Articles

National Authors To Give Local Talks Next Week

BERLIN -- The Assateague Coastkeeper and the Virginia Eastern Shorekeeper will be hosting an evening of lively discussion about agriculture and agri-business on the Eastern Shore, featuring a screening of the Oscar Nominated (and Emmy winning) documentary FOOD, INC followed by a discussion forum featuring David Kirby (Animal Factory) and Mark Winne (Food Rebels, Guerrilla Gardeners, and Smart Cookin' Mamas: Fighting Back in an Age of Industrial Agriculture and Closing the...READ MORE

Seacrets Alleges Trademark Infringement In Civil Suit

OCEAN CITY -- After years of claims, counterclaims and pre-trial motions, the multi-million dollar trademark infringement civil trial between a popular Ocean City nightclub complex and a corporation and its subsidiaries began in earnest this week. The suit involves O.C. Seacrets, the corporation that owns and operates the popular Seacrets nightclub and restaurant complex over the three-block section of the bayfront in Ocean City, and the Coryn Corporation and its subsidiaries, which has since...READ MORE

811 Bike Unveiled At OC Convention

OCEAN CITY – Stars of the popular Discovery Channel TV show, American Chopper, rolled into town with a newly built motorcycle this week to support the mission to “Call Before You Dig”. The reveal of the “811 Bike” created by Paul Teutul Jr., star of the popular Discovery Channel show American Chopper and president and CEO of Paul Jr. Designs, took place on Wednesday at the Clarion Resort Fontainebleau in Ocean City. The bike reveal is being filmed as part of...READ MORE

Assateague Horse’s New Name: Braidwood

ASSATEAGUE -- One of Assateague Island’s famed wild horses has a new name this week after a contestant in the annual contest picked the new moniker from a character in a book she recently read about the ponies and the barrier island. The Assateague Island pony formally known as N9BFQ will now be forever known as “Braidwood” after a visitor earned the naming rights following the annual contest at the National Seashore. For the last four years, from April to September, visitors...READ MORE

Study Suggests Fee To Address Flooding Woes

OCEAN CITY – A yearlong study on Ocean City’s failing stormwater infrastructure resulted this week in a recommendation made to the Mayor and City Council to establish a stormwater utility fee in order to fund necessary repairs. In September 2010, the Environmental Finance Center (EFC) at the University of Maryland was contracted by Ocean City to conduct a stormwater financing feasibility study. The goal of the study is to provide a recommendation on how the town might implement a...READ MORE

Local Diakonia Benefits Planned

WEST OCEAN CITY -- With the holiday season approaching, Diakonia is planning several events, both new and traditional, to help raise funds and awareness about the organization. Offering a food pantry, emergency housing and transitional housing, Diakonia has been a staple of the county for almost four decades. Providing food and shelter to county residents in need, however, is just part of what Diakonia does, according to Executive Director Claudia Nagle. “It’s more than just three...READ MORE

Potential Wicomico Budget Cuts Worry Parents

SALISBURY -- A group of concerned parents told the Wicomico County Council Tuesday that budget cuts in schools have them worried about the future of education in the county. “We have to find a way to support public education in the best way possible,” said Lauralyn Geiser. According to Geiser, there has been a trend over the last few years to reduce and scrimp on the public education budget, and it’s beginning to show in the quality of education being offered. “Parents...READ MORE

SHA, Resort Discuss Bridge, Infrastructures Issues

OCEAN CITY – Representatives from the State Highway Administration (SHA) updated the Mayor and City Council on current and scheduled projects on the town’s surrounding roadways. District Engineer Donnie Drewer and Assistant District Engineer for traffic Kenneth Cimino responded to a number of questions and concerns including the following points: Will the draw span on the Route 50 Bridge be repainted blue? When the last renovation was completed, in which the expanded decking and...READ MORE

County Confirms Snow Hill School Commitment To State

SNOW HILL -- The Worcester County Commissioners restated their intent to begin renovations on Snow Hill High School (SHHS) next year during their meeting Tuesday, sending a letter to the state Interagency Committee on School Construction (IAC). Last month, the commission voted not to begin renovations on SHHS this year, due to budget issues, despite the project being planning. The ruling left the Board of Education and a number of parents upset and uncertain of when SHHS will finally receive a...READ MORE

Ocean City Winter Bus Schedule Begins

OCEAN CITY -- The town of Ocean City this week announced its new winter schedule for the municipal bus system. From Nov. 1 until April 1, 2012, bus service will run approximately every 40 minutes from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. and every 80 minutes from 11 p.m. until 7 a.m. Sunday through Thursday. The schedule is ramped up on the weekends with buses running roughly every 30 minutes on Fridays and Saturdays. Passengers can ride the bus for $1 per boarding or $3 ride-all-day. Discount coupon books are...READ MORE

City Council Approves HSA Funding Mechanism

OCEAN CITY – The Mayor and City Council made the easiest and least debatable decision this week concerning town employees’ new option to join a Health Savings Account as part of their benefits. An ordinance, which becomes effective Jan. 1, 2012, calls for the Town of Ocean City to contribute funds to a Health Savings Account (HSA) for employees who elect to enroll in a high-deductible health plan. “What we didn’t discuss at the time was how we wanted to allocate those...READ MORE

