February 2017 ocean pines progress by Ocean Pines Progress

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Family Fun Nights may be moved from Yacht Club Because arcane parking requirements could require the Yacht Club pool to close at 6 p.m. this summer, the popular family fun nights that have brought hundreds of families with children to the otherwise adults-only Yacht Club pool on Wednesdays may have to find a new home. ~ Page 6

THE OCEAN PINES JOURNAL OF NEWS & COMMENTARY Hill proposes indoor pickleball facility at S&R Club

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MEMBERSHIP MASH-UP Board restructures Beach Club parking, pool passes; creates new landlord/renter package Parking fees increased from $175 to $200, to include photo IDs for parking lot, pool access By TOM STAUSS Publisher hat began as a status quo budget with no increase in lot assessments and only minor changes in amenity fees morphed into dramatic change in fees affecting Beach Club parking, aquatics, racquet sports and golf during 2017-18 budget review meetings in early February. During a Feb. 8 meeting, Acting General Manager Brett Hill and Aquatics Director Colby Phillips described a proposed restructuring of Beach Club parking and pool pass options that could substantially boost Ocean Pines Association revenue in both Beach Club parking and the Aquatics Department this summer. The board approved all of the changes later in the meeting, subject to final ratification when the budget is approved later in February. While basic membership fees in Aquatics for families and individuals remain unchanged, the board subsequently voted to increase the Beach Club parking pass from $175 to $200, with the additional $25 in revenue to be allocated to the Aquatics Department. The parking pass fee for those with other kinds of memberships would increase from $75 to $100. The increase could mean another $20,000 or so to the Aquatics department depending on how many passes are purchased with the higher fees and new restrictions on the Beach Club pool passes included with them. Aquatics received around $51,000 in revenue from the bundled sale of parking and pool passes this past summer, according to retiring OPA Controller Art Carmine. In a significant change from prior summers, the new Beach Club parking/pool passes will contain photo IDs of household members. The four pool passes that previously were bundled with the To Page 33

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Board authorizes significant reduction in golf member fees By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Board of Directors in a budget work session Feb. 10 voted to lower golf member rates significantly for the 2017-18 budget year. The directors also agreed to reinstitute a 30-round membership category that would allow nine-hole players to play up to 60 nine-hole rounds, a feature dropped in recent years and blamed for a decline in memberships from those who prefer to play nine rather than the standard 18-hole round. The cost for this option, which essentially is a pre-paid debit card, is $1200, and can be used by property owners and their guests playing with them. Carts are included as are other member benefits. Director Dave Stevens introduced the new lower rate package to his colleagues, telling them they were the result of a meeting held a day earlier with himself, OPA President Tom Herrick, and Golf Advisory Committee chair Bob Kessler. In addition to lower membership rates, the approved plan incorporates a number of ideas promoted by the OPA’s golf course management company, Landscapes Unlimited. Perhaps the most prominent idea adopted from among LU marketing proposals is the all-amenity package, a family membership to cost $2500 that will include unlimited golf and prepaid use of the Ocean Pines’ five swimming pools and racquet sport facilities. Golf carts and Beach Club parking passes are not included but would be available for purchase as they are for any amenity member. Herrick said LU had agreed to share revenues generated from the all-amenities package in such a way that aquatics and racquet sports will be credited for the full amount of membership fees that would have been generated had they been sold individually. What’s left will be credited to golf. To Page 32

Pickleball, tennis fees reduced ~ Page 32

With the Ocean Pines pickleball club on record as opposing the recent reduction of the number of pickleball courts at the Community Center gymnasium from three to two, and adamantly opposed to drop-in fees, Acting General Manager Brett Hill has a new idea for pickleball that might make the group happy in the longer term. His proposal would repurpose two of the four tennis courts at the Swim and Racquet Club campus into an indoor facility dedicated to pickleball. He told his colleagues on the Board of Directors that he envisions a pole barn building replacing two of the tennis courts at the campus. ~ Page 13

Board approves new playground at Manklin Meadows Replacement of defective wooden play equipment at the Manklin Meadows Recreation Complex was given the go-ahead by the Board of Directors at a cost of $212,000 during a Jan. 28 meeting. Directors voted 5-0, with two members abstaining, to approve a contract with River Valley Recreation for the Playcraft Systems’ playground at a cost of $212,577 plus a 10 percent project contingency cost. Acting General Manager Brett Hillpresented the request for contract approval during a Jan. 27 board meeting. ~ Page 14

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Hill, Bozak take steps to control petty cash

Acting General Manager Brett Hill and newly hired Director of Finance Mary Bozak are taking steps to end the use of petty cash among Ocean Pines Association departments. Hill, also an OPA director, told his board colleagues that cash no longer will be used by the departments to make routine purchases. While cash still will be accepted at pools and OPA restaurants, the intent is to make OPA operations as cashless as possible, Hill said. Department staff who wish to make purchases will have to do so through the finance department, Hill said, instead of petty cash accounts. The move is being made as part of an organization-wide to better control and track expenditures, Hill said.

Racquet sports panel officially eliminated

On second and final reading, the Board of Directors has voted to repeal Resolution C-14 establishing a racquet sports advisory committee, which was supposed to foster a culture of harmony and working together among those who play tennis, platform tennis or pickleball, or some combination of the three. It didn’t happen that way. Committee meetings on occasion became con-

tentious. OPA President Tom Herrick, in proposing the abolishment of the committee several months ago, said the tri-sport committee actually worked against the interests of all three because “compromises” forged in committee tended not tp produce good results. He cited last year’s aborted attempt to develop a master plan for the Manklin Meadows racquet sports complex, which devolved into bickering and a costly proposal that satisfied no one. The repeal passed on second reading at the board’s Jan. 28 regular meeting. Each of the three sports are now represented by separate clubs, as opposed to advisory committees, with Herrick serving as board liaison to all three when they have something to communicate.

Pickleballers propose reduced rate structure

Julie Wolfe, a member of the pickleball club’s board of directors, appeared before the Board of Directors at a Feb. 6 budget review meeting to promote a racquet sports membership rate restructuring plan. She said the plan actually had been developed by the now defunct racquet sports advisory committee but had

been taken up by the pickleballers as a good start to promote cross membership. The plan essentially offered reduced rates for members who purchase memberships in two or three of the sports. Directors did not respond to her proposals during the meeting, called to discuss amenity fees in the 2017-18 budget. When she attempted to continue dialog with the directors after her presentation, it became evident that her attempts were beginning to irritate board members. Director Dave Stevens on at least two occasions asked her to stop speaking, and Tom Herrick did as well. Rather than discuss the pickleball club’s proposals for reduced rates, instead the directors discussed a proposal from Acting Director Brett Hill to tack on additional charges for drop-in pickleball at the Community Center gymnasium on Sundays. The club has opposed that but it appears the add-on fees will be part of the budget to be approved by the board in late February.

Associate amenity memberships to end

While insignificant as revenue-generators over the years, the Ocean Pines Association has always made it relative-

ly easy for non-property owners to enjoy access to Ocean Pines’ amenities. The method was through associate memberships available for individuals and families in all of the amenities, albeit at a rate higher than those for property owners and residents in Ocean Pines. Under a new arrangement announced by Acting General Manager Brett Hill and apparently supported by directors, there will be a new blanket associate membership offered to any household outside of Ocean Pines, at an annual rate of $250. That associate membership will entitle anyone in that household to purchase amenity memberships in Ocean Pines at the same rate currently available for property owners and resident renters. How this will affect revenue and membership retention among the 62 associate members currently on the books remains to be seen.

Parks calls for study of YC outsourcing

Acting General Manager Brett Hill and a board majority appear unconvinced, but Ocean Pines Association Director Doug Parks during a board work session Jan. 20 called the Yacht Club a “losing proposition” after a $72,000 loss in December. His solution? “It would be

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From Page 4 prudent that we consider a management or leasing” as an alternative to in-house management, he said. Hill, who pushed back against similar comments by Director Slobodan Trendic at another board meeting a few days later, said he was already well along in hiring new people for the Yacht Club operation, including six recent new hires. He said it would be unfair to tell them they didn’t have jobs after job offers were extended and accepted. After a three-week or so hiatus in January to continue efforts to redecorate and spruce up the facility, while reworking the menu, Hill unveiled the changes at a soft opening Feb. 3. “The reception was very positive,” he said, adding that he believes strides are being made to make the Yacht Club the amenity it was intended to be when it opened several years ago.

IT group meeting via Skype sessions

Technology Work Group chair Doug Parks gave the directors a high-speed update on his panel’s activities during a Jan. 23 Board of Directors meetings, mentioning that, in keeping with the work group’s purpose, they’ve been meeting “electronically” through skype, a video conferencing technology. While it’s a way’s off, Parks said the

objective is to come up with a single access card with photo ID that will allow entry into all of Ocean Pines’ amenities. Another objective is to connect the Ocean Pines Police Department to the dispatch center in Snow Hill via fiber optic cable. “We’re still trying to put that together,” Parks said. He announced that Director Cheryl Jacobs has joined the work group as a member.

OPPD to receive $30,000 state grant

The Ocean Pines Police Department is set to receive a $30,030 grant from the state of Maryland for a technology upgrade that allows officers to quickly identify suspects involved in criminal actions. Officers are gaining the upper hand with the assistance of a new finger and palm printing machine. According to the Ocean Pines Police Department, law enforcement agencies indicate that at least 30 percent of the prints lifted from crime scenes – from knife hilts, gun grips, steering wheels and window panes – are of palms, not fingers. For this reason, capturing and scanning latent palm prints is becoming an area of increasing interest among the law enforcement community, including the Ocean Pines Police Department. An upgraded fingerprinting system, which has been recently installed, now helps to increase officer efficiency.

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“In addition to identifying the individual, it also quickly searches state and federal criminal history databases for warrants that may still be in effect,” said Ocean Pines Police Chief David Massey. “Automation eliminates the old messy ink procedures, and accurately tells an officer that the print is acceptable, or whether a new re-print is necessary.” On April 6, 2016, an audit of the former fingerprint machine was conducted by the External Audit Unit of the Criminal Justice Information System Central Repository. The audit revealed Ocean Pines Police Department was not in compliance with submitting palm prints. The department had purchased the Livescan system in 2010, when Livescan did not include a palm reader because palm readers were not mandated at that time. The mandate to capture palm prints in Maryland was enacted back in May 2013 by the FBI. “This machine will also enable members from our Sheriff’s Office, who may make an arrest nearby Ocean Pines, to utilize our machine to enter suspect information, thereby freeing them from a lengthy journey back to Snow Hill,” said Chief Massey. “The cooperation of our Sheriff is supporting our grant was a factor in the approval process.”

Heat lamps, heater added to YC kitchen

There were lessons learned and some

quick solutions found to a less than stellar performance at the Yacht Club’s New Year’s celebration, particularly as it relates to cold food served by staff to diners. Acting General Manager Brett Hill, who has made turning the fortunes of the newly rechristened Mumford’s Landing amenity around a personal mission, has persuaded the Board of Directors to fund heat lamps and a portable heater for the second level kitchen. Introduced to the board during a Jan. 23 work session, the items were formally approved by the board at its Jan. 28 regular meeting.

OPA board makes committee picks

With the consent of the Board of Directors, Tom Herrick, Ocean Pines Association president, appointed two new members to standing advisory committees. T.J. Carter was appointed to a first term on the Communications Advisory Committee. Timothy Mullin was appointed chairman of the Marine Activities Advisory Committee. Kenneth Wolf was appointed for a third term on the Environment and Natural Assets Committee.

Board takes action on CPI violations

The Board of Directors voted unanimously during a January 28 meeting to

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By TOM STAUSS Publisher ecause arcane parking requirements could require the Yacht Club pool to close at 6 p.m. this summer, the popular family fun nights that brought hundreds of families with children to the otherwise adults-only Yacht Club pool on Wednesdays may have to find a new home. Acting General Manager Brett Hill, in recent Board of Directors meetings, has informed his colleagues that he has been informed by county officials – he cited zoning administrator Jennifer Keener and permits and compliance chief Ed Tudor – that the Ocean Pines Association has been in violation of parking regulations at the Yacht Club since its opening several years ago. Hill said the former OPA general manager was well aware that the OPA was operating in conflict with its parking limitations but elected to do so anyway. The former general manager always had a different take on the matter, telling colleagues that he was operating with the understanding that the county would not act to cite the OPA or go so far as to close the amenity for violating its permit. Hill, telling his colleagues on the board that he was not comfortable with acting contrary to the permitting limitations, said the only way to avoid to doing so is to close the swimming pool

OCEAN PINES

February 2017

Popular Yacht Club ‘family fun nights’ may find new home Parking regs that previous manager ‘ignored’ force earlier closing of Yacht Club and Mumford’s Landing pools, Hill says at 6 p.m., allowing parking spaces used by pool patrons to be used by Yacht Club diners instead. Hill said that parking spaces at the Yacht Club and even the nearby Mumford’s Landing family pool are tied to seating inside the Yacht Club and on the outside deck. Allowances are made for less patronage at the Yacht Club during the day, but the county assumes a surge of usage at the dinner hour, assumed to begin at 6 p.m. With the pool scheduled to be closed at 6 p.m. to allow pool parking to accommodate the dinner-time rush, Hill said the popular family fun night, traditionally open to families with children from 5 to 7 p.m., would have to be moved to another pool from the Yacht Club. The most likely venue will be the Swim and Racquet Club, the Progress has learned. It has a snack bar and later in the afternoon tends to have lighter

attendance. Hill said he isn’t happy with the prospect of having to relocate the family fun nights, citing the likely impact of revenues at the tiki bar. In a conversation with the Progress, Hill said he hopes the two Worcester County commissioners representing

OCEAN PINES BRIEFS From Page 5 send to legal counsel two violations of the restrictive covenants. Brett Hill, director and acting general manager, said the Compliance, Permits and Inspections office first contacted the owners of both lots regarding the violations in October 2016, but neither has brought their property into compliance. At 91 Bramblewood Drive, the property owner was found in violations for

Ocean Pines – Jim Bunting and Chip Bertino – will intervene with staff to see if some sort of accommodation can be made for family fun nights and to keep the pool open until its traditional closing at 7 p.m. The calculation used by the county staff during the dinner hour to measure capacity includes seating on the upper level banquet area, which on many summer evenings is unused. But so far the staff appears unwilling to adjust for actual usage after 6 p.m., citing the potential of too few parking spaces for the available space, Hill said. Hill said that because of the parking shortage, the nearby Mumford’s Landing family pool will also have to be closed at 6 p.m., absent some sort of accommodation. The Progress has learned that the

6 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

installing an extension on an existing shed without a permit from Ocean Pines Association or Worcester County. Director voted to have legal counsel send a letter to the owner demanding that they either remove the extension or acquire the proper permits. At 20 Seagrave Lane, a box trailer has been located on the property for months in violation of the restrictive covenants. The board voted to send the property to legal counsel to compel the owner to remove the trailer.

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Hill doubles down on Yacht Club make-over Trendic, Parks push for outsourcing, but board majority continues to back acting general manager and in-house management tions at the amenity. Recently rebranded the Cove at Mumford’s, the Yacht Club restaurant had a soft reopening Feb. 3 with a new menu and a new staff, replacing six individuals terminated shortly after a less-than-spectacular New Year’s Eve event. Hill had relieved the former Yacht Club manager of his position just before New Year’s Eve and continued

Family fun nights

In theory, the county could close down the Yacht Club if it continues to operate contrary to the parking limitations, he said. Not all the directors were willing to accept the demise of the family fun night at the Yacht Club. Cheryl Jacobs, on two occasions during recent board meetings, raised objections to the early pool closure and said she would be on the phone with county officials to urge an accommodation. She said Ocean Pines is roughly 25 percent of the county’s tax base and that county officials should be willing to work with the OPA to find a solution.

