With others joining at co-plaintiffs in federal court, Ocean City believes it has a shot to block wind farm development offshore. — PAGE 15
Tyler Walsh: friends stepping up for him
To help him and to help themselves come to terms with his situation, they are pitching in to make his home ready for his return. PAGE 89
Sign up now for our new, Monday-Friday newsletter. — Page 12
over soon Mayor, City Council, school board and national contests wrap up Tuesday, leaving Wednesday for expressions of joy, relief and disappointment.
See our special election section inside for the lowdown on mayor, council and school board races.
PHOTO COURTESY NICK DENNY DOCK DOGS
The National Sportsmen’s Series was in Ocean City at Sunfest last weekend for the return of the Dock Dogs event. Above, Kona soars high with his eye on the prize Saturday.
Popularity of beach bonfire program reveals new trend
Pop-up industry reported on Ocean City beaches; staff questions franchising
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) A growth in beach bonfire setup companies have city officials questioning if such operations should be subject to a franchise agreement.
On Tuesday, during an end-of-season report to the Mayor and Council on the city’s beach bonfire program, Fire Marshal Josh Bunting highlighted a new pop-up industry taking shape on Ocean City’s beaches. He said that in the last few years, city staff have shared reports of companies offering to set up beach bonfires and acquire the necessary permits.
“They offer services of bringing the wood to the beach, all the way through to getting the permit,” he said. “It is my understanding that that is not covered by the franchise agreement currently, but that might be something that the council wants to consider.”
While the city currently has a franchise agreement with the various beach stand operators, Bunting said that agreement does not include beach bonfire companies. He questioned if that was something the council should consider.
“If the council wishes to entertain, as part of a growth of the existing franchise agreements that are out on the beach, a separate franchise to allow that, or whether it’s a hard and fast rule of ‘No, we have no interest. People need to get their own bonfire permits,’ that’s not really under my purview,” he said. “But it’s something that the council, I think, should consider. We are seeing it, I would say, more frequently this year.”
Bunting added that the fire marshal’s office also witnessed some unruly behavior during the Fourth of July holiday. He also pointed to an ongoing issue in the blocks between 110th and 120th streets.
“Those are the areas where we have a large amount of our high rises and there’s large volumes of people out on the beach,” he said. “Those are also where we typically get our responses for people having too much smoke in the area.”
To address those smoke complaints, Bunting said his office could adjust the beach bonfire program next year to reduce the frequency of
bonfires within those blocks. While the city’s reservation software allows two bonfires per street, he said it could be reduced to one per street.
“I don’t think it’ll have a tremendous impact on the revenue,” he said, “or really a tremendous impact on the program at all.”
Despite those three issues, Bunting said the city reported a successful season. In 2024, the city recorded 3,248 bonfires, of which 150 were unpermitted.
“That’s about 44 less than last year …,” he said. “The benefit of the program and the digitization of the reservations is that when you meet a person on the beach that doesn’t have a permit, it’s not the end of their night. It’s a matter of get your phone out and get the proper permit.”
Bunting also recognized the department’s bonfire inspectors. During the season, 130 nights were staffed with one inspector, 15 nights were staffed with two inspectors, and July 4 was staffed with three inspectors.
“It was about 15 nights through the course of the season that we had over 100 bonfires that we needed more inspectors on,” he said. “And then obviously July 4 is kind of an all hands for every city department.”
Looking ahead to 2025, Bunting said he was seeking the council’s input on the three issues raised this year.
“Those three discussion points I really have is whether the council is interested in reducing the number of bonfires to one per street on 110th through 120th, a consideration given the issues that we have for July 4 –whether we black out that date and not allow any bonfires on the beach –and then obviously the franchise discussion path,” he said.
Council President Matt James questioned if the unruly behavior witnessed on the Fourth of a July was from those partaking in bonfire activities. Bunting said he didn’t believe so.
“I would say not really …,” he replied. “It’s not been our experience that bonfire permittees are causing the problems.”
James also asked for Bunting’s recommendation on limiting the number of bonfires per block uptown. Bunting said his department could try it for next season.
“Let him make the decision,” Councilwoman Carol Proctor said. “He heads the department.”
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Tensions run high at early vote site over school board
By Brian Shane Staff Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) As early voting wraps up ahead of Election Day, candidates for Board of Education and their supporters found themselves wading through an increasingly negative campaign this week, both online and in real life.
However, few people would speak on the record to confirm details of what happened or who was involved outside the Ocean City convention center, where early voting was held Oct. 24-31.
A handful of hot-blooded interactions were reported in the parking lot of the convention center. One Facebook post in particular, shared to the group Worcester United, described “verbal harassment and physical intimidation tactics” among candidates and volunteers manning pop-up tents. The post continued, “no matter your political affiliation we must let these people know that this is absolutely unacceptable … these people want to have a voice in deciding what is best for kids, yet they are acting like playground bullies. When election officials and two local lawyers came by to see the actions for themselves the behavior stopped until the officials and lawyers left, then it stated again.”
Dorothy Shelton-Leslie, a candidate for the District 5 seat on the Worcester County Board of Education, said any reports of confrontations are overblown if not patently false, and that opponents are just trying to disparage her campaign. She did say she’d parked her own truck in the parking lot, one that featured a large campaign sign. Eventually, someone else parked a bigger truck beside hers to block the sign. Tempers flared.
She said her husband Gary wanted to move their truck again, but “I said, ‘just leave it, I’m not playing the games.’ We’re not going there.”
“I think in a situation like this,” Shelton-Leslie said, “which is a very tight race, and there’s a lot of emotions – not only with President, but with all
of them. Things do get emotional. But we didn’t have anything to do with that,” she added. “We kind of distanced ourselves from it. I’m running for school board, so I want to be an example for children. I’m not going to be unkind.”
Shelton-Leslie is running against incumbent District 5 board member Elena McComas, who was also campaigning this week in the convention center parking lot. McComas said she did not witness any bad behavior personally, but many supporters of her’s took to Facebook to document acts of intimidation and voter coercion by her opponent’s backers.
“I wasn’t here,” she said. “I can’t tell you for a fact what did or didn’t happen. I’m just hoping and praying we can resolve whatever happened in a decent manner. We have to have a sense of decency here and respect for each other, no matter what.”
Others in the parking lot this week reported that officials from the county’s Board of Elections had to be called down to the parking lot from inside the convention center to settle disputes. However, when asked if her office had received or responded to any reports of parking lot dust-ups, election director Patti Jackson said that wasn’t the case Tuesday afternoon.
“I am not aware of anything like this happening, and I’ve been here every day of early voting,” she said by e-mail.
The convention center was Worcester County’s only early voting site for the 2024 election. More than 8,770 early voting ballots were cast through Oct. 29, Jackson also reported.
All election season, supporters of Worcester’s school board candidates have been active on social media. Lately, some platform posts have gone so far as to promote candidates who practice Christianity, and gatekeep against others who are not.
Even Jon Andes, the incumbent District 3 board member and a former
See EARLY Page 12
BRIAN SHANE/OC TODAY-DISPATCH Board of Education incumbent Elena McComas, pictured with supporter Kate Hulme, is pictured on Tuesday at the early voting site in Ocean City. McComas is seeking her third term.
Early voters total
8,777 in 7 days
Continued from Page 10
Worcester County school superintendent, got into the mix with his own scripture-quoting Facebook post from Oct. 27.
“In a recent post on a social media site, the posting implied that I am not a Christian. I am a man of faith and a Christian… I pray every day and seeking guidance,” he wrote. Andes also noted how he kept pre-meeting prayers alive during his 16-year term. Andes said he is the son of a pastor.
Middleton, Andes’s opponent, was not present on Tuesday at the early polling site when the reporter walked the area.
While the Board of Education race is nonpartisan, other electoral campaigns in play for early votes certainly are. Political parties posted their own tents outside the convention center to promote candidates and causes they support.
“Historically, we have a collegial relationship with people on the other side. We’re all passionate about what we’re doing,” said Kathy Emmert, a volunteer at the Worcester County Democrats tent.
The only tumult she was aware of during early voting involved George Leukel, a candidate for Ocean City Council, who was not happy that traffic cones he left overnight in a parking spot had been moved by someone with the Democrats.
“He took a picture of her license plate, and he yelled at her about having parked in his parking place. She felt threatened enough she called the police,” Emmert said.
Any police responses to the convention center on Oct 28-29 were to check the security of ballot boxes, and any other police interactions did not warrant documentation, according to Ocean City Police spokeswoman Ashley Miller.
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BRIAN SHANE/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
A clear division of supporters for the Worcester County Board of Education incumbents and those in favor of the challengers was clear throughout the last week at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center, the county’s sole early voting site.
State trooper admitted to undercover West OC sex act
By Darcy Costello
Baltimore Sun
(Nov. 1, 2024) As part of an investigation into alleged human trafficking and prostitution at a spa in West Ocean City, two Maryland State Police troopers went undercover as patrons in September 2019. They were told to decline any sexual acts offered by the employees.
But one of them, Cpl. David Grinnan, engaged in a sexual act, after taking a pill for erectile dysfunction outside the spa, according to an internal investigation conducted by the Maryland State Police. While Grinnan told a woman in the spa that he wanted to “just take” the massage, Internal Affairs concluded that he later “did not tell her to stop or say no” when it went further and that he “did not push her away or attempt to get up off of the table.”
Criminal charges against two spa employees were subsequently dismissed, bringing the larger investigation — dubbed “Operation Rub A Tug Tug” — to a close with no one held accountable. Frustrated criminal investigators told Grinnan he’d ruined it, with one concluding he was “no different than any other ‘John.’”
By March 2020, an Internal Affairs sergeant recommended four administrative charges be sustained against
Grinnan — prohibited sexual behavior on-duty, insubordination, immoral conduct and unbecoming conduct — according to a 67-page investigative file obtained through a Maryland Public Information Act request.
Instead, about seven months later, the agency sustained just one policy violation against him — a conduct unbecoming offense that led to a demotion in rank and an unpaid, 30-day suspension, an October 2020 personnel order shows.
He was permitted to return to work and retired in 2022.
Asked why the other policy violations were not part of his final discipline, Maryland State Police spokesperson Elena Russo said this week that the reduced number of charges was negotiated as “part of a plea agreement four years ago with a former member of the Office of the Department Prosecutor,” a part of the agency.
She did not directly address whether the current superintendent agreed with the terms of that plea, instead providing a statement that read: “Under the leadership of Colonel Roland L. Butler Jr., the Maryland Department of State Police is committed to working to address any issues that do not meet the departSee TROOPER Page 92
CLEARANCE
Officials report strong fiscal year
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) A recent audit of Ocean City’s finances revealed no major findings for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2024.
During a work session Tuesday, SB & Company’s Chris Lehman presented the Mayor and Council with an audit report on the city’s financial statements for fiscal year 2024. He said his firm was presenting the city with a clean, unmodified opinion.
“In layman’s terms, that would be the best opinion we have under professional standards,” Lehman told the council. “That says that the financial statements are reasonably free of material mistake.”
Lehman said officials found no significant findings, material weaknesses, or instances of fraud. He also recognized staff for their cooperation in preparing this year’s audit report.
“No issues or findings, no recommendations,” Council Secretary Tony DeLuca said. “It’s like a perfect score, quarter after quarter, and people don’t understand how significant it is.”
City staff this week also presented the council with a town’s Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for fiscal year 2024. Assistant Finance Director Shawn Bunting said Ocean City’s net position increased by $14.8 million
“Fiscal year 2024 was a good year financially for the town,” he said.
Of that net increase, Bunting said $8.3 million was driven by governmental activities and $6.5 million was driven by business type activities. He added that revenues decreased 2.2% and expenses increased 4.7%
“A lot of that was due to staff increases, COLA for employees, a lot of personnel costs,” he explained.
Under governmental activities, Bunting said general fund expenditures increased by $5.7 million and revenues increased by $1.2 million. While room tax was down by roughly $1.5 million, he said income taxes increased by $500,000 and admissions and amusement taxes increased by $600,000 – a figure driven by Oceans Calling ticket sales.
“And we’ve had really good yields on our interest on our savings accounts,” he said. “That more than made-up for the decrease in room taxes.”
Bunting also noted that transfers to other funds increased $3.3 million,
and the fund balance decreased by $4.6 million. When comparing budget to actual, he said revenues exceeded estimates by $3.7 million and expenditures were $4.3 million less than budgeted, resulting in a favorable variance of $8 million.
Bunting also highlighted the town’s unassigned fund balance, which had decreased by $7.4 million in fiscal year 2024. He attributed that change to a decrease in the fund balance and an additional $2.7 million committed and assigned to various purposes throughout the year.
“We’re still above the 17% town policy,” he said. “However, there was obviously a significant decrease in the unassigned fund balance.”
Looking at business type activities, Bunting said water fund revenues increased 8.8% while expenses remained flat. Within the wastewater fund, revenues saw a slight increase.
“However, the wastewater fund saw a little over 10% increase in operating expenses, which is primarily due to chemical cost increases and system repairs, things like that,” he said.
The city also recorded a 22% increase in transportation revenues and a 6.4% increase in transportation expenses. Within the convention cen-
See UNASSIGNED Page 18
City expects BOEM lawsuit to cost $400K
Resort challenges federal gov’t. over approval process for US Wind development
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Town of Ocean City and several local agencies and businesses are suing a federal agency over its approval process for the US Wind project off Maryland’s coast.
On Oct. 25, the Town of Ocean City announced it has retained Marzulla Law, LLC to file a lawsuit against the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). The lawsuit, which lists several co-plaintiffs, challenges the agency’s process for approving the US Wind project, which will involve the construction of 114, 938foot-tall wind turbines roughly 10 miles off the coast of Ocean City.
“We have a responsibility to protect our ecosystem, our economy, view shed and our future,” Mayor Rick Meehan said in a news release. “For the past seven and half years we have been trying to work with the State of Maryland and the federal government to address our concerns with this project. All of our concerns were either ignored or considered insignificant. It is unfortunate that it has come to this, but the Town was left with no choice but to file suit against BOEM and challenge their favorable record of decision on the US Wind project.”
In September, the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released a favorable record of decision for the commercial-scale Maryland offshore wind project. The agency’s approval concluded a two-year National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process and set US Wind on a path to securing all of its remaining federal permits by the end of 2024.
Since that time, however, city officials have been meeting with consultants and attorneys to discuss a potential lawsuit, which came to fruition last Friday. The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, alleges the U.S. Department of the Interior, BOEM and the National Marine Fisheries Service failed to conduct a transparent approval process and meet statutory and regulatory requirements set forth by the Administrative Procedure Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Coastal Zone Management Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act.
“When the Government announced its goal of deploying 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy projects by 2030, it set into motion a coordinated effort to approve major federal undertakings on the Outer
Continental Shelf as fast as possible, sacrificing a transparent approval process, the purpose of notice and comment rulemaking, and shortcutting the statutory and regulatory requirements that were enacted to protect our nation’s environmental and natural resources, its industries, and its people,” the complaint reads.
When reached this week, both BOEM and US Wind declined to comment on the litigation.
Several co-plaintiffs join Ocean City in lawsuit
Marzulla Law, LLC, a firm known for its expertise in environmental and property rights litigation, will lead Ocean City’s case against the federal government. City Manager Terry McGean said Ocean City has spent roughly $40,000 in its lawsuit, and that none of the 20-plus co-plaintiffs
have contributed money toward the effort.
“We expect the total cost for the lawsuit to be between $300,000$400,000,” he said this week.
Named co-plaintiffs in the lawsuit include the Worcester County Commissioners, the Mayor and Town Council of Fenwick Island, the Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association (HMRA), the Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, the Coastal Association of Realtors, the White Marlin Open, and several other local organizations and businesses, including companies representing Thrasher’s French Fries and Jolly Roger. Those joining in the lawsuit raise concerns about the potential negative impacts the project could have on the viewshed, local environment, tourism industry and the fish-
ing community.
“Because adding hundreds of towering turbines, each affixed with red lights visible day and night, would drive visitors, residents, and second home buyers elsewhere, notwithstanding the unknown environmental impacts to marine life, the Worcester County Commissioners vehemently oppose the project and have joined the Town of Ocean City and other members of the community in this lawsuit,” Commissioner Chip Bertino said this week. “Such marine, environmental, and economic devastation would in perpetuity diminish property values and reduce tax revenues in Worcester County.”
When reached for comment this week, Fenwick Island Mayor Natalie
Several co-plaintiffs join OC in legal battle
Magdeburger recognized Meehan and the Town of Ocean City for leading the legal effort. She argued the US Wind project posed concerns not only for the environment and the economy, but also for public safety.
“We see what our future is going to entail,” she said. “Putting these wind turbines up is a disaster on so many levels.”
Co-plaintiffs in and around Ocean City echoed those concerns.
“While we recognize climate change and are not anti-renewable energy, we do not support the current offshore turbine proposal; the 114 turbines 10.7 miles off our beach pose an immediate, concrete threat to a vibrant tourism-based economy,” Susan Jones, executive director for the Ocean City HMRA, said. “We have grave concern for blades ending up in our oceans and destruction of ecosystems.”
“There is much enthusiasm across the state for the jobs offshore wind projects will bring,” she added. “Certainly, there will be startup needs for labor, but maintenance and ongoing needs will not outweigh the industries destroyed by these wind turbines placed in our waters.”
In a statement issued this week, the White Marlin Open shared its opposition to the US Wind project. The organization states it joined the lawsuit “in order to both protect and continue” the town’s legacy as the “White Marlin Capital of the World.”
Association, the Little Salisbury Civic Association, the Delmarva Community Managers Association and the Ocean City Development Corporation (OCDC) – are also named as coplaintiffs. At Caine Woods, 89,9% of the association’s voting membership opted to join the city in its lawsuit, according to Board President Mike Quade. And within the OCDC, participation in the city’s lawsuit was supported by the organization’s board of directors.
offshore wind benefits
Amy Thompson, executive director for the Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, said her organization supported the city and other plaintiffs in the lawsuit against the federal government. She opined the offshore wind project would impact visitation, property values, and the recreational and commercial fishing industries.
“This project would be catastrophic to the recreational fishing industry and pose an obvious threat to the marine ecosystem that the sport fishing industry relies on,” the statement reads. “The proposed windmills will also create a significant safety hazard for all vessels. Known affectionately as ‘The Best Week of the Year,’ the White Marlin Open generates a significant economic impact for the town of Ocean City and the state of Maryland. We know that this is a poorly conceived and executed project that will not be good for our business or the citizens of the town and we intend to fight it every step of the way.”
Several local organizations – including the Caine Woods Community
“The Board of Directors and Staff at the OCDC feel very strongly that the planned offshore wind turbines will be detrimental to the local economy and environment,” Executive Director Zach Bankert said. “You simply need to look at what happened in Nantucket this past summer, where their beaches were closed after being littered with fiberglass shards after their offshore wind turbine blades failed. There are multiple concerns including the environmental impact of building and operating the turbines, the takeover of the harbor, the negative effects on the local real estate market, and the harm caused to our fishing and tourism industries. It was an easy decision for the OCDC Board of Directors to join the City’s lawsuit as a co-plaintiff.”
US Wind, government tout
From the outset, officials with US Wind, as well as state and federal agencies, have highlighted the benefits offshore wind could bring to Maryland. The phased project – to include up to 114 wind turbines, four offshore substation platforms, four offshore export cable corridors and one meteorological tower – is expected to generate more than two gigawatts of renewable energy for the Delmarva Peninsula and support nearly 2,700 jobs over the next seven years.
As part of its approval process, BOEM evaluated the impacts of US Wind’s project, as well as a range of alternatives, in a document known as an Environmental Impact Statement.
While acknowledging the project “would result in major impacts” to the viewshed, the federal agency opined new reefs and wind turbine structures could result in sightseeing opportunities.
The document also reports the US Wind project could result in minor to moderate impacts on water quality, wetlands, and coastal habitat, as well as disturbances to marine mammals. In terms of commercial and recreational fishing, BOEM said project
Continued from Page 15 See LAWSUIT Page 20
Tanker spills liquid carbon dioxide in accident on Rt. 50
(Nov. 1, 2024) The work week got off to a slow start for motorists on Route 50 after an accident involving a tanker led to the highway being closed for multiple hours.
Shortly before 9 a.m. on Monday, troopers from the Maryland State Police Berlin Barrack responded to eastbound Route 50 east of its intersection with North Main Street for a crash.
The preliminary investigation indicates a black and silver 2009 International tanker style truck, bearing Texas registration was traveling eastbound on Route 50 when it was struck from behind by a black 2011 BMW 328 with Maryland registration. The impact caused the tank on the back of the truck to rupture contents of “carbon dioxide refrigerated liquid,” according to messaging on the tanker.
The driver of the International truck is identified as Deonshaye D. Waters, 28, of Laurel, Del. Waters was transported to Atlantic General Hospital for precautionary measures.
The driver of the BMW is identified as Sandra Jean Elliott, 39, of Pittsville. Elliott was transported to Tidal Health hospital for precautionary measures. Elliott was charged with negligent driving.
Troopers on the scene were assisted by the Berlin Fire Company. The Maryland State Highway Administration also responded and assisted with the road closure. Route 50 was closed for approximately three hours. The investigation was continuing as of Tuesday.
Continued from Page 14
ter fund, revenues increased 19% and expenses increased 16%.
“The general fund contribution to subsidize the operations at the financial center also increased 10.2%,” Bunting explained. “That helped increase the net position for the convention center by about $820,000.”
Bunting also reviewed financials for the airport, which recorded a 5.1% increase in revenues and a 21.6% increase in expenses. The golf course, he added, showed a 2.1% increase in revenues and a 12.2% decrease in expenses.
“This is the fourth straight year we didn’t have to subside operations at the golf course,” he said.
Bunting then concluded his presentation with a review of the town’s pension plans, other post-employment benefits and long-term debt. Officials say the full financial report will be posted on the city’s website.
PHOTO COURTESY BERLIN FIRE COMPANY
The two-vehicle accident scene on Route 50 east of the North Main Street is pictured Monday morning. The tanker was hauling refrigerated carbon dioxide liquid.
Explore Lightship Cove, a community that is nestled amid permanently protected farmland in Milton, close to beautiful coastal Delaware beaches but tucked away where quiet nature surrounds you. Plus, with future amenities including a pool and pickleball courts, you can enjoy fun and relaxation without leaving the neighborhood.
Lawsuit follows similar cases
Continued from Page 16
construction, operation and decommissioning could affect port and fishing access.
When BOEM issued a favorable record of decision in September, it put US Wind’s project on the path of becoming one of the nation’s first ten commercial-scale offshore wind operations. With a lawsuit now challenging that approval process, it remains to be seen what effect it will have on the project.
Ocean City lawsuit follows similar cases
It should be noted that similar lawsuits have been filed in New Jersey and Massachusetts, where nearby offshore wind projects have been challenged by local governments and interest groups.
In New Jersey, for example, Cape May County and other local groups hired Marzulla Law to sue the federal government last year over its approval process for Ørsted’s Ocean Wind projects. Since that time, however, the Danish renewable energy company has announced it would cease development of Ocean Wind 1 and Ocean Wind 2, citing high inflation, rising interest rates and supply chain issues, among other things.
In August, months after the company’s announcement, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities
terminated its orders approving the company’s offshore wind projects. However, litigation continues in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, with Ørsted seeking to stay the case rather than dismiss it.
“The Company, however, insists that the case should be stayed – not dismissed – posing the speculative notion that ‘Ocean Wind could potentially sell the Project, including the Federal permits and approvals being challenged in this lawsuit,’” an Oct. 15 supporting exhibit from the plaintiff reads.
Marzulla Law also represents a group of Nantucket, Massachusetts residents challenging the adequacy of the federal government’s environmental review of the Vineyard Wind Project, which came under scrutiny earlier this summer when debris from a collapsed turbine blade washed ashore on Nantucket beaches.
In September, the law firm petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a decision of the First Circuit, which upheld a district court decision to dismiss the case. At the center of the petition, the law firm reports, is the North Atlantic right whale. The plaintiffs argue that BOEM and the National Marine Fisheries Service ignored the Endangered Species Act in their approval of Vineyard Wind.
Police seek suspect involved in midtown OC bank robbery
Public encouraged leave tips through department’s web portal, tip line number
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Ocean City Police Department continues to seek the public’s assistance in identifying the suspect in a midtown bank robbery that occurred last Friday.
Last Friday, Oct. 25, Ocean City police were called to the scene of a robbery that had occurred at Truist Bank on 47th Street just after 9 a.m. And in the hours following the incident, photos of the suspect and requests for the public’s assistance were circulated on the police department’s
Fall in Love!
Facebook page. As of Tuesday, the suspect has not been apprehended, according to a spokesperson for the Ocean City Police Department. Those who can identify the suspects in the photos posted online are asked to contact Detective Amy Gutowski at agutowski@oceancitymd.gov or at 410-520-5314.
Anonymous tips may be left by calling 410-520-5136 or submitted via https://oceancitymd.gov/oc/departments/police/crime-tips. Please reference case number 2024-004794.
Local arrested in OC charged with drug distribution
Salisbury man faces fine, 20 years for each charge
By Steve Green Executive Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) Felony cocaine distribution charges have been filed against a Salisbury man who was apprehended in Ocean City last week after a grand jury indictment.
On Oct. 22, the Worcester County Circuit Court grand jury was convened to hear a request for a criminal indictment on three felony counts of controlled dangerous substance distribution of cocaine. Court records indicate on three separate occasions –Sept. 19 and 24 and Oct. 17 — Terrence Lee Purnell, 56, distributed cocaine to an undercover police detective. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years’ incarceration and fines up to $15,000. After the indictment was handed down by the grand jury, an arrest warrant request by Worcester County State’s Attorney Kristin Heiser was granted for Purnell on Oct. 23.
On the same day, Oct. 23, a search warrant was executed on an Ocean City hotel room where Purnell was believed to be staying with a female friend, later identified as Tiffany Bandiere, 26. A 2023 Chevrolet Equinox, parked in the hotel parking garage, was included in the search warrant. Bandiere also had an active warrant out for her arrest.
A search turned up four yellow packages labeled buprenorphine and naloxone sublingual. While both drugs are often used to treat opioid use disorders, they are also schedule
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
The Ocean City Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying a midtown bank robbery suspect, pictured above.
Police find drugs, firearms during car, OC hotel search
II controlled dangerous substances, according to the statement of probable cause.
A search of the hotel room located an un-milled AR-15 lower receiver, an unloaded Polymer80 9mm handgun without a serial number but with a TruGlo weapon mounted optic, two unloaded 9 mm magazines and one digital scale with white powder on it confirmed to be cocaine (a schedule II controlled dangerous substance).
The vehicle search found one unloaded Polymer80 9 mm handgun without a serial number inside a holster with a 9 mm magazine loaded with several 9mm cartridges. In the police report, it was noted Purnell’s conviction for second-degree assault meant he could not possess a weapon.
Throughout the undercover operation, police observed Purnell daily use the vehicle for transportation with the guns in his possession. Polymer guns are “personally made firearms without serial numbers which are illegal to possess in the State of Maryland,” according to the police officer’s report. Purnell admitted to the weapon found in the vehicle but said the gun located in the
hotel room belonged to a friend.
For this specific incident, Purnell has been charged with two counts of firearm possession by a convicted felon, two counts of illegal firearm possession, two counts of transporting firearms without serial numbers and possession of a controlled dangerous substance not cannabis (buprenorphine).
On the charges stemming from the indictment, Purnell had a bail hearing on Oct. 28 and was held without bond. A motion hearing is proposed for Jan. 2, 2025. A jury trial is scheduled for Feb. 11, 2025.
Also arrested in the investigation was Bandiere, who is facing a misdemeanor charge of CDS distribution narcotics (cocaine), according to court records. She was released on her own personal recognizance on Oct. 29.
Purnell is no stranger to local law enforcement. Back in 2010, an undercover drug distribution operation called “Take Pride in Berlin” resulted in Purnell being arrested for selling crack cocaine and marijuana. Purnell ultimately pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and was sentenced to 10 years in jail.
