July early august 2013 progress

Page 1

July-Early August 2013

Vol. 9, No. 4

410-641-6029

www.issuu.com/oceanpinesprogress

Budget committee moves forward with municipality study

THE OCEAN PINES JOURNAL OF NEWS & COMMENTARY COVER STORY

OFF AND RUNNING Competing for the OPA board of directors as opponents of some past board decisions, Langevin and Collins adopt some positions at odds with their competitors. NEWS ANALYSIS By TOM STAUSS Publisher ot running as a team but with overlapping views, two of the candidates running for the Ocean Pines Association’s board of directors this summer have staked out positions that set them apart from their competitors. Ocean Pines property owners will decide whether or not those differences matter. Ballots are scheduled to be mailed to eligible property owners during the second week of July. Ballots are due back to the OPA for counting on the day before the OPA’s annual meeting in August. These two candidates, Roland Langevin and Jack Collins, have never run for a seat on the board, and therefore can more easily set themselves as opponents of the status quo. At the June 24 candidates forum sponsored by the Ocean Pines Elections Committee, both candidates, to varying degrees, took issue with the sitting board on certain issues. And that wasn’t as easy as it could have been, because the questions posed by the Elections Committee were pedestrian, almost as if designed not to elicit sharp distinctions among the candidates. The first one was a real brain twister: What’s the main function of the OPA? The second one was based on a faulty premise: How would you build the OPA’s operational budget? That’s faulty because the board doesn’t build the operational budget, the general manager

N

Collins

Cordwell

Langevin

Purcell

Terry

Unger

and his staff does. The board’s job is to review it, make any changes that a majority believes is justified, and then approve it. The Elections Committee came under some criticism recently for meeting in closed session to draft the questions for use in the forum, which technically is a violation of the Maryland Homeowners Association Act. Had the committee’s questions been fully vetted in public, the committee might have been peruaded to replace them with more substantive ones. After the committee’s queries were dispatched with little disagreement – Langevin was the notable exception to the rule – the candidates each had a turn asking one other candidate a question during the forum. For the most part these questions weren’t particularly probing, either. OPA President Tom Terry, who is running for a second three-year term on the

board, did turn the tables on Langevin at one point by informing him that, contrary to a statement by Langevin, the Java Bay café at the Yacht Club has not lost $1 million since it opened more than two years ago. What Langevin might have said had he researched the issue in more detail is that there is no separate accounting for the Java Bay café at the Yacht Club and that no one knows how much the café has lost since its inception. It’s probably not been responsible for generating $1 million in losses, but that’s at best an educated guess. The fact, it’s not been a financial success. At several moments during the forum, Langevin in particular was adamant in his view that the OPA spends too much and collects too much in assessments. At one point he suggested that the new two-story, 20,200 square foot Yacht Club now under construction is too large and probably doomed to lose money for the OPA once it’s opened to the public. He said the referendum that approved up to $4.3 million for a new Yacht Club only passed because lower cost alternatives were not available on the ballot. Lanvegin also is running as an unabashed critic of General Manager Bob Thompson. In contrast, Collins steered clear of anti-Thompson rhetoric during the forum, telling property owners um that at one time he and Thompson once worked for the same bank. He did suggest at one point that the board needed to do a betTo Page 21

While personally agnostic on whether creating a municipality to govern much of Ocean Pines and environs is in the interests of residents and members of the Ocean Pines Association, members of the OPA’s budget and finance advisory committee are certain of this much: It’s an idea worth considering and deserves additional study, despite the issue’s many complexities and hurdles in the way. At the committee’s June 28 meeting, members unanimously agreed to proceed with further study, with the next step inviting representatives of the Maryland Municipal League to a committee meeting as soon as possible. ~ Page 8

Capital improvement plan falls short policy of objectives The first phase of a draft capital improvement plan presented to the Ocean Pines Association’s board of directors by General Manager Bob Thompson at the board’s June 26 monthly meeting falls substantially short of policy objectives specified in a motion offered by Director Dan Stachurski last September. At best, it’s only a down payment on what Stachurski’s motion was intended to accomplish – “a comprehensive, accurate, workable ten-year plan including requisite work and financing that the board can vote to approve in June, 2013.” ~ Page 10

Terry repeats his warning to Casper during election forum When candidates for the Ocean Pines Association board of directors in this summer’s election discussed amenity out-sourcing during the June 14 Election Committee-sponsored forum, it was OPA President Tom Terry who was the most outspoken on the need for one particular outside contractor to perform – or else. The contractor at issue was Billy Casper Golf, which is the third year of its contract to manage the Ocean Pines golf course. Terry told Ocean Pines OPA members that he had informed Casper executives, with the contract up in the fall, there would be “no excuses” for poor financial performance. ~ Page 22


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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

Executive Summary

Municipal Incorporation Study Ocean Pines, Maryland

July, 1987 The Institute for Governmental Service, University of Maryland

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The Ocean Pines Volunteer Fire Department’s 2013 New House Raffle is well under way for the Labor Day drawing. Tickets have been available since January and are selling fast. The 2012 raffle sold out. Tickets cost $100 to win the custom built new house located at 82 Windjammer Road in the north portion of Ocean Pines worth in excess of $200,000. It contains three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a screened-in porch, an attached garage and includes all appliances. Tickets are on sale at the South Fire Station located at 911 Ocean Parkway in Ocean Pines or by calling the OPVFD at 410-641-8272. Purchases can be made by cash, check, Visa, MasterCard and Discover. The drawing will be held on Labor Day, Sept. 2, at the house. Checks should be made payable to “OPVFD House Raffle” and mailed to OPVFD at 911 Ocean Parkway, Ocean Pines, MD 21811.

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Bishopville, MD 21813 Bishopville, MD 21813 MHIC #104077 MHIC #104077 MHBR #6927

The Worcester Count community of Ocean Pines, Maryland, is located on approximately 3,500 acres bordering the St. Martin River, the Isle of Wight Bay and Manklin Creek west of OceanCity, Maryland. It is a private recreational community with over nine miles of waterfront, another 12 miles of bulkheaded canals, and a potential for the development over of over 10,000 residential lots. By deeded covenants, all lot owners in Ocean Pines belong to the Ocean Pines Association, Inc. (OPA). The association is governed by an elected, seven-member Board of Directors which determines the association’s operational and fiscal policies. The OPA Board appoints a General Manager who serves as its chief administrative officer. The General Manager oversees program and administrative services budgeted to cost over $4.2 million in fiscal year 1986/87. Approximately $1.7 million of this budget supports a private membership clubs operation which includes a country club, yacht club, and ocean beach club with golf, pool, tennis, marina and food and beverage facilities. The other approximately $2.5 million supports community services and facilities, including general administration, environmental control, police, fire, recreation, roads, canals, and general maintenance. At the request of the Board of Directors of OPA, its General Manager asked the Institute for Governmental Services of the University of Maryland to study the question of municipal incorporation. Faced with a high amount of anticipated construction activity over the next fifteen years, the OPA Board of Directors wanted to be in the position of being able to weight the option of organizing a municipal government to help meet the costs and problems associated with rapid growth. With the lifting of a water and sewer moratoriums, Ocean Pines expects to review building plans involving 890 acres of undeveloped large parcels and a high number of already platted, but undeveloped individual lots. While the primary focus of this report is upon the municipal budget consequences of expected growth, the report also examines issues and procedures related to the process of municipal incorporation. This report addresses three types of decision considerations: (1) procedural, (2) fiscal, and (3) legal. Our key findings were: 1. The process of municipal incorporation has been invoked very infrequently in recent history. The limited experience of other Maryland jurisdictions does not serve as a meaningful guide through the incorporation process. 2. County support and consent is an absolute necessity in the incorporation process. Without county consent, incorporation is a legal impossibility. 3. In 1987, there were approximately 2,660 residential units in Ocean Pines;1,543 (58%) of these units were occupied by approximately 3,687 year-round residents. The study estimated that by 2002 some 7,651 residential units will have been added to the Ocean Pines housing inventory. Approximately 10,311 residential units, 216,000 square feet of retail and office space, and a 100 room hotel will be located within Ocean Pines by 2002. Year-round population is expected to increase by 288 % to 14,293 residents; the average seasonal population is expected to be approximately 19,000 persons. 4. New development within Ocean Pines is expected to increase the community’s tax base so much so that a potential municipal government may hypothetically be able to steadily drop its property tax rate throughout the fifteen-year 1988 – 2002 study period. The study estimated that a tax rate of $1.07 per $100 of assessed valuation would have been necessary if Ocean Pines had been incorporated as a municipality in the 1986/87 fiscal year. The study also estimated that the shifting of some OPA expenditures into a municipal budget would have allowed OPA to reduce its regular assessments, on the average, to 30% of their fiscal year 1986/87 levels. By fiscal year 2001/02, the study estimated that a tax base 4.6 times greater than the 1986/87 levels would allow the tax rate to potentially be cut to $0.49 per $100 of assessed valuation. However, the Institute does not believe that tax rate reductions to this extent can realistically be expected. A new municipal government is more likely to expand its agenda and expenditure base in response to the availability of increased revenues. 5. If Ocean Pines had been incorporated as a municipality in fiscal year 1986/87, it would have generated revenues of approximately $1.9 million against expenditures of approximately $1.7 million. The study estimated that municipal revenues and expenditures would increase by 250 % to approximately $4.6 million and $4.4 million respectively by fiscal year 2001/02. Approximately 75 percent of municipal revenue would be derived from property taxes and the municipal share of income taxes already collected by the State. Another 11 % of municipal revenues would come from state and county shared revenues. The remaining 14 percent of municipal revenues would be generated by the potential municipality from building permit fees, fines and forfeitures, recreational program fees, and interest income. Building fees alone were estimated to generate approximately $6.2 million over the study period. 6. OPA is obligated by enforceable, recorded covenants to serve the property interests of its members. In order to transfer the Ocean Pines road system and other properties necessary to municipal government functions, a majority of the OPA membership would need to support the amendment of deeded covenants. Similarly, in order for OPA to be relieved of continued responsibility for such functions as police, fire, and road maintenance, a majority of the OPA membership would need to join in amending the covenants. 7. Even if municipal incorporation does take place, OPA will continue to exist as a private body serving by covenant the private property interests of its membership. In addition to the operation of its clubs programs and facility, OPA will continue to enforce covenants through its Environmental Control Committee and staff.OPA and municipal powers can, however, be expected at points to run together on matters of overlapping interest and jurisdiction. Functions such as site plan approval are likely to require concurrent approval. There is always the potential for conflict developing between OPA and its set of private interests, and a municipal government and its yet to be defined public interests. However, the community of interests already established in Ocean Pines is likely to narrow the scope and degree of that potential conflict. This documented is reprinted as a public service by Dennis R. Hudson

3


4 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

July-Early August 2013

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

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In response to a recently published commentary on oceanpinesforum.com that criticized the Ocean Pines Elections Committee for meeting in closed session to draft questions for the committee-sponsored Candidates forum, the board of directors’ liaison to the committee, Dan Stachurski, said the committee has been advised that it must adhere to the Maryland Homeowners Association Act in the future. What particularly set off Forum owner Joe Reynolds was a comment from one of the committee members in a meeting he attended that the committee did not follow Maryland law in its operations. During the board’s June 26 monthly meeting, when questioned about the matter by a reporter, Stachurski said that the committee member had been set straight about the obligation of OPA advisory committees to adhere to the HOA Act. In general, OPA advisory committee meetings are open to the membership and can be closed only for specific reasons which rarely pertain. Committees generally do not involve themselves in personnel and legal matters that, under the law, are pretexts for closing meetings. Stachurski did not specifically address another point raised in Reynolds’

commentary, namely his opinion that the HOA act requires the Elections Committee to meet in open session when it opens and counts the ballots in the annual OPA board election in August. That has never been a practice observed in Ocean Pines and it would probably require a specific directive from the board of directors to make it happen.