From Page 6 lost hour at the tail end of the day will be offset by opening the Yacht Club pool one hour earlier than usual, at 6 a.m., assuming no new accommodation with the county is reached with the help of Ocean Pines’ county commissioners. Hill told his board colleagues that if the OPA wants to maintain good relations with the county, it really should be complying with county regulations as interpreted by staff with whom Hill interacts, or, alternatively, the OPA should obtain some sort of waiver.

his house-cleaning when that event generated a fair number of customer complaints, including long waits for seating and food delivered cold to the tables. At the Jan. 28 meeting of the board, Hill announced that he and new the director of finance, Mary Bozak, will be conducting an operational audit of the Yacht Club’s food and beverage operation. At the same meeting, the directors approved security gates for the amenity’s three bar areas, which Hill recommended along with heat lamps and propane heaters for the upstairs kitchen. The security gates were described as limiting what has been more or less unfettered access to the Yacht Club’s alcohol stocks by staff, something that Hill made clear was a poor management practice that he wants to end. Without naming names or explicitly announcing that poor financial performance may have been the result of what’s known in the restaurant business as “shrinkage,” Hill’s actions together seemed to suggest that he suspects, or has discovered actual evidence,

of “shrinkage” or other serious mismanagement at the facility. Previously, Hill has spoken of poor handling of receipts and inaccuracies in related entries in the OPA software in the OPA’s finance department. The Yacht Club’s record $73,000 loss and operating woes in December prompted two directors, Slobodan Trendic and Doug Parks, to suggest that it was now time for the OPA to seriously consider outsourcing management of the amenity, including the possibility of leasing it out to an independent entrepreneur. A two or three-month closure of the facility to allow the OPA to regroup was part of the discussion, something that Hill and a board majority seem determined to avoid this winter. There was one testy exchange between Trendic and Hill at a Jan. 23 board work session, when Trendic attempted to reintroduce the subject of outsourcing, which Parks had raised briefly at a Jan. 20 work session on the 2017-17 OPA budget. After Hill inter-

By TOM STAUSS Publisher espite indications that at least two directors would like the Ocean Pines Association to vigorously pursue outsourcing management of the Ocean Pines Yacht Club, Acting General Manager Brett Hill tacitly has been given free rein to continue his efforts to get control and improve opera-

8 Ocean Pines PROGRESS February 2017 leagues he had just hired six new emYacht Club make-over From Page 7 rupted Trendic to say that the issue had been raised at the previous meeting and didn’t need to be rehashed, Trendic said that he had the right to speak. He did so, advocating for the closure of the Yacht Club for a period of months to allow the OPA to explore the option of outsourcing, including leasing. Hill pushed back, telling his col-

ployees after a job fair and that it would be unfair to them to lay them off so soon after they had been hired. That comment seemed to end the debate, as no other director weighed in. Later, Trendic told the Progress while that while laying off new hires would be regrettable, Hill had demonstrated his ability to hire replacement employees very quickly following the New Year’s Eve debacle. He said that Hill could do

OCEAN PINES the same in April if the board decided not to outsource Yacht Club management. He noted that many restaurants in West Ocean City and Ocean City close down for the winter and manage to hire new staff for the summer season. With four of his colleagues apparently willing to give him more time to turn the amenity around financially, Hill has doubled down on his make-over efforts. After roughly three weeks of closure to enable more cosmetic improvements --

new furniture and some low tech kitchen equipment including the heat lamps and propane heaters whose purpose is to combat cold food delivered to patrons on the upper level – Hill is determined to leave no stone unturned in reducing if not limiting operating deficits. As part of the $10,500 expenditure for new heat lamps and heaters for the second floor, the board, at the Jan. 28 regular meeting, allocated $10,500 from To Page 10

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February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS 9 Page 21

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10 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OCEAN PINES

February 2017

Kiwanis clothes collection

Winter coats, hats, gloves, sweaters were collected by the Kiwanis Club of Greater Ocean Pines and Ocean City in partnership with St. Peters Church, in Ocean City. Pictured at the Feb. 22nd weekly meeting are, left to right, co-chairs Char and Ted Vanvick and Fred Kauffman with Vice-President Ralph Chinn. St. Peters Church handles the disbursement of the clothes to those in need in Ocean City.

Yacht Club make-over From Page 8 replacement reserves for first floor bar top replacement. Previously, the board had approved $50,000 for furniture up-

grades and room dividers. In recent weeks and months, changes have been dramatic. As conceived by the Ocean Pines Association’s new marketing and public relations director, Denise Sawyer, the

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Yacht Club has been rebranded Mumford’s Landing in Ocean Pines. The restaurant has been rebranded the Cove at Mumford’s, and the newly installed 20-foot bar in the hallway leading back to the dining room has been christened Tuffy’s Tavern, the name of the bar area in the old Yacht Club. Signage from the old Tuffy’s Tavern was dug out of storage and has been attached to the new bar. The rebranding honors the late Charles “Tuffy” Mumford, who was associated with the primary early developer of Ocean Pines, Boise Cascade Home and Land Corporation. He was a fixture of the original Yacht Club that was opened in 1975. That building was in replaced in 2014 by a newer, more modern version, with a few design flaws that Hill has been working to overcome since assuming his current role last August. One such flaw has been remedied by a new hostess station in the front entrance foyer, to replace sterile and unwelcoming signage that had directed patrons previously. In addition, the Tuffy’s Tavern bar was built by OPA Public Works staff in the long, somewhat empty hallway leading back to the dining room. It offers eight craft beers and six-pack beer and bottles of wine to go. During the recent three-week hiatus before the Feb. 3 soft reopening, Public Works repainted a good portion of the facility and completed a thorough cleaning

of the entire building. New POS (point of service) equipment has been installed to more accurately monitor dining and bar transactions . Signage will be replaced around the facility and community to reflect the recent rebranding. “The Cove at Mumford’s” will also see some menu changes. New items when the restaurant reopens will include weekend specials that have crowd-favorites. A carry-out menu will also be added to the mix. After positive financial results in September and October, posted November results for the Yacht Club showed an operating loss, even though the results beat budget forecasts for the month by roughly $17,000. The $73,000 loss in December, however, was a record loss for the amenity for that month. Banquet manager Brian Townsend previously had been given additional duties in sales and customer service and has “stepped up,” Hill said. The acting general manager said the plan is to hire a new food and beverage manager who be in charge of purchasing food and alcohol at all the OPA’s food and beverage operations, including the Beach Club and the Swim and Racquet Club. Landscapes Unlimited will continue to manage the Tern Grille operation at the Country Club as part of its golf course management contract with the OPA.

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February 2017Ocean Pines PROGRESS 11

Pickleball players claim OPA crossed line with court restriping, usage fee proposal Members contend that odd sized basketball court resulted in loss of one of three pickleball courts By ROTA L. KNOTT Contributing Writer he Ocean Pines Association is walking a thin line with pickleball players over the restriping of courts in the Community Center and a potential fee for use of those courts. Representatives of the pickleball club approached the Board of Directors during the public comments section of a Jan. 27 meeting with complaints about the number of courts now available for their use, proposed new usage fees, and exclusion from discussions about creating outdoor courts at the Swim and Racquet Club. “Last fall we had a fantastic facility here. It worked great,” Pickleballer Lyle Dillon told directors. He said, prior to renovation and relining of the gymnasium floor, three courts were available for use in the Community Center. Now there are only two courts and they are not properly configured, he said. “The decision to cut our available courts by one third is unacceptable to us,” Julie Woulfe, pickleball club board member, told directors. Players started the pickleball club at the suggestion of the OPA soon after the amenity was offered three years ago. She said the club has been the primary force in both growth of the sport here and in managing the members who come to Ocean Pines to play. “We were so disappointed that our pickleball club was not consulted on this decision despite having volunteers who have studied pickleball courts and the line issues for many, many years,” she said. Prior to the gymnasium floor renovations, the basketball court at the Community Center met junior high school standards, according to Dillon. In addition, there were three functional pickleball courts, but now there are only two, a change made after defective flooring was recently replaced. He said he has visited numerous pickleball courts and has never seen a condition where there were fewer than three pickleball courts to one basketball court. Dillon knocked the contractor who restriped the gymnasium floor, saying the 50 by 74-foot basketball court, which also serves as the framework for the pickleball courts, doesn’t meet any standard court configuration. “Whoever makes a business painting lines ought to know how to do it,” he said. He wanted to know why the basketball court is now the width of one for adult play but the length of youth courts. “There are six standards sizes of (basketball) courts. This is none of them,” he told the board. Additionally, Dillon said the repainted lines are not configured appropriate-

ly. “Thank goodness we got a new floor,” he said, but quickly added, “when the lines were put on the floor apparently counsel was not taken from the pickleball community, and perhaps not from the basketball community, as to how those lines should be put down.” He said the lines are too close to the bleachers and pickleball players will bang their paddles on the seating. “I

believe every line in there needs to be replaced,” he said. “A proper basketball court be lined and three pickleball courts replaced.” Woulfe said pickleball players have “grave concerns” about the accuracy of the lines and safety of all of the new court lines in the gymnasium. She asked the board to get more than one quote for repainting the courts, and acknowl-

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edged there would be a cost involved in having the courts restriped. She was also concerned about a pending OPA decision to begin charging Ocean Pines pickleball players to use the Community Center gymnasium for play. She said the additional charge is unfair because they already pay an annual membership fee. “Pickleball will soon enter its fourth year as an annual fee-based amenity here,” she said, pointing out that it is included on amenity membership forms along with golf, swimming, tennis, and platform tennis. She suggested the OPA update board resolution M-02 to list pickleball as an

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OCEAN PINES

February 2017

Court restriping From Page 11

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annual fee-based amenity. She pointed out that resolution M-02 states the capital cost for amenities, such as the Community Center, are born by all OPA members through annual assessments. However, the operating costs for feebased amenities are covered by revenue charged to become a member of the amenity. “The pickleball amenity is allocated a share of the operating costs for the facilities that we use,” Woulfe said. She said income generated by membership and clinic fees more than covers the cost of operating the amenity. “For these reasons we feel it’s not logical to charge pickleball members for the use of the gym,” she said. Meanwhile, plans for new outdoor pickleball courts are back in play, but players aren’t convinced that the OPA’s latest proposed location is appropriate. Brett Hill, OPA director and acting general manager, has recommended the board consider constructing a pole building with pickleball courts at the Swim and Racquet Club. Woulfe called the concept “intriguing” but was miffed that the OPA had not sought input from the players. She pointed out that the pickleball club has not made a request to the OPA to make this large expenditure. Additionally, she said she is concerned about the proposed court location at the Swim and Racquet Club and its effect on surrounding homes. Timing of the proposed larger project is also a concern, Woulfe said. She said there is a need for completion and availability of dedicated outdoor courts this spring. Many people would be disappointed if Racetrack Rd. courts they have the11029 dedicated outdoor 1 1029 Racetrack Rd.years were sudBerlin, MD 21811 been waiting for three Berlin, MD 21811 denly taken away, she added. Woulfe said pickleball players would like to be fully engaged in conversation with the acting general manager regarding conversion of two tennis courts at the Swim and Racquet Club facility for an indoor pickleball facility. When Director Dave Stevens made a

motion later in the meeting to allocate funding for an engineering study related to construction of new paddleball courts at the Manklin Meadows Recreation Complex, some other directors initially balked. Director Cheryl Jacobs said she wouldn’t support Stevens’ motion because the paddleball proposal is tied to the proposed changes at the Swim and Racquet Club to accommodate pickleball courts. “I don’t think we have all of that information yet,” she said. OPA President Tom Herrick said the paddleball engineering study is the first piece of the puzzle in planning for both amenities. Stevens said he wants to consider the option of constructing pickleball courts at the Swim and Racquet Club on its own merits. “I don’t want it tied to this,” he added. He said he is neither for nor against Hill’s pickleball proposal at this point but simply doesn’t want that issue to hold up planning for paddleball improvements. Meanwhile, the acting general manager has provided some relief to the pickleball players at the Community Center gym by adding two hours on Sundays during which the facility is open to players. He acknowledged that the additional hours haven’t satisfied the pickleball players, who still want three courts added back to the gym. Hill told the Progress in an early February telephone interview that company representatives who have looked closely at the gymnasium contend that only two courts properly sized with adequate clearance between courts and room for spectators can fit on thePRSRT floor. STD He said the two courts as configured PRSRT STD USPOSTAGE conform to national pickleball associaUSPOSTAGE PAID tion standards and that three courts as MAILMOVERS advocated by the pickleball club PAID would MAILMOVERS be unsafe. He wasn’t sure whether resizing the basketball court to one of six configurations mentioned by Dillon would allow for a third pickleball court. He said the cost of restriping to squeeze three courts into the gymnasium would be roughly $30,000.

OCEAN PINES/ BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

Hill proposes indoor pickleball facility for S&R Club

two, former tennis courts now being converted into eight pickleball courts at Manklin Meadows into two platform tennis courts, addressing a long-sought objective of Ocean Pines’ platform tennis club. There are two platform tennis courts now at Manklin Meadows. A now defunct master plan for the complex had located space for additional platform courts, but apparently the proposed site would have required expensive stormwater mitigation infrastructure. It was one of the reasons the board

last year abandoned the master plan and opted for far less expensive solutions for pickleball, leaving the platform tennis issue for another day. Hill said installing new or used platform tennis courts on courts previously used for tennis should mean that no additional stormwater mitigation would be needed, making the additional platform courts more practical and affordable. There was no immediate board reaction to Hill’s proposal, although it will be explored as an option in the coming

Board seeks to eliminate Search Committee liaison Motion accepted on first reading By TOM STAUSS Publisher n the latest twist in a board term that has seen its share of election reforms, the Board of Directors is considering a change in Board Resolution M-09 that would eliminate the appointment of a board liaison to the Ocean Pines Association’s Search Committee. The board voted 6-0 with one abstention to accept on first reading the change proposed by Director Cheryl Jacobs, who said that the appointment and service to the committee as liaison by a sitting director poses an “appearance of impro-

priety,” especially if that same director is running for reelection or is known to be personally supporting individual candidates. During board discussion, Director Slobodan Trendic said he agreed with the intent of the motion, while Dave Stevens initially seemed to push back against it. He said a board liaison could serve a useful purpose by bringing back committee suggestions for board discussion. “I can’t see what the conflict is,” he said. He noted that the Search Committee’s function is very limited in that its purpose is to solicit candidates for the annual board election. He seemed to

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suggest that the appearance of impropriety that Jacobs’ alluded to was not obvious to him because the committee’s function does not include weighing in on a candidate’s suitability for board service. Director Doug Parks, who will be running for reelection to the board this summer, said he agreed with Stevens but he added that he could “see Cheryl’s point about the appearance of impropriety.” After Trendic repeated that amending M-09 to eliminate a reference to a board liaison made sense to him, Stevens reminded his colleagues that the search committee has no decision-making power. He went on to argue that

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months. Meanwhile, members of the pickleball club spoke during the Public Comments segment of the Jan. 28 board meeting to complain of the restriping of pickleball courts in the Community Center gymnasium following the installation of new flooring. The restriping reduced the number of playable courts from three to two. The group also kvetched over the recent decision by Hill to close the Community Center on Sunday.

By TOM STAUSS Publisher ith the Ocean Pines pickleball club on record as opposing the recent reduction of the number of pickleball courts at the Community Center gymnasium from three to two, and adamantly opposed to the building’s Sunday closure, Acting General Manager Brett Hill has a new idea for pickleball that might make the group happy in the longer term. Even as the OPA continues work on the preparation of new outdoor pickleball courts on two repurposed tennis courts at the Manklin Meadows racquet complex in South Ocean Pines, Hill mixed his sporting metaphors by offering up a “curve ball” at the board’s Jan. 23 meeting. His proposal would repurpose two of the four tennis courts at the Swim and Racquet Club campus into an indoor facility dedicated to pickleball. He told his colleagues on the Board of Directors that he envisions a pole barn building replacing two of the tennis courts at the campus. He said the indoor facility would address a perceived problem with outdoor pickleball courts at the Swim and Racquet Club – too much wind. Once eight pickleball courts are operational at Swim and Racquet, Hill’s plan then would be to repurpose the

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14 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017

New synthetic equipment to replace wooden playground at Manklin Meadows Directors approve higher bid from River Valley Recreation in the hopes of ‘more bang for the buck’ BY ROTA L. KNOTT expensive playground system, manufacContributing Writer tured by Playworld, with about a 23 pereplacement of defective wooden cent difference between the bids. play equipment at the Manklin Director Dave Stevens, who abstained Meadows Recreation Complex from voting on the motion to award the was given the go-ahead by the Board of contract, said he was confused about Directors at a cost of $212,000 during the project “from the get-go.” He asked a Jan. 28 meeting. Directors voted 5-0, if anyone contacted communities that with two members abstaining, to ap- have either of the playgrounds in place prove a contract with River Valley Rec- to investigate their experiences with the reation for the Playcraft Systems’ play- equipment. ground at a cost of $212,577 plus a 10 Hill said he has not, but is not sure percent project contingency cost. whether the facilities manager or memDirector Brett Hill, who is serving as bers of the advisory committee did to deacting Ocean Pines Association general velop their recommendations. manager, presented the request for conDirector Doug Parks questioned Hill tract approval during a Jan. 27 board about the need for and costs associated meeting. He said the Recreation and with border drainage and grading for the Parks Advisory Committee reviewed new playground equipment. He pointed the proposals for new playground equip- out that the Playcraft proposal did not ment and made the recommendation to contain any costs for those items, but purchase the Playcraft Systems unit. they were included with the Playworld However, Director Slobodan Trendic proposal recommended by the facilities noticed a conflict between an OPA staff manager. He asked whether current site recommendation for the new playground grading is acceptable for the new equipand that of the advisory committee. ment. He You wanted to ensure that instalThe Real Estate MarketHe is On The Move...And said the OPA’s facilities manager, Jerry lation in a known low-lying area would Can be Too! Aveda, recommended purchase of a less not void the warranty on the equipment.

Hill responded that is not an issue. He said the border drainage and grading is already in place. The vendor will install the Playcraft in the existing space dedicated for the equipment, using the existing wood fiber playground surface. He said the Playcraft playground equipment is composed of a synthetic material and will not be subject to deterioration in moist conditions as was the old wooden structure. As a result, the OPA does not need to have a rubberized surface installed around the equipment. He said the other vendors proposed a synthetic playground surface that would have necessitated drainage and grading improvements. Director Cheryl Jacobs questioned whether the Playcraft equipment meets Americans with Disabilities Act requirements because the proposal did not indicate compliance. Hill responded that the playground equipment will be ADA compliant, with a minimum of 50 percent of the equipment being accessible, including slides and swings. OPA President Tom Herrick said the

Playcraft equipment included in River Valley Recreation’s proposal is superior to that included in the other five bids received for new playground structures. He said in the main play structures the OPA is getting “more bang for the buck.” He favored approving the purchase and said “It’s basically maybe $15,000 more, but you’re getting more than twice the play equipment for that small amount of money.” In the end, Herrick’s judgment prevailed. The expectation is that the equipment will be installed in the April/ May period well before the beginning of the summer season, Hill said.

Search Committee

From Page 13 eliminating the liaison would simply replace him with the OPA president if the search committee wanted to interact with the board for any reason. Director Pat Supik said that wasn’t necessarily true. She said the committee could approach the board as a whole if any particular problem or issue arises that needs board attention. She reminded her colleagues that the change in M-09 was being offered on first reading only. When OPA President Tom Herrick called the question, Stevens ended up voting for the motion. Only Herrick, a previous board liaison, abstained.

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS 15

Board tables Trendic motion instructing acting general manager to allow direct access to department heads By ROTA L. KNOTT Contributing Writer ith Ocean Pines’ golden anniversary just around the corner, the Board of Directors is providing seed money to a community-based committee planning a stellar celebration with five key events, but isn’t quite sure it wants to commit Ocean Pines Association staff to help out. In January, directors unanimously agreed to designate $20,000 in funding to support the yearlong celebration the 50th anniversary committee is planning for 2018. They were not unanimous, however, in supporting a motion that called for OPA staff to provide “as needed” assistance to the committee. Director Slobodan Trendic, then board liaison to the committee, offered a motion during a Jan. 28 board meeting to provide support to the committee and to instruct the general manager to allow the committee access to OPA staff as needed. “This committee is a grassroots, volunteer effort with a goal to help in the

planning and successful delivery of the golden anniversary celebration programs,” said Trendic, who was disappointed when directors did not unanimously support his motion. He said the committee, which is in the early organizational and planning stages, is composed of numerous community members who wish to aid the association in “celebrating this historical milestone.” Trendic argued there is a clear need for the committee to collaborate and coordinate its activities with those of the association and its staff. He said the activities proposed by the committee would necessitate that it on occasion interaction with OPA departments such as public works, police, recreation, golf, public relations and marketing, and finance. Additionally, he said the committee would need to coordinate its efforts with those of other Ocean Pines-based clubs and social groups. “I think it’s a wonderful idea and I’m excited about it,” Director Pat Supik said, and added that she supports the committee but would not support

Board votes to hire Novak Group to assist in general manager search Directors like consulting firm’s track record in placing candidates in Eastern Shore communities By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Board of Directors has taken the next step in finding a full-time general manager to replace Acting General Manager Brett Hill, voting unanimously at the regular monthly meeting to hire the Novak Group to aid in the search. On a motion by Director Doug Parks, the board unanimously voted to hire the Novak Group, a national executive search firm, from among three companies that had submitted proposals after a board-authorized process begun several months ago. The board selected the Novak Group because of its recent success in helping Cambridge, Md., and Rehboth Beach, De., find city managers. The other firms considered were the Mercer Group and Adelman, Inc. Novak submitted a bid proposal for $20,300 to cover most of its services, not including additional expenses such as advertising, background checks and travel. The company envisions a three-

month process leading to the successful hiring of a new general manager. Hill has been serving in the unpaid capacity of acting general manager since this past August, when the then new board voted to terminate the contract of former General Manager Bob Thompson. Before embarking on the process that led to the selection of Novak Group, the board considered a proposal by newly elected Director Slobodan Trendic to appoint a management restructuring task force that would have evaluated the possibility of hiring an outside management firm in lieu of an in-house general manager. It also would have assisted the board in vetting candidates for the GM position, It became clear after several months of board discussion that Trendic’s task force proposal was gaining no traction, and the board instead posted on the OPA Web site an RFI (request for information) from executive search firms. That effort produced proposals from three firms.

the motion as drafted. “This particular motion, I think, raises red flags for me,” Supik said, adding that the OPA already occasionally struggles with interaction between its advisory committees and employees. She said the committee’s requests for staff participation might conflict with their assigned duties. Supik said committees should not be giving directives to employees. “I think this broad motion presents an opportunity for a lot, for a very slippery slope that could have conflicts between committee members and employees,” suggesting that staff involvement with the committees is “not generally a practice that is supported.” Director Doug Parks said Supik made a good point about the demands on staff and potential to usurp the association’s organizational structure. He suggested amending Trendic’s motion to state that all requests for staff support must be coordinated through the general manager, giving him the opportunity to say staff is not available. Supik asked about the association’s practice with regard to other committees. She wanted to know if they could go to the general manager and request staff assistance. OPA President Tom Herrick said there is an existing protocol for committees. They must communicate with their board liaison who then conveys their request to the OPA president and on to the general manager. Herrick said Trendic’s motion was vague. “Who determines what is as needed?” he asked. “You can’t define that.” Herrick said he does not see the 50th anniversary committee as different from any other board advisory committee and, therefore, the board should not dictate staff engagement with the committee to the general manager.

Directors ponder staff involvement with 50th anniversary event planning

Trendic argued that the impetus behind the motion is a lack of cooperation by staff. He said the committee asked for a staff member to attend its meeting and the invitation was denied. He said the committee feels it necessary for the board to put such a motion in place so future requests are not declined. He argued the 50th anniversary committee is an ad hoc, bottom-up group not like other OPA advisory committees; there will be only one 50th anniversary. “I’m personally disappointed that this is even turning into a debate,” an obviously frustrated Trendic said. Following Trendic’s comments, Supik said it makes her uncomfortable that the motion was brought forward because the acting general manager rejected a request for staff to attend a committee meeting. “Does this motion mean that that answer has to be ‘yes’ every time? That makes me very nervous,” she said, adding that to her it seemed like the “intent of the motion is that the general manager wouldn’t have latitude to say ‘no.’ ” Director Cheryl Jacobs, who gave a second to Trendic’s motion, agreed that the committee is dissimilar to the board’s standing advisory committees. She was not opposed to putting the board’s support for the committee on paper but did suggest specifying in the motion that requests for staff support be channeled through the board liaison. “Every attorney will advise you to have things in writing,” she said. Director Brett Hill, who is serving as acting general manager, said the OPA staff is always available to any member to answer questions, but the best way to reach them is via email because of their overwhelming responsibilities. If anyone asks staff a question, he said he hopes they are responding. “Because that is their job,” he said. “To my knowledge the staff has been and will continue to be responsive.” However, he said it might not always be possible for an employee to dedicate several hours for a committee meeting. Jacobs called Hill’s comments an “exaggeration” and said he is not going to be the general manager through the end

16 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017

By TOM STAUSS Publisher few days after the Jan. 28 meeting of the Board of Directors, Ocean Pines Association President Tom Herrick made a decision to remove Director Slobodan Trendic as liaison to the 25th anniversary committee, telling members in an email that he was doing so in the best interests of the community moving forward. He said that Director Cheryl Jacobs had “graciously” agreed to serve in Trendic’s stead. Trendic said that in his opinion Herrick didn’t have the authority to remove him as liaison, because the committee is not board appointed or created by the OPA. But he said he wasn’t going to make an issue of it because “this isn’t about me” and that what’s important is that planning proceeds to produce the best anniversary celebration possible. He advised the Progress to contact the committee co-chairs, Mike and Cathy Sabine, for their reaction to his removal as liaison. He said he had tried his best to represent committee views to the board, which he said is what a liaison is supposed to do. The Sabines did not respond to a phone call from the Progress for comment. Trendic said he understood the Sa-

Herrick removes Trendic as anniversary liaison Sabines reportedly resign as committee co-chairs; OPA president insists the board and staff are giving their full support to volunteer efforts bines had resigned as chairs and committee members, out of concern that the board was not authorizing the same kind of support that previous anniversary committees received. While the board has authorized $20,000 in seed money to allow the committee to function, there are differences in the nature of the support. Whether the committee accepts those differences remains to be seen. Acting General Manager Brett Hill has made it clear that the seed money will come with financial oversight, a point on which Herrick said he fully agrees. Hill told the Progress in a recent telephone interview that there are no “advance outlays” allowed within the OPA; cash in advance is a non-starter under protocols being put in place by the OPA’s new director of finance, Mary

Board allocates $20,000 in start-up funding for anniversary celebration By ROTA L. KNOTT Contributing Writer o kick off planning and fund-raising efforts for a celebration of the 50th anniversary of Ocean Pines’ founding, the Board of Directors has designated $20,000 in start-up funds. The funding is being made available to the 50th Anniversary Committee, now in any early organizational phase, to assist with celebratory events in 2018. Directors gave their initial endorsement to the funding during a Jan. 23 work session following a presentation by committee members Jennifer Cropper Rines and Sharyn O’Hare. Rines said the committee will sponsor five events next year and needs seed money to begin the planning process. The events includes a sign ceremony, parade, golf tournament, time capsule, and a winter ball. The funding will be used to cover the cost of advertising, banners, displays, shirts, bands and other items necessary for the events. Director Slobodan Trendic, at the time board liaison to the committee, called the request for $20,000 reasonable. He said the committee is not coming to the board asking for funding but rather it is “offering help for us to have successful celebration.” He said the Montgomery Village association’s Board of Directors allocated $50,000 for their

50th anniversary celebration last year. Director Pat Supik wanted more information about exactly what the committee is planning and the total expected cost before committing the $20,000. “Before we go into it we should have a general idea of what the end game be.” Director Dave Stevens agreed and said the motion is vague. “I don’t know what it means,” he said. OPA President Tom Herrick said everyone support the committee’s efforts, but agreed that the board needs more details as the committee moves through its planning process. Director Cheryl Jacobs, who participated in the work session via teleconference, asked how previous celebrations for Ocean Pines 25th and 35th anniversaries were handled. O’Hare, who chaired the 35th anniversary committee and serves as a committee member for the 50th, said that celebration included about 15 events throughout the anniversary year. “Everyone wanted to get involved. It was exciting.” She said, in addition to the committee’s official anniversary activities, community groups and clubs held commemorative events too. “It just blew up,” she said, adding that it had “fabulous community support.” The key to a successTo Page 18

Bozak, Hill said. He has asked the group for a budgetary framework from which disbursements from the allocated $20,000 will be made as needed and authorized. So far, it’s not clear whether the committee is prepared to work under the new financial protocols. There have some reports that the committee is prepared to do so and may even welcome the opportunity not to have handle cash and purchases. Another slight deviation from past anniversaries: Hill said that the OPA’s new marketing and public relations director, Denise Sawyer, has the expertise to design an anniversary logo and handle other graphics and public relations tasks associated with promoting the anniversary. But he said that still leaves plenty of room for committee involvement. Planning for five key events, similar to events held during prior anniversary celebrations, will occur in much the way they have previously, he said. In a Feb. 6 email to the Progress, Herrick explained why he had made the change in liaisons. “There were communication issues between committee members and the Board of Directors,” he said. “The board has professed nothing but complete support of the activities of this committee. This message was not being conveyed clearly by our liaison. I personally felt this was causing discord amongst committee members and change was needed.” Later, Herrick said that an article in a local weekly negatively portraying the board as not supporting the committee

Staff involvement From Page 15 of the 50th anniversary celebration next year. As the reigns of the OPA transition to a different person, it would be good to have something in writing about the board’s support for this and other committees, she said. Director Dave Stevens said he has no doubt the committee will be responsible in how it approaches the staff and in its use of staff time. He said it probably is not a good use of staff time to attend committee meetings, but staff does need to be involved in the committee’s planning of events and activities. For example, if the committee wants to hold a golf outing, then it needs to work with the golf course staff to coordinate the event, he said. “That’s the normal course of doing business,” he said, adding “It’s just com-

convinced him that a change in liaisons was warranted. On the issue of how when department heads and committee members are to interact, Herrick said “the general manager is the chief administrative officer of our association and must not only be informed of requests to the staff, but must also be the one to grant permission when staff assistance is to be administered. This policy must be adhered to for our organization to function properly.” Herrick said as of the time of his email, he had been unable to reach Mike Sabine to discuss his purported resignation. “I personally met Mike Sabine at his residence when the committee first started getting together and offered full support from the Board. After Mr. Sabine’s initial frustration of staff not responding to committee’s members’ direct requests, I again contacted Mr. Sabine via telephone, and explained that all requests from staff needed to go through the General Manager, so the GM would be made aware of these requests and then give the consent for staff participation. It was my understanding that this policy was understood,” he said. According to Herrick, Mike Sabine subsequently requested a meeting with Herrick and Hill, “which was agreed to and scheduled for Friday, Jan. 27, the day before our last board meeting. This meeting was later cancelled at Mr. Sabine’s request. Shortly after that Board meeting (Jan. 28) I again reached out to Mr. Sabine by e-mail and requested he contact me so we could discuss moving forward in a positive manner. He has, of yet, not contacted me back.” Herrick said he was “trying extremely hard to cooperate and work out an equitable solution and am hopeful the change in our Board liaison will contribute to this happening. I am unsure of what (Mike Sabine’s) own personal plans are in regards to this committee, but I am hopeful he will continue to be an active participant and work together with the board of directors, and our general manager, to make this 50-year anniversary celebration a huge success.” mon sense to do those things.” Herrick said he did not see a need for a formal motion. “I believe that the support is understood,” he added. Following the discussion, Jacobs made a motion to table Trendic’s proposal until the board’s February meeting. That will allow the board time to draft a motion that is more acceptable to the majority of directors. Supik gave a second to Jacobs’ motion to table, saying the board needs to “think through this” She said she does not want another committee to make a similar request for staff support next week. “I think the access is understood. I think support is clear.” But, Jacobs said “things that are supposedly understood get lost in translation.” So, there is no harm in putting it in writing, she said, and Jacobs volunteered to work on a draft for the February edition.

