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MAY 26, 2017
SERVING NORTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY
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MEMORIAL DAY IN OC Events planned include parade, arts and crafts show, 100 Nights of Lights – Page 77
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Room tax vs tourism expenses Council discussion takes aim at how visitor-related costs should be covered
LISA CAPITELLI/OCEAN CITY TODAY
WELL ANCHORED The Boardwalk was bustling with activity on Sunday, as viewed from the Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum at the southern end. The town is expecting an influx of visitors this weekend for the Memorial Day holiday. AAA Mid-Atlantic projects nearly 834,000 Marylanders will travel this Memorial Day weekend, a 2.3 percent increase compared to 2016, and the highest figure for the holiday since 2005.
Sunny outlook for holiday weather Meteorologists concur, it looks good for weekend: mild temps, less wind
By Brian Gilliland Associate Editor (May 26, 2017) Two meteorologists, Alec Butner with the National Weather Service in Wakefield, Virginia, and Ava Marie with WBAL in Baltimore, agree that this Memorial Day weekend will feature seasonal temperatures — mid-70s on the coast with a bump into the 80s inland, and a low chance for gusty wind.
What remains to be seen, however, is how much rain is possible. The past few days in Ocean City have been damp, with intermittent showers, but the meteorologists believe that system is departing and will be replaced by more holiday weekend-conducive weather. “By Friday, it should be mostly sunny and drier. The chance of showers on Sunday into Monday is about 30 percent,” Butner said. Marie said there’s a busy weather pattern overhead currently, and the driest period will be from Friday morning into Saturday afternoon, while chances for
sporadic rain and thunder will increase through Monday. “Even so, there will still be breaks of sun, with times of dry weather to enjoy the beach, and high temperatures warming into the low 70s,” Marie said. Last year, according to resort communications manager Jessica Waters, Ocean City hosted in excess of 285,000 people for the holiday weekend, with several local businesses commenting it was the best Memorial Day weekend in years. The weather took a sour turn following Memorial Day and got the season off See SHA Page 10
By Katie Tabeling Staff Writer (May 26, 2017) The Ocean City Council’s discussion of the $6.14 million advertising budget has been ongoing the last couple weeks, with recent emphasis on spending it on infrastructure projects rather than reaching new visitors. So far, the Ocean City Council has appropriated $5,000 for the White Marlin catch prize money and $4,100 to light up the First Street Water tower and the $550 annual electric bill. At one point, Councilman Wayne Wayne Hartman Hartman suggested to fund $7,295 maintenance and operational costs of the Boardwalk information cottage out of advertising as well. Since the law on the books says that 2 percent of the gross room revenue be used for “destination advertising,” information cottage expenses was ultimately paid out of other accounts. “When they’re here, it’s not destination marketing,” Hartman said at the May 9 work session. “But sooner than later we need to look at fixing the verbiage of the ordinance so that tourism expenses can be paid for with room tax.” In 2007, several tourism leaders pitched the idea of increasing room tax as a way to draw more visitors from neighboring states to stay and play in the resort. “At that time, the advertising budget was under $1.5 million and it stayed stagnant for years,” Hotel-MotelRestaurant Association Executive DirecSee MARKETING Page 10