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Worcester unveils five-year vision for capital projects
By Brian Shane Staff Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) Brand-new county libraries, schools, and public works improvements are among the many ambitious capital projects on the table for Worcester County officials to consider pursuing over the next five years.
Projects listed on the county’s Capital Improvement Plan for fiscal years 2026-2030 are estimated to cost about $267.8 million – thought officials note the list is a planning document to anticipate future needs. Just because a project gets a mention doesn’t guarantee it will come to fruition.
Some of the most high-profile projects on this list have been discussed at length for months in the community, including the $71.3 million replacement of Buckingham Elementary School, and the subsequent $80 million replacement or renovation of Berlin Intermediate School.
Additional educational projects mentioned in the Capital Improvement Plan include a new roof for
Pocomoke Elementary School ($3.3 million) as well as the county’s share of funding ($3.8 million) toward a new $55 million Student Success and Wellness Center at Wor-Wic Community College.
Additional projects include ongoing countywide road paving ($6.5 million), replacing the county’s outdoor siren system ($1.4 million), and replacing HVAC units at the county’s recreation center.
Worcester County isn’t on the hook for every penny of potential projects. Existing county coffers would fund about a third ($87.4 million) of overall spending, while borrowing on the bond market would source another quarter ($68.2 million) of capital expenditures.
Additional funds would come from enterprise bonds, grants, user fees, as well as matching funds or loans from the state, according to county officials.
Some projects are expected to be grant-funded, and would not proceed without the grant money, according to according to Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Candace Savage.
She added that all the projects on the list are staff submissions with no official ranking. Some projects have been approved and would move to the top of the list, but each project goes through its own individual approval as funding allows.
The public is welcome to attend a hearing to discuss the overall planning document on Nov. 6 at 10:35 a.m., during a regularly scheduled meeting of the County Commissioners at the Government Center in Snow Hill.
Below are some of the projects listed in the Capital Improvement Plan, as prepared by county administrators and department heads. Details about these projects are sourced from official planning request documents submitted to the commissioners at their Oct. 15 meeting.
New Pocomoke Library
Projected cost: $9.2 million
Budgeted for: fiscal year 2026
The county library at 301 Market Street is a space that’s central to the Pocomoke community. But now, at 54 years old, the building is aging out of its useful life. It last saw an addition 20 years ago.
A replacement building would address problems like a lack of flex space for collaborative work, poor ADA compliance, a shortage of shelf space for books and materials, and outdated electrical and data systems. Operating costs would likely be lowered, too, with a new facility.
The county’s cost would be deferred by a $3.99 million Public Library Grant from the state.
Renovated Snow Hill library
Projected cost: $3.4 million
Larger family court on horizon?
Budgeted for: fiscal year 2026
Built in 1974, Snow Hill library branch on North Washington Street in good shape architecturally, but its mechanical systems in need of replacement. Upgrades are needed for the building’s plumbing, HVAC, and restrooms, and lighting. Some changes would be made, as well, to the building layout.
Replacing the HVAC also would help maintain keepsakes in the Worcester Room, which holds some one-of-a-kind items from the local history collection.
Overall, the project is deemed “necessary but not time critical” by county officials.
New roof for Government Center
Projected cost: $2.8 million
Budgeted for: fiscal year 2026
The county isn’t just slapping new shingles on the roof of the government center.
It’s likely to be a massive structural project and is a priority project.
In fact, internal documents show the evaluating engineer and roofing contractors were heard to comment how “they are surprised that the roof has not blown off yet.”
The project would include a complete replacement of all metal and rubberized roof sections, due to potentially severe failures of the roof system, as well as include additional structural support and insulation
Expanded Family Court
Projected cost: $1.3 million
Budgeted for: fiscal 2026-28
Courtroom #4 in the Snow Hill Circuit Courthouse is home to hearings for divorce, child custody, and truancy. So far this year, more than 1,100 hearings already have been held here.
Things can get heated in Family Court, and as of now, courtroom attendees are slightly on top of each other. Even the magistrate judge has to walk through a conference room to get to the bench, which is disruptive and potentially unsafe. For this reason, court personnel are asking to expand the courtroom, to provide distance between parties to the case.
Overall, at 1,500 square feet with a fire marshal capacity of just 22 people, court personnel have deemed the space as inadequate – especially compared to the building’s other three courtrooms, which are at least twice the size.
This project also would centralize Family Services offices to improve public access. Room for expansion would not be possible without removal of some existing offices, including taking 2,000 square feet from the Register of Wills office and some divisions of the Clerk of Court.
Courthouse safety vestibule
Projected cost: $606,000
Budgeted for: fiscal 2026-28
Getting into the Circuit Courthouse at the Washington Street en-
trance can be a little tight. There’s barely room for a few people to wait for the metal detector and X-ray screeners, let alone space to accommodate literally dozens of jurors, attorneys, and members of the public who spill outside to queue on a busy docket day.
The proposed solution is building a vestibule outside this entrance. At 672 square feet, it could provide more room for sheriff’s deputies to better control the flow of foot traffic and conduct screening of visitors. There are three different versions of an architect’s rendering; one is traditional and brick, another is modern in glass, and a third is in-between those.
New Pocomoke Senior Center
Projected cost: $8.4 million
Budgeted for: fiscal year 2027-28
Plans here are calling for the wholesale replacement of an existing county Health Department building at its same Walnut Street location. Built in 1949-50, the 14,000 square foot building is noncompliant with modern safety, accessibility, and energy efficiency codes.
County aging officials say a new building, which would keep serving as the “50Plus” Senior Center, not only would lower maintenance and repair costs but could provide a safe
and attractive environment for Pocomoke’s aging population to socialize.
Addition to State’s Attorney building
Projected cost: $6.1 million
Budgeted for: fiscal 2026-29
In decades past, the State’s Attorney had office space on the second floor of the courthouse. By 2009, prosecutors got their own standalone facility, the William G. Kerbin, Jr. State’s Attorney Building, which opened on Franklin Street adjacent to the Government Center.
Today, the current prosecutorial team may have outgrown the “new” building, where space is inadequate for current and projected staffing levels. Preliminary plans are calling for a 6,000 square foot addition adjacent to the existing State’s Attorney office on Franklin Street.
New Sheriff’s Office
Projected cost: $40.8 million
Budgeted for: fiscal 2026-28
For years, the sheriff’s office has been located in the basement of the county’s Government Center, so this is an area is not easily accessible to the public. Storage spaces have become office spaces. The sheriff adds that his team has no way to accommodate large groups, so multi-agency briefs and meetings have to be held at outside locations.
Another concern is safety. The office floor plan means deputies cannot “completely isolate individuals in custody.” Also, people who are criminal charged use the same public entrance as regular government staffers coming into the Government Center. Sheriff Matt Crisafulli says he is looking for its own stand-alone facility on Route 113 next to Worcester Technical High School, but offered few other details in proposal documents. The space may also house the county’s Emergency Services division, documents mention.
Another related project on the Capital Improvement Plan is a request for a $3.5 million public safety storage warehouse and fleet garage for the sheriff’s office, emergency services department, and fire marshal’s office. Its proposed site is a current county firefighter training Facility.
Landfill expansion
Projected cost: $16 million
Budgeted for: fiscal year 2026-27
An engineering study found that Cell 5 at the county’s central landfill will run out of landfill space by December 2027. Without an expansion, the county will need to find a place for its trash when Cell 5 becomes full. Plans, therefore, are calling for Cell 6 to be built. When that happens, the landfill won’t run out of room for
Water and sewer projects looming
another 18 years, in 2042. Another related project on the Capital Improvement Plan calls for the construction of a gas collection system at the landfill. At an estimated cost of $4.6 million, this project would be mandated by the state Department of the Environment, documents show.
Landfill capping
Projected cost: $8.1 million
Budgeted for: fiscal year 29-30
In a related matter, county sanitation staff say it’s time to close off the very first space ever used at the landfill, a zone known as Cell 1. The zone is now the cause of many problems, including leachate seeps. Capping Cell 1 means they could do away with problematic issues that take a lot of manpower to fix weekly.
Water, sewer projects
The Capital Improvement Plan includes more than a dozen projects that would improve several wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), water lines, or sewer connections. They include some of the following, with the county’s estimated cost in parentheses:
• Rehabilitate wastewater treatment plant for the Riddle Farm service area ($3.6 M)
• Extend county sewer lines along Lewis Road, eliminating 60 septic systems ($4 M)
• Increase emergency storage in the capacity of the Ocean Pines WWTP lagoon ($450,000)
• Belt filter replacement for Ocean Pines WWTP ($4.6 M)
• Connect Mystic Harbor water to Riddle Farm service area as a backup, to allow Mystic Harbor to provide water for Riddle Farm in case of an emergency ($2 M)
• Rehab the Riddle Farm water tower ($750,000)
• Install a sewer force main bypass line to connect Riddle Farm to Ocean Pines WWTP ($3.2 M)
• Replace an undersized sewer main along Sunset Avenue in West OC ($2 M)
• Connect St. Martin’s by the Bay community to OP water system ($2.5 M)
• Replacement of the Newark Water Treatment Plant Building and equipment ($6 M)
• Upgrades to Mystic Harbor WWTP plant ($6.9 M) and building rehab ($1.6 M)
• Replace failing force main in Ocean Pines ($1.7 M)
• Connect the River Run and Ocean Pines sewers via a new sewer line ($2.1 M)
• Connect Mystic Harbor effluent discharge to Riddle Farm WWTP ($6.5 M) and expand effluent disposal network for Mystic Harbor WWTP by tying into Assateague Point and Landings WWTP systems ($3.6 M)
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Berlin planning to add Oct. Sundays to farmers market
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) The extension of the Berlin Farmers Market into October this year was a success, as organizers say the new six-month season will continue going forward.
The Berlin Farmers Market, which typically runs from May through September, added the four Sundays in October this fall as a pilot program to determine if demand was high enough for an annual autumnal market season.
According to Ivy Wells, Berlin’s economic and community development director, the town received the extension well.
“I’m thrilled to report that the extended market was monumentally successful across the board,” she said. “I attended the market Sunday and talked with everyone, including business owners and locals; the response was overwhelmingly positive. I’m pleased to confirm that we always plan to run the Berlin Farmers Market through October.”
The extra month was discussed at a July meeting of the Berlin Mayor and Council when Councilman Jay Knerr asked if the market could continue beyond its end of September closing.
Wells maintained that as the farmers have extended their seasons through innovations like greenhouses, giving town residents and visitors a few more weeks to shop for fresh produce would be beneficial.
“I love the farmers market; everyone loves it, they look forward to it; it is the week’s highlight,” Wells said in July. “The farmers have additional crops; the vendors want to be there. Everyone wants the farmers market to continue.”
Those on the council also appreciated the October market season. Member Shaneka Nichols noted at the group’s Monday, Oct. 28 meeting that in addition to offering goodies from local vendors and fresh fruits and vegetables, the event fosters connection and brings people together.
“It’s not just shopping that happens out there,” she said. “It is a lot of congregating, community, and time to slow down and catch up. My daughter and I have truly enjoyed the farmers market season; the extended season was great…I look forward to that again next year.”
The Berlin Farmers Market will occur each Sunday from May through October in the coming years.
Berlin man challenging rezoning’s rejection
Worcester contractor looks to change operation space to C-2 General Commercial
(Nov. 1, 2024) A Berlin businessman is appealing in court a rejected rezoning of his commercial property, saying he can’t expand his contracting operation because Worcester County’s zoning restrictions won’t permit him to build bigger workspaces on his land.
A year ago, Paul Sens asked the Worcester County Commissioners at a public hearing to rezone his commercial property, arguing the C-1 designation was erroneous and didn’t fit the land use. The Commissioners in a 4-3 vote denied the request, saying Sens did not meet the burden of proof to show that the zoning was a mistake.
Sens is now back to appeal the denial. He is saying through attorney Hugh Cropper that the Commissioners were wrong, their decision should be overturned, and his client should be allowed to re-zone into a classification that makes sense for his business.
Judge Thomas Groton heard the appeal on Oct. 25 in Worcester County Circuit Court. His ruling has not yet been made public.
At issue is the specific zoning designation for the property, which is a 5.5-acre parcel located just north of the intersection of Route 113 and Route 50. Its current zoning is C-1 Neighborhood Commercial.
Neighborhood Commercial is a zoning district intended to provide day-to-day shopping conveniences for communities of 1,000 people or more – places where you can shop for sundries, or find service-based storefronts like auto repair, according to Cropper, an attorney who specializes in zoning and land use cases.
“Here there is no neighborhood to serve, your honor. There is no dispute. It’s a dead-end road. They are completely isolated. There are 10 ag lots back there,” Cropper told the judge. “If there was ever a piece that shouldn’t be Neighborhood Commercial, this is it.”
The lot has been C-1 following a countywide rezoning effort from 2009. Cropper argued in court that not only was the 2009 rezoning done in error, but there’s no record as to why the change was even made.
The Sens petition also argues the Commissioners in Nov. 7, 2023, denial failed to heed a favorable recommendation from the county’s Planning Commission, and also failed to consider whether the zoning was consistent with the county’s comprehensive plan – both of which are mandatory by state and local codes, according to Cropper.
“To me, that’s no meaningful judicial review at all, which means the
commissioners can deny anything by categorically, saying, ‘it’s now in our discretion to do what we want,’” he said.
Sens’ goal is to secure C-2 General Commercial zoning for the land, a designation that would allow him to expand his contractor shops and even add storage units.
Sens’ property now has 9,528 square feet of space housing contractor shops for his business, Sens Mechanical. That makes the site “legally nonconforming” because it exceeds the total square footage of contractor space allowed by the C-1 zoning, which is capped at 2,500 square feet.
“This is not a minor nonconformity, your honor,” Cropper told the judge.
“This is like going out to McDonalds and rezoning it (agricultural)
and having it a legally existing nonconformity.”
Arguing the other side for the commissioners was Roscoe Leslie, the county’s attorney.
He said the county already has in place an established rezoning process that comes up every 10 years, and that citizens generally don’t get to petition the government to change their zoning without meeting a heavy burden of proof.
“When we are going to change the zoning, we have to have a good reason,” Leslie told the judge. “In this case, we’re leaving it the same. We’re not taking any action. I don’t think there’s as much a need to go through why the change is necessary, because we’re not changing it, we’re leaving it the same.”
Leslie added, to show a correctable
mistake, that the petitioner needed to prove there was bad information going into the 2009 zoning process.
“Just because something is a certain use in the past doesn’t mean zoning will preserve it that way in the future. To me, it’s not evidence of a mistake at all,” he said.
The case bears similarities to another recent legal challenge, also tried by Hugh Cropper, where the petitioner appealed to Worcester’s Circuit Court after the Commissioners rejected a rezoning request.
Judge Brian Shockley in an Oct. 4 opinion ordered the Commissioners to re-evaluate after they failed to publicly explain why they turned down Amy Kelly’s request to rezone her Snow Hill-area warehouse, where she wants to open an antique store, from agricultural to commercial.
River guide announced
The Pocomoke River, a sprawling, 73-mile, coastal plain river, is featured within the pages of the new Pocomoke River Guide.
This easy to carry tri-fold guide was developed by Worcester County Tourism and Economic Development (WCTED). The guide details the river’s fascinating history, from its humble origins in Southern Delaware, through its haunting, loblollied landscapes within the Great Cypress Swamp, to its stunning vistas at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. In rich detail, the guide outlines numerous opportunities on the land and out on the water to explore the Pocomoke River.
Printed locally, the guide is available at area visitor centers and outfitters along Maryland’s coast.
“The purpose of the guide is to educate the public about the river’s eco-
logical importance and its contribution to ecotourism,” Advertising and Destination Marketing Specialist Brianna Dix said. “Featuring a detailed map, the guide outlines access points for paddling, fishing, and simply enjoying the river. The stunning photography and detailed information in the guide inspire exploration and a greater appreciation of this natural treasure, all while boosting tourism in Worcester County.”
Development and publication of the guide were made possible through a mini grant from the Beach to Bay Heritage Area (BBHA), aligning with their mission to promote, preserve, and protect the cultural and natural heritage of Maryland’s Lower Eastern Shore.
“This guide was something our community partners were eager to see updated,” Dix said. “The support of our county commissioners and
local heritage area made this project possible.”
Digital copies of the Pocomoke River Guide are available at https://visitmarylandscoast.org/re quest-a-visitors-guide. Hardcopies are available at area visitor centers and by calling WCTED at 410-632-3110.
Award winner named
The Lower Shore Land Trust proudly announces the winner of this year’s Stephen Parker Legacy Award, former Conservation Easement Program Manager for Maryland Environmental Trust (MET), Ann Gutierrez Carlson. The award will be presented at Lower Shore Land Trust’s annual Flannel Formal event to be held on Nov. 9, from 3-6 pm at Coulbourn Farm in Snow Hill.
The award is given annually to a nominated landowner or conservation
COMMUNITY BRIEFS
practitioner for their contributions to private land conservation on the Lower Eastern Shore. It honors Stephen Parker, a renowned conservationist that strived to bring together economic development and conservation, preserving the health and productivity of large ecosystems and the needs of human communities.
Ann surpasses the merits needed to obtain this award. While working with MET, she completed over 120 easements on over 19,000 acres statewide including over 3200 acres of land on 19 properties on the Lower Shore. Ann is one of the most knowledgeable and committed practitioners of the trade in the State of Maryland, or the country, for that matter. In addition to her work doing conservation easements, she has also supported Lower Shore conservation through engaging in difficult stewardship situations, monitoring properties jointly with LSLT staff, and joining us for local events all the way from Annapolis. She recently made the extremely difficult decision to retire from her career in land protection to bring her talents and compassion to the even nobler profession of helping people as a nurse.
Pavilion plans events
Freeman Arts Pavilion is slated to present two unique and engaging events that showcase the arts in an exciting way this off-season.
Tickets are on sale now for “Through the Lens: Focus on Capturing the Moments,” on Wednesday, Nov. 6, and “Holiday Warm-Up with the Easterlies,” on Friday, Dec. 6. Through the Lens delves into how the principles of storytelling and visual communication used in content creation, such as photos and videos, can be applied to everyday life. This program will be led by Natalee and Todd DeHart of GCFL Productions in Berlin. Tickets are $20 plus fees. The University of Delaware’s Easterlies Woodwind Quintet will welcome the holiday season with a beautiful evening of seasonal music at Holiday Warm-Up. The Easterlies will perform pieces from the standard quintet repertoire, as well as several holiday arrangements. Tickets are $25 plus fees. These events are sponsored, in part, by the Carl M. Freeman Foundation and will be held at the Foundation’s office building located at 31255 Americana Parkway, Selbyville Del. 19975. Chairs will be provided, and seating will be on a first-come, firstserve basis. To purchase tickets and learn more, visit freemanarts.org.
Berlin commits to Ohio-based wind accord
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(Oct. 31, 2024) Berlin has entered into a purchase power agreement (PPA) with American Municipal Power (AMP) to buy renewable energy from the Blue Creek Wind Farm based in Ohio. Officials estimate the move could yield an average savings of $100,000 annually for consumers.
The renewable energy agreement will be in effect from 2026 to 2029. According to a letter to the town from financial consultant Steven Miller from Booth & Associates, the wind farm presents a “good opportunity” for Berlin to save on energy costs. The PPA through AMP could reduce the town’s current energy expenses, which average 41.76 per megawatthour (MWh) plus a renewable energy credit (REC) cost of $23- totaling
$64/MWh. The town’s rate could drop to $59/MWh with the new PPA. Ultimately, the AMP agreement produces a price lower than what the municipality is currently paying.
According to Berlin’s Utility Director Tim Lawrence, every electric utility in the State of Maryland must acquire a certain amount of its purchase power from renewable energy sources, like wind or solar. Berlin would have to pay a penalty if these expectations are unmet.
Town Mayor Zack Tyndall maintained that consultants often evaluate the prices to determine if obtaining the renewable energy credits (RECs) would be more cost-effective or take the fine.
RECs are used to track and verify the use of renewable energy. As the United States Environmental Protec-
tion Agency states, “RECs are issued when one megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity is generated and delivered to the electricity grid from a renewable energy resource.”
By acquiring RECs, Berlin can meet the state’s renewable energy mandates.
“Us to purchase renewable energy credits is a state requirement because we have an electric utility,” Tyndall said. “We are unique in that respect.”
Tyndall said it’s hoped the partnership could help with meeting the requirements handed down by the state.
“Some years, we will take a penalty if it is going to be more expensive to acquire the RECs,” Tyndall said. “But in this analysis, it is actually going to be advantageous for us to acquire the RECs, so as [Lawrence] noted, our
consultants said it is better to lock in this right now and potentially save $100,00 a year for the duration [of the agreement].”
The letter from Miller adds the town needs 18.45% of its total electricity sales, measured in kilowatthours (kWh), to come from non-solar renewable sources. AMP initially requested to allocate 2.3 megawatts (MW) of wind power to Berlin. However, increasing this to 2.7 MW would cover around 16% of the town’s sales. Since 2.7 MW does not quite reach the 18.45% goal, the suggestion is to adjust the allocation to be closer to the 18.45% without going over it to “get what you need and not have to sell RECs.”
The Berlin Town Council unanimously passed the AMP agreement at its Monday, Oct. 28 meeting.
Calendar
Fri., Nov. 1
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Roland E. Powell Convention Center, 4001 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Motorhomes, trailers, custom van builds, watersports, powersports and numerous special events and activities. Show schedule: ocrvshow.com. Tickets: tickets.ocrvshow.com/e/ocrvshow/tickets.
FIRST FRIDAY OPENING RECEPTION FOR NOVEMBER EXHIBITS
Art League of Ocean City, 502 94th St., 5-7 p.m. Meet the artists, enjoy hors d’oeuvres, and see the new exhibits by a variety of local artists. Free event. All are welcome. 410-524-9433, www.artleagueofoceancity.org
KIGHTS OF COLUMBUS BINGO
Fridays - Knights of Columbus, 9901 Coastal Highway, behind St. Luke’s Church. Doors open at 5 p.m., bingo starts at 6:30 p.m. Light snacks available before bingo and at intermission. 410524-7994
Sat., Nov. 2
OC RV & VAN LIFESTYLE SHOW
Roland E. Powell Convention Center, 4001 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Motorhomes, trailers, custom van builds, watersports, powersports and numerous special events and activities. Show schedule: ocrvshow.com. Tickets: tickets.ocrvshow.com/e/ocrvshow/tickets.
CLAYS FOR KIDS FUNDRAISER
Synepuxent Rod & Gun Club, 7909 Purnell Crossing Road, Berlin, 8 a.m. Clay tournament, specialty shots ($5), 50/50, gun raffle, and more. Registration starts at 7 a.m. Cost is $100. Register: www.scorechaser.com. Proceeds benefit The Cricket Center. Rain date is Nov. 3. 410-641-0935
BAZAAR/YARD SALE
Showell United Methodist Church, 10115 Pitts Road, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Housewares, toys, tools Christmas and more. Charlene Upham will do verbal appraisals. Precious metals, coins, antiques, collectibles, artwork and jewelry. Cost is $7 for one item or $15 for three.
ANNUAL CHRISTMAS BAZAAR
Community Church at Ocean PinesFamily Life Center, 11227 Racetrack Road, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Featuring Table Top Decorations, Linens & Things, New & Gently Used Clothing, Gift/Boutique Table, This & That, Ornaments/ Wreaths/Trees, Children’s Table with Books and Toys and a bake sale.
HOLIDAY CRAFT FAIR
Ocean Pines Community Center, 235
Ocean Parkway, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Only handmade items for sale. Free admission. Food and baked goods offered until sold out.
FALL INTO THE HOLIDAYS SHOPPING EXTRAVAGANZA
Powellville Volunteer Fire Company, 5085 Powellville Road, Pittsville, 9 a.m.2 p.m. Local crafters, vendors, businesses. Ladies Auxiliary will have oyster fritter sandwiches, crab cakes, and many other amazing foods for sale! www.facebook.com/share/K82KrsBdLWaT2T6M /?mibextid=9l3rBW, 410-835-8181
ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT FRIED CHICKEN BUFFET
Mt. Pleasant United Methodist Church, 36536 Mount Pleasant Road, Willards, 11 a.m. Vegetables, beverages and desserts included. Cost is $15 for carry outs, $17 to dine in, $8.50 for children and free to those 5 years and younger. 410-835-8340
FALL FESTIVAL AT COASTAL WILDS
Coastal Wilds, 34215 Peppers Corner Road, Frankford, 2-4 p.m. Self-guided tour, Spooky Animals Maze Games, Bring own pumpkin decorating & carving station. Limited supply of pumpkins for sale. Tickets: https://book.singenuity.com/469/activity/details/2297/rates . 302-829-1549
BINGO NIGHT
Holly Center, 926 Snow Hill Road, Salisbury, 6 p.m. Doors open at 4 p.m. Cash only at the event. Cost is $20 in advance or $25 at the door. Tickets: https://form.jotform.com/2424880897 57172. Prizes include designer purses, Boggs bags, baskets and more.
FARMERS & ARTISANS MARKET
Saturdays - White Horse Park, 239 Ocean Parkway, 9 a.m. to noon. Shop for everything from fresh local produce to unique handmade artisan goods. Open to the public.
Sun., Nov. 3
OC RV & VAN LIFESTYLE SHOW
Roland E. Powell Convention Center, 4001 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Motorhomes, trailers, custom van builds, watersports, powersports and numerous special events and activities. Show schedule: ocrvshow.com. Tickets: tickets.ocrvshow.com/e/ocrvshow/tickets.
CENTRAL SKATE SUPPLY SKATEBOARD COMPETITION
Roland E. Powell Convention Center, 4001 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 12-4 p.m. Free skate from 10-11:30 a.m. Main event starts at noon. Skaters registered in competition receive free entry into OC RV Show. Register: https://ocrvshow.com/skateboard-competition/. 443-786-3928
OKTOBERFEST CELEBRATION FUNDRAISER
St. Peter’s Lutheran Church Community Life Center, 10301 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 12 p.m. Menu includes sour beef (Sauerbraten) & real dumplings, brats & sauerkraut, hot dogs, German potato salad, red cabbage, desserts and beverages. A $25 donation. RSVP: Linda Grace, 443-604-8068.
BERLIN FLEA MARKET
Sundays - Uptown Emporium Parking Lot, 13 S. Main St., Berlin, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Vendor opportunities available. Julie, 410-726-9012; Bill, 410-629-9656
SEWING FOR A CAUSE
Sundays - Buckingham Presbyterian Church, 20 S. Main St., Berlin, 10:30 a.m. to noon. Learn how to sew while making a difference. 410-641-0234
JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES MEETING
Sundays - Berlin Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 212 West St., Berlin, 10 a.m. www.jw.org
Mon., Nov. 4
CAREGIVER SUPPORT GROUP
John H. “Jack” Burbage, Jr. Regional Cancer Care Center, 9707 Healthway Drive, Berlin, 3-4 p.m. A safe place for caregivers who share similar challenges and rewards of providing care for adults who have any type of serious illness. Nicole Fry, nfry@atlanticgeneral.org, 410-641-2626
T.O.P.S. OF BERLIN - GROUP #169
Atlantic General Hospital, Conference Room 1, 9733 Healthway Drive, Berlin, 5-6:30 p.m. Take Off Pounds Sensibly is a weekly support and educational group promoting weight loss and living a healthy lifestyle. Rose Campion, 410641-0157
BRIDGE
Mondays - Ocean City 50plus Center, 104 41st Street, Ocean City, 12:30-3:30 p.m. Reserve a spot: Tish, 410-8043971. www.Worcoa.org/oceancity
DELMARVA WOMEN’S A CAPELLA CHORUS
Mondays - Ocean Pines Community Center, 239 Ocean Parkway, 6:00-8:00 p.m. All ladies who love to sing invited. Mary, 410-629-9383 or Carol, 302-2427062.
OVEREATER’S ANONYMOUS
Mondays - Worcester County LibraryOcean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 7-8 p.m. No dues or fees. 410-459-9100
Tues., Nov. 5
BEACH HEROES-OC
Tuesdays - Volunteer beach clean-up group meets from 9-10 a.m., year-round.