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017

o prevent the liberation of libations from the inventory at the Yacht Club, the Ocean Pines Association will be locking up its liquor. Installation of a gated inventory control system was among a series of capital expenditures approved by the Board of Directors during a Jan. 28 meeting. Director Brett Hill, who is also serving as OPA general manager, presented a request for approved of $20,000 for bar top improvements and heaters and heat lamps for the second floor of Mumford’s Landing, the former Yacht Club. Directors approved the expenditure but asked about bar gates that are part of the purchase. Hill said an operational review of internal processes at found inventory control issues related to alcohol at the dining amenity. He said the OPA maintains an inventory of $50,000 in beer, wine and liquor in the building. It is imperative that individual areas where alcohol is stored are secured. A $73,000 loss at the Yacht Club during December apparently convinced him that dramatic action was needed. He didn’t explicitly indicate that he believes the dreaded industry scurge of “shrinkage” has been occurring at the restaurant and bar amenity, but he might as well have. In a conversation with the Progress, Hill said that in his tenure as acting general manager he has hired 18 new staffers for the amenity, after having let go 13. There has been no public disclosure of any individual being accused of stealing liquor or food from the Yacht Club, but Hill said that he has been keeping board members fully apprised of “developments” at the Yacht Club in recent closed meetings and in documents posted in a Dropbox online folder accessible only to directors. The building was previously on one master key, with an unknown number of current and former employees having access to keys. To prevent unauthorized access, Hill said the overall building security system has been changed to a key card entry, and many doors that had been accessible have been “blanked out” electronically, and no longer can be opened from the outside. Adding to the new emphasis on

OPA locks up liquor, tightens access to Yacht Club restaurant Hill adds gated inventory control, key card entry By ROTA L. KNOTT Contributing Writer security, included in the 2017-18 budget is funding for three security staffers. Having secured the perimeter of building, Hill also has turned his attention to controlling interior access to the liquor. Once staffers are inside the building during business hours and when the facility is not open to the public, they have had full access to the where the liquor is stored. He said the most effective way to barricade the booze at Mumford’s Landing’s bars is to install gates across the doorways during non-operating hours. During operating hours, the gates will “close up like and accordion” and be rolled into storage, he said. “You have the building locked to begin with and this would be in addition to that?” Director Cheryl Jacobs asked, seeming to suggest that the security gates might be overkill. Hill in effect said in effect that everything he was implemented is justified given the magnitude of the problem. Hill said the objective is to prevent access to the alcohol when the building is open but the bars are not in operation. “Once you walk in, you can self-serve if you wandered off into any area,” he said. The gates will hold staff and visitors accountable during non-operating hours, he added. Hill told directors there have been numerous changes at the dining amenity during the last six weeks, including its christening as Mumford’s Landing. He said he has identified some areas of improvement in overall operations and is working with staff to make those changes and run as efficiently as possible. New furniture, televisions, and a point of sale system have all be in-

stalled. He said the priority is to ensure that customer have a good experience. Bridge utility lines -- The OPA will have to foot the bill for relocating Verizon’s utility lines on the Ocean Parkway and Clubhouse Drive bridges as part of the rehabilitation of those structures. Hill presented for board approval a change order to the bridge project at a cost of $26,030. The board unanimously approved the change order.. Hill told his fellow directors that the OPA is contractually bound to cover the cost under its agreement with the

Start-up funding From Page 16 ful celebration is board and association support, O’Hare said. “This is not going to be done with $20,000 I can assure you. Our budget was well over that,” O’Hare said of the 35th anniversary. She said the board gave that committee seed money that was used to cover the cost of activities that didn’t generate revenue. She said that funding helped to generate sponsorships, sell tickets, and engage businesses and other groups in the celebration. O’Hare said many of the events held during the 35th anniversary celebra-

utility company. He said legal counsel reviewed the agreement and confirmed that it is the OPA’s responsibility to pay for that portion of the project. Jacobs wanted to know if the OPA asked Verizon to pay for the expenditure. OPA President Tom Herrick said the OPA did ask Verizon to assume the cost and the utility company informed the association of its responsibility to do so instead. “So we reached out to counsel and counsel said we’re responsible,” Herrick said. Hill said work on the Clubhouse Drive bridge is now about 75 percent complete and the Ocean Parkway bridge is nearly 25 percent complete. He said contractors are in the process of relocating the utilities on both bridges. Worcester County reimbursed the OPA for $40,000 in expenditures for relocation of its water and wastewater lines on those bridges. Commissioners President Jim Bunting and Commissioner Chip Bertino “took action to reimburse us for that change order” to the project, Hill told board members. The bridge repairs will address safeTo Page 22 tion were self-sufficient when it came to funding. The fund-raising effort was so successful that there was funding leftover. That was used to help pay for the community-built playground in Manklin Meadows and to generate the Veterans Memorial at the Sports Core. Director and Acting General Manager Brett Hill was concerned about management of the finances for the 50th anniversary committee. Trendic said committee members have contacted the OPA’s Budget and Finance Advisory Committee for assistance with budgeting for the yearlong celebration. He said the committee is considering having the OPA handle all financial transactions for the anniversary events.

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February 2017

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017

By ROTA L. KNOTT Contributing Writer espite a mutiny by two directors, a crew of Ocean Pines Association directors recently managed to sail a pirate ship safely to port at Mumford’s Landing, more familiarly known as the Ocean Pines Yacht Club. The Board of Directors voted 5-2 during a Jan. 28 meeting to raise the Jolly Roger outside the amenity despite an outcry from residents who say it is incompatible with the adults-only swimming pool and three bars inside the Yacht Club. A motion by Director Slobodan Trendic not to approve installation of the pirate ship playground at Mumford Landing as recommended by the acting general manager prompted extensive

Projects update From Page 18 ty concerns and are expected to extend the useful life of the bridges. Ultimately, the OPA anticipates replacement for the bridges based on state and federal funding availability. However, the repair work will improve the bridge’s rating on the scale used by the state to justify spending on bridges. The improved rating could mean it takes longer to secure funding for bridge replacement. Huntington Park conversion -Conversion of the OPA’s baseball fields

Pirate ship to dry-dock on Yacht Club decking Board majority rejects argument that donated playground equipment is too close to adults-only swimming pool debate about the proposal. Director Cheryl Jacobs gave a second to Trendic’s motion, saying the board has received extensive input from community members who feel the location for the playground is not suitable. Trendic said he is not opposed to having a playground outside of Mumford’s Landing, but not at the site selected by the acting general manager. The motion

called on the general manager to seek another location outside of the restaurant where the play structure could be located instead. Director Brett Hill, who is serving as acting general manager, said a donor -- revealed to be Tim McMullen and his foundation honoring his late wife, Mary, the founder of Ocean Pines’ summer youth program decades ago -- offered to

at Huntington Park to soccer and lacrosse fields is under way. Hill said OPA public works crews recently removed the playground equipment from the park and new equipment is in place. The new field is prepped and waiting for irrigation installation to begin. White Horse Park bathrooms -New bathrooms in White Horse Park are nearing completion, with a walkthrough with the contractor scheduled for early February. Hill said there were a few punch list items left for the contractor to complete, but the bathrooms are “100 percent usable.” He said Public

Works is debating whether to winterize the facilities for a few weeks and reopen them in warmer weather. Beach Club -- At the Beach Club, renovation of the bathrooms is finally under way, Hill said. He expects completion in early April. Country Club -- At the Country Club, repairs have been made to the shingled portion of the roof and are in progress on the flat roof. Hill said he just received engineering drawings for the expanded Tern’s Grille dining area. That project is “a little behind,” but demolition is expected to occur in February.

provide the pirate ship play structure to the OPA and specified its installation at Mumford’s Landing. Hill said he has already evaluated the entire Mumford’s Landing site and there is no other location at which the play structure can be placed. He indicated that Trendic was aware of that and, therefore, asked, “So what is the effect of the motion?” Trendic said his motion represents “the voice of the community members” and their opposition to the proposal. He said if no viable alternative location were found at Mumford’s Landing, then the board would have to revisit the idea of building a buccaneer’s boat there. OPA President Tom Herrick asked Trendic if he had an alternative location to propose. Trendic responded “no” and said he trusts Hill to review the options and recommend a different location. But, Director Dave Stevens said Hill had already done just that. “And he has stated that there is no other viable location at the Yacht Club in the Mumford’s complex,” he said. “You have that answer.” He went on to ask the meaning of the motion. “Is your motion going to convert to say no playground at all?” he asked. “If it’s an impossible motion thenhow can we vote on it?’ During the public comments segment of the board meeting a handful of residents spoke up in opposition to installq

22 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

Board hires new auditing firm Herrick calls out newspaper for false report of Community Center as ‘profit center’ By TOM STAUSS Publisher he 20-year reign of TGM as the Ocean Pines Association auditing firm has ended, with the Board of Directors voting 6-0 Feb. 10 to approve the Stout, Causey and Horning (SC&H) Group from Hunt Valley, Md., as the replacement. Director Slobodan Trendic was tending to a personal matter involving his wife’s recent surgery and was unable to participate. The action was taken because “we needed another set of eyes” to review the books, Acting General Manager Brett Hill informed his colleagues. The SC&H offer was approved from among a number of competing firms. SC&H was chosen because of its size – 300 associates, according to Hill -- and sterling reputation. Hill said one of the firm’s partners will be in Ocean Pines the week of Feb. 13 to begin the audit of the 2016-17 fiscal year that ends April 30. The SC&H partner will be assisting in the transition of retiring Controller Art Carmine as he hands off financial oversight to the new Director of Finance, Mary Bozak, Hill said. OPA President Tom Herrick said in a telephone interview after the vote that the contract with SC&H is for $34,000, with $28,000 for the annual audit and another $6,000 in tax compliance costs. Also at the Feb. 10 board meeting, OPA President Tom Herrick in opening remarks took exception to a report in a local weekly newspaper that seemed to suggest that the board wanted to convert the Community Center into a profit center. “I don’t even think Donald Trump could achieve that,” Herrick said. The mis-reporting may have occurred because, during discussion of drop-in pickleball fees for use of the gym at the Community Center in a Feb. 6 budget meeting, there was some mention of running amenities “like a business” or “more like a business,” which isn’t to say that they must or will make a profit. In particular, the OPA’s Parks and Recreation Department currently carries an operating deficit of roughly $600,000 per year, which Director Dave Stevens said shouldn’t be considered a “loss” but a cost to the association. Fees for classes and various programs offset some of the expense of operating the department, but can’t be expected to turn it into a profit center, Herrick said. The drop-in fees for pickleball, approved by the board during the Feb. 10 meeting, came in for some sharp criticism by a member of the Pickleball Club board of directors, Neil Gottesman. Another club board member, Julie Woulfe, made similar remarks during the Feb. 6 work session.

Gottesman said the board’s imposition of fees on pickleball drop-in play, in addi-

tion to the annual membership fees, is unfair and discriminatory. He said four groups, some of which make annual donations to the OPA, don’t pay for the privilege of using the gymnasium. He identified the four groups as the Shape-ups exercise group, the ping pong group, the walkers, and the line-dancing group. Stevens during discussion said some groups using the Community Center gymnasium escape fees because they’ve been “grandmothered” or “grandfathered.” Ocean Pines civic or charitable organizations that use meeting rooms at the Community Center also tend to do so without cost to them. Gottesman and Woulfe both argued, unsuccessfully it appears, that tacking on drop-in fees to annual membership fees will cause pickleball members to drop their memberships. Some might migrate to area venues with drop-in fees but no membership fees, he said. Gottesman later told the Progress that while he’s appreciative of the board decision to drop membership rates the cost of drop-in play can be very pricey for a husband and wife dropping in once a week -- $3 per person or $6 for both. That’s $24 a month or $312 per year in addition to membership fees.

Pirate ship From Page 22 ing the play structure near Mumford’s Landing. They said rambunctious children would disturb members at the adults-only pool, it would interfere with restaurant business, and could be a safety hazard because its proximity to the water. Director Doug Parks refuted those allegations and said the pirate ship would be located far enough away from the restaurant and tiki bar so as not to disturb patrons. He also said he does not anticipate that parents will just drop of their children at the playground and go into the dining facility. “I don’t think responsible parents would use the pirate ship playground as a pseudo daycare,” he said. Stevens said directors received dozens of emails from property owners about the proposed playground, but not all of them were in opposition. He acknowledged the principal complaint was from members who do not want to be disturbed at the pool or bar. He said that is an easy fix; if it becomes a problem, the hours the play structure is open can be changed. As for a fear by some that children will be running loose around the facility, he

New golf carts

A fleet of 76 Yamaha QuieTech carts was delivered the week of Jan. 9. The new fuel-efficient, gas-powered carts feature USB charging ports and sound almost as quiet as electric, according to Yamaha. “The feedback we’ve gotten from golfers – both Ocean Pines residents and nonresidents – has been entirely positive. The carts are quiet, smooth and so much better than the old ones,” said Ocean Pines PGA Director of Golf John Malinowski. The old cart fleet, which was purchased by Ocean Pines in July 2008, was returned to Yamaha as part of a trade-in agreement. said, “Adult supervision is required for young people whether they are in designated play area or not.” Of those residents in favor of the project, many of the comments received by the board came from parents “who intuitively understood the value” of having the play area at Mumford’s Landing. They want a place for their children to play before or after dinner, Stevens said. “If you don’t want it, don’t say find an alternative location. There is none,” he told Trendic. Stevens said many changes are being made at the Yacht Club to make it more inclusive and he does not know if that will result in additional revenue. “But, it’s the right direction. It’s trying to make the Yacht Club popular for many people, not just the people who go to the pool,” Stevens added. Jacobs also wanted to look for a different location near Mumford’s Landing for the play structure. She said there are many reasons why the site selected by Hill may not be the best location. She said it is important to have an amenity like the Yacht Club pool where residents can go without children because all of the other amenities are designated for families. Herrick reiterated that staff has analyzed the entire Yacht Club property

and there is no other location available for the play structure. He said the OPA needs to move forward in an aggressive manner to offer more amenities for families. “I will always think about what’s best for entire association,” he said, adding this proposal encourages families to go to Mumford’s Landing. “Indirectly it helps the entire association.” Hill said Trendic’s motion “does nothing.” Instead, he offered an amendment to the motion to approve docking of the pirate ship at Mumford’s Landing. Stevens gave a second to the amendment, which passed in a 5-2 vote, Trendic and Jacobs opposed. “This was dropped on us,” Jacobs said, adding there was no board discussion of the proposal prior to a work session a few days earlier. “Now all we’re trying to do is put brakes on this” to determine the best location, she said. If not, she said, then maybe the play area would just not be open to children during pool hours. “But we’re not there yet.” Supik said her role as a board member is to do what is best for the entire community. While many members were vocal about their opposition to having the play structure at the amenity, those who would actually use it “may be home with their children.” Therefore she said she supported the proposal.

24 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OPA FINANCES

February 2017

OPA maintains negative operating fund variance for FY ‘16-’17 Yacht Club recorded a $72,000 loss in December and slipped into deficit territory for the year By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Ocean Pines Association remained in negative territory eight months into the 2016-17 fiscal year relative to budget, with December financial results indicating that the OPA has a cumulative negative operating fund variance of $191,866. Contributing to that was a negative operating variance of $133,835 in December. While the OPA is falling behind budget forecasts for the year, actual results indicate that the OPA is still in surplus after eight months. The surplus is $2.5 million, compared to the forecast $2.66 million. The difference is a negative $152,128, excluding new capital expenditures. With new capital expenditures over budget by $39,738, the net operating variance to budget is pushed to a negative $191,866 through eight months of operation. According to Controller Art Carmine’s December financial report, the OPA’s

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2017-18 OPA BUDGET From Page 24 negative operating fund variance of $133.835 for the month was driven by revenues that were under budget by $30,956 and total expenses over budget by $57,434. New capital expenditures were over budget by $45,445. There are essentially three ways to look at OPA financial performance. One is to measure actual results against budget, with either positive or negative variances possible. Another is simply actual results, which can be surpluses or deficits. Both measurements are presented in OPA financial reports for a particular month and cumulatively for the entire fiscal year. The monthly financial reports posted on the OPA Web site under documents also include detailed break-outs for each amenity department, along with yearto-date numbers for the current and previous year, making year-over-year comparisons possible. Year-over-year performance is the third way to measure financial performance. The OPA runs its fiscal year from May 1 through April 30 of the following year. Amenity performance in December was typical for this time of year. All three racquet sports, aquatics, golf operations, the Beach Club, Beach Club parking and marinas recorded losses for the month, as they did in November. Also recording a deficit for the month was the Yacht Club. Its $71,932 loss was the worst for this amenity in recent memory. It slipped into deficit territory for the year during December. Its cumulative loss is $7,095 and its negative variance to budget is $186,031. Golf operations recorded a $46,728 loss for the month, with a $5,722 negative variance to budget. For the year through December, golf is $57,651 in the red and is behind budget by $110,129 for the year. All other major amenities remain in the black for the first eight months of the year. Of the amenities which are still open for business during the winter months, Aquatics remains the most profitable for the OPA, with a $98,513 surplus through December. Tennis was $6,766 in the black; pickleball, $6,727 to the good; and platform tennis, with a $2,640 surplus. Three amenities that are shuttered for the winter all recorded robust surpluses during late spring, winter and early fall. Beach Club parking is in the black by $391,291, marinas operations are ahead by $214,893, and Beach Club food and beverage operations recorded a $153,439 surplus through December. All three won’t change much for the remaining months of the fiscal year. Reserve Summary – The OPA through Dec. 31 had $7.39 million allocated to reserves, down from $7.47 million through the end of November. The reserve balance was composed of $5 million in the Major Maintenance and Replacement reserve, $1.84 in bulk-

Board tinkers with draft 2017-18 budget Base lot assessments remain at $921 By TOM STAUSS Publisher udget review sessions in January produced no major, substantive changes in the proposed 2017-18 Ocean Pines Association budget unveiled by Acting General Manager Brett Hill in mid-January. The $13.5 million spending plan calls for no increase in lot assessments, stable amenity fees (substantially overhauled in February meetings), and $650,000 in supplemental funding of replacement reserves in addition to funded depreciation of $1.6 million. After extended discussion, the directors voted 6-0 with one abstention to ac-

heads and waterways, and $548,777 in roads. The operating recovery reserve was zeroed out in September. There are two components of the maintenance and replacement reserve. One, the so-called historic reserve, composed of funded depreciation, had a balance of $5,519,091 as of Dec. 31. The supplemental legacy reserve, once known as the five-year-plan, carried a negative balance of $517,212. Balance Sheet – As of Dec. 31, the OPA had total assets of $33.85 million, up from $32.14 million a year previous. The assets were matched by $1.57 million in liabilities and $33.28 million in owner equity. Cash on hand for operating purposes as of Dec. 31 was $1.9 million, with short term investments totaling $7.57 million.

cept Hill’s recommendation of $650,000 in supplemental replacement reserve funding, which is down from roughly $864,000 in supplemental funding this year. The additional money in previous years has been attached to what variously has been called the legacy component of the replacement reserve and the five-year-plan component. In the draft 2017-18 budget, the legacy component has been eliminated, effectively merged with the historic component of the replacement reserve into a single reserve formally known as the Major Maintenance and Replacement Reserve. While the legacy reserve is now an artifact of previous budgets, its funding stream remains. Three directors – Dave Stevens, Slobodan Trendic and Doug Parks – questioned Hill on the need for the supplemental $650,000 in replacement reserve funding, with Parks at one point reminding his colleagues that some Ocean Pines property owners regard it as a “slush fund” for as yet undetermined capital projects. By voting to retain that dollar amount, which added to funded depreciation extracts a total of $2.25 million in new assessment contributions to the replacement reserve in the 2017-18 budget, the directors forfeited their last, best chance of reducing the assessment next year. But that reduction was never truly an objective of a board majority in the 2017-18 budget process. Early on, both OPA President Tom Herrick and Hill signaled their desire to keep assessments the same and their intentions to build a budget around that concept. Herrick told the Progress recently that lowering

the assessment in 2017-18 could mean that they would have to be increased the following year, with the lack of consistency causing unnecessary upset. He also said that he was reluctant to lower assessments pending a new capital improvement plan that could indicate current or even higher funding levels are needed to finance new and replacement capital expenditures. The three skeptics took the opposite view – that the OPA shouldn’t be collecting assessments from property owners until such time as there are specific, identified needs for it. Trendic said funding the full $650,000 costs property owners $77 in their lot assessment, and that eliminating it could be done safely without materially affecting Ocean Pines’ solid financial footing. Stevens, who in the end abstained from voting for the $650,000 in supplemental funding, said he believed – as opposed to having hard evidence – that the replacement reserve doesn’t need it because it’s already contains more than is needed. He volunteered --- and Herrick and other directors agreed – to head up a task force to take another crack at producing a capital improvement plan for the OPA. Hill said that he would ask Facilities Manager Jerry Aveta, who worked with Stevens on a previous effort to produce a new CIP, to join the effort. Previously, Stevens has said that such a task force would scrub last year’s reserve study and use it as a basis for developing a new CIP. In a conversation with the Progress, Herrick held out hope that the $650,000 in supplemental funding approved in 2017-18 can be lowered next year. He ac-

OPA finances

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

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2017-18 OPA BUDGET

February 2017

Assessments From Page 25 knowledged that the current board has made significant strides in dealing with OPA’s aging asset base and that these actions – at the Country Club, Beach Club and administration building – could reduce pressures for major capital expenditures in the future. On the other side, two directors – Pat Supik and Cheryl Jacobs – seemed inclined to increase the supplemental reserve funding above the approved $650,000. During a Jan. 28 budget review session Jacobs said it should be much higher, without naming a dollar figure or defending her position. Supik referred to an ideal objective of $22 million for the replacement reserve, without explaining where that gossamer number came from. She has never expressly said what level of funding she would support for the replacement reserve, probably well aware that as currently constituted, the board would be unlikely to approve any amount above $650,000. As proposed, the April 2018 replacement reserve balance is projected at $4.2 million, and that’s after renovation of the Country Club is expected to be largely complete over the coming year. Had the board voted to defund the legacy or five-year-plan component in addition to eliminating it on paper, the projected maintenance and replacement reserve balance would be roughly $3.55 million in April of 2018.

That’s still much higher than it has been at various times in the past ten years. Several directors mentioned possible future projects for which reserve money might be needed. Stevens advocated for two new platform tennis courts – other directors agreed to add to the 2017-18 capital buddet – as well as golf course drainage upgrades, at least on holes eight and nine. Jacobs asked that funds be included for lighting the skateboark park in White Horse Park. Hill suggested a new indoor pickleball building at the Swim and Racquet Club campus, on space now occupied by the two tennis courts. Even Trendic suggested that the OPA needs to look seriously at replacing/upgrading the North Gate bridge, which he has long described as an eyesore that gives a poor first impression of Ocean Pines. While the draft budget for 2017-18 is coasting along in the review process without major revisions, some directors have expressed skepticism about components contained within it. Trendic has questioned substantially higher payroll expenses throughout. Stevens said the Yacht Club department seems aggressively overfunded on revenues, with Trendic making similar comments about the Beach Club. Hill defended both as worthy objectives. He said that recent Yacht Club cosmetic improvements, new furnishings, new staffing and menus, point of sale equipment, inventory controls and

security staff should begin to pay off over the course of the year. In a Dec. 3 telephone interview with the Progress, Hill said many former employees had keys to access the building in numerous doors that have since been blanked out electronically. Working with the vendor who had installed the key system that Hill said had never been functional when the building opened four years ago, that access has now been cut off. Alcohol also will be kept under separate lock and key under a newly installed security system. Three security personnel have been added to the budget to make sure staff and former staff are not tempted to make late night visits to the Yacht Club. Hill acknowledged that the $72,000 loss incurred at the Yacht Club in December gave him sleepless nights, prompting him to make substantive operational changes that will continue apace. He has let go 13 employees and hired 18 new ones during his tenure, he said. At the Beach Club, Hill said that he projects much higher revenues from keeping the facility open past sunset. He said that Aquatics Director Colby Phillips has talked with Ocean City officials about having portable lighting installed at the Beach Club pool to enable keeping it open well past its traditional closing hour. Supik questioned Hill during budget discussions about the projected April, 2018, balance in the bulkhead and waterways reserve of $48,000.

Hill acknowledged that it was very low by historical standards, reflecting anticipated emergency repairs for 16 properties with failing bulkheads from a worm infestation. The projected increase in operational costs next year is attributed in the draft to a three percent increase in payroll, driven in part by a 50 cent per hour increase in the minimum wage and health care benefits for full-time employees projected to rise at a 10 percent annual rate. Expected increases in overtime from new and pending legislation is also cited in Hill’s executive summary. The executive summary states that amenity financial results in the proposed budget are projected on a “realistic basis” and reflect “continuing efforts to increase revenues through greater usage, as well as decreasing expenses where feasible.” According to a forecast/budget comparison worksheet, certain amenities – the Yacht Club, Beach Club and golf, in that order – are expected to generate much more in revenue next year than they are projected to do this year. Yacht Club revenues would increase to $1.5 million, up $394,484 from this year’s projection. Beach Club food and beverage revenues would increase to $528,787, up about $200,000 from the current year. Golf revenues would increase by more than $102,000. With the hefty increase in Yacht Club revenue, the draft budget anticipates a $1,605 operating surplus for the amen-

26 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

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2017-18 OPA BUDGET

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

Board avoids raising assessment to accommodate credit card use

he Board of Directors debated but in the end took no action to raise the lot assessment as a way of allowing property owners to pay their lot assessments via credit card. Instead, during a discussion at a board budget work session Feb. 10, the directors decided to study the issue in more detail and possibly take action on it for the 2018-19 fiscal year. Acting General Manager Brett Hill proposed raising the lot assessment this year from $921 to $945 for property owners paying by credit card or by check or cash after the May 1 due date. Those paying by check or cash before May 1 would have been given a pre-payment discount, keeping their assessment at the current $921. Two directors, Dave Stevens and Pat Supik, pushed back against the idea that there would be a defacto convenience charge levied against property owners who would choose to pay by credit card. They both suggested that they were amenable to the idea of allowing property owners to pay their assessments using credit cards, but with the proviso that the OPA simply absorb the 2.5 percent fee charged by card issuers for the privilege of paying that way. They suggested that a large number of people paying by credit card might improve the OPA’s collection rate, thus offsetting any loss of revenue resulting from the card company’s 2.5 surcharge. “It won’t be the full 2.5 percent,” Supik said. But Hill said the 2.5 percent fee would be a “hefty amount” to absorb, and he seemed unwilling to recommend allowing use of credit cards this year if it didn’t entail imposing the 2.5 upcharge to users. In the end, he said it might be too late to take action on the proposal in time for implementation in the 2017-18 fiscal year. The directors agreed. The OPA continues allows credit card use for amenities with a convenience fee.

Assessments From Page 26 ity next year. Golf would lose $90,318, and the Beach Club would generate a $238,161 surplus. In the case of the Yacht Club and golf, these results would constitute a rather significant change in trend. Hill said that the Beach Club increase would come from operating more in the shoulder months and also from a new program to sell daily Beach Club memberships to the general public. While Beach Club parking permits have been available for purchase by non-Ocean Pines property owners and residents in recent years, the club’s liquor license permits sale of alcohol to club members only. The daily club memberships are designed to comply with the license requirements.

In addition, Hill is proposing to increase the number of parking spaces by adding a crushed stone surface – not blacktop – and painting stripes to squeeze in more parking. If revenue and net results have been aggressively budgeted in the draft, another amenity, aquatics, had been treated more conservatively. Although Aquatics Director Colby Phillips has said that it’s possible Aquatics will break even this year – she’s very hopeful of that – the latest forecast shows a loss this year of $32,371. The draft budget projects little change next year, with a $32,519 projected loss. The finance department has been projected for a substantial increase next year, to $645,473, up from the current year’s $583,250 projection. A newly created position of information technology director has been shifted out of the administration department to finance.

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By TOM STAUSS Publisher irector Slobodan Trendic, who has suggested that the Ocean Pines Association may be imposing higher fees on delinquent accounts than allowed by law, apparently has found no support among his colleagues on the Board of Directors for a roll-back in the rate. During a budget review meeting in late January, the board informally agreed to keep the interest rate – it technically could be a late fee rather than interest – at 20 percent annually, assessed in pro rata increments monthly. Director and Acting General Manager Brett Hill told his colleagues that after receiving two separate legal opinions that the OPA can impose an interest rate of 20 percent on delinquent accounts, he believes the board should take a separate vote on the interest rate at the same time that it approves the 2017-18 budget in February, He said it should be a separate vote because a former OPA director, George Colburn, in a letter published last year in the Progress, pointed out that OPA governing documents require the board to set the rate in a public meeting. A former lawyer and law school professor, Colburn said the OPA could be successfully sued by a delinquent property owner for any fees collected in years without a separate vote on the interest rate.

