Archives

Friday, Sept 11--OC Escalator Lawsuit Rejected

OCEAN CITY - A federal judge has abruptly dismissed a $500,000 civil suit filed against the town of Ocean City and a private company by a former Vermont high school student injured in an escalator accident in the Roland E. Powell Convention Center. In May 2006, several members of a high school band from Vermont, in Ocean City for an annual Youth Music Competition at the Convention Center, were injured when the north escalator to the second floor stopped suddenly and starting running in reverse....READ MORE

Friday, Sept 11--Resident Urges City To Fight For Handicapped Residents

OCEAN CITY •€' Bob Melvin accused the Ocean City Mayor and Council of 'wagging the tail' and urged them to take action now on the door-to-door handicapped bus service he's been fighting to change for over two years. Melvin says that Shore Transit and the Tri-County Council have 'agreed to all but bend over backwards to help [Ocean City] start this service', and he claims that Ocean City needs to act now before the complex and often confusing issue fades away from the forefront. What was...READ MORE

Captains Facing Summer Flounder Closure Sunday

OCEAN CITY - The summer flounder fishery will close for good in 2009 at midnight on Sunday, but the move announced several months ago is no easier to bear for recreational anglers counting on a strong fall season to make ends meet. Despite complaints of severely flawed catch data, state officials in March moved forward with new regulations for summer flounder in 2009 including an increased minimum size for keepers and a season closure effective Sept. 13. Federal fisheries managers mandated the...READ MORE

Convention Center Expansion Plans Hit A Snag

OCEAN CITY •€' Acting Convention Center Director Wayne Prior had a timeline written up concerning the expansion to the Roland E. Powell Convention Center, but now he's being told he might as well tear that timeline to shreds. Prior informed the Ocean City Tourism Commission last week that, 'due to the economic times and the recent cuts that have come from the state level, it is just not the right time for us to gain approval for the convention center expansion.' Simply put, the state budget...READ MORE

Major Route 50 Service Road Changes On Table

SNOW HILL - The issue of a requested major change to the alignment of the planned Route 50 service road has not been settled, county planning officials said last week, despite reports that the Worcester County Planning Commission had unexpectedly voted to reject the requested re-design late last month. Planning Commission Chair Jimmy Bunting said during the September Planning Commission meeting last week that the re-alignment request, which came up informally during a work session on the draft...READ MORE

Retired Navy Destroyer Slated For Artificial Reef

OCEAN CITY - The growing artificial reef system off the coast of Ocean City could be getting its largest contribution ever as plans to scuttle a retired U.S. Navy destroyer in an area about 30 miles from the Inlet are now closer than ever to becoming a reality. Navy officials announced late last month it is transferring ownership of the decommissioned destroyer U.S.S. Arthur W. Radford to the state of Delaware, a crucial next step in the ongoing effort to sink the vessel to create a vast...READ MORE

Vegetation On Power Line Leads To Ill-Timed Blackout

BERLIN - An electric transmission line problem led to a nearly two-hour power outage for thousands of electric customers in the Berlin and West Ocean City areas on Sunday evening, with the effect particularly noticeable at area restaurants where dinner service was in full swing when the lights went out. Delmarva Power spokesman Matt Likovich said that power went out at 6:07 p.m. and power was restored around 8 p.m. 'It was vegetation on a transmission line,' Likovich said. 'It could have been a...READ MORE

An Inside Look At Ocean City's Wastewater Plant

OCEAN CITY - The stench was thankfully understated, but after touring Ocean City's wastewater treatment plant, it could be the facility itself that is the most thanklessly underrated. There are many aspects of how a town's infrastructure operates that are often left beneath the surface or behind closed doors, as for every flashy amenity that people gravitate towards, like a beach and a Boardwalk for instance, there is a vast network of intangibles that need to work at the highest of levels in...READ MORE

Berlin Mayor Says State Cuts Will Not Impact Residents

BERLIN - Recent state of Maryland budget cuts will deprive the town of Berlin of $223,000 in state funding this fiscal year. Berlin lost $205,000 in highway user revenue and about $18,000 in state police aid, it was announced this week. 'I've asked the department heads to recommend $230,000 in reductions,' said Berlin Mayor Gee Williams. The extra $7,000 in reductions is intended to give the council some room to maneuver when assessing recommendations from the town staff on spending...READ MORE

Council Removes Exception In CO Detector Law

OCEAN CITY •€' In efforts to make the town's carbon monoxide (CO) law even more airtight, the City Council voted to remove the lone exception that was in the 2007 bill in a unanimous vote on Tuesday night. City Solicitor Guy Ayres will remove the lone exception to CO detector law that reads, 'dwelling units which are separated from rooms or spaces that are not located within dwelling units where fuel burning equipment is installed or operated or adjacent enclosed parking areas by a complete...READ MORE

Custom Bike Builders Coming To OC

OCEAN CITY - Gear heads might feel like they know Vinnie DiMartino and Cody Connelly from watching them on reality television, but they will be in the flesh in Ocean City next weekend and they are bringing one of their new custom bikes with them. Bikers and motorcycle enthusiasts will be in for the thrill of thrills next weekend during Delmarva Bike Week as two of the biggest names in custom bike building will be setting up shop at Hooters in north Ocean City on 123rd Street, Thursday through...READ MORE

Custom Bike Builders Coming To OC

OCEAN CITY - Gear heads might feel like they know Vinnie DiMartino and Cody Connelly from watching them on reality television, but they will be in the flesh in Ocean City next weekend and they are bringing one of their new custom bikes with them. Bikers and motorcycle enthusiasts will be in for the thrill of thrills next weekend during Delmarva Bike Week as two of the biggest names in custom bike building will be setting up shop at Hooters in north Ocean City on 123rd Street, Thursday through...READ MORE

Jeep Overturns On OP Bridge

OCEAN PINES - A local man was injured last weekend when he rolled his Jeep Wrangler and now faces several traffic violations. Around 11:15 p.m. last Friday, Maryland State Police responded to the North Gate bridge just off Route 589 in Ocean Pines for a reported single-vehicle accident. Upon arrival, troopers found a Jeep Wrangler on its roof in the middle of the north gate bridge. The investigation revealed the driver, identified as Paul Myers, 52, of Ocean Pines, attempted to cross the bridge...READ MORE

Lawsuit Filed Over Beach Chair

OCEAN CITY - An Ocean City company last week filed a motion to dismiss a suit filed in August by a New Jersey couple seeking $100,000 in damages for allegedly faulty beach chairs purchased two years ago. On Aug. 10, East Windsor, N.J. resident Mark Pacelli, through his Baltimore attorney, filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court claiming negligence, strict liability and loss of consortium against Ocean City Boardwalk, Inc., the parent company of the Sunsations stores in the resort, claiming one...READ MORE

Marlin Moon Grille Addresses Future

WEST OCEAN CITY - With the days for the Marlin Moon Grille at the Francis Scott Key Family Resort now counting down, there has been a steady murmur about the future of the popular restaurant as family, friends and long-time guests prod owner Gary Beach and his staff about what happens next. In an effort to set the record straight and, hopefully, stave off the barrage of questions, rumors, innuendo, speculation and hearsay about the future of the Marlin Moon Grille, Beach this week released a...READ MORE

Purnell Seeks Harrison Ave. Improvements

BERLIN - Harrison Ave. needs some help, Berlin Council member Troy Purnell says, and sooner rather than later. A recent bond issue for major improvements to Grice Street, Graham Ave. and Vine Street came in well under estimate, leading Purnell at the time to say that the left over funds could be used for improvements to Harrison Ave. Bond funding can only be used for the projects named in the bond resolution approved by the Berlin Mayor and Council. Some took his comment at the time as...READ MORE

Shore Art Campaign Officially Launched

BERLIN - Nine Eastern Shore communities have teamed up to encourage Marylanders in the Baltimore and Washington areas to "eat, drink, and buy art" on Maryland's Eastern Shore. A program unique in its development in that it has allied nine different Eastern Shore towns, organizations and businesses within each town, "Eat. Drink. Buy Art." seeks to get Marylanders to explore the galleries, restaurants and one-of-a-kind shops. The program, organized by a coalition of Main Street...READ MORE