities on Long Beach Island, with Route 72 providing the sole road access, ending in Ship Bottom as it crosses Manahawkin Bay via the Manahawkin Bay Bridge (formally known as the Dorland J. Henderson Memorial Bridge).