Pedestrian Fatality In West Ocean City

WEST OCEAN CITY -- Tragedy struck this week when a local man was struck by a vehicle driven by another local man and killed along Route 611 early Tuesday morning. Shortly before 3 a.m. on Monday, Maryland State Police troopers were dispatched to a reported motor vehicle collision involving a pedestrian on Route 611 just south of Old Bridge Rd. in West Ocean City. Upon arrival, troopers observed a white 2001 Mazda pickup truck with front-end damage and a pedestrian lying in the roadway. The...READ MORE

President’s Ocean Zoning Plan Called A Threat To Fishing

OCEAN CITY -- A potential plan to effectively zone vast areas of the open ocean along the nation’s coastlines got more play this week with a congressional committee hearing on Wednesday. Last year, based on the recommendations of the Interagency Task Force on Ocean Policy, President Barack Obama issued an executive order calling for a National Ocean Policy, a policy that could include a somewhat controversial “marine spatial zoning” of the seas off the nation’s...READ MORE

Assateague Entry Fees Waived Next Weekend

BERLIN -- Assateague Island National Seashore is joining other national parks across the country in celebrating Veterans Day next weekend by waiving entrance fees to the barrier island. Assateague officials this week announced a fee-free entrance to both the Maryland and Virginia districts of the National Seashore all next weekend in commemoration of Veteran’s Day, which is held November 11.  Entrance fees will be waived at the National Seashore starting next Friday, Nov. 11, through...READ MORE

Wicomico Hazardous Waste Collection Day Set

SALISBURY -- Wicomico County officials this week announced Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day is set for next Saturday, Nov. 12, at the Newland Park landfill from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event is open to all residents of Wicomico County and participants are advised to bring a valid proof of residence, such as a driver’s license. The landfill will be accepting a wide variety of typical household hazardous waste including gasoline, oils, fuels, acids, cleaners, solvents, automotive...READ MORE

Horse Shooting Charges Come 10 Months Later

ASSATEAGUE -- Two men were charged with week in connection with the shooting death of one of Assateague’s famed wild horses during a two-day firearm deer season on the barrier island last January. Assateague Island National Seashore officials announced on Tuesday charges have been levied against two individuals, one for shooting the horse during the controlled hunt and the other for providing false information during the investigation. Justin B. Eason, 26, of Federalsburg, has been charged...READ MORE

Operation Medicine Drop A Success

BERLIN -- Last week’s Operation Medicine Drop, in conjunction with the fall National Drug Take-Back Day, was a huge success, netting a total of 205 pounds of unused and expired medications. Local officials from the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office, the Worcester County Health Department, Ocean City Police, Berlin Police and the Assateague Coastal Trust and Coastkeeper participated in Operation Medicine Drop last Saturday at various locations around the local area. Local residents...READ MORE

Worcester County Nixes Route 589 Corridor Plan

SNOW HILL -- Uncomfortable with the idea that it would amount to “stealing land” in the words of one elected official, the Worcester County Commission chose Tuesday to deny a state-developed corridor vision plan for Route 589. “I can’t vote on anything that would take away personal property rights without money to compensate for it,” said Commission President Bud Church. Though the foundation for the vision plan has been building for nearly two decades, actions...READ MORE

County Still Unhappy With State Planning Regs

SNOW HILL -- Though heavily revised, the new, state-bred “PlanMaryland” planning and zoning regulations still managed to spark a lot of shaking heads among the Worcester County Commissioners Tuesday. “That was one of the most miraculous rewrites I’ve ever seen in my 13-year political history,” commented Commissioner Virgil Shockley sarcastically. Several months ago, when discussion on PlanMaryland first began, many on the commission seemed shocked. The original plan...READ MORE

Mayor Endorses Salisbury Redistricting Proposal

SALISBURY -- With the results of the 2010 Census in the book, Salisbury will have to, at a minimum, redraw its City Council election districts, but Mayor Jim Ireton this week threw his support behind a dramatic change to how city voters choose their representatives. Based on the results of the Census, Salisbury’s population has grown to 30,607 in the last 10 years and minorities now make up 44 percent of the city’s population. As a result, Salisbury will have to make adjustments in...READ MORE

Smooth Halloween Reported In Berlin

BERLIN -- Even with crowds reaching potentially record-breaking sizes, reports from Berlin indicate that Halloween went off without a hitch this year. Despite the steady growth of the event, officials aren’t planning much as far as changing or expanding the holiday, believing they currently have a winning formula. “I don’t anticipate any changes,” said Mayor Gee Williams. Williams has jokingly referred to Berlin as “the mecca of Halloween” in the past and...READ MORE

OCPD Chief’s Changes OK’d; Retirees Honored

OCEAN CITY – The Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) had a number of items to present at City Hall this week that all seemed to revolve around the same theme -- retirement. OCPD Chief Bernadette DiPino pitched a couple changes to the Mayor and City Council with the first being the sale of departmental firearms. She explained that about two years ago the department began replacing an older model pistol, SIG SP2340, with the P229, which is a .40 caliber. Currently, the department has issued...READ MORE