2017-18 OPA BUDGET

February 2017

Board to assess 20 percent interest rate on deliquencies Directors to cast separate vote on late fees when the 2017-18 budget is approved in February; no action so far on Trendic amnesty proposal Trendic has also raised the issue of a separate vote, and in that, at the very least, he has received support, albeit grudgingly, by colleagues who otherwise disagree with him. Slobodan Trendic Trendic, well aware that his colleagues did not agree with his previous call for a lower interest rate, did not object when Hill said the rate should continue to be 20 percent. But he later told the Progress that he continues to believe the 20 percent rate could be challenged in court by any property owner on technical grounds. Trendic first raised the issue of the 20 percent interest rate back in October. He posed the question of whether the

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board should adopt a new policy on collecting delinquencies, especially those that have risen dramatically because of interest or late fee levies tacked on to actual past due amounts. Buried in the debate was a suggestion, that Trendic didn’t have much opportunity to flesh out because he was meeting some resistance from his colleagues, that the board might consider an amnesty of some sort to entice those with delinquencies to clear their accounts. The idea of an amnesty has not been addressed, at least publicly, by the directors since that October meeting. At the October meeting, Trendic told the board that since 2010, there has been a tripling of delinquencies recorded on OPA annual audit reports. “It’s an alarming trend,” he said. “Should the board consider a new policy (to reverse that trend)? he asked his

colleagues. Trendic said that more than $500,000 of the $1.1 million currently owed the association consists of delinquencies with very high balances, and those very high balances are often inflated because of the late charges imposed on them on a monthly basis. In some cases, he said, “accrued interest is higher than the assessment owed.” Trendic said OPA declaration of restrictions specify that an interest rate for delinquent accounts should be set every year in February when the budget for the next fiscal year is adopted by the board. He noted there appears to be no record of such an interest rate established by a separate vote of the board in recent years. “If we’re not complying with the DRs, we better put (setting an interest rate for 2016-17) on the agenda for February,” he advised his colleagues. “If I was one of those delinquent, what is my motivation to settle” if the OPA is tacking on fees not authorized by the board. Trendic then suggested some sort of amnesty program – an obvious component could include a waiver of late fees – as a way of reducing the amount owed the OPA. “This is not a reflection on the staff,” he said. “We’re not the only association with a problem.”

OPA-OPVFD funding pact to be rewritten in formal contract OPVFD accepts $31,000 cut in year-over-year funding support By TOM STAUSS Publisher n agreement that dates back to the 2011-12 fiscal year between the Ocean Pines Association and the independent Ocean Pines Volunteer Fire Department will be simplified in the form of a formal contract, replacing the “memo of understanding” that has governed the funding relationship between the two organizations. Acting OPA General Manager Brett Hill disclosed the prospect of a new, formal contract in a brief conversation with the Progress in late January. He said the MOA that governs the funding relationship isn’t really binding on the two organizations because it isn’t a formal contract. That will be remedied, and at the same time the convoluted so-called “true-up” mechanisms in the MOA, which Hill has said he finds confusing if not impossible to understand, will be simplified. Hill said that OPVFD officials, who he had planned to invite to a meeting of the Board of Directors to discuss the OPVFD budget allocation from the OPA for 2017-18, would not need to do so be-

cause the department has accepted the $476,429 budget allocation for fire and emergency services support that appears in the draft budget unveiled by Hill in mid-January. The allocation represents a $31,092 reduction in OPA funding for the department year over year. Hill did not offer an explanation for how he and his staff arrived at the lower number The Board of Directors called in OPA attorney Joseph Moore for a closed session in December to discuss the memo of understanding, but Hill and his colleagues came away not particularly better informed than before the session began. One director told the Progress that Moore, who was not intimately involved in negotiating the MOA but probably had reviewed it in passing, barely remembered it. According to Progress reporting at the time, the agreement in part was drawn up to deal with the fact that the OPVFD had been receiving significant insurance company reimbursement covering ambulance calls, for which, under To Page 30

October - Early November 2015Ocean Pines PROGRESS February 2017Ocean Pines PROGRESS

33 29

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2017-18 OPA BUDGET

February 2017

Trendic calls OPA insurance benefits for department heads too generous

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The Ocean Pines Garden Club installed officers for 2017 during an installation luncheon at The Cove at Mumford’s Landing on Jan. 12. Pictured are, left to right, Sue Sewell, covice-president (Margaret Yates, co-vice-president, not shown); Anita Roberts, corresponding secretary; Linda Baker, recording secretary; Daryl Carpenter, treasurer; and Meg Herrick, president. The OPGC meets on the second Thursday of each month at the Community Center in Ocean Pines.

Says OPA practices may run afoul of labor legulations because they treat classes of employees differently By TOM STAUSS Publisher ontinuing to push ideas that most of his board colleagues are unwilling to accept as worthy of study or implementation, Director Slobodan Trendic recently suggested that the Board of Directors should consider changes in what he regards as overly generous health insurance benefits for department heads. Calling some of the OPA’s employee policies outdated and in need of an overhaul, Trendic honed in employer- paid health insurance benefits for families of department heads. He said more typical practice these days is for employers to pay roughly 70 percent of health insurance costs for family members of employees. The OPA pays 100 percent of health insurance costs for families of department heads, Trendic said. Trendic made his comments during a board work session Jan. 23. He said there were a number of problems with the OPA approach, not the least of which is that paying 100 percent of health insurance costs for department heads and their families contribute to rising payroll expenses, which he cited as a factor in the 2017-18 budget currently under board review. He previously has that the OPA’s large number of department heads compared to homeowner association-run communities such as Montgomery Village and Columbia also contributes to the padding of OPA departmental budgets. He said the practice of giving department heads more generous family health insurance benefits than rankand-file employees of the OPA could run afoul of law and labor regulations. “Whether it is in compliance with current rules and regulations and whether it’s fair to all employees needs to be evaluated,” Trendic told his colleagues. He suggested that the OPA hire an outside auditing firm to look at the benefits packages for department heads and others employed by the OPA. Acting General Manager Brett Hill said the board did just that back in September, with a report due back to the OPA “in a few weeks.” Trendic indicated he was aware of that action, but added that when he recently asked Hill for a copy of the scope of work, Hill “didn’t deliver.” Trendic said he had a “serious concern” about whether the auditing firm will specifically address the issue of

whether department heads can be given family insurance benefits not made available to all employees. Hill responded that the “deliverables” requested by Trendic had been included in the board packet back in September, but Hill said he had looked for it in the Dropbox folder where board materials are stored for easy access by directors but he couldn’t find the document in question. Director and OPA Treasurer Pat Supik seemed to acknowledge that Trendic’s point was worthy of evaluation but said that it couldn’t be done in time for any impact on the 2017-18 budget. She called health insurance an issue with “longer term” impacts on the OPA budget. Director Doug Parks seemed more supportive of Trendic’s concerns, telling his colleagues that if the OPA’s policy of more generous benefits for department heads “is not in compliance (with labor law and regulations), we need to know immediately.” He didn’t say what the board would do with the information once it had it, but the choices would seem somewhat obvious. Either the board would have to require department heads to contribute more toward the cost of family members’ insurance, or the board could offer exactly the same benefit to employees who aren’t department heads. Director Dave Stevens seemed unconcerned about the concerns raised by Trendic. “I’m not worried about it until someone says it’s a problem,” Stevens said. Perhaps sensing that he did not have support from a majority of his colleagues about the need to evaluate the issue he raised, Trendic did not offer a motion on it at the regular board of directors meeting Jan. 28. He told the Progress that he would continue to stay on the issue because of its substantial impact of health insurance costs on the OPA budget. “I was not elected to the board to push these kinds of issues under the rug,” he said.

OPVFD contract From Page 28 an earlier operating agreement, the OPA also was providing reimbursement to the OPVFD. Under OPA founding documents, the OPA was responsible for providing fire protection to Ocean Pines residents. That function was later delegated to the OPVFD as an independent organization eligible to receive state and county funding support identical to that provided other fire companies in the county. Under a subsequent agreement, the OPA began subsidizing universal ambulance service on behalf of all residents in Ocean Pines, for which the annual contribution to the OPVFD from the OPA was, in part, designed to cover. In addition, the MOA was drafted to deal with the fact that the OPVFD reaps some financial benefit from its annual house lotto fund-raiser. The board at the time the MOA was drafted didn’t want to discourage the OPVFD from continuing to fund-raise, because the result from less fundraising probably would have been for the department to ask the OPA for a larger operating subsidy. The MOA essentially was crafted to establish a funding model for continued financial support of the OPVFD without the chance of any double-dipping for ambulance call reimbursement, while at the same time incentivizing, or at least discouraging, the department from continuing its annual house lotto. The MOA lists all of the OPVFD’s revenue sources, excluding a substantial portion of its house lotto or other fundraising. These revenue sources include an annual Worcester County appropriation for both fire and ambulance services, grants and other revenue from bequests, gifts and fundraising in excess of $150,000, insurance company reimbursements for ambulance calls, and interest income. The MOA also lists department expenses, including those related to operations, capital reserve costs, and debt service. The difference between the two re-

sults in what the MOA calls the unadjusted budget request. According to the agreement, the OPA “shall make” an annual adjustment to this “unadjusted” of revenue less expenses for two itemized reasons. One adjustment would be for “cumulative fund-raising” amounts in excess of $150,000. Since the house lotto fund-raiser takes place over the summer months and into early fall, net proceeds of ticket sales less the cost of the home (donated at cost by a local builder) could at least in theory exceed $150,000 by the end of the OPA’s fiscal year in April. If it’s been a good year for fund-raising, any amount collected in excess of $150,000 would be added to the revenue column, thereby reducing the amount the OPA would owe the OPVFD the following year. The other adjustments could occur from the OPA either under- or over-funding the department based on actual financial performance, although here the MOA’s language is at best opaque. If the adjustments are based on actual performance compared to what was budgeted the previous year, that is not made clear in the MOA. On that point alone, Hill’s confusion would appear to be justified. “Any under-funding contributed from the previous year’s funding contributed by the Association shall be added to the Unadjusted Budget Request amount. Likewise, any over-funding from the previous year’s Unadjusted Budget Request shall be deducted from the funding amount,” according to the MOA. The agreement calls this method of adjustment the annual “true-up,” and goes on to say that this adjusted number “shall be the amount which the Association shall budget for its contribution” to the OPVD the following year. How this annual “true-up” has worked in practice, however, is not clear. There’s no evidence that there has been any annual “true-up” done since the agreement was put in place, except for the 2015 fiscal year, when apparently there was a “true-up” $40,000 adjustment from the previous year.

2017-18 OPA BUDGET

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

Directors add several items to 2017-18 capital budget By TOM STAUSS Publisher he proposed 2017-18 budget unveiled Jan. 11 by Acting General Manager Brett Hill projects $1,812,300 in capital spending from the general fund, replacement reserve and roads reserve, with another $1,956,563 in bulkhead replacement and repair spending from the bulkheads and waterways reserve. That totals $3.77 million in capital spending next year, if approved as is by the Board of Directors. It appears that the proposed capital budget has survived the budget review process largely intact. In budget meetings throughout January, directors did not find fault with Hill’s proposed cap-

and $39,000 for a new 12-passenger van to be used by the Parks and Recreation Department. The Beach Club parking lot would be resurfaced with a permeable crushed stone and striped to create additional parking spaces, at an estimated cost in the capital budget of $35,000. Aquatics has more items in its proposed capital budget than any other department. In addition to the proposed structural addition, the draft budget includes $5,600 in new water treadmills, $7,824 in aqua jumps (trampolines), $7500 in Mumford’s Landing restroom improvements, $20,336 in new pool furniture, among other items ranging from pumps, to vacuums and mats. The Yacht Club also is generously targeted in the draft capital budget, including $25,000 in new patio furniture, $25,000 in new information technology, $18,000 for a stage, $11,000 for a fire pit, $15,000 in a point of service system, among other items. [See summary of items elsewhere on this page.] The draft budget, still subject to review and approval by the Board of Directors, also included a schedule of items that Acting General Manager Brett Hill had considered but then excluded from the proposed capital budget. Excluded were Somerset Park improvements at $3,000 and $50,000 for a wall expansion at the Beach Club pool.

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ital funding, for the most part. Two changes that will probably make it into the final budget to be approved in late February include lighting for the skateboard park in White Horse Park. Director Cheryl pressed for that in a Jan. 27 work session. The board also voted to include two new platform tennis courts in the budget, without necessarily knowing their precise location in the Manklin Meadows tennis complex. Also possible for inclusion in the capital budget – still to be determined – is a proposal for an indoor “pole barn” facility for pickleball at the Swim and Racquet Club. As proposed by Hill, the facility would occupy the space taken up by two tennis courts. Two other tennis

courts at the Swim and Racquet Club campus would remain as is. According to the capital summary page contained in the draft budget, which is available for inspection in the administration building lobby in White Horse Park, the $1.81 million in non-bulkhead-related capital spending includes $129,308 in new capital funded directly from 2017-18 lot assessments, $1.53 million from the replacement reserve, and $150,000 from the roads reserve for street repair. The bulkhead replacement spending is projected to replace failed bulkheading caused by worm infestation in Wood Duck Isle affecting 16 properties. The biggest ticket items other than bulkhead replacement in the proposed 2017-18 capital budget is $417,000 for Country Club renovation; $288,000 for police department expansion, within the current administration building footprint; $250,000 in telephone and computer system improvements; $225,000 in Sports Core pool area structural additions, including a new party/training room and enclosed space for possible future conversion of the pool from a 25yard pool to a 25-meter pool. Other proposed capital spending is $72,000 for reconfiguring space in the non-police area of the administration building, $30,000 for a new Public Works truck, $34,000 for a new police vehicle,

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32 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

COVER STORY

February 2017

Golf membership fees From Page 31 before and in its present form we can find nothing objectionable,” Stevens said in a prepared paper outlining his and his group’s proposal. “It may attract younger families who are not exclusively golfers but offering a substantial golf discount. We believe it is definitely worth trying.” Other LU promotional ideas approved by the board include something called corporate flex, a program designed for corporations, and a trial membership option, with details to be fleshed out over time. The board also approved junior golf memberships, $225 for those 16 and under. After 3 p.m., juniors playing on the course with a paying adult will play for free. The OPA Web site lists the current rate for juniors at $210, so this is actually a slight increase. According to Stevens, the discussion he had with Herrick and Kessler “centered on the fact that despite what published rack rates might indicate, local discounts and member plans allow OPA members to play other area courses less expensively, with better access to tee times and other benefits.” Stevens said that OPA rates “have remained stagnant” for the past three years, with declining membership and an operating deficit that seems to be getting worse, not better, although a lot of rain last summer has been blamed for much of the declining fortunes. The group proposed and six directors approved a reduction in the family “allday” rate from $2300 to $2000 and the individual “all-day” rate from $1315 to $1200. The family “after 12” rate was dropped from $1360 to $1,200, while the individual “after 12” rate was dropped from $875 to $800. Members are entitled to free range balls. Families can purchase pre-paid cart packages for $1600, down from the current $1900. Individual cart packages cost $1,100, down from the current $1,300. For members who don’t buy a prepaid package, daily cart fees will be $20 for 18-holes and $10 for nine. Across all amenities, the board has abolished associate member fees, replacing it with a $250 entry fee that will entitle all non-residents without an ownership stake in Ocean Pines to purchase memberships in any of the amenities – golf, racquet sports, and aquatics – for the same rates offered to property owners and long-term renters. Well aware that many Ocean Pines property owners do the math and decide that pre-paid memberships don’t make good economic sense, the board established new, lower daily fees for playing the Ocean Pines golf course. “Our daily fee schedule is so complicated that even the pro shop doesn’t understand it,” Stevens said. “The objective was to come up with a structure that is simpler and more cost competitive.” Rates are for the five-month “in-

season” (April through October) and “off-season” (November through March), with separate fees for resident and nonproperty owners, as well as for morning tee times, play after 12 p.m. and twilight play. All rates include carts, although walkers will receive a $10 discount. The board later added a nine-hole rate omitted from the group’s original draft, which Stevens and Herrick both said was a welcome improvement. In-season rates for residents (property owners and long-term renters) and non-resident property owners are $45 for morning play, $40 for after 12 p.m., and $30 for twilight. The nine-hole rate in-season is $25 all-day. The off-season rate for residents (property owners and long-term renters) and non-resident property owners is $25 all-day, $15 for nine-holes, both including carts. Rates for non-residents with no ownership stake in Ocean Pines is $60 in-season before noon and $50 after 12 p.m., with no twilight rate listed. Their off-season rate is $30. Stevens admitted that the reduced rates lack “scientific basis” and that there is “no guarantee” that they will bring in the revenue needed to make progress in reducing what is expected to be an $180,000 loss in golf operations this year, a number that doesn’t include more than $400,000 in golfrelated depreciation directly out of lot assessments every year. According to Kessler, golf will need to pick up 22 new golf members and 1200 additional resident non-member rounds to offset losses from lower fees. No one is sure the additional rounds or members will materialize. At current rates, Director of Golf John Malinowski has said that total number of rounds played has been steadily increasing. Director Cheryl Jacobs, responding to a comment from Stevens that one reason for golfers playing elsewhere is that Ocean Pines can’t offer block tee times for large groups of golfers, wondered why not. Stevens said tee times generally aren’t available in the morning because of preferences given members. Hill, who was mostly supportive of what Stevens and his group proposed, expressed some skepticism about whether the rates as proposed would give families like his enough of an incentive to play golf. At one point there was discussion of another package that would offer as few as 12 rounds for a fee in the $300 or $400 range, but it did not make it into the final package approved by the directors. Hill told the directors that if they approved the new package, LU most likely couldn’t be held accountable for the financial results. Stevens was unimpressed. “They’re not held accountable anyway,” he said, noting that the company is entering year three of threeyear contract.

