Asbury Park is a city in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, on the Jersey Shore and part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2000 United States Census, the city population was 17,930. Asbury Park was originally incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 26, 1874, from portions of Ocean Township. The borough was reincorporated on February 28, 1893. Asbury Park was incorporated as a city, its current type of government, as of March 25, 1897. The city is widely known for its rich musical history. It was ranked the sixth best beach in New Jersey in the 2008 Top 10 Beaches Contest sponsored by the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium.