MAKING STRIDES:
INTERVIEWS: Ocean City Today
Second annual 5k run/walk set for Saturday on the Boardwalk to benefit American Cancer Society PAGE 49
talks with two council candidates about their views on the town’s direction as November’s tight election nears PAGE 24
INSIDE THIS ISSUE: BUSINESS . . . . . . . . . 46 CLASSIFIED . . . . . . . . 71 ENTERTAINMENT . . . . 53 LEGALS . . . . . . . . . . . 73
LIFESTYLE . . . . . . . . . 49 OPINION . . . . . . . . . . 20 OUT&ABOUT . . . . . . . . 59 SPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . 39
STEPHEN DECATUR GOLF TEAM WINS DISTRICT VIII CROWN…PAGE 39
Ocean City Today OCTOBER 19, 2012
WWW.OCEANCITYTODAY.NET
FREE
DIPINO TAPPED FOR SARASOTA POLICE CHIEF City will likely commission national search to replace 24-year OCPD veteran ZACK HOOPES ■ Staff Writer (Oct. 19, 2012) The recent clustering of turnover at the city’s top levels continued this week with the announcement that current Ocean City Police Department Chief Bernadette DiPino will be taking the top police position with the Sarasota Police Department in Florida. DiPino’s selection comes only a month after the city of Sarasota announced that it had narrowed its candidate pool for the position to five finalists, one of whom was DiPino. “Chief DiPino will bring the experience, passion and leadership to lead the
SPD in partnering with every citizen in Sarasota to keep this community the safe and special place that it is,” Sarasota City Manager Tom Barwin stated in a press release. “As a state and national leader in her field, Chief DiPino epitomizes the concept, and walks the walk, that police officers are a part of, not apart from, the community.” DiPino’s first day on the job in Sarasota will be Jan. 1, 2013. Current SPD Chief Mikel Holloway was scheduled to retire Dec. 1 of this year after 30 years of service, but has agreed to delay his departure for a month. Although DiPino’s last day for Ocean City has not been announced, Ocean City Communications Manager Jessica Waters said City Manager David Recor is likely to make a recommendation soon to the mayor and City Council for the appointment of an interim chief while DiPino’s permanent replacement
is sought. “More than likely, we’ll have a national search and we’ll promote someone internally in the meantime. But that is ultimately up to the mayor and council,” Waters said. At Tuesday night’s AARP candidates’ forum, the news from that afternoon out of Sarasota sparked one audience member to ask the political contenders what they would look for in a new chief. The consensus was that the new chief should be selected through a nationallevel professional search. Earlier this year, Ocean City commissioned corporate recruiter Springsted Inc. to hire Recor from his previous post as the city manager of Fort Pierce, Fla. Other high-level changes in the past months have included the appointment of former Communications Manager Donna Abbott as tourism director, following the departure of former tourism head Deb Turk, as well as the
Police Chief Bernadette DiPino
hiring of Convention Center Director Larry Noccolino after the departure of Rick Hamilton. Although the SPD has a larger fullSee DIPINO’S on Page 3
Original intent of ordinances stirs up union waters ZACK HOOPES ■ Staff Writer
OUT WITH THE OLD
OCEAN CITY TODAY/NANCY POWELL
Workers remove the old boards from the Boardwalk at Second Street on Wednesday. It is part of the current project to replace the Boardwalk from Somerset Street to 15th Street.
(Oct. 19, 2012) The debate over the city treatment of employee benefits and the desire for collective bargaining keeps going and going, as Monday night’s City Council meeting saw Councilwoman Margaret Pillas left to defend the council’s actions against union backers. City Parks and Recreation employee and union activist Greg DeMarco approached the council to “set the record straight” on what he said was the suggestion by Councilman Brent Ashley’s recent newspaper ads that unionized employees would be demanding more benefits. “I think we have very good benefits for the town of Ocean City,” DeMarco said. “This union movement never came in here asking for more benefits. We only said we wanted to keep our benefits and preserve them, because they were under attack.” DeMarco also objected to what he said See MOXLEY on Page 4