Trash bags, grippers and gloves provided. Check the Facebook page “Beach Heroes-OC” for weekly meeting locations. All are welcome.
JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES MEETING
Tuesdays - Berlin Congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 212 West St., Berlin, 7 p.m. www.jw.org
TAKE OFF POUNDS SENSIBLY
Tuesdays - Worcester County Health Department, 9730 Healthway Drive, Berlin, 3:30-4:30 p.m. TOPS is a weekly support and education group promoting weight loss and a healthy lifestyle. 410289-4725
OC KNITTING CLUB
Tuesdays - Worcester County LibraryOcean City Branch, 10003 Coastal Highway, 10:30 a.m.
ARGENTINE TANGO PRACTICE
Tuesdays - Experienced dancers and others interested in watching or learning more are welcome, 7-9:30 p.m. No partner required. Info: TangobytheBeach.com.
ZUMBA TONING TUESDAYS
Tuesdays - Northside Park, 200 125th St., Ocean City, 5:30 p.m. Zumba with optional light weights. zumbajoyceoc@gmail.com
WEIGHT MANAGEMENT AND WELLNESS GROUP
Tuesdays - Holy Trinity Cathedral, 11021 Worcester Highway, 2-2:45 p.m. Use the weight loss program/app/plan of your choice. Free and open to everyone. 410-641-4882, www.htcanglican.org/activities.
Wed., Nov. 6
KIDS PAINT NIGHT
Ocean Pines Community Center, 235 Ocean Parkway, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Open to boys and girls ages 8 years and older. Cost is $22 and includes materials and instruction. Pre-registration required: 410-641-7052.
BARIATRIC SUPPORT GROUP
Nov 6 — Worcester County. 410641-9568. 12 a.m.-11:59 p.m., Held via Zoom call the first and second Wednesday of each month. For non-surgical patients. Atlantic General Bariatric Center, 410-641-9568.
GRACE PARKER BREAKFAST
First Presbyterian Church of Ocean City, 1301 Philadelphia Ave., 7-11 a.m. Eggs, pancakes, sausage, grits and more. Cost is $10 to carryout and $12 to eat in.
DIABETES SUPPORT GROUP
Worcester County Library - Ocean Pines Branch, 11107 Cathell Road, 1:30-2:30 p.m. Providing discussion and education on the topic of diabetes. Patti Yocubik, 410-641-
Classes held Nov. 6, 7 and 8. Cost is $20 for all three evenings. Register: Barry Cohen, 410-935-4807, CGAUXOC@gmail.com.
KIWANIS CLUB MEETING
Wednesdays - Ocean Pines Community Center, 239 Ocean Parkway, 8 a.m. Doors open at 7:30 a.m. Third Wednesday meetings are offsite and information can be found on the website and Facebook. www.kiwanisofopoc.org.
Thurs., Nov. 7
CPAP MASK FITTING
Atlantic General Hospital’s Sleep Disorders Diagnostic Center, 9733 Healthway Drive, Berlin. Free mask fitting clinic for patients who are having trouble adjusting to their CPAP equipment. Appointments required: Robin Rohlfing, 410-641-9726.
QUIT SMOKING & VAPING CLASSES
Gudelsky Family Medical Center, 10614 Racetrack Road, Ocean Pines, 5-6 p.m. This weekly group helps participants learn to set goals, create a quit plan, manage stress and control their health. Register: 410-632-1100, Ext. 1102,
www.worcesterhealth.org.
BEACH SINGLE 55 PLUS MEET AND GREET
Thursdays - Harpoon Hanna’s, Fen wick Island, DE, 4-6 p.m. 215-385-4993, BeachSingles.org
ONGOING EVENTS
BUS TRIP TO NEW YORK
Spend the day exploring New York City on your own. Depart Ocean Pines Community Center at 5:30 a.m. Time in New York approximately 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Cost is $85 for transportation only. Reservations: 410-641-7052.
CHRISTMAS TREE GIFT CARD RAFFLE
The Church of the Holy Spirit in Ocean City is raffling off three small artificial Christmas trees. Each tree is filled with gift cards including those worth $500, $300 and $200. Tickets are $5 each or three for $10. Drawing held Dec. 8 after the 10 a.m. service. For tickets: Marena, 443-944-3276.
HALLOWEEN SCAVENGER HUNT
Ocean City library, 10003 Coastal Highway, Oct. 21-31. Stop by to grab a scavenger hunt sheet and search the Kids and YA area’s high and low for all things Halloween. Finish the hunt and reveal a secret message. For ages 0-5 years and 6-11 years. 410-524-1818.
HAUNTED GARDEN AT SNOW HILL
Snow Hill library, 307 N. Washington St., Oct. 25 through Nov. 1. Explore the Haunted Garden with a ghost hunt, local legends and more haunted activities. All ages. 410-632-3495
NATURE TRAIL GHOST HUNT
Berlin library, 220 N. Main St., Oct. 2531. Go on a not-so-scary ghost hunt through our nature trail. Find all the ghosts to win a prize. For all ages. 410641-0650
PRE-HOLIDAY SHOWING
Ocean Pines library, 11107 Cathell Road, Oct. 1-Dec. 31. A pre-holiday showing of original art work. 410-208-4014
OCEAN PINES VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT RAFFLE
Win a 2024 F-150 4X4 Supercrew 5.0L V8. Tickets cost $100. All registration, sale, etc. expenses covered by O.P.V.F.D. Drawing will take place when all of the tickets have been sold. For more information: www.opvfd.com/f-150.
QUEEN OF HEARTS
Weekly virtual drawings on Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. Winner receives 60 percent of jackpot. www.opvfd.com/queen-ofhearts. Sponsored by the Ocean Pines Volunteer Fire Department.
2025 KIWANIS LOTTERY TICKETS ON SALE
On sale every Saturday morning at the
Ocean Pines Farmers Market from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. One $20 ticket is good for all 365 drawings in 2025. Benefits the youth of the community.
OCEAN CITY-BERLIN ROTARY CLUB
Meets the first and third Wednesday of each month at Don’s Seafood & Chop House at the South Gate of Ocean Pines, 6 p.m. ocberlinrotary@gmail.com
2024 JUST WALK CHALLENGE
Get the most miles of physical activity between Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 and be crowned the Just Walk Worcester Champion of 2024. Sign-up for Just Walk Worcester and report your monthly miles: https://justwalkworcester.org/. 410-632-1100, Ext. 1110
OCEAN CITY CHAPTER OF THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF ITALY
Meets every month (except July and August) at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 9901 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 6:30-8:30 p.m. Membership is open to individuals of Italian descent and their spouses. www.sonsofitalyoceancity.com
POLISH AMERICAN CLUB OF DELMARVA
Meets the second Wednesday of each month (except July and August) at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 9901 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 2-4 p.m. A social organization of men and women of Polish or Slavic descent.
50 OC Today-Dispatch
Ocean Aviation Flight Academy seeks Office Assistant
Growing Flight Academy with campuses in Berlin, Maryland and Georgetown, Delaware seeks Exceptional Candidate to join our team. Professional Friendly office environment. F/T. Weekend availability is a plus. Year Around Position. Responsible for student interaction, dispatch and check in of flights, filing, retail sales and keeping our offices neat and clean. Must be customer oriented and be proficient in data entry and have good computer skills. Previous office or educational experience necessary. Please forward resume to mike@flyoceanaviation.com
We prefer initial contact be through e-mail only. Qualified applicants will be contacted for in person interviews.
license are a plus.
o Excellent pay and a competitive benefits package available. Please Apply Online: https://www.allstatesconst.com/delmarva-renovations-careers Or Contact Our Office at 410-352-9800
TOWN OF BERLIN EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES: SANITATION OPERATOR I POLICE OFFICER PLANNING DIRECTOR
We are looking for motivated individuals to come to work for the Town of Berlin.
Overview of employee benefits: Members of the Maryland State Retirement System (LEOPS for Police Officers), a competitive health benefits package including a health reimbursement account, employer-paid life insurance, 100% tuition reimbursement, vacation accruals based on tenure, 12 sick days per year, 16 paid holidays per year, two personal days per year, and much more!
Apply: Qualified candidates can submit a confidential Town of Berlin application, a resume, and three professional references to the Town’s Human Resources Director at kjensen@berlinmd.gov. Applications can be found under the employment section of our website at https://berlinmd.gov/employment/ or you can call 410-641-2770 and arrange to pick one up at 10 William Street Berlin, MD 21811. EOE/M/F/V/D
and light office duties. Send resume to: fred@paradiseoc.com
NOW HIRING!
PT Dental Hygienist for busy office in Ocean City, MD. Please call 410-213-1032.
Small Engine Mechanic Year-round.
Competitive Wages. 443-754-1047
Pool -
General Maintenance. Outdoor work, lifting heavy objects. Mechanical, basic pool pump & motors, CPO a plus / not required. Able to pass CPO test. Summer includes weekends & long hours; working alone or with others 410-289-4902 ask for Suzanne.
RENTALS
SEASONAL RENTAL
2BR, 1BA. Energy efficient Apt. for rent. Furnished. Available Nov.-May 1st. $1,200/mo. Utils. included. Call Steve and leave message 410-251-3412.
LOOKING FOR A WINTER RENTAL?
Call Joe 443-610-4644 or Tricia 443-610-4665
WINTER RENTAL
Nice 2BR, 2BA, on the water in Ocean City, MD. $1,450 per mo. + utils. Call Karen, 443-880-5727.
WEEKLY RENTALS
$300-$500 per week. October-May. 301-331-2209
Seeking YR & Seasonal Rentals! Call Howard Martin Realty 410-352-5555.
YEAR-ROUND RENTAL
1BR, 1BA. Fully remodeled! New custom tiled walk-in shower, new vinyl flooring, granite kitchen counters, full size stove & refrig. Central air. Fully furnished. Private parking. $1,850/mo., nego. Includes elec., cable, internet. Available immed. 410-603-9453
MONTH TO MONTH RENTAL
2BR, 1BA Apartment, West OC off Golf Course Rd.
$1,100/mo., security deposit ($1,100) and first month’s rent due at move in. Please contact Pauline at 410-390-1374.
WINTER RENTAL 1BR, 1BA. Fully furnished. Private parking. $840/mo., negotiable. Includes cable & elec. up to $100. Avail. Now - 4/30/25. 410-603-9453
WINTER RENTAL
Downtown OC
2BR, 2BA. Renovated Apt. Central HVAC, W/D, cable TV. WiFi included. Occup. lmtd. to 2. No smoking/pets. Ref. & credit ck. req. $800/mo. + utils. 410-202-6353
ROOMMATES
YR, FURNISHED ROOM FOR RENT Ocean Pines. Full house privileges. Clean, safe & friendly. No smoking. No pets. Call 443-880-2486.
$700 GREAT OPPORTUNITY!
YR OCEAN PINES Fully furnished room for rent. Full use of home. All utils. included. Available immediately. 443-978-0075 Houseshare. Furnished rooms in South Ocean Pines. All inclusive. $800 per month. Year-round. No smoking. No pets. Call 443-880-2317.
LOTS & ACREAGE 16 ACRES Perked, surveyed and ready to build your own private oasis, dream home, man cave, horse farm, etc. Just outside of Bishopville on Rt. 610. Close to tax free shopping, schools & hospital. $325,000 Call Howard Martin Realty, 410-352-5555.
YEAR ROUND FOR RENT
3BR, 2BA TOWNHOME - Boat dock located in North Ocean City off Rt. 54 on Wilson Ave. 3BR, 2BA HOUSE - Wooded
COMMERCIAL COMMERCIAL DONATIONS
2 Office/Retail Spaces
available in West Ocean
City. Approximately 1656 sq. ft. and 1728 sq. ft. Call 443-497-4200
STORAGE
STORAGE UNITS
AVAILABLE
RT. 50
Polyzos Mini Storage
1 Unit - 185 sq. ft.
2 Units - 60-85 sq. ft. 301-537-5391
17708 Grays Corner Rd. Berlin, MD 21811
Classifieds 410-723-6397
MARYLAND
MISC. FOR SALE
Get Boost Infinite! Unlimited Talk, Text and Data For Just $25/mo! The Power Of 3 5G Networks, One Low Price! Call Today and Get The Latest iPhone Every Year On Us! 855-977-5719
Get DISH Satellite TV + Internet! Free Install, Free HDDVR Upgrade, 80,000 OnDemand Movies, Plus Limited Time Up To $600 In Gift Cards. Call Today! 1-855-4076870
Commercial Space for Lease.
2-3 Units available, can be divided or joined. Approx. 800-1000 sq. ft. ea. Busy major road in Town of Berlin. Call 443-880-8885 for more information.
Industrial Space Yard and Storage Shed. Approx. 10x25+/Route 90/Bishopville. Call 443-497-4200.
YARD SALE
YARD SALE
YARD SALE
Sat., 11/2, 9am-1pm. Aloha North Condo, 142nd St., Oceanside, Ocean City Md.
Do you have an old bicycle not being used? It could mean a world of difference to a hard-working international student. We are looking to get as many bikes as possible. Your donation will be taxdeductible. Contact Gary at 443-975-3065.
Classifieds 410-723-6397
MISC./OTHER
Bind me with old cord! Tight, tighter, now hand and foot, Sure it will not give. Given half a chance, I will struggle so!
CLASSIFIED AD NETWORK
FOR SALE
Prepare for power outages today with a GENERAC Home Standby Generator. Act now to receive a FREE 5-Year warranty with qualifying purchase. Call 1-855-993-0969 today to schedule a free quote. It’s not just a generator. It’s a power move.
VEHICLES WANTED
DONATE YOUR CAR/TRUCK/ RV - Lutheran Mission Society of MD Compassion Place ministries help local families with food, clothing, counseling. Tax deductible. MVA licensed #W1044. 410-228-8437 www.CompassionPlace.org
REAL ESTATE
We Buy Houses for Cash AS IS! No repairs. No fuss. Any condition. Easy three step process: Call, get cash offer and get paid. Get your fair cash offer today by calling Liz Buys Houses: 1-866-541-7929
SERVICES
DENTAL INSURANCE from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Coverage for 350 plus procedures. Real dental insurance - NOT just a discount plan. Do not wait! Call now! Get your FREE Dental Information Kit with all the details! 1-855-337-5228 www.dental50plus.com/ MDDC #6258
Mayor & City Council Ocean City, Maryland
BID SOLICITATION
P02-25 – Eagles Landing Golf Course Improvements
The Mayor & City Council of Ocean City is seeking Proposals from qualified and experienced Vendors to provide for the Eagles Landing Golf Course Improvements and for said work to conform with the Proposal Documents.
BID Documents for the Eagles Landing Golf Course Improvements may be obtained from the Town’s Procurement Department by either e-mailing the Procurement Manager, Matt Perry, at mperry@oceancitymd.gov or Dawn Webb at dwebb@oceancitymd.gov, or by calling (410) 723-6643 during regular business hours, or via the Solicitations tab on the Town’s (https://oceancitymd.gov/oc/procurement-bids/) website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for Addenda before submitting their BID’s. The Town is not responsible for the content of any Proposal Document received through any thirdparty service. Vendors are responsible for ensuring the completeness and accuracy of their Completed Proposal Documents.
The last day for questions will be on THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24TH, 2024, AT 3:00PM. Addendum will be posted by close of business on TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29TH, 2024.
Sealed BID Documents are due no later than TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5TH, 2024, BY 3:00 PM. BID submissions will be opened, read aloud, and then remanded back to staff for further review at the PROCUREMENT OFFICE CONFERENCE ROOM, ON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8TH, 2024, AT 10:00AM. BID’s are to be submitted to the Procurement Office located at 214 65th Street, Ocean City, MD 21842, and the name of the Solicitation (Eagles Landing Golf Course Improvements) must be noted on the outside of the package.
Late BID Documents will not be accepted.
Minority Vendors are encouraged to compete for the Award of the Solicitation.
OCD-10/3/5t
MARIANNA BATIE ESQ. LAW OFFICE OF MARIANNA BATIE 1321 MOUNT HERMAN RD., STE. B
SALISBURY, MD 21804-5303
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of JOSEPH T. PASKO Estate No. 20367 Notice is given that JOSEPH JAMES PASKO II whose address is 8453 BAY RD.,
PASADENA, MD 21122-2925 was on OCTOBER 11, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of JOSEPH T. PASKO who died on AUGUST 25, 2024 with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent's will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 11th day of APRIL, 2025
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for Worcester County ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE
SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
OCD-10/17/3t
Mayor & City Council Ocean City, Maryland
BID SOLICITATION
B01-25 – Northside Park Fence Replacement
The Mayor & City Council of Ocean City is seeking Proposals from qualified and experienced Vendors to provide for the Northside Park Fence Replacement and for said work to conform with the Proposal Documents.
BID Documents for the Northside Park Fence Replacement may be obtained from the Town’s Procurement Department by either e-mailing the Procurement Manager, Matt Perry, at mperry@oceancitymd.gov or Dawn Webb at dwebb@oceancitymd.gov, or by calling (410) 7236643 during regular business hours, or via the Solicitations tab on the Town’s (https://oceancitymd.gov/oc/ procurement-bids/) website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for Addenda before submitting their BID’s. The Town is not responsible for the content of any Proposal Document received through any third-party service. Vendors are responsible for ensuring the completeness and accuracy of
their Completed Proposal Documents.
A pre-proposal meeting will be conducted on OCTOBER 29TH, 2024 AT 10:00AM AT NORTHSIDE PARK RECREATION CENTER, 200 125TH STREET, OCEAN CITY, MD, 21842 IN THE WEST GYM CONFERENCE ROOM. The last day for questions will be on TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5TH, 2024, AT 3:00PM. Addendum will be posted by close of business on TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12TH, 2024
Sealed BID Documents are due no later than MONDAY, DECEMBER 9TH, 2024, BY 10:00AM. BID submissions will be opened, read aloud, and then remanded back to staff for further review at the MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION, ON TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10TH, 2024, AT 1:00PM. BID’s are to be submitted to the Mayor and City Council, Attention: City Manager; Room 230, 301 North Baltimore Avenue, Ocean City, MD 21842, and the name of the Solicitation (Northside Park Fence Replacement) must be noted on the outside of the package.
Late BID Documents will not be accepted.
Minority Vendors are encouraged to compete for the Award of the Solicitation.
OCD-10/10/9t
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of CLARENCE THOMAS POULSON Estate No. 13438 Notice is given that TYKISHA POULSON whose address is 680 FITZWATER ST., APT. 103, SALISBURY, MD 21801-5120 was on OCTOBER 09, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of CLARENCE THOMAS POULSON who died on APRIL 29, 2009 with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent's will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 9th day of APRIL, 2025
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Reg-
ister of Wills. TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for Worcester County ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
OCD-10/31/3t
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of BARRY E. FISHER Estate No. 20320 Notice is given that LILIAN A. GASTON whose address is 4216 CHILTON WAY, HIGH POINT, NC 27265-9582 was on SEPTEMBER 13, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of BARRY E. FISHER who died on AUGUST 23, 2023 without a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent's will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 13th day of MARCH, 2025
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for Worcester County ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
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B. RANDALL COATES ESQ COATES, COATES, & COATES 204 WEST GREEN STREET P.O. BOX 293 SNOW HILL, MD 21863
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Estate No. 20384 TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF MARGARET A. REEVEMOHRFELD Notice is given that Kathleen A. Storm, 6011 Deer Creek Dr., Pittsville, MD 21850-1311, was on October 15, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Margaret A. Reeve-Mohrfeld who died on September 20, 2024, with a will. Further information can be ob-
tained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 15th day of April, 2025.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
Kathleen A. Storm Personal Representative True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074
Name of newspaper designated by personal representative: Ocean City Digest
Date of publication: October 24, 2024
OCD-10/24/3t
REGAN J. R. SMITH ESQ
WILLIAMS, MOORE, SHOCKLEY & HARRISON LLP 3509 COASTAL HIGHWAY OCEAN CITY, MD 21842
NOTICE
TO CREDITORS OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES ESTATE NO 20390
NOTICE IS GIVEN that the COURT OF CHANCERY court of SUSSEX COUNTY, DELAWARE appointed CHARLES S REHAK JR whose address is 32638 POWELL FARM RD FRANKFORD, DE 19945-3346 as the PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE of the Estate of SHARON A REHAK AKA: SHARON ANN REHAK who died on OCTOBER 23, 2020 domiciled in DELAWARE, USA
The Maryland resident agent for service of process is REGAN J R SMITH whose address is WILLIAMS, MOORE SHOCKLEY & HARRISON LLP 3509 COASTAL HWY OCEAN CITY, MD 21842 At the time of death, the decedent owned real or leasehold property in the following Maryland counties: WORCESTER.
All persons having claims against the decedent must file their claims with the Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY with a copy to the foreign personal repre-
sentative on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the foreign personal representative mails or delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claim within two months from the mailing or delivery of the notice. Claims filed after that date or after a date extended by law will be barred.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY ONE W MARKET STREET ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
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ABANDONED VESSEL
Seeking last known owner/title of abandoned 23 ft. sailboat. Vessel registration MD 131AW, Haull ID MACW1504E989. Vessel has been abandoned for more than 2 years at Montego Bay community in Ocean City, MD. If not claimed within 30 days of publication date, applicant will seek title. Catarina Lore, 100 Sea Lane, Ocean City, MD. 203-6676973
OCD-10/24/4t
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Estate No. 20380 TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF CONRAD ENNALS
Notice is given that Ke’Essence Ennals, 604 8th St., Pocomoke City, MD 21851-1575, was on October 15, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Conrad Ennals who died on November 19, 2023, with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 15th day of April, 2025.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim
forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
Ke’Essence Ennals
Personal Representative
True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street
Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074
Name of newspaper designated by personal representative: Ocean City Digest
Date of publication: October 24, 2024
OCD-10/24/3t
MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL OF SNOW HILL MD NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
The Mayor and Town Council of Snow Hill MD will conduct a Public Hearing to obtain the views of citizens on community, economic development, and housing needs to be considered for submission of an application to the Maryland Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG). Citizens will have the opportunity to discuss proposed projects and to provide input on other needs to be considered. The hearing will be held at the Old Fire Hall, 210-212 W Green St. in Snow Hill, at 7:00 pm, November 12, 2024. The draft application will be available for the public to review on 11/13/2024 until 11/29/2024 at Town Hall during normal business hours.
Citizens will be furnished with information including but not limited to:
* the amount of CDBG funds available for State Fiscal Year 2025;
* the range of activities that may be undertaken with CDBG funds; and
* the proposed projects under consideration by (Jurisdiction).
The Maryland Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program is a federally funded program designed to assist governments with activities directed toward neighborhood and housing revitalization, economic development, and improved community facilities and services. It is administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development.
The Maryland CDBG Program reflects the State's economic and community development priorities and provides public funds for activities which meet one of the following national objectives, in accordance with the federal Housing Community Development Act of 1974, as amended, that:
1. benefit to low and moderate income persons and households;
2. aid in the prevention or elimination of slums or blight;
3. meet other community development needs of an urgent nature, or that are an immediate threat to com-
munity health and welfare.
Efforts will be made to accommodate the disabled and non-English speaking residents with seven days advance notice to Kandice Ringenary 410-632-2080.
Janet Simpson, Mayor OCD-10/24/1t
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Estate No. 20381 TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF PATRICIA M. ROGERS
Notice is given that Janet Rogers, 26 Watergreen Ln., Berlin, MD 21811-1546, was on October 17, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Patricia M. Rogers who died on October 02, 2024, with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 17th day of April, 2025.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or (2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
Janet Rogers Personal Representative True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074
Name of newspaper designated by personal representative: Ocean City Digest
Date of publication: October 24, 2024
REENA
OCD-10/24/3t
1321 MOUNT HERMON RD STE B SALISBURY, MD 21804-5303
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE IS GIVEN that the ORPHAN'S COURT court of DAUPHIN COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA appointed GLORIA JEAN GRUBIC whose address is 830 BETHEL DR HARRISBURG, PA 17111-3159 as the PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE of the Estate of MICHAEL J LALLI who died on AUGUST 19, 2024 domiciled in PENNSYLVANIA, USA
The Maryland resident agent for service of process is REENA J PATEL ESQ whose address is 1321 MOUNT HERMON RD STE B SALISBURY, MD 21804-5303. At the time of death, the decedent owned real or leasehold property in the following Maryland counties: WORCESTER COUNTY
All persons having claims against the decedent must file their claims with the Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY with a copy to the foreign personal representative on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent's death; or
(2) Two months after the foreign personal representative mails or delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claim within two months from the mailing or delivery of the notice. Claims filed after that date or after a date extended by law will be barred.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for WORCESTER COUNTY
ONE W MARKET STREET
ROOM 102 - COURT HOUSE
SNOW HILL, MD 21863-1074
OCD-10/24/3t
Mayor & City Council Ocean City, Maryland
BID SOLICITATION
P01-25 – Restoration and Painting of Boardwalk Arches and Sign Towers
The Mayor & City Council of Ocean City is seeking Proposals from qualified and experienced Vendors to provide for the Restoration and Painting of Boardwalk Arches and Sign Towers and for said work to conform with the Proposal Documents.
BID Documents for the Restoration and Painting of Boardwalk Arches and Sign Towers may be obtained from the Town’s Procurement Department by either e-mailing the Procurement Manager, Matt Perry, at mperry@oceancitymd.gov or Dawn Webb at dwebb@oceancitymd.gov, or by calling (410) 7236643 during regular business hours, or via the Solicitations tab on the Town’s (https://oceancitymd.gov/oc/ procurement-bids/) website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for Addenda before submitting their BID’s. The Town is not responsible for the content of any
Proposal Document received through any third-party service. Vendors are responsible for ensuring the completeness and accuracy of their Completed Proposal Documents.
The last day for questions will be on THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7TH, 2024, AT 3:00PM. Addendum will be posted by close of business on FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8TH, 2024
Sealed BID Documents are due no later than THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14TH, 2024, BY 3:00 PM. BID submissions will be opened, read aloud, and then remanded back to staff for further review at the PROCUREMENT OFFICE CONFERENCE ROOM, ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15TH, 2024, AT 10:00AM. BID’s are to be submitted to the Procurement Office located at 214 65th Street, Ocean City, MD 21842, and the name of the Solicitation (Restoration and Painting of Boardwalk Arches and Sign Towers) must be noted on the outside of the package.
Late BID Documents will not be accepted.
Minority Vendors are encouraged to compete for the Award of the Solicitation.
PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
NOTICE
OF PUBLIC HEARING
Pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 110, Zoning, of the Code of the Town of Ocean City, Maryland, notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be conducted by the Planning and Zoning Commission in the Council Chambers of City Hall located at 301 Baltimore Avenue in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland on:
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2024
At 6:00 pm
To consider amending Chapter 14, entitled Business, Article II, entitled Licensed Occupations, Section 14-38, entitled Suspension And Revocation; and Article V, entitled Rental Housing, Section 14-173, entitled Enforcement; Section 14-174, entitled License; Inspection Of Premises; Records; Section 14-175, entitled Violation; Section 14-176, entitled Enforcement; and Section 14-177, entitled Premises for Habitation/Rental Housing Units in R-1 Single Family Residential District; to add a length of stay requirement in the R-1 and MH zones; to add a maximum occupancy limit in the R1 and MH zones; to add provisions to the enforcement process; to amend the requirement for a local agent for all rental properties; to address advertising and room conversion issues and other amendments.
And
To consider amending Chapter 110, entitled Zoning, Article I, entitled In General, Section 110-2, enti-
tled Definitions, of the Code of the Town Of Ocean City, Maryland., to amend the definitions of family.
APPLICANT: PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
(PZ FILE #24-14100008)
No oral or written testimony will be accepted after the close of the public hearing.
Public hearings that are not completed at one meeting may be continued without additional advertised notice provided the Commission Chairperson announces that the hearing will be continued and gives persons in attendance an opportunity to sign up for written notice of the additional hearing dates.
For further information concerning this public hearing, please contact the Department of Planning and Community Development, Room 242, City Hall, 301 Baltimore Avenue, Ocean City, MD 21842. Phone 410-289-8855.
PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
JOSEPH P. WILSON, CHAIRPERSON MAUREEN HOWARTH, ATTORNEY OCD-10/31/3t
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARINGS BOARD OF PORT WARDENS
Pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 106 ”Waterways,” Article II – “Shoreline Development” of the Code of the Town of Ocean City, Maryland, hereinafter referred to as the Code, same being the Port Wardens Ordinance of Ocean City, Maryland, notice is hereby given that public hearings will be conducted in the Council Chambers of City Hall located at 301 Baltimore Avenue, Ocean City, Maryland.
Thursday, November 14, 2024 2:00 PM
PW 24-055 A request has been submitted to install a 4’ x 50’ parallel platform, a 6’ x 46’ pier, two (2) PWC lifts, one (1) boat lift with all associated poles; and to add 12 batter poles to an existing bulkhead. All work maximum channelward extension of 50’. The site of the proposed construction is described as being located at 401 HARBOUR DR Parcel # 8020A-1585B- in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
OWNER: Robert Berger
APPLICANT: Hidden Oak Farm, LLC
PW 24-063 A request has been submitted to install a 4’ x 22’ pier and (1) one boatlift with associated pilings maximum channelward extension 22’. The site of the proposed construction is described as being located at 206 52ND ST Parcel # 6816 -206 in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
OWNER: Walter Dea APPLICANT: Kayla Short
PW 24-064 A request has been submitted for approval of an existing installed floating dock not to exceed 200 square feet and maximum channelward extension of 20’6”. The site of the proposed construction is described as being located at 300 17TH ST UNIT 101 Parcel # 3341 -101 in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
OWNER: Stephen Zentz
APPLICANT: Kayla Short
PW 24-065 A request has been submitted to install a 5’ x 15’ pier extension and (1) one boat lift with associated pilings, maximum channelward extension 29’. The site of the proposed construction is described as being located at 175 B JAMESTOWN RD Parcel # 3986A37B in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
OWNER: Phillip Schwartz
APPLICANT: Kayla Short
PW 24-066 A request has been submitted to install (1) one elevator type boat lift with associated pilings a maximum channelward extension of 13’. The site of the proposed construction is described as being located at 300 17TH ST SLIP 5 Parcel # 3341 -5 in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
OWNER: Brent Walker
APPLICANT: Kayla Short
PW 24-067 A request has been submitted to replace existing pier for a total new length of 50’ (4’ x 50’); to relocate existing boatlift with associated pilings further west along pier and to install (2) two PWC lifts with associated pilings. All work 50’ maximum channelward extension. The site of the proposed construction is described as being located at 617 BAYSHORE DR UNIT 45 Parcel # 5347 -45 in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
OWNER: Chau Nguyen APPLICANT: Kayla Short
OCD-10/31/2t
NOTICE
OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS TOWN OF OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND
Pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 110 of the Code of Ocean City, Maryland, hereinafter referred to as the Code, same being the Zoning Ordinance for Ocean City, Maryland, notice is hereby given that public hearings will be conducted by the Board of Zoning Appeals for Ocean City, Maryland in the Council Chambers of City Hall located on Baltimore Avenue and Third Street, in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland on:
Thursday, November 14, 2024 AT 6:00 PM
Pursuant to the provisions of Section 110-93(3), Powers of the Code, an appeal of Section 110-95(1)(a) has been filed to request (1) a variance of 5.2 feet from the 10-foot separation distance requirement for a 6’ X 12’ proposed addition to be 4.8’ from a neighboring unit; (2) a variance of
0.2 feet from the 5-foot side yard setback for a 6’ X 12’ proposed addition to be 4.8 feet from the side lot line; and (3) a variance of 4.8 feet from the 10-foot separation distance requirement for a proposed covered deck to be 5.2’ from a neighboring unit. The site of the appeal is described as Lot 110 of Sundowner Mobile Home Park Plat. It is further described as being located on the south side of Denny Lane and is locally known as 111 Denny Lane, in the Town of Ocean City, Maryland.
APPLICANT: JOHN L. STANTON (BZA 2690 #24-09400012)
Further information concerning the public hearings may be examined in the office of the Department of Planning and Community Development in City Hall.
Christopher Rudolf, Chairman Maureen Howarth, Attorney OCD-10/31/2t
NOTICE
OF PUBLIC HEARING WORCESTER COUNTY BOARD OF ZONING APPEALS AGENDA
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2024
Pursuant to the provisions of the Worcester County Zoning Ordinance, notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held in-person before the Board of Zoning Appeals for Worcester County, in the Board Room (Room 1102) on the first floor of the Worcester County Government Center, One West Market Street, Snow Hill, Maryland. Audio and video recording will take place during this public hearing.
The public is invited to view this meeting live online athttps://worcestercountymd.swagit.co m/live
6:30 p.m. Re-advertisement of Case No. 24-62, on the lands of Michael Deem, on the application of Robert Bailey, requesting a variance to the rear yard setback from 30 feet to 15.3 feet (to encroach 14.7 feet) for a proposed one story deck, and a variance to the front yard setback from 30 feet to 27 feet (to encroach 3 feet) for a proposed single-family dwelling in the R-2 Suburban Residential District, pursuant to Zoning Code §§ ZS 1-116(c)(4), ZS 1206(b)(2) and ZS 1-305, located on Meadow Drive, about 1,432 feet south east of Snug Harbor Road, Tax Map 33, Parcel 346, Lot 24, Tax District 10, Worcester County, Maryland.
6:35 p.m. Case No. 24-68, on the lands of Earl and Karen Starner, on the application of Kristina Watkowski, requesting a variance to a side yard setback from 60 feet to 36.06 feet (to encroach 23.94 feet) for a proposed garage in the E-1 Estate District, pursuant to Zoning Code §§ ZS 1-116(c)(4), ZS 1-203(d)(1) and ZS 1-305, located on Twin Oaks Drive about 465 feet east of South Point Road, Tax Map 51, Parcel 45, Lot 18, Tax District 10, Worcester County, Maryland.
6:40 p.m. Case No. 24-65, on the lands of Eric and Marla Levine, on the application of Kristina Watkowski, requesting an after the
fact variance to a front yard setback from 55 feet to 37.34 feet (to encroach 17.66 feet) for an existing carport in the R-3 Multi-family Residential District, pursuant to Zoning Code §§ ZS 1-116(c)(4), ZS 1207(b)(2) and ZS 1-305, located at 12632 Old Bridge Road, Tax Map 27, Parcel 471, Lot 1, Tax District 10, Worcester County, Maryland.
6:45 p.m. Case No. 24-66, on the lands of Mark and Maureen Broderick, on the application of Kristina Watkowski, requesting a special exception to allow a commercial kennel in the A-1 Agricultural District and a variance to the rear yard setback for the kennel from 50 feet to 45.04 feet (to encroach 4.96 feet), pursuant to Zoning Code §§ ZS 1-116(c)(3), ZS 1-116(c)(4), ZS 1-201(c)(30) and ZS 1305, located at 10420 Georgetown Road, Tax Map 20, Parcel 108, Lot 4, Tax District 3, Worcester County, Maryland.
6:50 p.m. Case No. 24-67, on the lands of GCR Development LLC, on the application of Hugh Cropper, IV, pursuant to Zoning Code § ZS 1116(c)(1), requesting an appeal of the determination made by the Department that a building permit had expired in accordance with § ZS 1-115(g), associated with the property located at 9723 Golf Course Road, Tax Map 27, Parcel 702, Lot 2, Tax District 10, Worcester County, Maryland.
6:55 p.m. Case No. 24-63, on the lands of Ewell Family Revocable Trust, on the application of Mark Cropper, requesting a special exception to allow a farm-based slaughterhouse in the A-1 Agricultural District, pursuant to Zoning Code §§ ZS 1-116(c)(3) and ZS 1-201(c)(34), located at 9552 Croppers Island Road, Tax Map 40, Parcel 93, Tax District 4, Worcester County, Maryland.
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PROPOSAL SOLICITATION
John Walter Smith Park Site/ Civil Engineering Services
Worcester County is seeking proposals from qualified Vendors to contract for site and civil engineering services for the proposed development of Tax Map: 63, Parcel 140 located at 6022 Public Landing Road in conformity with the requirements contained herein Proposal Documents.
Proposal Documents for the above referenced project may be obtained from the Worcester County Commissioner’s Office by either e-mailing the Procurement Officer, Nicholas Rice, at nrice@co.worcester.md.us or by calling 410-632-1194 during normal business hours, or via the County’s Bids page on the County’s website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for addenda prior to submitting their bids. Worcester County is not responsible for the content of any Proposal Document received through any third party bid service. It is the sole responsibility of the vendor to ensure the completeness and accuracy of their Completed Proposal Docu-
ments.
The last day for questions will be noon on Wednesday, November 6, 2024. Sealed Proposal Documents are due no later than 2:30pm, on Friday, November 15, 2024, and will be opened and only vendor names will be read aloud in the Office of the County Commissioners, Worcester County Government Center – Room 1103, One West Market Street, Snow Hill, Maryland 21863.
Late Proposal Documents will not be accepted.
Envelopes shall be marked " Proposal Solicitation - John Walter Smith Park Site/Civil Engineering Services”, in the lower left-hand corner.
Minority vendors are encouraged to compete for award of the solicitation.
Nicholas W. Rice, CPPO, CPPB, NIGP-CPP Procurement Officer Worcester County, Maryland OCD-10/31/1t
PROPOSAL SOLICITATION
John Walter Smith Park & Newtown Park Bathroom Renovations
Worcester County is seeking proposals from qualified Vendors to contract for a complete renovation of both Men’s and Women’s Restroom facilities at John Walter Smith Park and Newtown Park in conformity with the requirements contained herein Proposal Documents.
Proposal Documents for the above referenced project may be obtained from the Worcester County Commissioner’s Office by either e-mailing the Procurement Officer, Nicholas Rice, at nrice@co.worcester.md.us or by calling 410-632-1194 during normal business hours, or via the County’s Bids page on the County’s website. Vendors are responsible for checking this website for addenda prior to submitting their bids. Worcester County is not responsible for the content of any Proposal Document received through any third party bid service. It is the sole responsibility of the vendor to ensure the completeness and accuracy of their Completed Proposal Documents.
A pre-proposal conference will be held on site at 6022 Public Landing Road, Snow Hill, MD 21863 on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, at 10:30am. The last day for questions will be noon on Wednesday, November 13, 2024. Sealed Proposal Documents are due no later than 2:30pm, on Friday, November 22, 2024, and will be opened and only vendor names will be read aloud in the Office of the County Commissioners, Worcester County Government Center – Room 1103, One West Market Street, Snow Hill, Maryland 21863. Late Proposal Documents will not be accepted.
Envelopes shall be marked " Proposal Solicitation - John Walter Smith Park & Newtown Park Bathroom Renovations”, in the lower lefthand corner.
Minority vendors are encouraged to compete for award of the solicita-
Nicholas W. Rice, CPPO, CPPB, NIGP-CPP Procurement Officer
Worcester County, Maryland OCD-10/31/1t
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Estate No. 20397 TO ALL PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE ESTATE OF FREDERICK W. SCHULTE AKA: FREDERICK WILLIAM SCHULTE
Notice is given that Keith Armstrong, 702 Asturias Rd., Davenport, FL 33837-3862, was on October 25, 2024 appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Frederick W. Schulte who died on October 15, 2024, with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment (or to the probate of the decedent’s will) shall file their objections with the Register of Wills on or before the 25th day of April, 2025.
Any person having a claim against the decedent must present the claim to the undersigned personal representative or file it with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Two months after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claims within two months from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. A claim not presented or filed on or before that date, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter. Claim forms may be obtained from the Register of Wills.
Keith Armstrong Personal Representative True Test Copy Terri Westcott Register of Wills for Worcester County One W. Market Street Room 102 - Court House Snow Hill, MD 21863-1074 Name of newspaper designated by personal representative: Ocean City Digest
Date of publication: October 31, 2024
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NOTICE OF SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE SESSION WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2024 and NOTICE OF PROPOSED CHANGE IN ZONING NORTH SIDE OF CROPPER’S ISLAND ROAD EAST OF US ROUTE 113
(WORCESTER HIGHWAY), NEWARK
FOURTH TAX DISTRICT
WORCESTER COUNTY, MARYLAND
Pursuant to Section 1-113 of the Worcester County Zoning Ordinance, Rezoning Case No. 446 has been filed by Mark Cropper on behalf of Island Resort Park, Inc. and Ewell Family Revocable Trust, property owners, for an amendment to the Official Zoning Maps to change approximately 196.11 acres of land located on the northerly side of Cropper’s Island Road, Newark, east of US Route 113 (Worcester Highway), in the Fourth Tax District of Worcester County, Maryland, from A-1 Agricultural District to A-2 Agricultural District. The Planning Commission has given a favorable recommendation to the rezoning application.
Pursuant to Sections 1-113 and 1114 of the Worcester County Zoning Ordinance, the County Commissioners will hold a
PUBLIC HEARING on
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2024 AT 10:30 A.M.
IN THE COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS’ MEETING ROOM
WORCESTER COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER –ROOM 1101
ONE WEST MARKET STREET
SNOW HILL, MARYLAND 21863
At said public hearing the County Commissioners will consider the rezoning application, the staff file on Rezoning Case No. 446 and the recommendation of the Planning Commission, any proposed restrictions on the rezoning, other appropriate restrictions, conditions or limitations as may be deemed by them to be appropriate to preserve, improve, or protect the general character and design of the lands and improvements being zoned or rezoned or of the surrounding or adjacent lands and improvements, and the advisability of reserving the power and authority to approve or disapprove the design of buildings, construction, landscaping or other improvements, alterations and changes made or to be made on the subject land or lands to assure conformity with the intent and purpose of applicable State laws and regulations and the County Zoning Ordinance.
Maps of the petitioned area, the staff file on Rezoning Case No. 446 and the Planning Commission’s recommendation, which will be entered into record at the public hearing, are
on file and available to view electronically by contacting the Department of Development, Review and Permitting, Worcester County Government Center, One West Market Street, Room 1201, Snow Hill, Maryland 21863 Monday through Friday from 8:00 A.M. and 4:30 P.M. (except holidays), at (410) 632-1200 as well as at www.co.worcester.md.us.
THE WORCESTER COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
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SMALL ESTATE
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
To all persons interested in the estate of P PAUL DENNIS SIMONETTI
Estate No. 2 20334 Notice is given that ELAINE L. SIMONETTI whose address is 6333 SOUTH POINT RD., BERLIN, MD 21811-2632 was on OCTOBER 25, 2024 appointed personal representative(s) of the small estate of P PAUL DENNIS SIMONETTI who died on J JANUARY 08, 2024 with a will.
Further information can be obtained by reviewing the estate file in the office of the Register of Wills or by contacting the personal representative or the attorney.
All persons having any objection to the appointment shall file their objections with the Register of Wills within 30 days after the date of publication of this Notice. All persons having an objection to the probate of the will shall file their objections with the Register of Wills within six months after the date of publication of this Notice.
All persons having claims against the decedent must serve their claims on the undersigned personal representative or file them with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned on or before the earlier of the following dates:
(1) Six months from the date of the decedent’s death; or
(2) Thirty days after the personal representative mails or otherwise delivers to the creditor a copy of this published notice or other written notice, notifying the creditor that the claim will be barred unless the creditor presents the claim within thirty days from the mailing or other delivery of the notice. Any claim not served or filed within that time, or any extension provided by law, is unenforceable thereafter.
TERRI WESTCOTT, Register of Wills for Worcester County
RiCk MEEhaN
Paid for by Sandy and Palmer Gillis
Veterans Day ceremony will include gazebo dedication
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Worcester County Veterans Memorial Foundation will host a traditional Veterans Day ceremony honoring all who have served in the U.S. military.
The ceremony will begin promptly at 11 a.m., at the Worcester County Veterans Memorial in Ocean Pines.
Michelle Winemiller will emcee the event this year. Miller is a Veterans Memorial Foundation Board member who spent 11 years in the U.S. Air Force, in intelligence, and 19 years as a civilian employee of the Air Force.
The guest speaker will be Robert Hanson, a veteran of the U.S. Air Force now serving as a Commissioner in the Department of Veterans and Military Families. Hanson, an Eastern Shore native, enlisted in the U.S. Air Force Security Forces in 1971 and served until 1974 in South-East Asia during the Vietnam War. He later served in the Air Force Reserves at Dover Air Force Base from 1982-1986. He is currently one of the commissioners from Congressional District One in Maryland, and an advisor to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
The ceremony will also feature patriotic music, including a salute to all branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.
“Veterans Day is a day to honor and celebrate all who have served in our military,” Worcester County Veterans Memorial Foundation President Marie Gilmore said. “We are forever indebted to those who were willing to serve to protect our freedoms, and we are grate-
ful for the families they left behind.”
Some seating will be provided, but guests are encouraged to bring a chair. The ceremony will move to the Ocean Pines Community Center in the event of inclement weather.
Prior to the Veterans Day ceremony, the Memorial Foundation will host a short dedication for the new gazebo at 10:45 a.m. No seating will be provided.
Gilmore said the new gazebo is joint project between Ocean Pines Association and the Veterans Memorial Foundation, and will help aid in educational outreach programs to the memorial.
“Our educational outreach program brings every Worcester County student to the Veterans Memorial for a field trip each year, and they spend about an hour with docents at the memorial learning about the branches of the service, service of our veterans dedicated the sacrifices that the veterans and their families make,” she said. “It’s a program that’s very near and dear to our hearts, and this new gazebo will help to enhance that experience.
“We’re looking forward to a very, very special Veterans Day ceremony this year with the dedication and our emcee and guest speaker, and I hope everyone will come out and enjoy it,” she added.
For more information about the Worcester County Veterans Memorial Foundation and the Worcester County Veterans Memorial, visit www.WoCoVets.org.
Cold shelter volunteers needed
(Nov. 1, 2024) It is that time of year again when the beauty of the leaves falling comes with the harsh reminder that freezing temperatures are around the corner.
As the only overnight cold weather shelter in Ocean City, it’s imperative that for organizers to secure enough volunteers to keep the doors open. If you would like to learn more about being a volunteer and how you can
help, please plan to attend one of our upcoming training sessions in the shelter at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church at 10301 Coastal Highway. Please send an email with any questions or to RSVP to Jason Long at ocmdcoldweathershelter@gmail.com.
The three training sessions will be Thursday Nov. 14 at 6 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 17 at 1 p.m. or Wednesday, Nov. 20 at 1 p.m.
OCPD MURAL COMPLETED
The Art League of Ocean City sponsored a mural that was painted at the Ocean City Police Department headquarters on 65th Street. Above, Art League member artist Erica Dehart is pictured putting finishing touches on the mural.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
Budget surplus approved to fund after-school programs
By Brian Shane Staff Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) An educational budget surplus from the prior fiscal year will fund after-school programs at some north-end public schools for the current school year.
Starting Nov. 1, Worcester County schools will get to allocate $228,907 toward after-school programs at Ocean City Elementary, Stephen Decatur High, and Showell Elementary schools.
Worcester County Public Schools Superintendent Lou Taylor asked the Worcester County Board of Commissioners at its Oct. 15 meeting to reallocate a fiscal year 2024 budget overage for after-school activities. The commissioners approved this by a 5-2 vote, with Commissioners Caryn Abbott and Jim Bunting voting nay.
The money will cover $154,000 in employee salaries, $73,000 in transportation, and $1,300 in materials of instruction, according to Tamara Mills, coordinator of instruction for Worcester County Public Schools. She attended this meeting and explained this cost breakdown to the commissioners.
Mills also noted that gas prices and bus driver pay raises have driven up transportation costs in recent years.
Taylor said during the prior school year, money for after-school programs
was cut from the Board of Education budget due to Maintenance of Effort –the law that says per-pupil spending may not fall behind from year to year. This school year, money for after-school activities was cut to fulfill the negotiated salary agreement with teachers and employees.
The school board ended up getting grant funding to cover the cost of afterschool programs, according to Vince Tolbert, the school system’s finance officer.
Tolbert said the school board will ask for a restoration of about $421,000 in after-school funding in its upcoming budget for fiscal year 2026. He also mentioned how, in the last two budget years, some surplus funding would gone toward teacher retirement funds, but that was not the case this year.
Also during this meeting, the commissioners asked school officials about the cost of summer school programs. Mills said it costs about $750,000 to run summer school in Worcester County.
Mills also said it’s difficult to project not only the exact number of students who will show up to summer school from day-to-day, but whether special education students will enroll. A special education student in summer school will require a special education teacher, which adds to staffing costs, she said.
St. Luke Catholic Parish 23rd Annual
Christmas Bazaar
Location: St. Andrew Catholic Center 14401 Sinepuxent Avenue Ocean City, MD
Saturday, November 9, 2024 9AM—4PM
Raffles, Pictures with Santa, Christmas Room, Chinese Auction, Jewelry, Silent Auction, Books, White Elephant Gifts, Bake Sale, Wine Pull, Food
Best Beats On The Beach
Who’s Where When
CAPTAIN’S TABLE
410-289-7192 15th & Boardwalk In The Courtyard Marriott Fridays & Saturdays: Phil Perdue on Piano
COINS PUB
410-289-3100
28th Street Plaza On Coastal Hwy. Saturday, November 2: DJ Giddy Up & Lennon LaRicci & The Leftovers
CRABCAKE FACTORY BAYSIDE
302-988-5000
37314 Lighthouse Rd., Rte. 54, Selbyville, DE Sunday, November 1: Cup Of Joe Wednesday, November 6: Full Circle Duo
CRAWL STREET TAVERN
443-373-2756
Wicomico St., Downtown O.C. Friday, November 1: Mercury Agenda Saturday, November 2: Fuzzbox Piranha
FAGER’S ISLAND
410-524-5500
60th St., In The Bay Friday, November 1: The Chucks & DJ Groove Saturday, November 2: Sweet Leda, Vertigo Red & DJ RobCee
GREENE TURTLE WEST
410-213-1500
Route 611, West OC Saturday, November 2:TBA
HARBORSIDE
410-213-1846
South Harbor Rd., West End O.C. Fridays: DJ Billy T Saturday, November 2: The Dunehounds & DJ Bigler
DJ ROBCEE Fager’s Island: Saturday, November 2
BEATS BY STYLER Pickles Pub: Sundays & Wednesdays
DJ BILLY T Harborside: Fridays & Wednesdays
PHIL PERDUE Captain’s Table: Fridays & Saturdays
DJ BIGLER Harborside: Saturday, November 2
DJ WAX Pickles Pub: Tuesdays Seacrets: Saturday, November 2
BEATS BY DEOGEE Pickles Pub: Thursdays, & Fridays
DJ GIDDY UP Coins Pub: Saturday, November 2
TUNNELS END
1
SCREAMING MONKEYS
Seacrets: Saturday, November 2
THE CHUCKS
Fager’s Island: Friday, November 1
SIX WHISKEY REVIVAL
Purple Moose: Saturday, November 2
THE DUNEHOUNDS
Harborside: Saturday, November 2 • 1pm
Pickles Pub: Saturday, November 2 • 9pm
LENNON
&
OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS
Harborside: Sunday, November 3
Who’s Where When
Sundays: Opposite Directions
Wednesdays: DJ Billy T
Thursdays: Dust N Bones Duo
PICKLES PUB
410-289-4891
8th St. & Philadelphia Ave.
Fridays: Beats By DeoGee Saturday, November 2: The Dunehounds
Sundays: Beats By Styler
Mondays: Karaoke w/ Wood
Tuesdays: Beats By Wax
Wednesdays: Beats By Styler
Thursdays: Beats By DeoGee
PURPLE MOOSE SALOON
410-289-6953
Between Caroline & Talbot Sts. On The Boards
Friday, November 1: Tunnels End Saturday, November 2: Six Whiskey Revival
SEACRETS
410-524-4900
49th St. & Coastal Hwy. Friday, November 1: Blake Haley & DJ C-Miller Saturday, November 2: DJ E-State, DJ Cruz, DJ Wax, South Penn Dixie & Screaming Monkeys Thursday, November 7: Full Circle Duo & DJ Connair
Purple Moose: Friday, November
FULL CIRCLE DUO
Crabcake Factory Bayside: Wednesday, November 6
Seacrets: Thursday, November 7
LARICCI
THE LEFTOVERS Coins: Saturday, November 2
Dining Guide
■ PRICE RANGE: $, $$, $$$
■ RESERVATIONS: Reservations accepted
DOWNTOWN
South end to 28th Street
■ BUXY’S SALTY DOG SALOON
DRY DOCK 28
28th Street, Ocean City, 410-289-0973, buxys.com, drydockoc.com
Destiny has a new home in Ocean City. From the ‘burgh to the beach, Buxy’s is your home away from Pittsburgh. Come see what all the locals already know and have known – Buxy’s is the place to come to meet friends, relax and be social with no attitudes. House specialties include “The” Cheesesteak Sub, Primanti-styled sandwiches, pierogis, egg-rolls and homemade crab dip. Dry Dock also features a full menu with soups, salads, kick starters, pierogis and craft pizza.
■ CAPTAIN’S TABLE
15th Street and Baltimore Avenue, in The Courtyard by Marriott, Ocean City, 410-289-7192, captainstableoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
A local tradition for over 60 years featuring hand cut steaks, premium lobster and perfectly prepared regional seafood. Breakfast daily 7:30-11 a.m. Open daily for dinner: Sunday through Thursday, 4-9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4-10 p.m. Happy Hour, seven days a week, 4-6 p.m.
■ COINS PUB & RESTAURANT
28th Street Plaza and Coastal Highway, Ocean City 410-289-3100, www.coinspuboc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
American style local restaurant serving seafood, steaks and chefs specials. Check out the off season weekday specials. Early bird; daily, 2-5:30 p.m. Sunday’s early bird specials, all day and all night. Happy Hour; daily, 2-5:30 p.m. with food and drink specials. Closed Monday. Open Tuesday through Friday, 2 p.m. and Saturday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m. Dine-in, carry out.
■ CORAL REEF RESTAURANT & BAR
17th Street in the Holiday Inn & Suites, Ocean City 410-289-2612, coralreefrestaurant.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Enjoy traditional Eastern Shore cuisine and local favorites that are sure to please your entire party! Choose from a selection of house specialty entrees such as sharables, handhelds and seafood. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Featuring specialty rums. Open daily, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
■ CRAWL STREET
19 Wicomico St., Ocean City, 443-373-2756, crawlstreet.com
Established in 2020 just a short walk from the legendary Cork Bar. Don’t leave without trying the famous wings, but everything on the menu is solid, including flatbreads, tacos, salads, sandwiches and seafood platters. Be sure to check out the live music offerings as the nightlife is top of the line.
■ DISTRICT 24
BLU CRABHOUSE & RAW BAR, JAY’S CAFÉ & ICE CREAM, THE EMBERS
2305 Philadelphia Ave., Ocean City, 410-2893322, district24oc.com
Come visit all your culinary options at this block of fun, including the landmark Embers Restaurant with a new, innovative vision as well as Blu where fresh seafood is king. Be sure to stop in Jay’s for a tasty treat as well as an ocean of caffeinated offerings. There’s fun activities for kids of all ages here as well with a miniature golf course and an arcade.
■ PICKLES PUB
706 Philadelphia Ave., Ocean City, 410-2894891, picklesoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Easy to find with plenty of free parking, serving lunch, dinner and entire diverse menu until 1 a.m. Also nightly entertainment year-round and a great place to watch all the sports on an ocean of televisions including a giant high-def screen. Also four pool tables on site. Lunch and dinner and entire menu until 1 a.m. Open all year from 11:30 a.m.-2 a.m., seven days a week.
■ PIT & PUB
2706 Philadelphia Ave. and 12701 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, pitandpub.com
Ocean City’s home of Pulled Pork and the finest barbecue, the legendary 28th Street Pit & Pub and the Northside Pit & Pub are known for serving up
delicious smokehouse specialties. Grab a brew and enjoy the live sports action on one of the big screen TVs. Happy hour daily. Family-friendly atmospheres at both locations. Weekend entertainment.