Hingham Lane project said ‘close to a go’

General Manager Bob Thompson told members of the budget and finance committee during their June 28 meeting that the Hingham Lane drainage project, delayed because of permitting and related engineering issues, is “close to a go,” although it remains to be seen whether a decision will be made to proceed this summer even if permits are issued. Thompson said work crews discovered additional utility lines in the area of Hingham Lane and that three separate engineering designs have been drafted for the project thus far. “We’re working through the permitting process, dealing with different interpretations” of what environmental law requires, Thompson said. A local inspector employed by the

Budget panel may propose new charitable organization

Maryland Department of the Environment is closely monitoring what the OPA and its contractors are doing in the multiple number of major projects under way at this time.

County hikes grants to OPA by $83,000

To some extent, at least, the more determined lobbying on behalf of more funding for the OPA from county government appears to have paid off. The OPA recently received word from the Worcester County Commissioners that they increased total funding for the OPA in the Fiscal 2014 budget by $83,000. Last year’s funding was $450,000, so the increase represents an 18.44 percent in promised funds. Still, the funding request exceeded $1 million, so the pledged support is actually about 50 percent less than what the OPA had hoped for. A delegation from the OPA went down to Snow Hill to personally lobby the county commissioners for more financial support, particularly for operations of the Ocean Pines Police Department, which is often called out of Ocean Pines to help other law enforcement agencies.

Dennis Hudson, chairman of the Ocean Pines Association’s budget and finance committee, for some months has been talking up the idea of ramping up efforts to attract grant funding to help support OPA activities, but he’s discovered that Ocean Pines’ incorporation as a homeowners association and 501(c)(4) social welfare organization hinders aggressive grant-chasing. One possible solution is to establish a charitable organization under 501(c) (3) of the U.S. tax code to receive grant funding, which in turn can be used on behalf of the OPA, with different boards of directors established to maintain a plausible degree of separation between the two organizations. The charity would carry the name of Ocean Pines Community Foundation, or something similar. Hudson and members of the budget committee discussed the idea briefly during their June 28 monthly meeting, with no one expressing any opposition or reservations.

Platform tennis project ratified by OPA board

In a special meeting June 17 called for the specific and only purpose of ap-

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From page 5 proving a project to improve and refurbish the platform tennis facilities at the Manklin Meadows tennis complex, the Ocean Pines Association directors did so with dispatch, authorizing General Manager Bob Thompson to proceed with the project. Technically, it didn’t require board approval, because the work involves three separate contracts. Thompson wanted board approval, however, because the cost of all project components exceeds $15,000, the amount he can spend without board approval. The approved project includes new fencing at a cost of $5,100, with the contract awarded to Total Platform Tennis; repaving, at a cost of $3,062, awarded to Bozman Paving; and reconditioning of the courts and painting to American Tennis Courts, at a cost of $8,835. The OPA Public Works Department will install 2x2 frames on platform court #2 to hold asphalt while it cures. The project exceeded budget by $9,997, which prompted Director Marty Clarke to oppose it. The OPA’s Major Replacement and Maintenance Reserve is the source of financing. Two platform tennis courts were originally introduced to the Manklin Mead-

