OC Today WWW.OCEANCITYTODAY.COM
MAY 20, 2022
SERVING NORTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY
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More than 3,000 classic car enthusiasts in town for annual event, slated May 19-22 – Page 23
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Ocean City passes FY23 budget easily Covid cash, more room tax helped balance package
MALLORY PANUSKA/OCEAN CITY TODAY
A tractor flattens, cleans and smooths the sand on the beach around 13th and 14th streets not long after a nor’easter visited the shores but did little damage, unlike what occurred just up north in Delaware and along portions of Assateague to the south.
Erosion from storm skips over OC Nor’easter tore up beaches in Delaware, Assateague but spared resort’s stretch By Mallory Panuska Staff Writer (May 20, 2022) A continuing beach replenishment project paid off for Ocean City during a multi-day nor’easter earlier this month, as the resort’s beaches were spared the erosion suffered along the coast to the north and south. “We had very little erosion, zero damage to the dunes,” City Manager Terry McGean said of the state of the 10 miles of beach that spans the resort. The spring storm blew in just in time for Springfest the first weekend of May, bringing bursts of rain, heavy winds and surges that stuck around pretty much consistently for the next week. The storm also brought high
tides and strong ocean currents, which crushed some of the Delaware beaches and Assateague Island. McGean, who took over as city manager at the beginning of the year after more than three decades as city engineer, said the resort’s beaches did not see the same damage. “We fared very well in the storm,” he said. McGean attributed the positive results to the waves breaking far offshore during the storm, and the tide not staying up for long amounts of time, which he called “the saving grace.” He said beach replenishment efforts, or regular maintenance of the shoreline, that began at the close of the 2021 summer season also kept destruction at bay. “We had just done a beach replenishment project so there was lots of protection out there,” he said. McGean said he went out and checked the beaches multiple times
during the storm and saw no major issues through the duration. Some of the beaches do have tidepools, which McGean said are the result of sand bars created during the storm reattaching to the main beach. Some areas also saw sand higher up on the dunes, but no real damage. The scene was very different at the beaches across the state line. According to reports in the Coastal Point, beaches along the Delaware coastline experienced “widespread erosion and damage” from the nor’easter, prompting officials with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to prioritize restoration projects there. The report said nourishment projects were completed recently in the Pickering Beach, Kitts Hummock, Bowers, South Bowers and Slaughter Beach communities, with the rest of See DUNES Page 3
By Mallory Panuska Staff Writer (May 20, 2022) With a roughly $10 million increase in the general fund, the Town of Ocean City is officially poised to enter fiscal 2023 with a balanced budget. Council members on Monday passed the second reading and final version of the $156 million spending plan that goes into effect July 1, after weeks of combing through the details in a series of work sessions. The budget came in looking healthy this year with lingering covid grants and higher-than-projected room tax revenues padding the total. The general fund, which is where property taxes go, came out to $101.5 million, which was up from last fiscal year’s $90.6 million. The city added 13 new full-time See NEW Page 9
Commissioners enter round two on sportsplex By Greg Wehner Staff Writer (May 20, 2022) The disagreement between two Worcester County Commissioners regarding private discussions about the proposed sports complex in Berlin continued on Tuesday, with a third member of the board telling them he was tired of listening to the back and forth. At the end of the Tuesday morning county commissioners meeting, Commissioner Joe Mitrecic, who represents Ocean City, called out Ocean See MITRECIC Page 9