MIDTOWN
29th to 90th streets
■ 32 PALM
32nd Street in The Hilton, Ocean City 410-2892525, 32palm.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Elevated cuisine, locally sourced ingredients and allocated spirits are prominently featured in our lounge and dining room. Open year-round for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Routinely updated menus with the highest quality local ingredients for fresh seafood any time of the year!
■ THE BONFIRE
71st Street, Coastal Hwy., Ocean City, 410-5247171, thebonfirerestaurant.com
Celebrating 50 years as the best seafood and prime rib buffet in Ocean City. It’s all here – the service, the atmosphere and finest, freshest seafood available and quality meats. Save room for the decadent desserts available as well including homemade donuts.
■ FAGERS ISLAND
201 60th St., Ocean City, 410-524-5500, fagers.com
$$ | Full bar
Dine on the island with an award-winning bayfront restaurant featuring American & Regional dining with a global influence and popular destination featuring impeccably prepared American and Pacific Rim cuisine. Also enjoy our outdoor decks and bar with live entertainment and 32 wines by the glass. A place where the joy of food & the presence of the table are of utmost importance. Dine on fresh seafood and our famous Prime Rib. Enjoy beautiful sunsets over the water. Open 11 a.m. daily. Fine dine at 4:30 p.m.
■ HOOKED
8003 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 410-7234665, hookedoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
A Common Ground Hospitality concept, a passion driven restaurant group servicing the coastal community. The goal is honor creativity and innovation by design. With passion at the heart of everything, unique dining concepts are paired with honest hospitality and well-made food sourced with fresh local ingredients and seasonal harvests. Craft and full bar available. Open daily 11:30 a.m.
■ LONGBOARD CAFÉ
6701 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 443-6645693, longboardcafe.com
$$-$$$ | Full bar
Casual Dining … Refined. Open for lunch and dinner. A wide range of gourmet burgers, innovative tacos, salads and sandwiches to full dinner entrees featuring fresh local fish prepared in a variety of styles, beef, shellfish and pasta. All our sauces, salsas, dressings, etc. are meticulously house made. We use fresh local sources wherever possible and premium ingredients such as our chuck, brisket and short rib custom blended burgers. Closed Tuesday. Call for reservations.
■ MARLIN MOON RESTAURANT
3301 Atlantic Ave., in the Double Tree Hotel, Ocean City 410-289-1201, marlinmoonocmd.com
$$ | Full bar
Winner of the Maryland People's choice award, Marlin Moon continues to offer its famous, locally loved dishes and famous happy hour. Enjoy creatively crafted cocktails, fresh selections from the raw bar and luscious desserts. Happy Hour, every day, 3-6 p.m., featuring drink specials. Breakfast, 7:30-11:30 a.m.; Lite Fare, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Dinner, 4-10 p.m.; and Bar open noon to 11 p.m.
■ SEACRETS
49th Street, Ocean City 410-524-4900, www.seacrets.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Open Sunday through Friday at 11 a.m., 10 a.m. on Saturdays, close at 2 a.m. Enjoy a tropical atmosphere and dine under the palms in our outdoor, kid friendly dining area or try a Seacrets Beachin' Cocktails in the Bay with live music every day open to close. The club is open every night in the summer. Try our famous jerk chicken with homemade honey mustard sauce, Pushcart Trio, a true Jamaican dish or a hearty wrap, sandwich or delicious burger. We have it all at Seacrets.
UPTOWN
91st to 146th streets
■ ALBERTINO'S BRICK OVEN & EATERY
13117 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 410-2502000, albertinosoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Featuring the best brick oven pizza, always handmade with fresh ingredients, Italian-American mouth-watering seafood specialties, traditional Italian pasta dishes, apps, soups and salads. Full bar with large local craft beer selection.
■ CAROUSEL OCEANFRONT HOTEL & CONDOS
118th Street, Ocean City 800-641-0011, www.carouselhotel.com
The Carousel Oceanfront Resort offers a family friendly casual dining experience with their Reef 118 restaurant. Offering dinner Thursday through Sunday from 5-9 p.m., featuring AYCE Crab legs for $54.95. Serving breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays from 8 a.m. to noon. Their new "Go for 2" happy hour features $10 appetizers as a buy one get one free. $1 oysters during all open hours. They are now taking reservations for the Thanksgiving buffet and also offering Thanksgiving take-out meals for $189.99 for 6 people and are featuring the Funsters for their NYE entertainment.
■ THE CRAB BAG
13005 Coastal Highway Ocean City, 410-2503337, thecrabbag.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Featuring consistent hot steamed crabs, eat in or carryout. The Crab Bag is also an Eastern Shore style seafood house specializing in preparing and serving the biggest and the best blue crabs available. The extensive menu promises something for everyone. Winter hours, Friday-Sunday, open 11 a.m.
■ CRABCAKE FACTORY USA
120th Street, oceanside, Ocean City, 410-2504900, crabcakefactoryusa.com
Full-service family restaurant, carry-out and sports bar. Outside seating available. Menu selections include prime rib, chicken Chesapeake, steamed shrimp, beer battered fish, real Philly cheesesteaks, burgers, and a kids menu. Casual attire, full liquor bar, no reservations. Open Year Round. World-Famous Crabcakes are served all day starting at 8 a.m. and can be packed on ice for you while you are eating breakfast.
■ TAILCHASERS RESTAURANT & DOCK BAR
12203 Coastal Highway, Ocean City, 443-6647075, tailchasersoc.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
A coastal casual farm to table restaurant with a fun dockside family friendly atmosphere. Menu changes with the seasons and cocktails are handcrafted with care. Bring the whole family for lunch or dinner along the canal. Kids playground available to keep the littles entertained.
■ VISTA ROOFTOP RESTAURANT
13801 Coastal Highway, located in the Fenwick Inn, Ocean City, 410-390-7905, vistarooftopoc.com
$$-$$$ | Full bar
Enjoy a wonderful meal overlooking the ocean and bay. Some of the most unique views in Ocean City. Steaks, seafood, burgers, soups, salads and lite fare. Happy hour, 3-6 p.m. New this year is a boozy brunch Saturdays and Sundays, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Live music.
FENWICK ISLAND
■ CRABCAKE FACTORY BAYSIDE
Route 54, Fenwick Island, DE, 302-988-5000, CCFBayside.com
Same award-winning crab cakes and bloody marys. Enjoy waterfront dining. Full-service family restaurant, carry-out & sports bar. Outside seating available. Open daily year-round. Menu selections include crab cakes, prime rib, Philly-style cheese steaks, various seafood, kids menu plus full breakfast menu.
■ DIRTY HARRY’S
100 Coastal Highway, Fenwick Island, DE, 302539-3020, Beach-net.com/dirtyharrys
$ | Kids’ Menu | Full bar
Don’t let the name fool you, the food is home cooking at its finest. Owned and operated by Ginny Swann and family for 19 years. Popular for the breakfast but getting rave reviews for lunch and dinner, too.
■ NANTUCKETS
Route 1, Fenwick Island, DE, 302-539-2607, nantucketsrestaurant.com
Serving the beach great food and spirits for over 30 years. David and Janet Twining will wow you with the finest foods and drinks in the area. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by what one of the coast’s finest dining establishments has in store for guests. Everything here is a house specialty.
■ TWINING’S LOBSTER SHANTY
Rte. 54, Fenwick Island, Del., 302-436-2305, twiningshanty.com
Reservations | Kids’ Menu
“A funky little place at the edge of town.” Classic New England fare, lobsters, steaks and burgers. Bird watching and magical sunsets await. Open for lunch and dinner. Reservations are suggested.
Indoor and outdoor dining with sweeping views of the 18th green and pond, the Clubhouse Bar and Grille serves freshly prepared breakfast and lunch items with a full bar menu. Open: Monday through Sunday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Ocean Pines Yacht Club offers casual coastal cuisine for lunch and dinner in a beautiful bayfront setting. Fresh seafood, signature drinks, live music and more. Open: Thursday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
WEST OCEAN CITY
■ BREAKFAST CAFE
12736 Ocean Gateway, Route 50 east, West Ocean City, 410-213-1804, breakfastcafeofoc.com
All the traditional breakfast options available here in a casual, diner setting. Open daily closing at 2 p.m.
■ CANTINA LOS AGAVES MEXICAN GRILL
12720 Ocean Gateway #7, West Ocean City 410390-3914, cantinalosagaves.com
$$ | Kid’s menu | Full bar
Ocean City’s newest Mexican restaurant and bar. Offering delicious and generous portions of the tastiest traditional and not so traditional #MexicanEats you have ever tried. Open daily at 11 a.m. Serving food until 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Bar open til 11 p.m.
■ DUMSER’S DAIRYLAND
West Ocean City: Route 50 east; Boardwalk locations: 501 S. Philadelphia Ave., 49th Street, 123rd Street, Ocean City, dumsersdairyland.com
This classic ice cream shop is a tradition for many families. Voted O.C.’s “Best Ice Cream” for the past 20 years, Dumser’s is celebrating decades of serving the shore, and the ‘40s-style décor takes you back in time. With locations throughout Ocean City, treating your tastebuds to this signature homemade ice cream is easy. The 49th and 124th streets locations offer vast lunch and dinner menus (breakfast too at 124th) in addition to a wide variety of ice cream treats.
■ GREENE TURTLE WEST
Route 611, West Ocean City, 410-213-1500
Proudly serving West Ocean City since January 1999, The Greene Turtle features a beautiful 80seat dining room, large bar area with 54 TVs with stereo sound and game room with pool tables. With an exciting menu, The Greene Turtle is sure to please with delicious sizzling steaks, jumbo lump crab cakes, raw bar, homemade salads and more. Live entertainment, Keno, Turtle apparel, kids menu, carry-out.
■ HARBORSIDE BAR & GRILL
12841 Harbor Rd., West Ocean City, 410-2131846, weocharborside.com
$$ | Kids’ menu | Full bar
Home of the original Orange Crush drink with an extensive menu offers a wide variety of appetizers, fresh seafood, steak & pasta entrees, as well as juicy burgers and sandwiches. Whether seeking a full dining experience or just a crush or two, the team will be sure to take excellent care of you and yours. Monday-Wednesday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Thursday: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
■ OC DINER
12744 Ocean Gateway, Rt 50 east, West Ocean City, 410-390-5112
Kids’ Menu
Best homemade breakfast and lunch. Local’s favorite breakfast served all day. Dine-in and carryout. Open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
■ SHRIMP BOAT
9724 Stephen Decatur Hwy., West Ocean City, 410-213-0448, shrimpboatoc.com
Since 1989, a spot for locals and visitors to enjoy fresh local seafood straight off the boats. Dine-in seating also available. It’s all sourced local and fresh and a free shrimp sample available.
OC welcomes running fest
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Ocean City Running Festival is set to return for its 2nd annual event on Saturday, Nov. 2, drawing nearly 3,500 participants from 40 states across the nation.
The event will offer a full marathon, half marathon, 8K and 5K, showcasing some of the most scenic and iconic locations along the Maryland coast, according to race marketing materials.
Participants in this year’s Ocean City Running Festival will not only receive custom Ocean City-themed finisher medals but will also enjoy a selection of premium race items. The full marathon, 8K and 5K races will start and finish in the Inlet parking lot, south of the Pier.
The full marathon route features a unique course that takes runners through the pristine landscapes of Assateague Island National Seashore before returning to Ocean City.
Seacrets
to
host wild, scenic film program Nov. 14
(Oct. 25, 2024) For the 14th consecutive year, Assateague Coastal Trust (ACT), will present the internationally acclaimed Wild & Scenic Film Festival (WSFF) at Seacrets in Ocean City on Thursday, Nov. 14. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with the program beginning at 7 p.m.
The WSFF showcases films that celebrate the beauty of the planet and highlight the pressing environmental challenges faced today. This year’s festival will feature 12 inspiring short films, including “A Journey Upstream,” a film that explores the critical relationship between the Chesapeake Bay’s fishing industry and the health of the nay’s watershed. The film addresses the challenges of maintaining water quality while supporting a thriving local industry, offering insights into how communities balance economic and environmental needs.
In addition to the films, guests will have the opportunity to participate in silent and live auctions, featuring gift baskets and items generously donated by local businesses, restaurants, and artists. Event specials will be available throughout the evening, creating a vibrant and engaging atmosphere.
“This festival is a natural extension of Assateague Coastal Trust’s mission to inspire people to take action for the environment,” said Assateague Coastkeeper Taylor Swanson. “Through film, we hope to spark a deeper love for nature and encourage community activism to protect our coastal waters.”
Individual tickets will be $25 with a bundle of five available for $100. Advance tickets are available now at www.actforbays.org/wsff.
Half marathon participants will be transported to Assateague Island for the start, where they’ll run along a picturesque course, finishing down Ocean City’s renowned boardwalk with stunning Atlantic Ocean views.
All runners are invited to the Health and Fitness Expo, where they will pick up their race shirts (sweatshirts provided for full and half marathoners) and have the opportunity to shop for official race merchandise and browse various vendor offerings.
“We are thrilled to bring the Ocean City Running Festival back for another incredible year,” said Lee Corrigan, president of Corrigan Sports Enterprises. “Our team is excited to continue showcasing the natural beauty and vibrant community of Ocean City, making this event an unforgettable experience for participants from near and far.”
For additional event details and to register, visit www.OCMDrunfest.com.
Four different running lengths are open for participants in this year’s Ocean City Running Festival, including the 8K and 5K races that feature the Boardwalk. The 5K race is pictured. SUBMITTED IMAGE/ OC TODAY-DISPATCH
A burrito best eaten with 2 hands
By Deborah Lee Walker Contributing Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) Has one ever taken a moment to consider the fascinating occurrences that encompass our daily lives?
Nothing is by chance; every occasion has purpose and should be utilized to the fullest degree. The kitchen follows suit and is a sanctuary of culinary lore. Shedding light on conundrums that confound cooks not only raises our level of awareness but also enlightens us to a wonderful world of glorious food.
Intention takes us to the theme of the day. Eggs are one of the most versatile and popular ingredients. Scrambled eggs are
an American favorite. What can be easier than the mixing of egg whites and yolks? You might want to rethink this thought.
When making scrambled eggs, some form of liquid needs to be added for a creamier consistency. Otherwise, you will end up with a dense scramble. Milk or cream is your best option. One teaspoon per egg will do the trick.
The mixing of egg whites and yolks not only blends the ingredients together but also incorporates air into the mixture. If you desire a souffle-like texture, place eggs and milk into the blender before you add your other ingredients. This technique will yield a velvety smooth consistency.
Scrambled eggs should be cooked in nonstick pans. In addition, a light coating of cooking spray makes for easier clean-ups. While I love my cast iron skil-
let, some of the egg mixture will stick to the pan and is not the preferred choice. Always mix the eggs in a small bowl before placing them is the pan. Cracking the eggs directly into the pan will result in a streaky scramble.
Scrambled eggs should be cooked slowly over medium-low heat. Just before the eggs are fully cooked, remove the pan from the heat. By allowing the eggs to finish cooking by indirect heat, you will achieve a luscious, soft scramble. If you rush the dish, the eggs will be dry and tough.
Add-ins are assumed when scrambling eggs. If your heart’s desire is cheese, use shredded or crumbled. Chunks of cheese do not have time to melt. Fresh herbs, veggies, and meats are also popular.
Toppings add a unique finish and can
personalize the dish for any occasion. A dollop of crème fraiche and caviar puts this humble dish over the top. Salsas add pizzaz and are a beautiful contrast in color and consistency.
Temperatures are dropping and before you know it, Jack Frost will be knocking on your door. Breakfast burritos stuffed with scrambled eggs, gooey cheese, Italian sausage, sauteed veggies, and a drizzle of spicy mayo are a perfect pairing. Forget the knife and fork, you need two hands to handle this packed burrito. Enjoy!
Ingredients
4 flour tortillas for burritos
12 large eggs
12 teaspoons milk
My name is Larry Yates, and I am running for a seat on the Town of Ocean City Town Council. I hope to join others to make the Town of Ocean City a place for residents , and visitors a Place to Smile About! PlacetoSmileAbout! , and (full and part time) own of Ocean a p To I hope to join to own of Oc I o at on the T
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons canola oil
4 Italian sausages
1 cup combined red, orange, and yellow bell peppers, seeded and stems removed
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 cup fresh mushrooms, stems removed and sliced thinly
1 ½ cups favorite shredded cheese cooking spray drizzle of spicy mayo, which can be purchased in your neighborhood supermarket
1. Preheat oven to 350. Place tortillas on a sheet pan and heat for 5 minutes. This process just removes some of the flour taste.
2. In a large cast iron skillet, heat half of the butter and canola oil over medium heat. Cook sausages until fully cooked. Place sausages on a plate lined with paper towels. Discard any excess grease.
3. In the same pan, add the remaining butter and canola oil, and sauté veggies until golden brown. Place on a plate lined with paper towels.
4. In a medium bowl, using a whisk, combine eggs and milk until fully combined.
5. Spray a light coating of cooking spray in a medium sauté pan. Heat pan over medium heat. Pour one quarter of the egg mixture into the pan. When the egg mixture is half cooked, sprinkle one quarter of the cheese evenly over the eggs.
6. Place one quarter of the veggies on one side of the tortilla topped with egg, cheese mixture. The veggies should be about 2-inches in diameter. Then top with sausage. Carefully roll the tortilla. Fold in the edges and slice the burrito on an angle.
7. Place burrito halves stacked on each other and drizzle spicy mayo. Repeat this process for the 3 remaining burritos. Serves four large breakfast portions Secret Ingredient – Learning Learning is not attained by chance, it must be sought for with ardor and diligence. — Abigail Adams
‘Multiple bids’ for Ocean Pines food service received
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(Oct. 31, 2024) The Ocean Pines Association’s general manager looks to make a food and beverage contract recommendation to the board of directors next month.
Matt Ortt Companies is the community’s current food and beverage vendor. In March 2018, the group signed a two-year deal with Ocean Pines to manage the neighborhood’s food service locations: the Ocean Pines Yacht Club, the Ocean Pines Beach Club, and the Clubhouse Bar and Grille. The initial arrangement was extended by five years in 2020.
Ortt’s contract with the community ends on April 30, 2025. As the agreement nears its completion, OPA released a request for proposals (RFP) on Sept. 13 to seek out potential new food and beverage vendors.
At the OPA Board of Directors meeting on Saturday, Oct. 26, Viola maintained that the association had received “multiple bids, definitely more than one,” vying for the new contract as of the Oct. 18 deadline. The agreement awardee should be announced soon.
“The team is working on it,” Viola said. “I believe it is on track. I am looking somewhere around November to make a recommendation to the board.”
OPA Board of Directors Vice President Rick Farr said the decision to seek proposals from firms outside of the Matt Ortt Companies was based on advice from the homeowner association’s legal counsel, Bruce Bright of Ayres, Jenkins, Gordy, and Almand, and the community’s governing documents regarding the RFP process.
The OPA bylaws state that “all purchases and contracts for services or supplies for the Association shall, to the fullest extent practicable, be made by open competitive procedures.” Despite the broadened search, Matt Ortt Companies could still bid on the new contract.
The Ocean Pines community has largely expressed satisfaction with Matt Ortt’s operations.
On Friday, Sept. 13, the day the community announced the proposal request, OPA resident Budd Shea wrote on the community’s online forum, “Ortt has done an outstanding job, but…nothing helps business better than competition.”
Viola assured that his team is reviewing all proposals and will soon submit a final recommendation to the board.
Debbie Hileman
This Ranch Home is very convenient to the entrance of Ocean Pines and is just a few steps from a Park! All spruced up and ready for you! Fresh interior Paint, Brand new carpet and Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring. Extra-large Primary BR. Enjoy the outdoors on the covered Front Porch with swing, the Rear Deck or the Screened Porch brightened by 2 skylights! Located in an amenity-filled community! 2 skylights! Located in an amenity-filled community!
Short Term Rental Potential! Wow! Almost 3,500 SF with 5+ Bedrooms, 4 full baths, in-law apartment, and parking for multiple vehicles at the end of a cul-de-sac, a stone's throw from the golf course. So much is brand NEW! Vaulted ceilings, a Family Room with skylight, 2 Primary BRs. Walk across the "Bridge" to the game room. Oversized double car garage. A very nice 2 BR apartment on the lower level has a private porch, and separate laundry facilities. 6-foot fenced in backyard.
Center for Arts welcomes
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Art League of Ocean City has announced its free First Friday art opening on Nov. 1, from 5-7 p.m. at the Ocean City Center for the Arts, 502 94th St. bayside. All are welcome, and admission is free with complimentary hors d’oeuvres. Montgomery Financial is sponsoring the beverages.
The Thaler Gallery opens a new show entitled “Modern Allegories” featuring a trio of artists — Susanna Eisenman, Felisa Federman and David Hollander.
Eisenman, formerly a resident of Berlin who relocated to Easton, majored in textile design at the Rhode Island School of Design and also studied at the Maryland Institute College of Art. She is interested in art as storytelling and the recording and commemoration of events.
“As some of our history is told from a single viewpoint, I want to call attention to the untold stories as a way of starting a dialogue and appreciation for others’ experiences,” Eisenman said. “And so much history is abridged or even deliberately misrepresented that I want to ensure the Asian American experience in America is told.”
Federman of Potomac is presenting a series of fiber art about women and migrations. “The series provides an openend view of contemporary and global social-economical and cultural issues,” she said. “It will encourage conversations to an intergenerational community
at large about the techniques I used and the meaning of each artwork.” Her fiber mixed media work depicts movement of communities through nature.
Hollander of Millville, Del. is exhibiting artwork that revolves around universal Humanist themes, as opposed to specific cultural or political topics. Some of his paintings are meant to inspire, others to disrupt. “The Weather Report Suite is a collection of allegorical paintings that explores the relationship of weather patterns to psychic states,” Hollander said. “Images often derive from literature, poetry and music. You Don’t Miss Your Water and Looks Like Rain both tie love song lyrics to climate conditions.”
The Sisson Galleria features an allmedia group show entitled “The Art of Gratitude.” As the Thanksgiving season approaches, this exhibit reminds viewers of what they have to be grateful for. The show artists celebrate their expression with artwork created to express thanks, including abstract interpretations or capturing a moment of beauty or a meaningful object. Susan Holt of Salisbury, Md. is the judge for the show.
Plein air painters Nancy Fine and Rhonda Ford share Studio E in November. Fine, who lives in northern Baltimore County, said, “The love of nature holds my heart. It is spiritual. It is my studio.” Fine is noted for her interpretation of surroundings, her use of lush colors, and the
freedom of brushwork and palette knife. Ford lives in Easton where she is active in the Working Artists Forum and the Plein Air Painters of the Chesapeake Bay. Ford has been participating in many local events as well as being juried into Plein Air Easton the last two years.
Greg Cannizzaro of Selbyville, Del. is the exhibiting watercolor painter in the Schwab Spotlight Gallery in November. “I have a passion for landscapes, old barns, nature, old cars, locals scenes, and the beach,” Cannizzaro said.
The Artisan Showcase features work by Felicia Belair-Rigdon of Lewes, Del. in
November. “By combining the fragments of my own memory and other-worldly themes through the employment of classical imagery and treasured objects, I see the work as a synergy of spirituality versus attraction while reaching into the future at the same time.”
Elizabeth Grey continues her exhibit, “Different Imagination,” in the Staircase Galley, through December.
Lisa Guerriero of Ocean City presents her photography at the Princess Royale. Theresa Alo of Indian Head, Md. exhibits her acrylic paintings, mixed media, and ceramics at the Coffee Beanery on 94th St.
ARIES – Mar 21/Apr 20
Your energy levels are soaring this week, Aries. Channel this vitality into a new project or personal goal. Be cautious of being too impulsive, and think things through before acting.
TAURUS – Apr 21/May 21
Embrace flexibility in your personal life, Taurus. Being open to change will lead to unexpected opportunities and strengthen your relationships. There are a few surprises ahead.
GEMINI – May 22/Jun 21
Communication is key for you this week, Gemini. You may find that your words carry extra weight and influence. Use this to your advantage at work and in your personal life.
CANCER – Jun 22/Jul 22
Cancer, focus on behind-the-scenes work around the office — it’s not always about being in the spotlight that gets you ahead. All of your contributions are valuable.
LEO – Jul 23/Aug 23
Leo, embrace your natural charisma and confidence, but also remember to show appreciation for the people who support you. Balance is key in all social situations this week.
VIRGO – Aug 24/Sept 22
It is time to get organized, Virgo. Tackle any lingering tasks or projects that need your attention. Your meticulous attention to detail will serve you well as you bring order to things.
LIBRA – Sept 23/Oct 23
Libra, focus on finding harmony in your relationships this week. You might need to mediate conflicts or offer support to loved ones. Use your diplomatic skills to create balance.
SCORPIO – Oct 24/Nov 22
Trust your instincts when making decisions, especially those related to work or personal projects, Scorpio. Your intuition is pretty sharp this week, so use it to your advantage.
SAGITTARIUS – Nov 23/Dec 21
Sagittarius, adventure is calling out to you. Whether it’s a spontaneous trip or exploring a new hobby, embrace opportunities to expand your horizons.
CAPRICORN – Dec 22/Jan 20
Capricorn, your dedication and hard work are likely to be recognized, leading to potential advancement or new opportunities. Just wait for all of the exciting things to come your way.
AQUARIUS – Jan 21/Feb 18
Use creative energy to explore new ideas or tackle creative projects, Aquarius. When you interact with others, you also may gain some fresh ideas to use to your advantage.
PISCES – Feb 19/Mar 20
Pisces, this week calls for reflection and healing. Take time to address any emotional needs and seek support if you want to talk to someone or simply need another be close to you.
AWARENESS MONTH SUPPORT
by Steve Green
IThe Adventures of Fatherhood
t’s rare to be able to live in the clouds and ignore life’s negative noise, but I was able to do just that Monday afternoon for a few hours.
I have never regretted taking time off from work to watch my kids participate in sports or a school program. It does always require a lot of juggling of work duties. There’s stress involved with it. Oftentimes missing out on work and pushing off responsibilities to be able to be with my kids means late nights and stressful days. This was the case this Monday afternoon and the days that followed.
One thing I have learned in professional and family life is balance is a must. I always try to pick the family unless it’s impossible. It's funny how work was not on my mind while I was watching Carson and his unified tennis team from Stephen Decatur High School compete for three hours against other schools on the lower shore in the district championship. The memories of watching Carson with his teammates will far outlast the subsequent pressures involved in the workplace.
This school year has been exciting with Carson as something has changed. There is a major interest in wanting to be involved. Our 14-year-old (whose birthday is on Election Day so he gets the day off from school) is socially awkward. Carson routinely carries his head down, does not make eye contact much and is typically emotionless. He’s shy and introverted but when connections are established, they are real and lasting. The interactions will appear different, however. There will not be hugs or outward smiles typically with others. It could just be a wave, fist bump or maybe just a simple display of attention. Autism presents differently in every kid. In talking about the diversities of folks on the Autism spectrum, advocate Dr. Stephen Shore wrote, “If you’ve met one person with special needs, you’ve met one person with special needs.” It’s profound and so true. Disabilities present
uniquely in all. It was evident on the tennis courts Monday as I watched dozens of teens compete and interact.
One thing I know that cuts through all varieties of special needs is kindness, which is best seen through empathy. It’s important for everyone to know people should not be judged on their disability. It’s wrong to judge a person’s exterior. It could be entirely contrasting to what’s on the inside. I believe this is the case most times with all people, but it’s especially what I see when I look at special needs kids like my son Carson, who I credit with changing my entire perspective on life. Dr. Temple Grandin says, “different, not less,” and I embrace it with all my being. Everyone in my family feels this way.
It’s true watching Carson compete in sports is different. There will be no outbursts of emotion or excitement when he does well or outward displays of frustration when a mistake is made, but there are small moments with Carson that make a world of difference. I notice them. Pam sees them. We know him best after all.
There’s the little hop after he serves a well-placed ace, which might have had a bit of luck involved. There’s the quick giggle exchange with his partner when he or she mishits a shot. There’s the exchange with a coach that shows his silly side because there’s a comfort level there. There’s the casual look over to me after he hits a good shot. I am torn between yelling for him or just putting my hands up. Sometimes I do both because I don’t want to get a bad reaction. Earlier in the season, I hid during his match because I don’t know if he wanted me to see him. I like to think he appreciates me being there to support him. I know this in my heart.