OCEAN PINES 2002; two more were

O’Hare details 45th anniversary events

Ocean Pines Association Director Sharyn O’Hare, who has been urging the OPA and the Ocean Pines community for months to organize events to celebrate Ocean Pines’ 45th anniversary, recently announced several birthday activities already scheduled for August, with more likely to come. The list of activities now includes the following: Aug. 3 -- Celebration in the Park, Honey Combs concert, Arts and Crafts Festival, White Horse Park, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Aug. 8 -- Poolside pig roast, concert by the Jimmy Charles Band, Yacht Club and Marina, 4-10 p.m. Aug. 20 -- Free swim day at four Ocean Pines pools, 10 a.m. to close. Aug. 22 -- Birthday party, free ice dream and/or super cake in White Horse Park, BYOB (basket), Over Time Band, kids’ activities, hotdogs by the Kiwanis, 7-8:30 p.m. Aug. 23 -- Jamaican beach party, Ocean Pines Beach Club, featuring Kaleb Brown, volleyball games, and themed buffet on the newly air conditioned second floor, 2-6 p.m.

Aug. 25 – Ocean Pines Chamber of Commerce classic car show, Veterans Memorial Park, DJ and food vendors, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Directors critical of late financials

After directors Dave Stevens and Marty Clarke made it clear they are not happy with the timeliness of financial documents delivered to the board of directors for review, OPA President Tom Terry told General Manager Bob Thompson during board discussion June 26 that the monthly financial reports need to be delivered no later than three days prior to the board’s monthly meeting. Stevens said that receiving financial reports “on the day of the meeting” is not acceptable, especially since the board last summer changed its meeting date from the third to the fourth week of every month, in order to give OPA Controller Art Carmine extra time to prepare them. Thompson said May’s financials were delivered late because Carmine has been busy with auditors. Thompson told the board he would have quarterly reports completed in the month following the completion of each quarter in the fiscal year. The exception might be the final quarter of the year, after which the auditors arrive and unofficial numbers are often adjusted.

Second annual tourney Aug. 2 in Ocean Pines

Back in 1974, a young couple arrived in Ocean Pines and started a summer youth program as a day camp for kids. Both school teachers, they were attracted to the community, spent their summers here bringing young counselors from their respective schools each summer and eventually producing three kids of their own and becoming homeowners. Formal recreation was thin on the ground at that time but the parents in place (mostly mothers and grandmothers) pitched in with activities to keep their kids busy. Thus began also the Ocean Pines

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Hammerhead Swim Team along with nature activities, arts and crafts, weekly trips to the beach, which were continued for years by devoted volunteers that grew into the programs that continue today. Tim and Mary McMullen were that young couple who went on to careers in education: Tim as a history teacher and athletic director and Mary in special education. Mary died in 2012 after a lingering illness and Tim started a non-profit organization in her name (Mary Mac Foundation) to continue her work and raise money to benefit those in the fields that she loved. The second annual Mary McMullen Memorial Golf Tournament will be held at Ocean Pines Country Club on Friday, Aug. 2, to benefit the Ocean Pines Recreation Department, and special programs at the Ruth Parker Eason School and Severna Park High School’s Special Education Department. The registration fee is $100 per player or $380 per foursome. There will be a maximum of 120 players and 30 teams. The format will be Captain’s Choice. Registration begins at 11 a.m. with a shotgun start at 12:45 p.m. and dinner and awards at 5:30 p.m. The Foundation welcomes participation as golfers, tee sign sponsors ($100), merchandise and gift certificates donors for the Silent Auction (by July 15). To play, contact Donald McMullen (443-388-2941) or Paul McMullen (443742-8760). To sponsor a hole, contact Tim McMullen (443-827-2091). To contribute to the silent auction, contact Erin McMullen (443-465-8687) or Richard Wojciechowski (443-3362612). To make a direct donation to the Mary Mac Foundation, contact Susan Wojciechowski (410-925-0472).

Chesapeake Energy buys Austin Cox Home Services

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OCEAN PINES OCEAN PINES BRIEFS From page 6 Based in Salisbury, Austin Cox provides HVAC, plumbing and electrical services to residential and commercial customers throughout the lower Delmarva Peninsula. The Company will retain its name and office location in Salisbury, and Austin “Skip” