Today in Eatontown
Applications for the October 28 Student Government Day, open to students in grades 6 to 12, are due at 5 p.m. today.
Applications for the full-time Public Works custodian job close at 11:59 p.m. tonight.
Eatontown Recreation's free Halloween Celebration for children ages 3 to 11 is Friday, October 16, at Meadowbrook School.
Cookies & Canvas, a free art session for Pre-K to 8th grade, is Sunday, October 18, at the Community Center.
Early in-person voting runs October 24 through November 1; the November 3 ballot includes Eatontown mayor and two council seats.
A free flu clinic and the county caregiver retreat are both in Eatontown on Saturday, October 24.
The Borough Council meets Wednesday, October 28, and property taxes are due Sunday, November 1.
NEW: newly reported developments or upcoming opportunities. UPDATE: later substantive information on a covered story. ONGOING: continuing useful information. RESOLVED: the reported issue has ended. BACKGROUND: dated historical context, not a new development or confirmation of current availability. UNCONFIRMED: a story, continuing story or detail that could not be confirmed against its cited source on the edition date; the note under the headline says what is not confirmed. Today and countdown lines carry "(unconfirmed)" for the same reason. All local times are Eastern Daylight Time.
Borough & Schools
NEW
Student Government Day applications are due at 5 p.m. today
Eatontown students in grades 6 through 12 have until 5 p.m. today, October 15, to apply for the borough's 2026 Student Government Day, according to the borough calendar.
The program is Wednesday, October 28, at 7 p.m. at Borough Hall, 47 Broad Street. Students will learn how Eatontown's local government operates, about careers in local government and about ways to get involved. Parents and guardians are welcome to attend. Questions go to Councilwoman Danielle M. Jones at djones@eatontownnj.com.
ONGOING
Community Center closes October 23; Medicare talk set for October 21
The Eatontown Community Center, which hosts the borough's active-adult programs, will be closed Friday, October 23, according to Eatontown Recreation. The adult-program schedule lists no bingo that day.
Before then, the center hosts a Medicare presentation by Brian Forsman on Wednesday, October 21, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Advance sign-up is required for all adult programs. Questions go to the Recreation office at 732-389-7607.
ONGOING
Borough Council meets October 28; November meetings fall on a Thursday and a Monday
The Eatontown Borough Council's next meeting is Wednesday, October 28, at Borough Hall, 47 Broad Street. Under the 2026 meeting schedule, a workshop meeting begins at 7 p.m. and the regular meeting follows at 7:30 p.m.
The two November meetings are off the usual Wednesday pattern: Thursday, November 12, and Monday, November 23, with the November 23 meeting set for 4:15 p.m., according to Resolution 12-2026.
ONGOING
Property taxes are due November 1
Eatontown's fourth-quarter property taxes are due Sunday, November 1. Payments received after the 10-day grace period are charged interest, at 8% on amounts up to $1,500 and 18% above that, according to the borough Tax Office.
The Tax Collector's office is at Borough Hall, 47 Broad Street, and can be reached at 732-720-2576. Bills can also be viewed and paid through the borough's online tax search system.
BACKGROUND
Meadowbrook School auxiliary parking lot has a right-turn-only exit
The auxiliary parking lot next to Meadowbrook School opened to families in September, Superintendent Scott McCue said in a September 21 letter. He credited a partnership between the Board of Education and the borough's mayor and council, and said a few steps remained before the project is finished.
Drivers enter through the existing entrance and leave through a new exit on the opposite side, where only right turns are allowed. Drivers are asked to follow the painted lines and use designated spaces. The lot has two accessible spaces, and traffic is monitored by security camera by school and police officials.
Community, Food & Recreation
NEW
Cookies & Canvas art session moves to Sunday, October 18
Eatontown Recreation's free Cookies & Canvas painting event, open to Eatontown children from Pre-K through 8th grade, is now set for Sunday, October 18, at the Community Center, 72 Broad Street. The listing marks it as a new date.
There are two one-hour sessions, at 10 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., each limited to 20 children. The 10 a.m. session is listed as full. Materials are provided, children must be accompanied by an adult and pre-registration is required.
Elections
NEW
Eatontown mayor and two council seats are on the November 3 ballot
Eatontown voters will choose a mayor and fill two Borough Council seats on November 3. Patch reported October 13 that Democratic Mayor Anthony Talerico is seeking re-election, with Councilwomen Danielle Jones and Candace Faust running for re-election alongside him. The Republican ticket is Councilwoman Maria Escalante for mayor, with former Councilman Kevin Gonzalez and first-time candidate Ali Mehdaoui for council.
The voter-registration deadline passed October 13. In-person early voting runs October 24 through November 1 at county-designated sites; Patch reported that none of Monmouth County's early-voting locations is in Eatontown. Voters who want a mail-in ballot sent to them must request it by October 27, and Election Day polls are open 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., according to the New Jersey Division of Elections.
AI in Your Community
BACKGROUND
Monmouth Regional handbook sets rules for classroom AI
Monmouth Regional's 2026-27 student handbook allows students to use AI, when teachers permit it, as an aid for brainstorming, clarifying concepts and improving understanding. Students are expected to cite AI-generated content and be open about using it, and teachers must clarify whether AI is barred on an assignment.
The handbook bars sharing confidential or personally identifiable information with AI tools and says AI detection results cannot be the sole basis for an academic-integrity finding. It directs the administration to inform families about AI use in the curriculum. It does not list specific AI products used in classrooms.
Still Developing
The latest confirmed movement, the open question and the next checkpoint.
OPENPolice plate-reader record does not identify the current vendor
The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Atlas of Surveillance lists an Eatontown Police automated license-plate-reader program, citing a New Jersey State Police audit released in July 2025. The inventory does not identify a vendor or establish current camera counts, retention or sharing settings. A borough policy, contract or accessible audit is still needed.
First covered October 1, 2026.
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