Indeed, I search out the small things with our guy to celebrate and bank in my memory because there’s not going to be grand reactions. There’s the memorable moments of inclusion as well that hit my parent heart. I notice from afar Carson’s body language change when he’s
standing a few steps behind a group in a circle talking and a teammate waves for him to come closer. He doesn’t join them entirely, but he takes a couple steps toward them. I see the sly smile and a thumbs up indicating he’s good where he is.
Unified sports are new to us this year as Carson is a freshman, but Pam and I lead a similar concept through our TOPSoccer program at River Soccer Club where we coaches match kids with special needs with volunteer buddies. The big difference is competitiveness is there with unified sports as compared to our program that focuses more on fun and exercise. The coaches are the key in both, as they have to possess the heart, empathy and passion. The coaches at Decatur show their hearts at every practice and meet, and we are incredibly grateful for them and the high school students who give of their time to be involved in a special thing.
For those unfamiliar, Unified Sports is organized through the Special Olympics. The website states, “Unified Sports joins people with and without intellectual disabilities on the same team. It was inspired by a simple principle: training together and playing together is a quick path to friendship and understanding. … Having sport in common is just one more way that preconceptions and false ideas are swept away.” It's so well said.
At the end of the three-hour meet Monday, I could tell Carson was tired. At one point, as we were waiting, he motioned to leave. I told him we have to wait for the awards ceremony. This is a moment I will cherish. They announced the top seven finishers. When Carson’s team was called, I saw the wry smile. He was proud of himself, and that’s priceless.
(The writer is the executive editor of OC Today-Dispatch. He and his wife, Pamela, are proud parents of two boys. This weekly column examines their transition into parenthood and all that goes along with it. E-mail any thoughts to editor@mdcoastdispatch.com.)
Advanced surfers have flexibility on board selection
By Dave Dalkiewicz Contributing Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) Our last few columns have had to do with what surfboards were best at any particular surfer’s level of progression. Levels were broken down to beginner, intermediate, and advanced. This time we’ll be referring to an advanced category.
Generally speaking, an advanced surfer will use any type of board that they would feel comfortable with. It could be short, long, or in between and of a soft or hard material. By the time an individual reaches this stage their feelings for the sport are pretty much established. Basic aspects such as floatation and stability are still going to be important factors as these are always a consideration for any surfer at any stage of development.
So much of it has to do with how often one is able to get in the water and the types of waves that are available. As in any endeavor, practice makes perfect, and most people need to do anything often enough to be able to continue at a decent level. In other words, you have to keep doing it just so you can keep doing it.
Surfing has a certain unique aspect in that good surfable waves, or the playing field, are not always available. It’s an ingredient that doesn’t always present itself. This is true for any surfer at any level, though the advanced surfer might find himself or herself getting to be more discerning as to the quality of waves that they’re willing to paddle out in. It’s sort of a two edged sword in that if one isn’t willing to go out in less than stellar conditions they might find their water time reduced so much so that their performance level goes way down. This is, once again, something that any surfer, at any level, can experience though maybe more so at the advanced stage.
To paddle out when the waves are marginal could be a good idea just to maintain one’s conditioning. Surfing is what it is to you. This is something that the advanced most probably knows.
- Dave Dalkiewicz is the owner of Ocean Atlantic Surf Shop in Ocean City
Crossword answers from page 74
COMMUNITY/SCHOOLS
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
POUND AUCTION HELD
October 24 was World Polio Day. The Ocean City-Berlin Rotary Club held a pound auction at their meeting. Members bid on unidentifiable wrapped packages weighing about a pound. All monies raised is sent to Rotary International for polio eradication efforts. The club meets the first and third Wednesday of the month at Don’s Seafood at the South Gate of Ocean Pines. For more information on the club, email ocberlinrotary@gmail.com
MARKET FIELD TRIP
Ocean City Elementary School first grade students recently went on a field trip to Wright’s Market in Mardela Springs. The class learned about the life cycle of pumpkins and observed the various stages of this cycle. Students also learned about the family farm and the various crops grown there. The best part of their day was getting to pick their own pumpkins off the vines. Pictured are Mrs. Coleman and her first grade class.
HALLOWEEN VOLUNTEERING
The KIwanis Club of Greater Ocean Pines-Ocean CIty participated in the Ocean Pines Halloween Celebration on Saturday Octovber 26, 2024 in Whitehorse Park. Serving up concessions were some members of the Kiwanis “Dawg Team” Pictured, from left, are Barbara Southwell, Mary Page, Kitty Wrench, Candy Foreman, Ed Ahlquist and (seated) Doug Ege. The club is appreciative of every opportunity to raise funds to support their programs serving the children and families of Worcester County.
BEER BOOTH SHIFTS
The Kiwanis Club of Greater Ocean Pines-Ocean City was given the opportunity to man one of the four beer booths at the 2024 Sunfest to raise funds. Pictured are some of the volunteers manning one of the 11 shifts: Tim Hill, Ron Wildgust, Kiwanis event chair Bob Wolfing and Kathy Hill.
SUBMITTED PHOTO/OC TODAY-DISPATCH
SUBMITTED
Things I Like... vanishing vanishing OCEAN CITY
By Steve Green
Sundays consisting of church and football
Committing to a vacation
Facebook memories of my kids
A drink in a heavy rocks glass
Washington football team’s resurgence
Assateague’s scenery
A fountain drink with crushed ice
Teens able to put their phones away
Learning from a technology article
Finding a jacket believed to be lost
Close youth sports games
With Bunk Mann
The Sea Scape was built by Ridge Harman, Sr. in 1954 and was the first Boardwalk motel in Ocean City. Located on 16th Street, it was part of what would soon become known as “Motel Row.”
The famous March Storm of ‘62 would cause serious damage to the entire town and the Sea Scape was no exception. Its swimming pool was uprooted from the original site facing the beach and deposited in the motel parking lot facing Baltimore Avenue. Reconstructed, the pool would remain in the new location for the next 54 years.
The Sea Scape was famous for its weekly smorgasbord in the 1960s and 70s and a lively piano bar. One of the first motels to stay open in the off-season, its Fireside Room restaurant was popular for prime rib and broiled Maine lobster. In later years, Peppers Tavern – a popular locals bar – leased space in the basement of the Sea Scape.
After 62 years as one of Ocean City’s best known motels, the Sea Scape was torn down in November 2016 to make way for the modern Hyatt Place Ocean City/Oceanfront Hotel.
To purchase one of Bunk Mann’s books, click over to www.vanishingoc.com.
Photo by Bunk Mann
State housing department introduces UPLIFT program
By Lauren Bunting Contributing Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development recently announced its UPLIFT program, which is designed to help close the appraisal gap that now blocks essential investments in the state’s historically redlined communities, was recently recognized by the National Council of State Housing Agencies at its 2024 annual conference.
Established in 1984, NCSHA’s Annual Awards for Program Excellence identify and elevate industry best practices and encourage continued Housing Finance Agency innovation. Member HFAs are eligible to submit initiatives for consideration in seven categories: Communications, Homeownership, Legislative Advocacy, Management Innovation, Rental Housing, Special Achievement, and Special Needs Housing.
Maryland’s DHCD program, Utilizing Progressive Lending Investments to Finance Transformation (UPLIFT) took top honors in NCSHA’s Homeowner-
ship: Encouraging New Construction category. NCSHA noted contest jurors recognized Maryland DHCD’s UPLIFT program for its “holistic and innovative” approach: utilizing progressive lending investments to increase property values and provide wealth-building homeownership opportunities for targeted households by accelerating the pace of development, construction, and sale of quality affordable housing in low-income census tracts and in designated communities. The program addresses issues including energy, critical repairs, and vacant properties to help close the appraisal gap that occurs in historically redlined areas.
“UPLIFT is an important tool in our efforts to revitalize Maryland’s disinvested communities,” said Secretary Jake Day. “We’re honored that the program, and the help it provides to the people in our state, was recognized by the National Council of State Housing Agencies.”
UPLIFT was announced by Governor Wes Moore in 2023 and built on the department’s pilot Homeownership Works (HOW) program, which focused on two Maryland communities - Johnston
See PROGRAM Page
REAL ESTATE MARKETPLACE
Partnering on treatment
Hudson Behavioral Health is partnering with Culinary Services Group (CSG) to deliver high-quality dining and nutrition solutions to patients staying at its residential addiction treatment facility in Salisbury CSG will handle all staffing and management of the culinary team at Hudson and will enhance the quality of life for patients through nutritious meal options.
Substance abuse can result in poor nutrition and irregular eating, so when patients enter treatment, the consistency of 3 regular, nutritious meals each day can be a huge relief and a reminder of more stable times.
“Nourishing the body with balanced nutrition not only helps patients heal physically, but also mentally and emotionally,” says Leslie Brown, CEO of Hudson. “This partnership with CSG is another step in ensuring that our patients receive the highest quality of care and are given the best opportunity for success in recovery.”
In addition to creating healthy menu solutions, delivering fresh, high-quality food, and providing compassionate staff, CSG also offers vocational and skills training to patients.
“I’m thrilled about the opportunity for our patients—both on campus and in our low-intensity housing—to receive nutrition education from CSG. Learning essential life skills, such as preparing
Richarrd d Road, Berlin4BR/2.5BA
healthy meals, will be invaluable in supporting their growth and long-term success,” says Brown.
Awards announced
TidalHealth Wound & Hyperbaric providers, leaders and clinicians at TidalHealth Nanticoke and TidalHealth Peninsula Regional were both honored with the 2023 Center of Distinction Award, which was recently presented by Healogics, the nation’s largest provider of advanced wound care services.
The centers achieved outstanding clinical outcomes for twelve consecutive months, including patient satisfaction higher than 92 percent, and a minimum comprehensive healing rate of 77 percent or higher, all within 28 median days to heal.
REAL ESTATE REPORT
“TidalHealth is pleased to offer exceptional wound care services to the community we serve. It is an honor to accept this national Center of Distinction Award on behalf of the dedicated wound care professionals in Seaford and Salisbury at TidalHealth Wound & Hyperbaric,” said Cindy Lunsford, Executive Vice President & COO, TidalHealth.
TidalHealth Wound & Hyperbaric, with care centers at TidalHealth Peninsula Regional in Salisbury and TidalHealth Nanticoke in Seaford, Del., is a member of the Healogics network of over 600 Wound Care Centers and offers highly specialized wound care to patients suffering from diabetic foot ulcers, pressure ulcers, infections and other chronic wounds that have not healed in a reasonable amount of time.
Program aimed at revitalization
Square in Baltimore and the Pine Street area in Cambridge. The program focuses on two urgent Maryland priorities: Closing the gap in household wealth across racial categories and flowing capital into historically disinvested, redlined neighborhoods. UPLIFT does both by fi-
nancing the construction of affordable single family, for-sale construction in clustered areas to elevate property values and thereby boost household wealth among homeowners in less well-off communities.
— Lauren Bunting is the Broker of Record for Keller Williams Realty Delmarva in Ocean City, Maryland.
Family
Nancy Reither/Coldwell B 05 Robin Drive, Unit 26, Ocean City 1BR, 1BA Condo $229,900 Larry Holdrreen II/ReMax O 036 Ocean Parkwayy, , Ocean Pines 3BR/2BA
on V Justin Damadio/Irro Vaalle 8 60th St. #301 Meridian 4BR/3.5BA
Coastal bays health report card reveals improvement
(Nov. 1, 2024) The Maryland Coastal Bays Program unveiled the 2023 Coastal Bays Report Card on Thursday, Oct. 24, revealing a grade of a B-.
The Report Card is the annual assessment on the health of the Maryland Coastal Bays, the five bays located behind Ocean City and Assateague Island which provides a transparent, timely and geographically detailed assessment of the health of the watershed. Bays health is defined as the progress of four water quality indicators, and two biotic indicators toward scientifically derived ecological thresholds or goals. The six indicators are combined into one health index score, which is presented as a report card letter grade.
The Coastal Bays had an overall grade of a B- last year; however, this year’s data revealed a better score, due to the improvement of the overall scores of two bays but remained as a B- grade. The Isle of Wight Bay received a B- over a C+ from last year due to strong improvements in nitrogen, phosphorus, and chlorophyll a, and Newport Bay received a C- from a D+ last year also experiencing improvement in chlorophyll a, nitrogen, and phosphorus scores. Hard clams improved in a number of locations, except Chincoteague. Sea grasses improved slightly only in Sinepuxent and Chincoteague.
“It’s nice to see the slight improvement, but we need to make sure that we keep moving in the right direction,” said MCBP Executive Director Kevin Smith.
The Report Card is a scientific collaborative effort among the Maryland Coastal Bays Program, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science - Integration and Application Network, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Virginia Institute of Marine Science and the National Park Service. Funding for the publication is provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
This year’s report card release program included four Gold Star award presentations to recognize the contributions of partners and their efforts to protect the coastal bays. Recipients of this recognition were Sunset Island Community and Oceanic Motel for their dedication to programs monitoring horseshoe crabs and other environmental initiatives; Maryland Conservation Corps for assisting with water quality monitoring; Baywater Seafood, the first bay scallop aquaculture farm in the state of Maryland and has been working closely with researchers to track wild populations and reintroduce bay scallops to the Coastal Bays; and the Ocean City Green Team, established in 2001 as a forum to help keep the Ocean City Mayor and City Council informed of issues that would impact the environmental and natural resources of the town.
Hundreds of volunteers work with MCBP, including residents and visitors, to support environmental initiatives to protect, promote, and preserve our coastal bays, by volunteering to count horseshoe crabs, terrapins, and birds; collect water samples, work on restoration projects, clean neighborhoods, wetlands and dunes of trash and invasive plants, and assist in many other activities.
Part of the National Estuary Program, the Maryland Coastal Bays Program is a non-profit partnership among the towns of Ocean City and Berlin, the National Park Service, Worcester County, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Maryland Departments of Natural Resources, Agriculture, Environment and Planning. One of only 28 such programs nationwide, the goal of the Maryland Coastal Bays Program is to protect and enhance the 175-square mile watershed, which includes Ocean City, Ocean Pines, Berlin and Assateague Island National Seashore. Report Cards and State of the Bay Reports are available online at www.mdcoastalbays.org.
Sunset Park fire lane draws ire of downtown residents
City asking developer to swap fire lane approval for bayside boardwalk access
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) A request to modify Sunset Park for the creation of a fire lane will be discussed in more detail later this month after city officials on Tuesday said they wanted to give the public another opportunity to comment on a hotel developer’s plans.
In July, citing concerns from downtown residents and city staff, representatives of the planned Kyma Hotel opted to defer their request to modify and use the neighboring Sunset Park as a dedicated fire lane.
However, after the developer’s request was brought back to the Mayor and Council in a daytime work session this week, officials agreed additional renderings and public input were needed before they could make a decision. The topic will now be revisited at the Nov. 18 regular meeting, scheduled to start at 6 p.m.
“I think there’s more information to be had,” Council President Matt James said.
Last year, the Ocean City Planning Commission voted to approve the site plan for a luxury boutique hotel at 700 S. Philadelphia Ave. The developer, Effie’s Beach LLC, has plans to construct a 60-plus-unit facility named Kyma Luxury Resort Hotel on the site just south of Sunset Park.
Now that the project is in the permitting phase of development, the developer is seeking the council’s approval to cut back a portion of the park’s southerly trellis, replace the entrance curbing with a standard driveway-style curb cut, and make the park a dedicated fire lane for the hotel. However, when the matter was initially brought forward in a July 9 work session, community members came out to oppose the developer’s plans.
“It’s taking away the part that so many people enjoy and love down there, and it’s just an unconscionable request that’s being made there,” resident Scott Chismar said at the time.
In a report to the Mayor and Council, staff noted that designating Sunset Park as a project’s fire lane would impose certain restrictions on the current use, as the fire lane must be clear of all fixed objects – including tents and food trucks. They also reported that a proposed fire lane would also permanently restrict any future development of the park.
Staff ultimately presented two options – to deny the request entirely, or to allow Sunset Park to be used as a fire lane, provided that the developer allows public access to the hotel’s bayside boardwalk.
Back on the agenda Tuesday, the developer’s attorney, Hugh Cropper, told council members his client, in exchange for modifying and using Sunset Park as a fire lane, would improve the park’s landscaping, sand dunes and lighting. He added that the developer also would grant the Town of Ocean City a public easement to his property’s bayside boardwalk, once a connection can be made to surrounding properties.
“Until it connects to something over here, we propose to gate it off,” Cropper said.
Councilman Will Savage, however, questioned why the developer would not immediately provide public access to his boardwalk. He argued that a connection already existed, as users could walk or bike to Sunset Park or South First Street.
“Why would it be chained off if what we are proposing is already there?” he asked.
City officials also highlighted the nearby Cambria Hotel, which provided public access to its bayside boardwalk. Cropper, however, said public access to the Kyma Hotel’s boardwalk posed unique challenges, as the hotel had plans to serve alcohol outside. He also voiced concerns about security.
“I’m not sure the liquor board would issue a license where you have to cross a public right-of-way, even if you’re going under it or over,” he said.
Officials argued that the developer would have to modify his alcoholic beverage license if he were to eventually open the boardwalk to the public. They encouraged the developer to provide a public easement now, rather than later.
“What the town is looking for –I’m just interpreting – is to go ahead and create the bayside boardwalk section here to connect it to the street,” Mayor Rick Meehan said. “Allow it to be open to the public the same hours that the park is open, which would prevent vagrancy …”
As was the case in July, a handful of downtown residents came before the council this week to oppose the developer’s request, arguing the park was widely used by community members.
Downtown resident George Stoll said he did not understand how the developer had overlooked the need for a fire lane. Community member Deborah Stanley agreed.
“I’m not opposed to development …,” she said. “However, these folks knew the rules when they came in. They could’ve drawn those plans to fit all the rules.”
Some community members added that the city had granted several variances to the developer. Karen Nelson, president of the nearby White
Developer says fire lane benefits the public
Marlin Condominium Association, said the city should deny the request.
“A fire lane should have been thought about already …,” she said. “It is mind-blowing that a developer would annex a piece of the public area that is so important to so many people.”
Meehan, however, argued that none of the proposed changes would significantly alter the look and operation of Sunset Park. The developer, Christos Sarantis, added that the fire lane would not only benefit him, but the public as well. He said he was not seeking exclusive use of the property.
“Five years I’ve been fighting for this,” he said. “We got through so many approvals and the final approval that I need is something that
is not just for my benefit, it’s also for the benefit of the public. If somebody has a heart attack on the west side of the park, an emergency vehicle cannot get there. At the time that it would take somebody to walk from the curb to the back, that person might be dead.”
City Manager Terry McGean explained that in 2003, before the park was developed, the adjacent property owner at the time had submitted plans for a restaurant that used the then-open South Division Street as a fire lane. To accommodate that restaurant project, the park was designed to maintain fire access along its length.
“So the park’s already a fire lane,” Savage concluded.
McGean agreed, but noted that the
curb cut and trellis that currently exists blocks emergency access. After further discussion, the council voted 7-0 to discuss the developer’s request further at its Nov. 18 meeting, scheduled for 6 p.m.
Council Secretary Tony DeLuca
said the extension would give the developer time to provide better renderings of the Kyma project and the bayside boardwalk. He added that the council had also received complaints that Tuesday’s discussion was held during work hours.
An aerial view of Sunset Park in downtown Ocean City. A property developer wants to utilize the park as a fire lane, as part of a planned hotel project on South Philadelphia Avenue.
Worcester school board approves policy revisions
By Tara Fischer Staff Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) At a meeting last week, the Worcester County Board of Education approved brief changes to school system policies.
Regarding the Local Advisory Council for Career and Technical Education, formerly the Advisory Council for Vocational Education, any mention of the term ‘vocational’ was officially replaced with ‘career and technical.’ According to the Association for Career and Technical Education, the updated language is broader, encompassing more diverse pathways.
Building DREAM HOMES
“To reflect the changing nature of this type of education, we no longer use the term ‘vocational education,’ but instead ‘career and technical education (CTE),’” the ACTE website reads. “CTE gives relevance and context to learning by emphasizing realworld skills and rigorous, yet practical knowledge anchored within a selected career focus.”
Worcester County Public Schools has used ‘career and technical’ instead of ‘vocational’ for some time. The official policy update reflects the language used by the system’s educators.
In the same document, the career and tech high school principal’s role in the Advisory Council for Career and Technical Education, a group tasked with advising the system on CTE programs and developments, was altered. Rather than serving the body in an ex officio capacity, the leader will now act as a committee member.
“We feel that the principal’s voice is an important voice to be heard on that committee and they should be an official member,” WCPS Chief Operations and Academic Officer Annette Wallace said.
An amendment was implemented to the student attendance policy. The death of a stepsibling was added as a lawful cause of absence, which also includes the passing of a parent, a stepparent, a sibling, a grandparent, an aunt, and an uncle.
The system also changed how school attendance hours are calculated, as mandated by the state for reporting purposes. Previously, the WCPS policy stated that a child present for four or more hours would be marked as present all day, two hours to three hours and 59 minutes was deemed present one-half day, and less than two hours was considered an all-day absence.
This language was modified to include the percentages. Now, present all day is constituted as being in the building for 51% of the time, a halfday is considered 10% to 50%, and an
Blood Bank introduces new donation pods at OC outlets
(Nov. 1, 2024) Blood Bank of Delmarva (BBD) has launched its new blood donation experience with the introduction of its state-of-the-art Blood Donation Pods, including at the Outlets Ocean City, located at 12741 Ocean Gateway, through Nov. 15. The Blood Donation Pods are portable donor centers equipped with comfortable donor beds, a climate-controlled environment, and entertainment options, including access to streaming services and music to keep donors entertained throughout their donation process. Donors have the option of donating whole blood, double red cells, or platelets –a much-needed donation type that is typically limited to fixed donor centers only.
Recognizing the average person is willing to travel only 10 minutes to donate blood, BBD is prioritizing convenience and bringing lifesaving opportunities to every corner of the tri-state area. Given the limited number of donor centers – only 19
in the region – these portable pods serve as convenient, mobile donor centers, making it easier for communities far from established centers to participate in this lifesaving mission.
“We’re thrilled to introduce this new and innovative portable donor center and improved donor experience to blood donors in Maryland,” said Steve Corse, executive director at Blood Bank of Delmarva. “Our goal is to make blood donation as comfortable and convenient as possible, and we believe these Pods will help us attract new blood donors and ultimately save more lives.”
To make an appointment at the Outlets Ocean City pod location, visit delmarvablood.org/pod.
Blood donors can give every 56 days, and platelet donors can give twice per month. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently lifted several blood donor eligibility restrictions; for updated guidelines, visit delmarvablood.org or call 1-888-8BLOOD-8.
Absence, bus policies change
Continued from Page 86
all-day absence is less than 10%.
“What we had to go to was a specific way of calculating school attendance hours,” Wallace said. “This gives the actual percentage that matches up with the report that we need to give to the state.”
An additional wording change was also made to the attendance policy. The phrase, “for a given subject or course at the high school level, five unlawful absences during any one grading period,” was adjusted to replace the language of ‘grading period’ with ‘course term.’
Wallace said that this modification does not alter the policy's intent. The system currently uses ‘course term’ in PowerSchool, the software that manages and stores student information. The revision is simply meant to align the official document with the language already in place.
Revisions were made to the school vehicle behavior policy. The word ‘bus’ was replaced with ‘school vehicle.’ Additionally, item E, the amendment that stated that in the case of alcohol, drugs, or smoking violations on a school bus, the principal shall deny bus transportation to the offending student twenty consecutive school days for the first offense, forty consecutive school days for the second offense, and the third offense, transportation shall be denied permanently, was eliminated.
The specific consequences were removed, and violations will instead be dealt with as specified in the policy,
which reads, “In cases of misconduct, the principal shall, in addition to denial of school vehicle transportation, take appropriate action, which may include suspension or expulsion.”
“Essentially, the focus is to create a policy and direct the superintendent to create the specific things that come after it,” Wallace said. “Taking that out is in the spirit of the way that policies are intended to be written.”
The policy revisions were approved unanimously by the board of education.
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$389,900
This meticulously maintained 1-bedroom condo, featuring a spacious loft area and 1.5 baths, is ideally situated on 28th Street, offering stunning direct waterfront views. Built in 1982, this home combines classic charm with modern comforts. Imagine stepping out onto your fabulous rear sundeck, where you can soak up the sun and enjoy the tranquility of the deep, wide canal. The second-level patio provides an elevated view, perfect for morning coffee or evening relaxation. With two brand new wall A/C units and affordable baseboard heat, you’ll stay comfortable year-round.
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
REQUESTED Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan FY 2026 through FY 2030 Worcester County, Maryland
The Worcester County Commissioners will conduct a public hearing on the REQUESTED Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for fiscal year (FY) 2026 through FY2030. The CIP is a planning document the County will use in preparing future operating budgets, to anticipate future financial needs of the County and to identify possible funding resources. Inclusion of a project in the CIP does not constitute a guarantee of funding from the County. Some capital projects will be added, deleted and/or amended as necessary. As with the Operating Budget, the projects for each fund have to be balanced with the resources available in that fund. Copies of the Worcester County REQUESTED Capital Improvement Plan for FY2026 through FY2030 summary may be obtained online at www.co.worcester.md.us. For additional information, please contact the County Administration Office at (410) 632-1194.
The public hearing will be held on:
November 6, 2024 at 10:35 a.m. in the
New fire station celebrated in Ocean City
By Bethany Hooper Associate Editor
(Nov. 1, 2024) City officials and representatives with the Ocean City Fire Department gathered last weekend to celebrate the opening of a new midtown fire station.
On Sunday, the Ocean City Fire Department held a ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the opening of its new fire station, located at 65th Street. The 23,500-square-foot facility will now serve as a hub for fire and EMS activity in town.
“We are incredibly grateful for the vision and support from the Mayor and Council in making this state-ofthe-art facility a reality for Ocean City,” Fire Chief Richie Bowers said. “This station is a testament to their commitment to public safety and will serve our community for many years to come.”
The new facility replaces the 74th Street Station, which has served the community since its construction in 1969. As part of this week’s ceremony, the fire department held an apparatus parade from 74th Street down to 65th
Street, where community members gathered to celebrate the new station with a hose uncoupling ceremony, rather than the traditional ribbon cutting.
Officials report the 65th Street facility represents a significant enhancement in emergency response capabilities for the town. The station boasts drive-through apparatus bays, each equipped with a vehicle exhaust system to remove harmful exhaust from areas where personnel work. Additionally, the station features a gym, kitchen, sleeping quarters,
training space, and more
Funding for the furniture, fixtures, and essential equipment was raised through a capital campaign led by Ryan Whittington, Amanda Bunting, Sam Villani, Mick Chester, and Mike Maykrantz.
The fire department reports funding opportunities are still available. Rooms within the facility remain available for sponsorship, and legacy bricks that line the station’s exterior are available for dedication. Those interested in contributing can visit www.ocbrick.com for more information.
Instead of a traditional ribbon cutting, firefighters used a hose uncoupling ceremony, which is a fire service tradition that marks the opening of a new fire station. Pictured above, from left, are firefighter/EMT Mick Chester, OCVFC long-time member Mike LeCompte, Councilman and Assistant Chief Will Savage, Capital Campaign Chairman Ryan Whittington, City Manager Terry McGean, Mayor Rick Meehan, Fire Chief Rich Bowers, Deputy Chief Chris Shaffer and Assistant Chief Eric Peterson.
Tyler Walsh friends, builder plan home improvements
‘You look at it as this is a horrible tragedy but Tyler being alive is ... a miracle’
By Brian Shane Staff Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) Friends of a teenager who barely survived a motorcycle hit-and-run in Ocean City will pitch in and help renovate his home as he prepares for life after debilitating injuries.
In the wake of Tyler Walsh’s nearfatal pedestrian accident seven weeks ago, a group of his closest pals have met weekly for counseling at their school, Stephen Decatur High, in Berlin. About 17 of them, all boys, have talked about how to turn their anger and frustration over the accident into something positive.
