Given the current political circus big top, you may find it difficult to catch the stories that happen on the periphery, but there was some noise made lately about consolidating little New Jersey towns on barrier islands.

Assemblyman Reed Gusciora of Mercer County proposed bill A-2589, which would “consolidate Barnegat Light, Beach Haven, Harvey Cedars, Long Beach Township, Ship Bottom and Surf City into a single municipality – Long Beach Island Township – or, alternatively, would require shared…