Seaside Park May Vote to Allow Mailboxes in ‘The Verge’

Mailbox on a pole mount. (Credit: r.nial.bradshaw/ Flickr Creative Commons)

Mailbox placement is rarely the subject of discussions at borough council meetings, but as construction styles evolve at the Jersey Shore, the topic has come to light in Seaside Park.

When many Shore communities were first being developed more than a half-century ago, sidewalks, paved driveways and improved rights-of-way were – at most – afterthoughts. As such, mailboxes were generally attached to the home, set back from the street, and mail carriers walked from house-to-house to make their deliveries. Modern construction has placed a larger emphasis on sidewalks and, in many cases, homes are built with formal curb cuts for driveways and areas of grass or stone in “the verge,” the formal name for the right-of-way in between the sidewalk and the curb.

In Seaside Park, some modern homes have been built with mailboxes placed in the verge on a pole mount – standard in 2025, but once reserved for sprawling suburban communities where it was impractical for mail carriers to deliver on foot. Seaside Park’s borough code does not ban the placement of mailboxes in the verge, but, rather, is silent on the matter altogether. After reviewing the matter, borough officials are seeking to add an allowance for mailboxes to be placed there, with guidance on how they should be located.

---

Get Daily Island News Updates Your email address:* Please enter all required fields Correct invalid entries

“I know this issue has come up in several different contexts recently,” said Mayor John Peterson, adding that there are between 14 and 16 such mailbox placements in the borough.

Borough council members said there does not appear to be any significant issues to permitting mailboxes in the verge, but that they must take into account the movement of vehicles.

“We didn’t feel that there was any detriment to allow mailboxes between the sidewalk and the verge,” said Councilman William Kraft. “It just can’t impede egress by car, so we may want to add minimal language reflecting that.”

Kraft said the borough attorney will develop a draft ordinance that would require mailboxes to meet U.S. Postal Service standards, avoid conflicts with vehicles and provide guidance to home builders. The borough does, already, permit trees in the verge, and would likely follow similar guidance for mailboxes.

“We might want to add in that it should be located near the driveway and a depressed curb so the mail carrier can get to it, even if there is a parked vehicle around,” Kraft added. “I think that would make it easier for the mail people.”

One resident who spoke said cars, in the summer, are often parked nearly to the edge of driveways, which could make pole-mounted mailboxes more difficult for carriers to reach. But so far, officials said, there have been no complaints about those that already exist.

The council will likely consider the matter at an upcoming meeting once the ordinance text is drafted.