Grief specialist Bethann McIntosh, who has a teenage daughter at Decatur, reached out to the school in the wake of Tyler’s hit-and-run incident in September to offer her services. McIntosh hopes to offer the boys what she called an “emotional toolbox” to cope with their shock and grief.
Even after just a handful of meetings, McIntosh said the friend group – who call themselves the Gators –have astonished her by opening up, showing empathy, and being engaged and nonjudgemental during an incredibly difficult time.
“They’re a great group of kids that really thrive on helping one another and showing up for one another,” she said. “They’re showing up for Tyler, but I remind them you’re showing up for yourself and your buddy next to you. They’ve impressed me more than I can ever say.”
McIntosh now leads the support sessions during lunch breaks every Wednesday and, as she told the school, “I’m here as long as you need me.”
“This is not a quick fix. This is not a short-term group,” she said. “We started out with so many unknowns – fear, anger, sadness. We’re gauging their thoughts and emotions with Tyler’s progression. Now we talk about, how are we going to feel when he’s home? It’ll be exciting but there’s a lot of changes. Life will be different.”
Tyler was struck by a speeding motorcyclist the night of Sept. 13 while walking across southbound Philadelphia Avenue at 12th Street. Police said the driver, 51-year-old Michael Scot Schenieder, fled the scene on foot. Officers followed a blood trail to find him in West Ocean City. Schneider is being held on bond and is facing a litany of criminal charges in Circuit Court.
After being rushed to Shock Trauma in Baltimore with life-threat-
ening injuries, Tyler has since undergone multiple surgeries, including surgery on his skull to relieve pressure on his brain, according to his father Cory in an interview with Coastal Point newspaper.
Cory has been going back and forth between the hospital and home, where Tyler’s twin sister Emma and younger brother Carter are being cared for by their grandmother. Their loss is compounded by the death of their mother Rhonda, 50, a beloved schoolteacher who lost her battle with cancer two years ago.
As McIntosh continued to lead counseling sessions, the Gators talked about how they wanted to do anything they could to help their
ART BLAZERS LEARNING
The Pocomoke Elementary School "Art Blazers" were hard at work during their after-school art club, an outreach program of the Art League of Ocean City. The students created self portraits with instructor Maya Batson.
Art League appreciates communtiy support
Editor,
On behalf of the Art League of Ocean City, thank you to everyone who made this year’s “Wonderland: pARTy of the Year” a wonderful success. The Alice in Wonderlandthemed evening was filled with fun at the bayfront Embers Restaurant to support the 61st anniversary of the Art League and help our nonprofit
continue our many community outreach programs.
Thank you to the more than 130 guests who attended to support the arts. Our Wonderland committee did an outstanding job of coordinating the event and creating décor and entertainment. The committee includes chair Courtney Blackford, and members Crystal Collins, David Keil, Cindy Leiner, Berta Maginniss, Meredith Moore, Patti Selig, Eileen Stamnas, Alex Grier, Heather Ross, Alicia Zahn, and Katherine Redden. The committee recognizes Cheryl Taustin in memory for her work on this project.
NOTICE OF ELECTION
Town of Ocean City 2024 Municipal Election
The Town of Ocean City is holding the Municipal Election in conjunction with the Presidential Election. Registered Ocean City voters are able to vote in both elections at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center, 4001 Coastal Highway, on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. The Municipal Election will be held in Hall A; the Presidential Election will be held in Hall B. Voters must sign in at both the municipal and the federal/state registration desks that day.
Free bus service is offered for all users on Election Day. The “no-fare” policy for buses and ADA service will be in effect from 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. ADA service requests require a 24-hour advanced trip reservation. The building is handicap accessible. For additional information contact Ocean City Transportation at 410-723-1606 or visit www.oceancitymd.gov.
Below is a sample ballot for the 2024 Ocean City Municipal Election that includes two candidates for mayor and seven council candidates. Municipal Election voters will fill in the oval to the left of the name(s) of your choice. Absentee ballot applications are available on www.oceancitymd.gov. A self-addressed, return envelope will be included for the ballot return or absentee ballots can be dropped in the white mailbox located outside of City Hall specifically labeled for Municipal Election Absentee Ballots only.
Our heartfelt thanks also goes out to our party sponsors. At the Queen of Hearts $5,000 level: Bank of Ocean City, John Sisson, T&G Builders, and Rina and Jeff Thaler. At the Cheshire Cat $2,500 level: Atlantic Planning & Development, Carey Distributors, Jim and Jan Perdue, Jerry & Patti Selig, Gayle and Dirk Widdowson, Craig Giffi,
Heather Ross, Leighton and Rebecca Moore, and Jack & Virginia Burbage.
At the Alice $1,500 level: Community Foundation of Eastern Shore and Duffie Boatworks. At the White Rabbit $1,000 level: Joan W. Jenkins Foundation, Oasis Travel and Sea Glass Pool & Spa. At the Ace of Clubs $500 level: Reese Cropper III. Our gratitude goes out to our hosts, the Taustin family and Embers Restaurant. plus our in-kind sponsors: Nori Sushi, Candy Kitchen
Tyler Walsh support continues
friend. At the same time, Berlinbased T&G Builders was making plans for a massive renovation of the Walsh’s home, to accommodate Tyler’s needs for his eventual return from the hospital.
“In talking with (company president) John Rego over at T&G, he was like, ‘let’s incorporate them into what we’re doing,” McIntosh said. “They’re putting their entire plans around these boys, having them come in, learn how to build. It actually kind of works hand-in-hand.”
Rego said he didn’t personally know the Walsh family, but “my children and I would pray for him every night, the little boy who got struck by the motorcycle.”
The Gators will work alongside T&G crews at the Walsh’s home in Selbyville to build ramps, retrofit a bedroom for the first floor, widen doors, a retrofitting a bathroom for wheelchair accessibility, Rego said.
It won’t cost a penny for the Walsh family. T&G will be covering the full cost of the renovation, including materials and specialty tradesmen. Rego said the project may be completed as soon as Thanksgiving – with the Gators’ help.
“To measure out wood, cut on a saw, that’s all stuff these guys can do. They can learn a little about the construction industry, too,” Rego said. “We’re going to knock it out and have this awesome home for Tyler to be able to come home to.
Rego added, “I can’t believe that,
for an injury of that magnitude, you’ve got such a tough young man who is so resilient, who’s already gone through so much. He’s nothing short of a warrior.”
Rego isn’t alone with his generous gift. So far, the greater Ocean City/Berlin community has contributed more than $200,000 in donations for Tyler and the Walsh family.
That includes two different GoFundMe campaigns that have raised about $112,000 and $63,000, respectively, as well as $6,000 from a fundraiser held last month at Tall Tales Brewery.
And, at Stephen Decatur High School, donations have been pouring in through athletic boosters, casual days, and stadium concessions. Efforts have raised $25,000 for the Walsh family, according to Carrie Sterrs, spokeswoman for Worcester County Public Schools.
Back at the Gators’ support group, McIntosh said despite the difficulty of the situation, the boys are learning every week more and more how to handle their emotions instead of acting on them. They’re committed to having a hand in Tyler’s recovery.
“This is their new life, and we have to keep ourselves mentally healthy and emotionally strong to help them,” she said. “It’s so layered. You’re grieving the life you expected, the life that you knew. You look at it as this is a horrible tragedy. But Tyler being alive is truly a miracle.”
Continued from Page 90
Shoppes, Innerbloom, Gregory Poulos Photography, and Shawn Smith of Technology Contracting. We also thank the Lower Shore Performing Arts Company for their partnership, bringing the excitement of live performers to the party.
And to those who donated to our auction: Ashore Resort and Beachclub, Ruddos Golf, Ocean City Golf Club, Jeffrey Auxer, Rina Thaler, OC Bay Hopper, Nick’s Mini Golf, Windmill Creek Winery, Seacrets, Park Place Jewelers, Kuhn’s Jewelers, Maggie Rogers, Pit n Pub, Sello’s, Spain Wine Bar, The Hobbit, Malibu’s Surf Shop, Just Tree Creations, Patty Jeans Boutique, and OC Organics.
Also, thank you to the artists who donated artwork for the auction: Leo Kahl, Robbie Johnson, Sarah Halcott, Jacki Bruce-Yamin, Jackie Atkins, Donna Finley, Rajendra KC, John Carter, Peter Gibson, Mitzi Ash, Mitzi Harp, Tia and Tuve Tuvesson, Barbara Buford, Lisa Scarbath, Ralph Baden, Dale AsheraDavis, Lorraine Quinn, Mimi Little, Etta Stewart, and Dennis Young.
Our $5,000 raffle for the trip of a lifetime, sponsored by Oasis Travel, was won by Brian Mannion. Thank you to all of those who purchased a raffle ticket. The board and staff of the Art League are grateful to the many members of the community who came together in support of the arts.
Rina Thaler
Executive Director
Courtney Blackford
Wonderland Committee Chair
Jessica Bauer
Development Director
Facts tell the story with offshore wind problems
Editor,
I registered for and attended the Oct. 16 Maryland Board of Public Works zoom hearing on US Wind’s application to add millions of acres of our Atlantic Ocean to its Offshore Wind plans.
I sat through three hours of “testimony” before my comment time. I was so angry when my time came to comment that I just lost it. I’m not proud of that, but it is what it is.
I listened to commenter after commenter spew US Wind talking points with stars in their eyes -one even dreamily talked about viewing the beautiful turbines while sipping her morning coffee.
So I thought I’d write about some facts that have come to light in just the last 7 to 10 days.
1. The official scallop yearly landings from 2021 to 2024 show that since sonar soundings and construction of the wind farms began the harvest went from 21 million to 11
Continued on Page 96
Trooper took Cialis, spoiled 2020 spa sting
Continued from Page 13
ment’s professional standards and to ensure that every member of the department understands that inappropriate conduct will not be tolerated.”
Grinnan declined to comment for this article through an attorney who also represented him during the internal investigation. That attorney, John Doud, also declined to comment.
News of the investigation into Grinnan’s conduct in West Ocean City, as well as its disciplinary outcome, has not been reported previously. It comes amid ongoing scrutiny of the state police’s disciplinary practices, in part due to a pending federal lawsuit seeking class-action status that alleges racial discrimination.
The agency has made headlines over the firing of a Trooper of the Year based on a dispute over the location of a traffic stop and for permitting a corporal to retire, rather than be terminated, after the man sent a racist meme following the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
More recently, the agency abruptly transferred most, if not all, of its Internal Affairs investigators to new assignments at barracks across the state.
It attributed the move, and the simultaneous replacement of Internal Affairs’ commanding officers, as part of its “plans to rebuild and strengthen our IAD to provide quality and timely serv-
ices.”
Michal Shinnar, an attorney representing the troopers of color alleging racial discrimination by the agency, said agency records reflected that the investigation found Grinnan had “engaged in serious sexual misconduct and abuse of his power as a police officer.”
“MSP ignored these findings and allowed Officer Grinnan to keep his job,” Shinnar said. “What we allege in our class-action complaint, and what we know from numerous troopers, is that troopers of color are terminated for far less serious offenses, including matters related to time-keeping or what are at best characterized as minor infractions.”
Before Grinnan and the other trooper went undercover Sept. 30, 2019, three different law enforcement officers were sent undercover into the West Ocean City spa.
The evidence the initial three gathered was sufficient to prepare a search warrant, according to the Internal Affairs report, but task force officers opted to send in two additional officers. That way, they figured, the employees inside could be taken into custody immediately.
That final operation was marred by inappropriate remarks by Grinnan before, during and after the operation, according to the Internal Affairs investigators, who interviewed wit-
nesses, primarily fellow state police troopers. Grinnan would later dispute several of the remarks that his fellow officers recalled him saying.
For instance, during the briefing, witnesses said Grinnan made a remark about how he was 44 years old and married, and that if someone other than his wife wanted to touch him, he’d let them.
Grinnan later, in his interrogation with Internal Affairs, said he’d said he’s 44 and “if you’re gonna send me in there with somebody half my age, it’s on.” He told investigators he never said he planned to let them touch him.
Inside the spa room, he appeared nude twice on the video being sent by a cellphone that also was recording audio for evidence, according to the report.
Another lead investigator, assigned to the Worcester County Bureau of Investigations, who reviewed the footage, said he was “smirking about it” the entire time.
When the massage employee left briefly, he said, according to a transcript, “Think she’s ready for this?”
Grinnan said in his interrogation he didn’t recall saying that, but “he guessed he could have,” investigators wrote.
In the room, Grinnan discussed prices for different sexual acts with a woman before saying he’d “just take” the massage.
But moments later, audio footage captured Grinnan saying “feels good,”
according to an Internal Affairs report that includes the transcript of a recording.
In his interrogation, Grinnan said he didn’t remember saying “feels good” but acknowledged that he did complete a sexual act. He said that after first saying no, he didn’t stop the woman when she approached him again because he didn’t want to endanger himself or the other trooper. He described the experience as creepy and gross, saying he “got caught and wasn’t prepared.”
The Internal Affairs investigator wrote in a summary of the interrogation: “No one told him he was allowed to or gave him permission to go through with a sexual act, and he acknowledged [a lead investigator] instructed them to decline any sexual acts. He also acknowledged he violated MDSP policy by engaging in a sexual act and failing to make an immediate arrest.”
“He did not believe it was an intentional act and said he did not know what to do,” the investigator continued. “He said he got caught in a spot he was not prepared to be in and had ‘zero training.’”
The Internal Affairs investigators wrote in the report that Grinnan took a Cialis pill, a prescription medication for erectile dysfunction, outside the business. One witness remembered him saying, as he did, “There’s no going back now,” according to the report.
Tuesday & Friday 10am & 11am Saturday 10am & 4pm
Heiser: MSP investigation “compromised”
In the interrogation, Grinnan argued that he did so because it would have been a “mission fail” for him to go in and “not function.” He said a lead investigator had joked, earlier, about how previous undercover officers couldn’t get erections. Grinnan figured, he explained to the interrogator, he would take care of that by taking the pill.
Before later admitting his participation in the sex act, he avoided directly answering questions about what happened inside, according to the Internal Affairs report. He told people the amount of money he’d paid — $140 — and told others to “do the math.” Others on the task force knew the base massage rate was $80, and extras, in the form of sexual acts, cost more.
When an investigator asked if he’d declined the employee’s offer, Grinnan responded jokingly, according to the investigative report, “I’ll never tell.”
Several witnesses recalled that after the sting operation, Grinnan bragged about having been seen nude in the video recording by a female investigator and the Worcester County state’s attorney, who is also a woman.
At least one person recalled him saying he had only “one goal” when he knew they’d be monitoring the investigation video — to show them his genitalia. Others recalled him demonstrating how he’d positioned himself in front of the recording device.
The other trooper who went undercover at the spa also was investigated for potential policy violations but investigators did not recommend sustaining any for him.
Investigators determined that after the woman asked if he wanted a sexual favor, he slid off the table and told her he needed to get money, leaving the spa.
The state’s attorney for Worcester County, Kristin Heiser, confirmed to The Baltimore Sun that no criminal charges went forward against either of the women initially apprehended at the massage parlor, nor anyone else connected with the investigation.
Heiser said the investigation had been “compromised by the misconduct of one undercover police officer” and that, as result, she had determined “prosecution would not serve the interests of justice.”
The charges against the two women were dismissed on Dec. 6, 2019, according to the Internal Affairs report; the criminal case has since been expunged. Grinnan faced no criminal charges for his actions, despite at least five of the 12 investigators or supervisors interviewed by the state police saying they believed his actions constituted a criminal act.
At least two employees that Internal Affairs interviewed during its investigation defended Grinnan’s actions.
One, a high-ranking lieutenant named Robert Phillips, compared it with an undercover narcotics operation where detectives are told to “complete the deal.”
“When someone, a stranger’s grabbing your stuff,” Phillips told an investigator, “you don’t know how you’re gonna react.”
Phillips said he did not know for sure that Grinnan intentionally exposed himself on the surveillance video but had heard joking about it.
He acknowledged it would be “absolutely inappropriate” if he did that with a woman monitoring him, but then added “we’re cops.”
The lieutenant told investigators he didn’t believe Grinnan’s actions were criminal because there was no intent. He said he believed Grinnan went into the spa to make a case and see it through, the Internal Affairs summary said, and that he didn’t agree it was an intentional sex act.
He said he had wanted to see an alternative disciplinary process for Grin-
nan that could have been resolved quickly.
The other, a detective sergeant who said he’d known Grinnan for almost 18 years, criticized the number of undercover law enforcement officers sent into the establishment, suggesting the case already had been made.
He added that “if” Grinnan did complete a sex act, he would wonder why that occurred.
An Internal Affairs report summarizes the conversation: “He gave the example of purchasing drugs from a suspect and feeling threatened or being in a position by yourself causing you to feel like you had to consume the drugs so you or your fellow officer did not get hurt.”
Others vehemently disagreed.
The lead investigator assigned to the Worcester County Bureau of Investiga-
tions told Internal Affairs during her interview that she believed Grinnan “knew exactly what he was doing,” based on his comments and demeanor on the day of the operation.
“I can’t imagine another police officer destroying someone else’s case on purpose,” she said.
A sergeant who helped train Grinnan, and said he’d had previous issues with him, told investigators he believed that the entire chain of command was trying to minimize what Grinnan did, according to a summary of his interrogation.
He added that investigators would never be allowed to go through with any sexual act — “just because they are allowed to buy drugs, MSP does not give them permission to use them.”
Permission from Baltimore Sun Media. All Rights Reserved.
Opinions
Local Election Endorsements: School board, Ocean City mayor, City Council
As newspaper editors who have researched, evaluated and observed all the candidates for local elections, we feel comfortable issuing the following recommendations as voters make their choices on Tuesday.
An important role of a community newspaper is to offer endorsements at election time. Not to be confused with predictions, endorsements are educated opinions on races for elected office.
When it comes to weighing endorsement decisions, which we take seriously and consider over months, the process begins with evaluating the incumbent seeking re-election. The incumbent’s background, votes, positions and effectiveness are all ripe for critical analysis. In cases, like Ocean City, where open seats are available, it’s important to dive into each newcomer’s experiences and perspectives to determine who will have the most to add to the elected body and represent the citizens of the city.
As voters head to the polls next week, we offer these recommendations.
Worcester County Board of Education
The Worcester County Board of Education election in Districts 3 and 5 is, thankfully, rushing toward a conclusion on Tuesday. It has been a nasty affair, stoked by people who apparently believe that the county’s public school system is the manifestation of everything they see as wrong with society today.
We disagree and therefore endorse the reelection of District 3 board representative Dr. Jon Andes and District 5 representative Elena McComas, whose avowed interests are to help students have successful lives. That’s it. They aren’t on the board for any reason other than to instill in these children the desire to become good, productive citizens.
It is certainly notable, however, that the opposition’s insinuations that the incumbents are anti-religion so offended Andes that he posted his religious bona fides online, even though religious beliefs should have nothing to do with public education.
We have churches, spiritual leaders, our families and religious schools for that, whereas public schools are morally and legally obligated to embrace and educate children from all faiths and backgrounds.
Further, a centerpiece of the challengers’ platform is their pledge to prohibit any kind of accommodation related to students’ gender identity.
The fact is that is not the school board’s call to make. It is federal and state law. Although the law is being
challenged in federal court by other states and schools, this county’s government doesn’t have the appetite or the budget to do the same, especially when there’s been no sign of a problem in the local system.
These strident calls for change in the school board’s composition aren’t backed up by the need for change, since Worcester’ schools are among the best in the state.
This school system didn’t arrive at the top by accident or good luck, but by good planning, good management and good teachers. Reelecting Dr. Jon Andes and Elena McComas will help keep it that way. It’s also important for District 2 voters to support incumbent Donald Smack who has a challenger only on paper as the candidate listed on the ballot withdrew from the race after the deadline. Smack deserves a vote of support as well because the paper challenger’s signs have been randomly popping up of late.
Ocean City Mayor
Though it’s closer than ever before, the nod goes to Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan, who has served the citizens in Ocean City since 1985, including the last 18 years as mayor.
We do believe Meehan should go out on his own terms due to his demonstrated dedication and passion for Ocean City. Another term makes sense for the veteran leader with at least two ongoing priority items unresolved — fighting offshore wind and advocating for Route 90 reconstruction. We think one more term will allow him the opportunity to step aside on his own terms in 2026.
By all accounts, Peter Buas is impressive. A young attorney raising his family in Ocean City after growing up in hospitality, Buas understands Ocean City. His future is bright in Ocean City, and he will lead his community in the future. Life is so often about timing, and we think Buas went too far too fast with his leap to seeking the mayor’s seat.
It’s a shame to lose Buas on the council as he has proven to be adept and knowledgeable during his first term. As the highest vote getter four years ago, Buas, who is the current police commission chairman, most certainly would have secured another council term had he chosen that route.
Where Buas fell short in this campaign was not articulating exactly why a change was needed in the mayor’s office. It was interesting and a mistake for Buas to not explain further why a majority of the current council supported his run for mayor. Furthermore, if the current council is
so unhappy with Meehan, it was on them to explain their reasoning. It has more to do with internal governance, we have learned, than outward leadership. Some members of the council feel Meehan operates in a silo, working closely with city administrators before the seven-member council ever gets to weigh in on matters. Micromanaging has been tossed around to describe Meehan’s mayoral tenure. Meehan takes the mayor’s role beyond the city charter states, critics argue. Whether the citizenry truly cares is an unknown, however. Buas is pushing it’s time for change. It does appear a solid majority of his colleagues on the council agree. This is an interesting situation here at City Hall. We believe Meehan, if elected, will need to work to mend some issues current council members have with his leadership, which does clearly go beyond the mayor’s role in a council-manager form of government. In his defense, Meehan is arguably the most knowledgeable individual at City Hall on the resort’s governance, due to his four decades in office as well as his two stints as acting city manager during times of upheaval.
A huge difference in this race is Meehan’s experience in emergency management. Meehan articulated this well as a clear distinction between him and Buas at a forum last month. In states of emergency, such as during a hurricane or global pandemic, the mayor does have tremendous authority and Meehan’s experience has served him. We support another term for Meehan and would like to see an open race for the mayor’s seat in 2026.
Ocean City Council
We support the re-election bids of John Gehrig and Tony DeLuca as well as endorse newcomers Jake Mitrecic and Larry Yates.
Mitrecic has been a bright spot on the campaign trail since he filed in October, impressing attendees at both recent candidate forums. Having grown up in Ocean City and now working on the island, Mitrecic possesses a familiarity that only comes with being a “from here” in a city full of “come here’s.” Mitrecic has shown a depth of knowledge and understands government through his zoning appeals board service at the county. Mitrecic realizes balance is a must on the council as the city strives to be a world-class tourism destination while understanding there are residents who call this beach resort home as well. With politics in his family’s background, he also accepts the pitfalls of public office and will
not be surprised when the inevitable negative aspects of the job play out. Gehrig deserves a third term on the council. Having started his company by himself as the lone employee to now a team of nearly 40 employees, Gehrig has the business acumen, personal perspective and financial knowledge to represent the Ocean City constituency.
Gehrig is an idea guy who understands tourism is Ocean City’s primary industry. He wants “smart tourism” to pay the city’s bills rather than relying on the year-round residents who may or may not like big crowds from special events. The concept is to attract the visitors who help the town’s businesses with minimal impact on the residents.
He admits his messaging and tone is not always ideal during council discussions, but it’s rooted in his passion and advocacy mind. He has shown a penchant for wanting to protect residential neighborhoods as he advocates for one-week minimum stays for rentals in neighborhoods.
DeLuca has demonstrated an admirable aptitude as an elected official over his 10-year council career. Listed as his top priority items for his next term were fighting offshore wind, opposing any property tax rate increases and ensuring public safety and public works teams have the necessary resources to protect the city and keep it clean. Under no circumstances should Ocean City entertain tax rate increases.
In fact, due to rising assessments and a booming second-home market, reductions in the tax rate should be the goal each year. DeLuca embraces the notion. A “come here” having moved to Ocean City in 2008 after a professional corporate career, DeLuca offers a unique perspective on the council as a retiree without any business connections to real estate or tourism. This clean background allows him to truly look out for Ocean City’s residents.
Yates stood out among the newcomers in the council race. A retired law enforcement official from the Rockville area, Yates has been active in the Ocean City community by volunteering at his church, neighborhood watch program and clubs and serves on the city’s noise board and vehicle task force. Yates has a clear commitment to the city. In his campaign, he made it clear he is fine with how Ocean City currently operates and does not favor radical changes to governance or leadership. Yates will bring a new perspective on the council through his unique background and life experiences. We think Yates deserves a term on the council.
Between the Lines
By Steve Green
Some thoughts on the election season and some reflections on recent happenings.
— Early voting in the general election wrapped up yesterday. Voter turnout is going to be down considerably compared to the last presidential election in 2020. After seven full days in Worcester, there have been 8,777 voters, or about 20% of the total electorate of 43,247. Over the full eight days in 2020, there were 13,174 voters, or about 32% of the eligible voter. The good news is this year’s early voting turnout has already passed the 2016 presidential election when 7,321 voters came out before the official election day. As far as party breakdowns in this year’s early voting, here’s the breakdown after seven days with Thursday’s tally not included: Republicans, 5,126; Democrats, 2,199; and unaffiliated, 1,328.
— Though turnout is lighter at early voting this year than four years ago, emotions have certainly been running higher. Much has to do with the three Worcester County Board of Education races.
Things sure have changed in recent years when it comes to these school board seats. Prior to 2000, when a voter referendum changed the board membership to elected positions, the Board of Education members were appointed by the governor to serve terms. In the early years after the change, most of the seats were uncontested with the elections featured unopposed incumbents. In 2008, for example, Jonathan Cook, Gary Mumford and Sara Thompson were all re-elected without opposition. Subsequent elections went the same way. Much changed in 2022 when only District 7 (Ocean City) incumbent Todd Ferrante was unopposed with District 1 incumbent Bill Buchanan surviving a tight match with John Abbott; Bill Gordy winning over Jamie Rice in District 4; and Katie Addis in District 6 knocking off Nate Passwaters, who was appointed to the seat by the commissioners after Eric Cropper’s sudden passing.
There was some political drama two years ago, but the temperature is running warmer this year. Rhetoric and lies are running high. It’s clear what’s happening nationally is playing out locally with extreme partisan politics at the center of some drama at the early voting site this week. Aggressive behavior has been reported from supporters of two challengers (Cheryl Middleton and Dorothy Shelton-Leslie) looking to unseat incumbent school board members Jon Andes and Elena McComas. Andes took to Facebook to defend an accusation that surfaced on Facebook that he was not Christian. The son of a pastor, Andes discussed his faith and why he still supports opening school board members with prayer, while other jurisdictions have done away with it.
Additionally, there seems to be a ghost campaign being led by the challengers who have told several voters to support Kaleemah Barkley in District 2 against incumbent Donald Smack. Additionally, Barkley’s picture is alongside photos of Middleton and Shelton-Leslie in the Facbeook post encouraging citizens to vote for the Christian candidates running for office. It’s intentionally devious and false. This revolting behavior is what divides communities. We are better than this. The fact is Barkley withdrew from the race for personal reasons, but the decision came after the election ballot was finalized. Therefore, her name is appearing on the ballot, and she is eligible for votes. This is unfortunate because Smack wants the job and Barkley does not. We were unsuccessful speaking to Barkley this week, but The Pocomoke City Arrowhead Facebook page reported this week Barkley has affirmed she is not seeking the seat. She wrote on the page, “As stated last month, I am no longer actively running for the BOE.” If foul party politics plays a role and Barkley wins, this would be unfortunate. Volunteers encouraging the public to vote for Barkley this week during early voting are lying to the public with the goal of her winning and an appointment being made by the commissioners. Barkley no longer wants to serve, despite what fringe groups report online or in person.