Board lowers membership rates for tennis, pickleball Drop-in fees for pickleball remain despite club opposition By TOM STAUSS Publisher n a busy budget work session Feb. 10, the Board of Directors took action lowering membership rates for tennis, platform tennis and pickleball, taking back some of the benefit to pickleball players by keeping a $3 drop-in rate for players who use the Community Center gymnasium. Platform tennis rates remain unchanged. For tennis, the family membership will drop from$525 a year to $425, while the individual rate will drop from $315 to $260. The afternoon rates of $160 for families and $100 for individuals remain the same. A family combination rate for all three racquet sports has been reduced from $850 to $625. A new family rate for all three racquet sports, tennis and golf has been established at $2500, with carts additional. Acting General Manager Brett Hill said staff had looked at the possibility of offering a combination rate for two of three racquet sports but decided not to do so in order to avoid unnecessary complexity. He added that the discounted combination for three is almost as much as it would have been for two. Hill told the board the reduction in tennis is possible by additional reductions in operational costs, with one less employee and a decision to have the Public Works Department perform one hour per day of maintenance on the Manklin Meadows tennis courts. The result should be a break-even tennis operation for next year, Hill said. Platform tennis rates of $250 for families and $150 for individuals are unchanged. What Hill called an “automatic” method of paying for drop-in guest fees also will be employed, relying on the honor system and monitoring from members. Pickleball membership rates for outside play have been dropped from $250 to $175 for families and from $150 to $100 for individuals. Despite continuing opposition from pickleball players, the board accepted a staff recommendation to keep drop-in rates for indoor play at the Community Center gym at $3 for members and $5 for non-members. During the colder months, drop-in pickleball is available four times a week for four hours, dropping back to six hours during the summer. Hill suggested that because of safety concerns raised by some pickleball players about a recent reconfiguration of the pickleball courts, despite a reduction from three to two, perhaps the board should consider eliminating pickleball from the Community Center gymnasium and letting “members go elsewhere” for indoor play. In the end, directors were not inclined to kick the pickleball players out of the Community Center, suggesting that safety concerns were overblown and not supported by professionals involved with restriping the courts after the recent floor replacement. They noted that anyone who uses the gymnasium for sports activities signs a waiver form that protects the OPA from liability from injuries. Neil Gottesman, a member of the pickleball club, told the directors during Public Comments that the result of having both membership and drop-in fees may cause some members to go elsewhere and decide not to renew their memberships. He said there are four groups – Shape-ups, ping pong, walkers and line-dancers – that do pay for the privilege of using the gymnasium. Herrick told the Progress that he hopes and believes pickleball players will realize that they receive a lot for their membership fees and will remain loyal to their home community, especially since the OPA is in the process of investing in new outdoor courts at the Manklin Meadows complex. He said the four groups that use the gymnasium without charge are not fee-based amenities and that the OPA has not made any capital investments on their behalf, other than to build a Community Center with a gymnasium for their use. The same is not true for pickleball, he said. “We have to make the best decision for all of Ocean Pines, not just members of a club of 80 members,” Herrick concluded.

COVER STORY Beach Club From Page 1 parking passes have been eliminated, with the parking pass/photo IDs to be bundled as a family parking/pool membership in the Beach Club limited to those living in a household. Each family member will be given a swipe card with a photo ID. This change is designed to prevent the passes being used by those other than family members, an unintended consequence which has been exploited by some to avoid paying fees that otherwise would be required to park in at the Beach Club and use the pool there. Property owners who as landlords rent out their homes by the week during the summer, or rental agents representing owners, will be unable to recycle these photo ID passes to new renters as they come in for the week. A new renters’ package for landlords or their rental agents has been designed to accommodate renters in a way that will allow the OPA to capture more revenue when renters use the Beach Club and its pool this summer. The new landlord/rental agent package, designed as an add-on to existing weekly memberships, has been priced at $600 for a six-week period or $1000 for the summer. It will include one Beach Club parking permit and four pool passes, good for one week, activated on the first use. The pool passes will expire one week after the initial activation. The cost covers new weekly passes to be distributed to landlords or their rental agents with every new batch of weekly tenants. The landlord/rental pool passes will be good at the Beach Club pool and any of the OPA’s four mainland pools, an upgrade from the Beach Club-only usage for the legacy bundled package. OPA officials hope the expanded availability will offset some of the sting from what, for many, will be a steep increase in fees. Hill said he had talked to a number of Ocean Pines real estate agents who handle summer weekly rentals and said they are willing to give the new package a try. Hill said the pricing is such that rental agents, some of who market the passes to their weekly clients, can mark them up and still make a profit on them. Landlords or rental agents who are Ocean Pines property owners, some of whom may be unwilling or unable to purchase the new seasonal package for $600 or $1000, can always buy discount coupon cards for their weekly clients, still priced at $35 for adults and $25 for children. These discount cards, good for five visits at any of the pools, won’t have photo IDs on them and therefore can’t be restricted to family members. Their sale is limited to property owners and residents, however. Hill mentioned that rental agents he has talked to about the package are Ocean Pines property owners. Alternatively, weekly renters can

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS purchase access to any of Ocean Pines’ Director and OPA Treasurer Pat Supik five pools by paying daily user fees. said they made sense because it allows Hill said that the non-resident rate the OPA to capture revenue it was un(paid by those other than property own- able to capture in summers past. ers and residents of Ocean Pines) will be Phillips, the aquatics director who increased $1, from $9 to $10 for adults has additional duties overseeing the and from $7 to $8 for children under 12. Parks and Recreation Department, said The daily resident rate remains un- in response to a question from Director changed at $8 for adults and $6 for chil- Dave Stevens that the lost revenue can dren. be measured by contrasting cash and Hill also said there’s a carve-out ex- coupon/pass revenue generated at the ception for time-share units at the Bor- Mumford’s Landing and Beach Club derlinks Condominiums, whose owners pools. and owner agents will be able to purShe said that at the Beach Club pool chase the new seasonal parking/pool this past summer, about 22,000 of the passes at 50 percent of the $600 and $1000 seasonal rate in effect elsewhere. He said that imposing the full rate on the Borderlinks would be too much of a shock for owners and their clients. The Borderlinks rate works out to $40 per week per unit if they’re purchased in advance for the full season. The traditional associate membership available for each of the amenities – aquatics, racquet sports and golf – have been abolished in favor of a new annual OPA membership for non-residents with no ownership stake in Ocean Pines. The costing is $250. For that $250, any non-resident or non-property owner will be entitled to purchase memberships at the same rates available to property owners or residents, which include longer-term renters who produce a copy of a lease to prove long-term residency in Ocean Pines. Hill said that because it’s impossible to predict how these changes will affect revenues, he is not inclined to forecast increased revenues for budgetary purposes, even though he’s convinced there will be a noticeable increase. He said revenue generated by the new landlord/ rental agent package will be split 75 percent for Aquatics and 25 percent for Beach Club parking. In another change approved by the board in a Feb. 10 meeting, a new amenity membership option that includes aquatics, golf and racquet sports will be instituted. Directors were generally positive toward the changes. After initially saying that they would be perceived as a “take-away” by some property owners, Source: Draft 2017-18 budget book, some revisions likely in final budget

approximately 25,000 visits were associated with Beach Club-only pool passes. At the family Mumford’s Landing pool, there were 20,000 visits generating $85,000 in cash revenue, while the Beach Club, with more visits, generated a paltry $6000 in cash. The board voted 6-0 in favor of the all the changes proposed by Hill with the exception of the $250 associate member fee, which passed 5-0, with Stevens abstaining. Director Slobodan Trendic was absent from the meeting for personal reasons related to his wife’s recent surgery.

FORECAST/BUDGET COMPARISON

CAPTAIN’S COVE

February 2017

Cove board set to hear traffic safety update Presentation on fiber optic/high speed Internet also scheduled for Feb. 23 meeting By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Board of Directors of the Captain’s Cove property owners association is scheduled to hear from repre-

sentatives of the Traffic Group on ways to improve safety on the Cove’s main roads. The update is scheduled for a board Feb. 23 board meeting at the Marina

Club. Another item is a presentaton on last year’s audit report by TGM, the Cove’s audit firm. If time permits, Cove President Tim Hearn said the board may discuss proposed new electronic signage at the intersection of State Line Road, Fleming Road and Maryland Route 12. The Cove property owner association’s board had a busy meeting last month that prevented it from dealing with the proposed “monument sign” at the intersection. Because of a similarly packed meet-

ing agenda, the item’s inclusion on the Feb. 23 agenda could be more of a place-holder, Hearn said. Also at the Feb. 23, the board is scheduled to hear a proposal by FTS Fiber and its partnering Internet service provider, Think Big Networks, for bringing fiber optic cable to Captain’s Cove. Hearn said recently that the Cove has heard a lot of interest from companies who want to bring high speed Internet to Captain’s Cove, with FTS and Think Big among the latest to do so. 

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CAPTAIN’S COVE

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

From Page 34 One major hurdle to accomplishing the long-sought goal of high speed Internet is the presence of a a fiber optic trunk line that runs close to Captain’s Cove, along Fleming Road. Hearn said he understands that it didn’t come from Snow Hill, as was long thought to be the likely scenario, but rather came up north from the lower Eastern Shore of Virginia. The important point is that it is now close to Captain’s Cove, and the laying of cable throughout the Cove is at least technologically possible in ways that it wasn’t even a year ago, when the Cove board debated the merits of spending $750,000 to bring fiber optic cable down from Snow Hill as a first step in bringing high speed Internet to the community. In the end, the proposal to spend that kind of money went nowhere, as neither the Cove POA nor any high speed Internet company had the financial resources to finance that kind of infrastructure. It’s a public-financed high speed Internet consortium that is bringing the service to rural areas of the country, including the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Virginia. The Snow Hill option is no longer relevant. FTS Fiber, whose chief executive officer and owner is Brett Hill, a director and acting general manager of the Ocean Pines Association, has been active in the mid-Shore area with its ISP partner, Think Big Networks. FTS Fiber does the actual laying of so-called “dark” cable, while Think Big Networks makes high-speed Internet available using that cable. It is not a content-provider, however, as company representatives made clear

in a presentation last year to the Ocean Pines Association’s board of directors last year. Once high speed Internet cable is laid throughout a community, high speed Internet is made provided wirelessly to individual households. Through computers or other devices connected to television sets, households then can purchase content from various content providers, including Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Google Play, Directv Now and quite a few recent start-ups that offer broadcast network programming and many if not most of the channels found on cable television line-ups or satellite broadcasters such as Directv. Broadcast networks also make their programming available through downloads from their Web sites, usually on a delayed basis. With programming brought over the Internet, households are not required to purchase expensive packages containing channels they don’t watch. Also on the agenda for the meeting is a continuation of previous board discussions of possible revisions and modernization of Cove POA organizational documents, including articles of incorporation, restrictive covenants, the 2012 settlement agreement, architectural guidelines and community regulations. The relevancy of the Virginia homeowner association act also could be discussed as it might apply to the proposed changes. Hearn, who said the topic will probably be only briefly mentioned unless residents or board members have anything new to add to the discussion, has said previously that he hopes to have a package of proposed changes ready to take to property owners in referendum later this year. With ballots cast on behalf of the

HAPPENINGS Tuesday, Feb. 14 Worcester County Republican Central Committee, monthly meeting, Ocean Pines library. New members and auxiliary members invited to join. Grant Helvey, 410-430-7282. Thursday, Feb. 16 Pine’eer Craft Club of Ocean Pines, monthly meeting, Ocean Pines Community Center. 9:45 a.m. refreshments, business 10 a.m. Project: favors for distribution to clients of Meals on Wheels in Ocean Pines and Ocean City. Guests welcome. Friday, Feb. 17 Ocean Pines Association, Board of Directors, work session, 9 a.m., Ocean Pines Community Center. Saturday, Feb. 18 Kiwanis winter pancake breakPOA and developer-owned lots, the proposed changes would be roughly 200 votes short of passage. Additional votes from property owners are needed. Depending on the content of the proposed changes non-resident property owners -- especially owners of unimproved property in sections not yet available for development -- could be another substantial bloc of votes for changing the organizational documents. One critical decision in addition to the actual proposed changes is whether they will be offered to property owners as a take-it-or-leave it package or whether votes on each change separately will be allowed.

