Archives

Officials Hope To Reverse Tourism Marketing Trend

OCEAN CITY - With the opening of the Maryland General Assembly session next week, resort business leaders will once again press state officials to restore funding for tourism marketing, but with Maryland slashing department budgets, the money could be hard to come by. Maryland has slashed its tourism marketing budget by over 50 percent in the last year as part of a larger effort to reduce spending, despite the well-documented return on the investment. On Wednesday, Ocean City Economic...READ MORE

One Home Destroyed, Another Damaged In Resort Fire

OCEAN CITY - A late-night fire Tuesday completely destroyed one residence in Montego Bay in Ocean City and damaged the exterior of another. Around 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday, the Ocean City Fire Department (OCFD) responded to the area of 130th Street for a report of heavy smoke. At first, the source of the smoke was uncertain and for a short time, firefighters were concerned it could have been a commercial property in the area. 'We couldn't tell at first where the heavy smoke was coming from, and we...READ MORE

Room, Food Taxes Dip In November

OCEAN CITY - The resort's room tax receipts dropped 10 percent in November, from $149,162 last year to $134,349 this year, according to the Worcester County Treasurer's Office. For the first 11 months of 2009, room tax figures are down 2 percent from 2008 but up over 2007 by 8 percent. Through November in 2009, collections total $11,099,380 compared to $11,309,573 in the first 11 months of 2008. As far as food tax goes, $29,212 was collected in November of 2009. That is down from $64,333 in...READ MORE

Committee Identifies $162K In Possible County Savings

SNOW HILL - Another $162,000 could be shaved off the Worcester County budget if cost-saving measures suggested by the county's Government Efficiency Committee are successful. During this week's presentation, staff reported that the county has already saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by improving efficiency in county government. 'We're proud to report there's documented savings of more than $700,000,' said assistant county administrator Kelly Shanahan. Most of those savings came from laying...READ MORE

Md. Board Signs Off Beach Replenishment Money

OCEAN CITY •€' Ocean City finished up 'two for two' in Annapolis on Wednesday as the Board of Public Works approved the beach replenishment project in a unanimous decision. The town saw first hand how valuable the beach replenishment project is after the November Nor'Ida storm damaged large portions of the sand dune, but worked well enough to spare almost all properties from damage during the three-day storm. On Wednesday, the state saw the value as well, allotting $8.2 million of the local...READ MORE

OC Bar Employees Foil Jewelry Heist

OCEAN CITY - Downtown bar employees last weekend helped nab the suspect in a Boardwalk jewelry store break-in during which windows were smashed and thousands of dollars worth of merchandise was stolen. Around 1:20 a.m. on Jan. 2, Ocean City police responded to the Somerset South Jewelry store on the south end of the Boardwalk in reference to an intrusion alarm. When officers arrived, they discovered the front window of the jewelry store had been completely smashed out and several of the store's...READ MORE

State, Resort Seeking Burial Laws

OCEAN CITY •€' City Solicitor Guy Ayres has been petitioned by the Ocean City Police Department to draw up a local ordinance that would make it unlawful to improperly bury or dispose of a body in Ocean City. Ayres said this week that he had been approached by members of the Ocean City Police Department to draw up an ordinance that would be presented at the Police Commission level and, if found to be in order by that body, could be presented to the Mayor and City Council for final...READ MORE

When It Warms, Frozen Pipes Will Be Major Issue For Area

OCEAN CITY - The current cold snap that has gripped the resort for well over a week and will likely continue several more days has created a lot of problems in the area with broken pipes and other weather-related issues, but the worse could be yet to come. With daytime temperatures rarely nudging past the freezing mark and overnight temperatures dipping into the low 20s or teens for the last week or 10 days, city and private officials have seen a spike in the number of broken water pipes and...READ MORE

Audit Report Sparks Questions About Other Finances

SNOW HILL - A positive financial report from Worcester County's auditors triggered a discussion of an uncertain future in the next fiscal year among the Worcester County Commissioners, following a decline in the assessable base of the county for the first time in 22 years. Worcester County saw revenues come in $2.2 million higher than expenses in fiscal year 2009, Chris Hall of TGM Group reported Tuesday morning in Snow Hill. The General Fund saw a decline of $10 million, leaving the balance at...READ MORE

City Disagrees With Cops' Take-Home Complaint

OCEAN CITY •€' City Solicitor Guy Ayres has reportedly responded to a so-called grievance filed several months ago by the local lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) contesting the town's recent decision to take away a longtime perk from several public safety workers. Ayres said this week that prior to the new year, he had sent a letter to Walter 'Buck' Mann, the town's labor commissioner, in regards to a letter penned by Fraternal Order of Police President Glen McIntyre, which...READ MORE

Concerns Raised Over Sewer Plant Loan Payments

SNOW HILL - If enough users cannot be added to make the loan payments for the replacement Mystic Harbor wastewater treatment plant, the county has said it will simply raise rates for the current ratepayers. Worcester County will take out a 40-year, $5.1 million loan from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to build a new Mystic Harbor sewer plant. The rest of the costs will be covered by a $3.7 million USDA grant. The Worcester County Commissioners voted unanimously to go ahead...READ MORE

EDC Supports Major Power Project

OCEAN CITY - Following the lead of elected bodies in the area, resort business leaders on Wednesday agreed to endorse Delmarva Power's proposed Mid-Atlantic Power Pathway (MAPP) project, a billion-dollar plus effort to increase the company's ability to assure stable and affordable electricity for the peninsula. During the Ocean City Economic Development Committee (EDC) bi-monthly meeting on Wednesday, resort business leaders heard a detailed report on Delmarva's proposed MAPP project, which...READ MORE

Legislature Faces Early Bills

BERLIN - The Maryland General Assembly convenes next week for the 427th time, during which state lawmakers will consider thousands of pieces of legislation from bills whose importance would be felt across the state to pieces of legislation germane to specific jurisdictions including Worcester. With the state, like the rest of the country, trying to pull out of one of the deepest recessions in memory, fiscal issues and the budget will likely dominate much of the legislature's time during the...READ MORE

Local Hotels Make National List

OCEAN CITY •€' Though 2009 was reportedly a rough one for the hotel industry, two local hotels received national recognition as top performers from a reputable industry magazine. The Paradise Plaza Hotel and the Stowaway Grand Hotel were recently named to Lodging Hospitality Magazine's Top 100 performers for 2009, ranking number 67 and 73, respectively, perhaps adding validity to the claim that the resort fared better than most during what national hotel insiders are calling the worst year...READ MORE

Ocean City News In Brief

 OCEAN CITY •€' In the brief this week, Trimper's Amusements started an informal conversation with the Planning and Zoning Commission about a desire to put some additional amusements just off the Boardwalk and the 45th street village project continues to debate major vs. minor changes. Off-Boardwalk Amusements Eyed At Tuesday's Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, local attorney Regan Smith spoke on behalf of several members of the Trimper family about the desire to have the...READ MORE