—While the school board is intended to be non-partisan, there’s no question political party affiliation is a factor. At the convention center this week, nasty signs were prevalent featuring lies attempting to disparage local teachers and anyone who thinks the county’s public school system is doing well. One sign alleged Andes tries to indoctrinate our teachers and children at Salisbury University by teaching DEI/CRT. Another sign held by Commissioner Caryn Abbott read, “Red Apple Ballot: Stop the Rot,” alleging who educators support for office should be disregarded.
Andes, McComas and Smack should stay in office to keep extremist, misinformed and unqualified candidates out of the decision making process. The incumbents care about our schools and attend events at our schools. The best ability is availability, and these folks show up in schools. Actions and decisions must matter. It’s noteworthy neither Middleton or Shelton-Leslie attended Wednesday night’s forum sponsored by the Berlin Intermediate School Parent Teacher Organization. It says a lot that Andes and McComas were willing to leave the early voting site for the forum and should be noted Middleton and Shelton-Leslie opted to stay at the early voting site during the forum.
National Bladder Month
It’s finally arrived and I’m so excited I could ...
That’s right, National Bladder Month has finally arrived, giving everyone of us the opportunity to run out to the Hallmark store and get an innard-appropriate card — “Blad Tidings to All” or something of that nature.
By Stewart Dobson
I don’t know why Bladder Month strikes me as amusing, since bladder health is no laughing matter.
All kinds of bad things can happen in the old catch basin, as it were, not the least of which is its increasingly stubborn refusal to adhere to any kind of a schedule.
“Hey! Old person! It’s time to get up!” it tells the peacefully slumbering individual.
“But it’s 1:37 a.m!”
“Look, don’t shoot the messenger, OK? I’m just the storage department. If you have a gripe, take it up with manufacturing.”
But enough of that nonsense. The bladder has an important job to do and will do it without your consent if you aren’t careful. Therefore it should be treated with respect, dignity and maybe even given a little extra attention.
I know I’m mending my ways and will no longer make jokes at its ex-
pense, such as the birthday card I gave to a friend that showed a doctor answering the phone and saying, while the people around him were cackling, “Urology department. Can you hold?”
That was in poor taste, I know, and probably hurt my bladder’s feelings to the point that it has vowed to get even with me at some inopportune moment.
After all, we all realize that it does seem to operate with a certain degree of free will and doesn’t take orders well, if at all.
So, what can we do to mark the occasion of National Bladder Month? For one thing, you could take it in for checkup, although I’m not sure where the thermometer would go — nowhere you’d like, I suspect — or you could be like me and take it out for a few beers and give it a little workout.
The one thing I would recommend, however, is to keep any conversation between you and your bladder to a minimum so as not to alarm anyone nearby, although you could pretend to be talking on your mobile and thus avoid scrutiny.
Come to think of it, you could take it for a walk on the beach this month, since that sort of thing is allowed this time of year, as long as it’s on a leash.
So, in honor of National Bladder Month, I say we give it some respect, take out for a stroll now and then and don’t try to be funny, although if you do, dry humor would be best.
Have an opinion?
We invite you to share it, but all letters are subject to verification, so please include your name and phone number. All letters are subject to editing for space and to protect the author and this newspaper from legal action. Email letters to editor@oceancitytoday.net. For questions, call 410-7236397.
Continued from Page 91
million. (New Bedford Base Seafood Auction Price Report 01/01/2209/30/24).
2. The latest data from the United Kingdom reveals a recordbreaking 5,000 dead whales, dolphins and porpoises in just five years. The “evidence suggests that artificial noise in the marine environment, including infrasound and low frequency noise emanating from wind farms, poses a real danger to marine mammals and the wider ecosystem.” (See JasonEndfield.Medium.Com)
3.Remember the broken blade in the Vineyard Wind project that littered the beaches and ocean waters of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard with shards of fiberglass and all kinds of chemical compounds that are completely foreign to the marine ecosystem? Remember when the remains of the 300-foot-long blade fell into the ocean? The break occurred on July 13th. The developer is just now, in mid-October, removing that blade from the ocean floor. This incredible delay tells me that these wind developers do not know what to do when a blade breaks, as they are breaking all over the world, both on land and in the sea. Friends recently took a cross-country road trip from their home in Georgia to California. In West Texas they passed several huge wind farms and were shocked at the
number of broken turbines - huge blades scattered everywhere and most not operating at all. Their first thought was the effect of a hurricane on an offshore wind farm and what it would do to sea life and the environment. Scary.
4.Did you know that almost every wind developer, including US Wind, has been relieved of the contractual obligation for the expense of decommissioning the farms when accidents occur or when the turbines “age out”, which is occurring much faster than advertised. (See americanexperiment.org/crippled-willmar-wind-turbines-to-be-scrapped years-early). This article is about a land-based wind farm - imagine how much worse it will be with the salt air and salt water corrosion. So, if the developers won’t be decommissioning, who will? You guessed it - the taxpayers and ratepayers. The developers will take the money and run and leave us holding the bag.
5. The Environmental Impact Statement prepared by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management for the Atlantic Shores project off the coast of New Jersey states the “reduction in regional GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions would be noticeable in the regional context, would contribute incrementally to reducing climate change, and would represent a minor to moderate beneficial impact in the
regional context but a negligible beneficial impact in the global context”. This is the justification for industrializing New Jersey’s most precious natural resource, for destroying the shore, the fishing industry and the tourism industry, and the widespread killing of wildlife. Coming to our beautiful Ocean City soon.
In addition to the above, I encourage all to review the videos posted on the Facebook pages “Protect our Coast-Delmarva” and “VA/NC Coastal Wind Energy Discussion” among others. You will see what we in Ocean City will be enduring and the monstrosities that will take over our ocean and our harbor.
Carol Frazier Ocean Pines
Offshore wind untruths continue to perplex Editor,
As an environmental professional, I am constantly amazed by the misconceptions held by advocates of offshore wind farms.
Two recent letters in these pages are good examples.
The first letter stated that the world is running out of fossil fuels: This is false, and the faddish idea of “peak oil” has long been debunked. At current levels of extraction, the world has a 50-year supply of oil and natural gas and a 132-year supply of coal. More will be found and extracted.
Only a portion of fossil fuel use goes to power the electric grid. Agriculture uses a large portion, as does all the other components of the modern economy.
The second letter claims that seas are rising so fast that we can’t adapt, as illustrated by flooding in downtown Ocean City on several recent occasions.
I’ve done tidal studies for 35 years. The flooding events that so alarm the writer were indeed more common this year, but this resulted from the many days of wind out of the east, which piles up water along the coast and in the bays.
NOAA data show that in the most recent 18-year Tidal Epoch, the ocean rose about 3 mm per year. This is about the thickness of two business cards, certainly innocuous enough that we can ensure our infrastructure is protected. Time is on our side.
Global warming is a fact, but we must be careful not to panic and adopt measures that do more harm than good.
Offshore wind farms are harmful in so many ways, from the deaths and deformities caused by the dirty mining of rare earths in the “sacrifice zones” around the world, a ton of which goes into every turbine magnet, to the impacts on the fishing industry and the terrible toll on wildlife. There is also the degradation of our viewshed by this industrial junk, with hundreds of blinking red
lights on the nighttime horizon. Once that lovely, soul-enhancing view is gone, it’s gone forever (and maybe a lot of tourism dollars as well).
The ways forward are the prudent use of power, natural gas, the conservation of carbon-sequestering forests and marshes, and nuclear, along with small solar projects that don’t impact agricultural land.
Reading those two letters, I was reminded of the wise words of economist and social philosopher Thomas Sowell, thus:
“The problem isn't that Johnny can't read. The problem isn't even that Johnny can't think. The problem is that Johnny doesn't know what thinking is; he confuses it with feeling."
Spencer Rowe West Ocean City
With lawsuit, governments must commit to green
Editor,
It is simply extraordinary how the Worcester County Commissioners, the Mayor of OC, coastal fishermen, Thrasher's, Jolly Roger and the county's registered Republicans have placed their full faith in federal environmental standards and guidelines. This motley crew of "activists" has demanded the Feds follow stringent and progressive policies regarding development on the shoreline. This lawsuit also puts to bed all the complaints regarding the extinction of plastic bags. Anyone who favors this lawsuit is telling the world they exist to reduce their carbon footprints, recycle everything and rid the world of dangerous waste. The stickers that say "Stop the turbines" need to add "just for now," because all the lawsuit does is demand the feds follow established law. The original study already concluded that the good outweighed the bad since they are creating a renewable power source.
With this lawsuit, the County Commissioners and the Mayor of OC have committed themselves to a greener future for all of Delmarva. I would not expect either the county or the town of OC to ever again purchase a gas-powered vehicle due to this lawsuit. It goes beyond saying that the lawsuit definitely spells the end for all the plastic containers and a renewed focus on recycling across the county. This lawsuit spells out a brand new, greener future where the local politicians give in to the federal guidelines on all environmental issues. That is what the lawsuit is demanding and I would think the federal government is fine with it. This is just a small delay since even the high-end environmental lawyers that the group hired are already knee deep in bringing sustainable energy to every nook and cranny of America.
Greg Gunther Snow Hill
Roosevelt’s campaign for his fourth term as president
By Joseph E. Moore Contributing Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) This week, 80 years ago, Franklin D. Roosevelt won reelection as President of the United States. In 1944, he had already served for an unprecedented time in office, as he had rejected the informal tradition, begun by George Washington, of serving two presidential terms, and then retiring (Theodore Roosevelt tried for a third non-consecutive term but failed).
The Campaign
As had become tradition, the actual campaigning began about Labor Day, following the summertime conventions which had nominated the respective candidates — a far cry from today’s lengthy nonstop presidential campaigning. At that time, Roosevelt was a sick man, suffering from arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), which was worsened by the significant stresses of serving as a global wartime president.
In his previous campaigns —1932, 1936, 1940 — he projected a picture of robust health (notwithstanding his paralysis from polio), and had won by large majorities, although those diminished somewhat each time.
Indeed, in the 1940 third term election there had been considerable controversy, as that was the first, unprecedented, rejection of the twoterm limitation. That did not reoccur in 1944, as the United States was in the throes of World War II, with Roo-
sevelt as the successful wartime president, who had led the country to increasing successes in both the European and Asian war fronts.
The D-Day invasion had occurred on June 6, 1944, and by the fall the Allies were making substantial gains against Germany. In the Pacific, the combination of the naval campaign and the “Island-hopping” strategy was inexorably moving U.S. forces closer to the home islands of Japan.
It was evident, therefore, that the Republicans would concentrate on the president’s health as a campaign issue, together with bureaucratic corruption, inefficiency, and early military blunders.
They had nominated Thomas E. Dewey, the young and vibrant governor of New York (Roosevelt’s birthplace also) as their candidate. Dewey had reached his significant political status by being the crusading district attorney for Manhattan, New York, where he had taken on organized crime.
He was only 42 years old and a picture of health, compared to Roosevelt’s somewhat haggard appearance which made him appear to be older than his actual age of 62. Indeed, the Democratic Convention in Chicago, in late July, had struggled to find an acceptable vice presidential running mate, as Henry Wallace, the sitting vice president, was unacceptable to conservatives and James
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President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his dog Fala are pictured in the White House study.
Byrnes, Roosevelt’s secretary of state, was rejected by the liberals, and, as an ex-Catholic who had left the church, was also opposed by the Catholics. Both men originally had Roosevelt’s support.
After much backdoor maneuvering, the convention settled on Harry S. Truman, the U.S. Senator from Missouri, who had gained a national reputation by his Senate Committee’s investigations and exposure of wartime industrial waste and overbilling the government.
It is recorded that Roosevelt was going to leave the choice to the open convention proceedings, but when urged by the bosses to name Truman as his choice, finally settled behind the scenes on Truman, who when advised of the secret discussions and being told of Roosevelt’s statement, said, “Well, why the hell didn’t he just say so!”
As the campaign began, many of the president’s close advisors were concerned about his ability to run an arduous campaign against the younger Dewey. With his signature mustache and middle parted jetblack hair, Dewey was famously described dismissively by Alice Roosevelt Longworth (Teddy’s outspoken daughter) as, “That little man on the top of the wedding cake.”
In fact, during a trip to Hawaii, where he was to meet Gen. Douglas MacArthur, the president became very ill in California. While aboard a train with his son James, he suffered severe chest pains, which made it difficult to breathe.
After a while the pain subsided. Fearing public exposure, no doctor was called. As was the practice, James and Gen. Edwin “Pa” Watson, Roosevelt’s appointments secretary
(now termed “Chief of Staff”) and confidant, used every means to hide the matter from the public.
Dewey, true to expectations, began campaigning on the theme of being younger and energetic, challenging the “old, tired men” of the Roosevelt Administration, in power for 12 years, and seeking four more.
Realizing it was futile to challenge the present war record, which was going well, without specifically calling attention to Roosevelt’s serious appearance of ill health, his oblique reference was generally to an overly tired and worn-out administration, and that changes should be made to a younger vigorous alternative.
Marking the difference in the candidates, and seen directly in public, Roosevelt made a nationally broadcast speech, as he returned from Hawaii, in Bremerton, Washington, aboard a destroyer. It was a disaster. He had difficulty in maintaining his balance on his leg braces at the lectern aboard ship, and appeared to lose his balance.
He lost his place while turning the pages of the speech and holding the side of the lectern. In fact, while giving the speech he again suffered severe chest pains. His supporters were very distressed, and the Washington Post stated that, “... the President’s campaigning days are over.”
Sensing a breakthrough possibility, the Republicans pounced. They saw what they thought was an exposure of Roosevelt’s self-importance, and entitlement, when they seized on the rumor that, returning from Hawaii, he had left his beloved dog, Fala, behind on an Alaskan island, and had dispatched a naval ship to retrieve him. The story had widespread circulation in the media.
Wartime requirements were foremost in Roosevelt’s schedule, and he did little campaigning in the early fall, journeying to Quebec to meet Winston Churchill in September. Churchill and his physician, Lord Moran, were dismayed by Roosevelt’s appearance and Moran thought he was viewing a seriously ill man.
Post-war planning and the occupation of Germany were topics of discussion and Churchill accompanied the president back to his home in Hyde Park, New York. After his visit there, Churchill wondered if he would ever see his old friend alive again.
Roosevelt was tired from the work in Quebec and Churchill’s visit. He had to return to the campaign trail, however, as the days wore on toward the election. He was scheduled to make a speech which would be nationally broadcast on the radio, at the Teamster’s convention dinner, at the Statler Hotel in Washington on Sept. 23.
The “Fala” Speech
Realizing the importance of the speech, he and his writers worked hard on making a significant favorable impression, even working
through changes on the way to the dinner. His daughter, Anna, was present and worried whether her father would deliver it well.
Seated at the head table rather than standing, Roosevelt led off: “Well, here we are together again — after four years — and what years they have been! You know, I am four years older, which is a fact that seems to annoy some people.” He then recounted his accomplishments in the economy and the improving war situation, and then turned sarcastically to the heart of the speech.
“You know, these Republican leaders have not been content with attacks on me or on my wife or my sons,” he said with his voice theatrically rising, “No, not content with that, they now attack my little dog, Fala.” He paused for effect as laughter swelled, then, “Well, of course, I don’t resent attacks, and my family doesn’t resent attacks ... But Fala does resent them!” Huge laughter erupted.
“You know, Fala is Scotch, and being a Scottie, as soon as he learned that the Republican fiction writers, in Congress and out, concocted a story that I had left him on an Aleutian Island and had sent a destroyer back to find him — at the cost to the taxpayers of two or three, or eight or twenty million dollars — his Scotch soul was furious! He has not been the same dog since.”
This brought the house down, with the Teamsters on their feet, laughing and cheering as he left the room, and millions of listeners throughout the country heard the old Roosevelt, sounding vigorous and in tune with the old Fireside Chat days, in his early terms.
The campaign took a turn that effectively removed the lingering doubt as to his fitness for a fourth term. Finally on Oct. 21, Roosevelt was driven in an open Packard car, through New York, in a pouring rainstorm, hatless and without his cape to give the impression, although false, of vigorous good health, cementing the notion of his fitness.
Still in the rain, he gave a speech at Ebbets Field, in Brooklyn, where he said to the huge crowd who came to see him, even in the rain, “You know, I have always been a Brooklyn Dodger fan!” with that classic grin and jutting jaw. He again rode in the open car through the other burroughs of the city, where hundreds of thousands stayed in the rain to cheer him and see his robust appearance.
Later after being soaked through to the skin, he was taken to Eleanor’s New York apartment, where he changed clothes and as reported by his daughter, had more than a couple of drinks, “prescribed” by his physician, Adm. Ross McIntire.
Election Day, Nov. 7, 1944
As was his habit, and to his delight without a trace of a cold, Roosevelt
CHRISTOPHER RICHARD ESCHENBURG
Ocean City
Christopher Richard Eschenburg age 44, of Ocean City passed away Monday, October 21, 2024 at his home. Born in Salisbury, Maryland he was the son of Anne Lee Vessey.
In addition to his mother, Chris is survived by his son Abbott Christopher Eschenburg, who was the love of his life. He is also survived by his sister Jennifer Hetherington (Seth), two nephews Mason and Waylon. He was the true back bone that kept his extended family together and is also survived by many cousins, aunts, and uncles from the Eschenburg, Vessey, Chester, and Henson families. Additionally, not to be forgotten is his beloved cat Mr. Pickles. He is preceded in death by his grandparents William and Nancy Vessey.
Chris had such a passion for craftsmanship and design, he showcased this talent in the beautiful homes that he built locally. Second to his love for building was his love for travel. He was always looking for places to visit and truly loved those unchartered
WORLD WAR II
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set up his election day headquarters at his mansion in Hyde Park, New York. In his large study with a huge fireplace at the house, a large board was set up to write the returns as they came in.
When the New York returns came in, showing Gov. Dewey trailing badly, he turned to a campaign aide and said “Bill, everything is all right now. We can stop worrying about New York.” During a midnight supper on a tray, he finally said, “what’s the use of writing down more returns. It’s all over.” He stayed up until 3:45 a.m. awaiting the traditional congratulatory telegram, from Dewey, which never came.
As he was wheeled into his elevator to the second-floor bedroom, he said of Dewey, “I still think he is a son of a bitch.”
Election totals
The Roosevelt-Truman ticket won 432 Electoral Votes to Dewey’s 99, and 53.4% of the popular vote. Dewey won only 10 of the 48 states.
The fourth term would get under way after the Jan. 20, 1945 inauguration. Less than four months later, on April 12, 1945, Franklin Roosevelt was dead.
Next week: Court-Martial of Eddie Slovik
Mr. Moore writes from Ocean City, Maryland, where he is a partner in the law firm of Williams, Moore, Shockley & Harrison, LLP., located at 3509 Coastal Highway.
travel gems that included a little risk, especially if they involved a good surfing spot or exceptional food. He had the ability to brighten any room with his mischievous smile, witty jokes, and the ability to make anyone feel right at home. He loved his family and friends immensely and truly appreciated a good conversation with people from all walks of life. He had a passion and fire for life that was contagious and was a joy to witness.
Cremation followed Chris’ passing. A celebration of life was held at The Restaurant at Light House Sound, Wednesday, October 30. In lieu of flowers the family requests donations go to The Farmers Bank of Willards for Abbott Eschenburg.
Arrangements are in the care of The Burbage Funeral Home in Berlin, Maryland. Condolences may be shared with the family via www.burbagefuneralhome.com.
RONALD LEE FISHER
Ocean Pines
Ronald Lee Fisher, 81, passed away on Wednesday, October 23, 2024. Born in Sunbury, Pennsylvania, he was the son of the late Russell David Fisher and Grace Smith Fisher. He was preceded in death by a son, Danny Scott Fisher and a daughter, Myleah Lynn Fisher Hubicki. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Shirley Umbenhower Fisher. He is survived by Thomas Hubicki and wife Leslie, a sister, Candyce Lee Duffy and husband Mike, a sister-inlaw Jane Brubaker and husband Lester; three grandchildren, LaShae Hubicki and daughter, Ocean; Ty Hubicki, wife Carly and son Chase; and Callie Hubicki Nice and husband Dylan, and nieces and nephews.
After graduating from Selinsgrove Area High School, he served 4 years in the United States Navy, where he was a jet mechanic. He ultimately choose a lifelong career in medicine, beginning as a nurse, dialysis technician, then a Certified Physician Assistant. He then transitioned into Medical Administration where he was a Multispecialty Group Administrator, till he retired in 2008. Throughout his career he worked with various organizations to further expand and promote the PA profession. He was the 15th President of the American Academy of Physician Assistants in 1982. After retirement, he volunteered with many organizations in the area till he accepted the position of Dock Master at the Ocean Pines Marina. His self-described, “dream job”.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Worcester County Gold or to Sarah’s Pantry at Community Church at Ocean Pines, 11227 Racetrack Road, Ocean Pines, Md. 21811.
A memorial service will be held on Thursday, Nov. 7, at 3 p.m. at The Burbage Funeral Home in Berlin. Friends may call one hour prior. Letters of condolence may be sent to the family via www.burbagefuneralhome.com. Arrangements are in the care of The Burbage Funeral Home.
MARK T. LAYNE
Berlin
Mark T. Layne, 68, lost his battle with colon cancer on Wednesday October 23, 2024.
Born on July 29, 1956, he was a lifelong Worcester County resident when not traveling in the military. He joined the Army in 1979 as an engine/aircraft mechanic. Transferring to the Airforce as a Sgt in 1983. Over his Military career he earned 3 certificates of achievement, US Army. One letter of high recommendation, US
Airforce and 75 merit awards, Hamilton Standard. He loved family, team sports, baseball cards, and above all Assateague drive on beach.
Mark leaves behind his daughter Nichole M Dawson [Keith Dawson]; his sister Nannette Layne; and the light of his life his six grandchildren. They each held a special place in his heart - Madalyne Brenner, Emily Stitely, Madalyn Stitely, Hunter Brenner, Jason Stitely and McKinley Stewart. He also leaves behind several nieces, nephews, and cousins. He also leaves behind his daughter in law (step) Jennifer Stitely.
He was proceeded in death by the love of his life, his wife Kandis Layne and his parents Gerald and Shirely Layne and his brother Gerald Layne.
A military memorial service will be announced at a later time.
In lieu of flowers you can make a donation in his name to the Georgetown SPCA: 22918 Dupont Blvd Georgetown DE 19947.
FREDERICK WILLIAM SCHULTE
Berlin
Frederick William Schulte, age 71, of Berlin, passed away Tuesday, October 15, 2024. Born in Baltimore, Maryland he was the son of the late Earl Schulte and Janet (Miller) Schulte.
Fred is survived by his significant other Cheryl Traynor. Cremation followed Fred’s Passing. Arrangements are in the care of The Burbage Funeral Home in Berlin, Maryland. Condolences may be shared with the family via www.burbagefuneralhome.com.
C. Eschenburg
Ronald Fisher
Mark Layne
F. Schulte
Memorable season ends for SD field hockey
By Bruce C. Walls Contributing Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) This was a history making season for the Stephen Decatur field hockey team, despite losing in the 2A East Region II finals Tuesday to Easton, 2-1.
After losing in the Bayside Championship to familiar nemesis Queen Anne’s, 3-0, Decatur rebounded to win the 2A East Region II Semifinal on its home field in Berlin. The 4-0 victory over Bennett was the team’s eighth shutout game of the season.
“We came out slow and it took us the first quarter. For sure it was not
our biggest moment and then we came back hard in the second quarter,” said Head Coach Katie Griffin. “We had a last-minute injury and had to make multiple position changes. Overall, I am very happy with the players that stepped in, some switched positions and we had a player that was not a starter and they made phenomenal adjustment changes and worked hard. I feel like the initial adjustment in the first quarter was a little rough.”
According to Griffin, senior midfielder Emily Ferguson injured her ankle in the last game. “Griffin said, “it was still a little sore so we are kind of
resting her. We took one of our forwards to replace the injured player and put in sophomore Skylar Price.”
Price made the first goal of the game in the second quarter with the assistance of Bailey Griffin. Avari Shoff caged the second goal with a little less than two minutes left in the second quarter, assisted by Ava Snelsire. Price made the third score with the assist from Jillian Burton. Snelsire with six minutes left in the fourth scored with an assist from Ryleigh Smith.
Team Captain Snelsire said the key to winning the region final will be starting fast.
SOCCER TEAMS FALL IN STATE PLAYOFFS
“We are going to work together to put it in the cage. Our struggle is to put it in the cage. This is the first time we get to host the regional championships; we are proud of that and plan to capitalize on it,” she said. “In the first quarter tonight, we came out slow. We underestimated them because we played them earlier in the year and won. We beat them 7-0 last game and just thought we could play slow. We got our heads right and went on to get the job done.”
On Tuesday, the Seahawks competed in the 2A East Region II final but lost a tight contest, Easton 2-1.
PHOTOS COURESY NICK DENNY
Both Stephen Decatur varsity soccer teams completed their fall seasons over the last week. After a first-round bye, the girls soccer team lost in the Class 3A Region playoffs to Severna Park last Saturday, 4-0. Decatur finished the season with an 8-2 record. Severna Park would then advance to the state quarterfinals with a 2-1 win over Bennett of Salisbury. On the boys side of the 3A, Decatur had a great home win over Arundel, 3-2, last week. The Seahawks’ season, however, ended when Bennett cruised to a 5-0 victory to continue advancing in the state playoffs. Decatur boys soccer ended with a 9-5-1 record on the fall. Pictured are senior Meyer Henson, left, and Isaiah Rodriguez competing against Arundel.
PHOTOS COURTESY SUSAN TAYLOR-WALLS
The Stephen Decatur field hockey team is pictured after last week’s Bennett win. The season came to an end on Tuesday against Easton. Above right, goalie Emily Skipper continued her stout play last week with an excellent save in the Bennett victory.
DECATUR UNIFIED TENNIS TAKES DISTRICT HONORS
Stephen Decatur High School entered three different teams in Monday’s District Unified Tennis Championship held at James M. Bennett in Salisbury. In Unified tennis students with disabilities of varying degrees partner with neurotypical students and compete against doubles teams from other schools. At Monday’s championship meet, teams from Mardela, Bennett, WiHi and Parkside high schools competed against Decatur’s three unified tennis teams. Each of the other schools fielded one team. Two Decatur teams captured first- and second-place, respectively, and one team won sixth place. Altogether, the entire team won 40 of 44 possible sets on the day with the first-place team advancing to the state unified championship at College Park this month. Team members are pictured after Monday’s district tournament celebrating the accomplishment with their coaches.
Decatur pounds Wi-Hi, stays perfect on regular season
By Bruce C. Walls Contributing Writer
(Nov. 1, 2024) It happened again last Friday night, as Stephen Decatur High School’s football team crushed a Bayside South opponent.
Last week’s victim was, the Indians of Wicomico High School who lost 4914 to the Seahawks played on Louis H. Taylor Field in Berlin.
“We showed some resilience tonight,” said Head Coach Jake Coleman.
Led by juniors Vernon DeShields and Johnny Hobgood, the Seahawks made it 22 in a row at home — a streak that extends over three seasons.
The Seahawks got to work early scoring 14 points in the first quarter
with three more touchdowns in the second quarter of play. With 2:41 left the Indians got a touchdown and the point after making it 35-7 at the half.
In a battling third quarter, WiHi scored another touchdown for the Indians’s last points of the game. The Seahawks scored a touchdown with 7:44 and again at 6:20 left on the clock making the score 49-14 at the end of the third quarter.
“We have a lot of good players… #80 I’m really proud of him Brett Schultz,” Coleman said, referring to
his defender.
Schultz converted on a 27-yard interception return touchdown. Schultz said he relied on his “instincts and I just went on the basics … we did pretty well and we just need to clinch a few things and the rest is good.”
Defensive player of the game was Davin Chandler and offensive player was DeShields, according to Coleman.
Heading to the Halloween night matchup against Parkside, Stephen Decatur’s record stands at 6-0 in the Bayside 2A-3A regionals.
PHOTO COURTESY SUSAN TAYLOR-WALLS
Offensive lineman Anthony Burke blocks for Ezekiel Lawson as he carries the ball across the goal line against WiHi.
PHOTO COURTESY SUSAN TAYLOR-WALLS
Trybe Wise races toward a touchdown during the 49-14 game over Wi-Hi.