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fast, 8-11 a.m., Ocean Pines Community Center. Pancakes, sausages, scrambled eggs, orange juice, coffee and tea. Eggs freshly made at the serving table. Tickets: adults $6, children under 12 $3, kids under 5 free, available in advance at 410-208-6719 or purchase at the door. Carry-out available. Proceeds benefit youth of the community. Monday, Feb. 20 Ovation dinner theater, Mumford’s Landing at Ocean Pines (Yacht Club), 6 p.m., $35 per person, includes show and three-course meal. Reservations required, 410-641-7501. Democratic Womens Club of Worcester County, monthly meeting, Ocean Pines Community Center, Assateague Room, 9:30 a.m. coffee, 10 a.m. meeting. 410-973-1021. Thursday, Feb. 23 Republican Women of Worcester County, February luncheon meeting, Dunes Manor Hotel, 2800 Baltimore Ave., Ocean City, 11 a.m. Guest speaker: Patty Jackson, Director of the Worcester County Board of Elections. $20 per person. Reservations, information, Pat Addy at 410-208-0171 or gorpataddy@aol. Saturday, Feb. 25 Ocean Pines Association, Board of Directions, regular monthly meeting, 10 a.m. Ocean Pines Community Center. County Commissioner Chip Bertino’s town meeting, 10 a.m., Ocean Pines library, information on issues and developments occurring within the district and the county. Guest speakers: Health Officer Debbie Goeller and Diana Purnell, vice president of the Worcester County Commissioners. Commission President Jim Bunting will join the question and answer portion of the meeting. Monday, Feb. 27 Boating Course, presented by the Ocean City Power Squadron, Ocean Pines library, eight hours, continuing consecutive Mondays on March 6, 13 and 20; exam March 20. Registration Feb. 27, 6:30 p.m.; classes 7-9 p.m. each evening. Basic boat handling, navigation, federal and state regulations, rules of the road, aids to navigation, required equipment and more. Information and early registration, 410-641-6535 or 410-641-8040. Monday. March 13 Girl Scout spaghetti dinner fundraiser, DeNovo’s Restaurant, Manklin Station Shopping Center, Manklin Creek Road and Ocean Parkway, 5 p.m. Tickets: adults $12, children $5; Anna Foultz, 410-641-7667, or Beverly Meadows, 443-235-1019. Door prizes and face painting by Susan Delaney. Proceeds benefit Girl Scout Chesapeake Council -

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February 2017

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OPINION

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

COMMENTARY

A few last-minute 2017-18 budget tweaks

he Board of Directors is closing in on a vote approving the 2017-18 Ocean Pines Association budget. It largely adheres to the draft budget assembled by Acting General Manager Brett Hill and retiring Controller Art Carmine and released for public scrutiny in January. Amenity memberships – golf and Beach Club parking and pool passes – will be overhauled. Golf fees will be substantially lowered while the Beach Club parking lot will be higher, Lower rates are in store for pickleball and tennis memberships. Here are a few suggestions for “improving” the budget before its adoption: 1. Reserve funding: For better or worse, the board has kept most of the funding attached to the reserve component once called the five-year-plan and more recently the legacy reserve. A decision has been made to allocate $650,000 in supplemental reserve to the Major Maintenance and Replacement Reserve, down from about $860,000 in the current year’s budget. Given the preferences of individual board members, this $650,000 supplemental allocation is probably the best that can be achieved this year; and at least the trend is heading in the right direction. However, rather than allocating the full $650,000 Ongoing Free platform tennis clinics, Saturdays at noon, Manklin Meadows tennis complex. Bring sneakers, the rest is provided. Annual memberships start at $150. Line dance classes, Monday and Wednesday, 9:30 -10:30 a.m., Ocean Pines Community Center. Beginners welcome. Betty Daugherty, 410-726-

to the maintenance and replacement reserve, the Progress suggests that part or all of it be allocated to a newly created New Capital reserve. A 50-50 split would be one way to do it. This New Capital reserve could occupy space on the reserve summary page where the Deficit Recovery reserve, currently zeroed out and effectively defunct, appears. Any new capital projects that are truly not replacement items could be funded out of this reserve. Examples of new capital projects that could be so funded have been mentioned by directors in recent budget discussions. They include Cheryl Jacobs’s proposed lighting for the skateboard park, Dave Stevens’s two new platform tennis courts, and new drainage improvements that some suggest should be made to holes eight and nine on the Ocean Pines golf course. The $109,308 in New Capital expenditures that appear in the initial draft of the capital budget for next year could also be funded through this reserve, rather than the general fund, as it currently envisioned. In future years, driven by data that appears in an updated capital improvement plan, funds could be allocated to this New Capital reserve in accordance with identified needs.

HAPPENINGS 1818, or bettydau@aol.com Pinesteppers Square Dance Club, Wednesdays, 7-9 p.m., Ocean Pines Community Center with caller Dennis O’Neal. Visitors welcome. The group also hosts a dance the fourth Saturday of the month from 7-9:30 p.m.,

Ocean Pines Community Center. Guest callers lead the dancers with music and choreography. Mainstream/Plus square dancers welcome to join in. President Arlene Hager, 302-436-4033. Pine Tappers free adult tap dance classes, Tuesdays, 2-3:30 p.m., Ocean

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Funded depreciation would continue to be the source of funding for replacement items and would be allocated to the Major Maintenance and Replacement Reserve as now occurs. 2. Acting General Manager Brett Hill and a majority of directors have embraced a creative and innovative business plan for the under-utilized Beach Club. New photo-ID cards for beach parking and bundled pool passes should help reduce revenue-losing abuses of these passes; just how much revenue this improvement will yield remains to be seen. Hill and staff have also come up with a Realtors’ package that will give summer renters access not just to the Beach Club pool, but all the mainland pools as well. This, too, is a potentially lucrative revenue-generator for the OPA. Still another idea that will be implemented is a public Beach Club membership option that will allow non-property owners and non-residents to visit the Beach Club without causing the OPA to violate its Class B liquor license. Plans are to keep the Beach Club open after sunset; portable lighting for the Beach Club pool is being negotiated with Ocean City permitting officials, accord-

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To Page 39 Pines Community Center. Exercise and have fun with choreographed tap dancing routines. From 2-2:30 p.m., brush up on basic techniques and a review of the routines, then join the regular class from 2:30-3:30 p.m. Every week or drop-in as convenient. Lori at 410-251-2162 or tntandcompany@ gmail.com. Ocean Pines Ping Pong Club, Ocean Pines Community Center, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, noon to 2 p.m. All levels welcome. Eric Bowers, 410-208-1794. The Kiwanis Club of Greater Ocean Pines – Ocean City every Wednesday at 8 a.m., Ocean Pines Community Center. 410-641-7330 or kiwanisofopoc.org. The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, Flotilla 12-05, meets the first Monday of each month at 7:30 p.m. in the U.S.C.G. Station, Ocean City. Visitors and new members are welcome. Dennis Kalinowski, 410-208-4147. Web site http://a0541205.uscgaux.info. Worcester County Democratic Club meeting, fourth Thursday of each month, 7 p.m., Marlin Room of Ocean Pines Community Center. No December meeting. Club membership is not required. All those interested in Democratic platforms and agendas are welcome. Republican Women of Worcester County, fourth Thursday of each month, 11 a.m. meeting (doors open at 10:30), lunch at noon, local restaurants. For information, call membership chair Barbara Loffler at 410-208-0890. January through June, and again September and October. Dinner meeting in November. No meetings July, August and December.

38 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OPINION

February 2017

New board showing some cracks in the facade universe entirely. Jacobs at one point during recent budget discussion said she thought the $650,000 supplemental contribution should be much higher – how An excursion through the curious by-ways and cul-de-sacs An excursion through the curious by-ways and cul-de-sacs much higher, she didn’t say. Supik danof Worcester County’s most densely populated community. of Worcester County’s most densely populated community. gled a fantastical, if not fake, number By TOM STAUSS/ By TOM Publisher STAUSS/Publisher of $22 million as an idealized objective for a reserve balance, with the caveat ers in the form of annual assessments, the drafting of a new capital improve- that of course it doesn’t need to be that or the related question of how much of ment plan for Ocean Pines. Their point high. The message from these two directhese assessment should be set aside in of view – again, sometimes expressed in tors seem to be that the board should be reserves – the aforementioned coalition pastel – is that extracting dollars from attempting to get much closer to that is fractured. property owners before a new plan is in number (or some percentage of it). The Two directors – Brett Hill, the acting place creates and exacerbates the per- previous GM had some ideas about that general manager, and Tom Herrick, the ception that the maintenance and re- subject, too, evidence of a point of view OPA president – comprise the core mid- placement reserve is a “slush fund” for wildly out of synch with the prevailing dle ground. Their preference even before the whims and preferences of elected wisdom. the budget process began was for the and unelected anointed ones. (Best way That number is a highly dubious constatus quo – keep the assessments con- to neutralize the “slush fund” pejora- struct of green eye-shade types called stant and the contribution to reserves, tive from the debate? Finalize a capital the annual component cost. It’s a slipparticularly the odious legacy reserve, improvement plan that can earn wide- pery number – ranging from $14 million, once known as the five-year plan, fund- spread support in Ocean Pines.) to $16 million and now, apparently, $22 ed. Hill and Herrick fear that there are million, depending on the time, place, The budget drafted by Hill and staff additional capital expenses (and de- and who’s holding forth. Who knows and reflects this middle ground. True, the leg- ferred routine maintenance) out there more to the point, who cares? Given the acy component of the maintenance and lurking – and in a 50-year-old communi- historical level of spending from the rereplacement reserve has been eliminat- ty, it’s not outside the realm of possibili- serves and likely needs going forward ed in the draft 2017-18 budget. That’s a ty that they will be proven correct. Her- – the current board has made amazing cause for celebration. But the cork-pop- rick has also said that property owners progress in limiting future liabilities – ping should be attenuated because the will be vexed if assessments are dropped nothing close to the ACC is even worth legacy reserve’s related funding stream one year only to be increased the follow- contemplating. remains. It’s been cut roughly $200,000, ing year. It’s the anti-whiplash theory With directors more or less arriving down to $650,000 – progress, to be sure, of assessment-setting: Property owners at a reluctant consensus at the Herbut incremental and more cautious than are thought to prefer constancy and rick-Hill middle ground, is it a surprise it could have been. predictability over fluctuations. That of that, on issues far less consequential, Three directors – Dave Stevens, Slo- course presupposes that, once lowered, that the board will be showing further bodan Trendic and Doug Parks – have that assessments can’t be kept stable at cracks in the united front? Not really. at various times and in various degrees that lower level for a period of years. What would be surprising if this or any of intensity argued for more aggressive Two other directors – Cheryl Jacobs board remains in synch on every or most cutting of reserve contributions pending and Pat Supik – seem to be in another

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he privileged among us who watch the Board of Directors for edification, sport or amusement live or digitally have surely noticed that the coalition that set a dramatic new course for Ocean Pines after the August election is showing some cracks in the façade of unity. This was bound to happen. Give any “arrangement” enough time and sooner or later, differences – honest ones – will manifest. Even the best of marriages have their challenging periods, and political marriages are often of the shutgun or convenience variety, even more prone to the forces of entropy. Despite differences on other topics, the board coalition that believes at its core that taking care of OPA assets – maintaining, not razing; renovating, not starting over – is intact. It’s this coalition that has driven board policy to renovate the administration building, Country Club, and the Ocean Pines Beach Club in Ocean City. This coalition prefers repairing roads rather than rebuilding them, and, one hopes, will soon realize that the same approach should be taken with bulkheads. It prefers using existing amenities – converting or repurposing them – to embarking on expensive new projects requiring protracted stormwater mitigation and other permitting nightmares. Even this summer’s inevitable turn-over in directors is not likely to reverse these preferences and trends. On another core issue – how much the OPA extracts from property own-

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OPINION Life in the Pines From Page 38 issues for an entire year. The one director most willing to step out of a manufactured consensus more than half way through the current board term is Slobodan Trendic, who has had a pattern of bringing up discussion points that other directors find to be tedious, counter-productive and, dare we say it, inconvenient. For his trouble, and for zealously promoting the points of view of members of a bottom-up, organic ad hoc committee formed to celebrate Ocean Pines’ 50th anniversary next year, he managed unceremoniously to be given the hook by Herrick as the committee’s board liaison. This isn’t the first time Trendic has been removed as a committee liaison, early in the term having been appointed, and then losing his position, as liaison to the at-times contentious Clubs Advisory Committee. Getting tossed off advisory committees – a diabolical plot perhaps? – is something that a previous thorn in the sides of board majorities – the sainted Marty Clarke – was unable to achieve. So far, Trendic hasn’t been subject to an effort to toss him off the board, something Clarke managed once or twice during his bomb-throwing tenure of service to Ocean Pines. Different committees, different circumstances, but the common thread is that Trendic doesn’t get with the program, whatever it happens to be. In the case of the 50th anniversary committee, he opposed Hill’s policy of having department heads stay away from committee meetings unless needed – however need is defined and who’s doing the defining. In the case of the Clubs committee, he’s been supportive of prospective candidates – former board candidate Steve Lind comes to mind – who are far more supportive of out-sourcing Yacht Club management – leasing is one option – than a board super-majority is inclined to endorse. But it doesn’t end there. Recently Trendic has advocated for a lowering of the OPA’s 20 percent annual interest rate levied against properties whose owners are in arrears in their annual assessment and has also pushed for a program of amnesty (forgiven interest and penalties) designed to encourage delinquent property owners to pay up. He also teamed up with Jacobs – strange political bedfellows indeed – to oppose Hill and a board majority’s support for donated playground equipment to be installed at the Ocean Pines Yacht Club. In this instance, his policy stance veered to the edge of taking on Hill personally but he didn’t cross the line. Perhaps Hill thought the line was crossed because Trendic maintained that Hill had initially erred in not asking the board to vote on the playground’s proposed location. Trendic was representing the views of some property owners who, infused with an entitlement mentality, weren’t too keen on a playground that they con-

February 2017 Ocean Pines PROGRESS sidered to be too close to the adults-only sanctuary of the Yacht Club pool. No matter that in fact there is a decent buffer between the two amenities and the Yacht Club itself is a family-friendly amenity, or at least ought to be. To the feigned outrage over kids in close proximity to adults imbibing spirits, that has been a fact of life since the dawn of civilization. If what’s envisioned for the Yacht Club constitutes a bad example to the youth of Ocean Pines, it’s something that no doubt they’ve seen while dining out with parental units or hobnobbing at home. Trying to protect kids from the real world, or pretending to as a talking point, borders on the farcical. In the case of the donated playground equipment, the board majority acted reasonably. So far, Trendic has managed to offer his alternative views respectfully and dispassionately and without rancor, as have other directors when they find themselves in the minority. Trendic has taken care not to personalize his disagreements with Hill, for instance, not losing sight of that fact that they agree on a lot. Remember the campaign issue of opening OPA election ballots in a public session of the Elections Committee? That was Hill and Trendic way out front on that issue, together, with a salubrious outcome likely for this summer’s election. This is all as it should be. Directors weren’t elected to be potted plants or to keep their mouths shut when their perspectives differ from the majority. So long as disagreements are handled respectfully by all sides – and they have been, for the most part, by this board – the OPA membership benefits from vigorous discussion. Rubber stamps need not not apply.

Commentary

From Page 37 ing to Hill. These innovations and the $25 increase in the parking pass from $175 to $200, with the $25 increase to be allocated to the Aquatics Department, could produce a sizable surplus for Aquatics in 2017-18. If such a surplus materializes, the Progress suggests the creation of a new Aquatics Reserve into which those surpluses would be allocated at the conclusion of each fiscal year, to be fully realized and accounted for in the audited financial results. The purpose of an Aquatics reserve would be to ensure the availability of funds for future aquatics capital projects, obviating the need to use other reserves or the general fund for capital expenditures that benefit this discrete subset of Ocean Pines property owners. 3. At a Feb. 6 meeting of the Board of Directors, OPA President Tom Herrick opened up the possibility of restructuring golf memberships and daily fees for 2017-18 to be more competitive with area golf courses. The Board authorized Acting General Manager Brett Hill to obtain membership and daily fee information from area golf courses to be discussed at a budget work session on Feb. 10. When the smoke cleared from that meeting -- see reporting elsewhere in thie edition of the Progress for details -- a rather innovative approach to golf was unveiled by Director Dave Stevens and subsequently approved by the board. It made good on Herrick’s pledge to lower rates to make Ocean Pines more competitive with golf courses in the area. While the directors will no doubt find this suggestion too radical, the Progress suggests an even bolder option that could be marketed to Ocean Pines property owners and residents simply and powerfully. “Free” afternoon memberships (with noon or 1 p.m. as the start time) could be offered to all property owners, with the caveat that they pay whatever cart rental fee is set by the board (currently $22 for 18 holes but, if what Herrick says about competing courses is verified, could be reduced). The rate would be cut in half for those who play nine holes only. Those few golfers who prefer to walk would be asked to pay a reduced rate to continue to generate at least some revenue from every round played. The rationale for this “bold” plan is that all property owners subsidize golf to a substantial extent – more than $400,000 in depreciation and this year’s projected $180,000 operating loss, and whatever new capital items are purchased out of the general fund. To the fear that this bold plan of “free” golf runs the risk of burdening the course with too much demand for tee times, we respond: Wouldn’t that be a wonderful problem to have? This “free” membership could contain the caveat that it’s subject to availability; or the number of “free plays” per household could be limited to, say, ten or 15 per year. Keep in mind that each round could generate additional revenue from the Tern Grille. To be sure, there are legitimate concerns this bold new option could reduce revenue. But there are no guarantees in the approved Stevens’ plan either, as he readily admits. - Tom Stauss

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40 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

February 2017

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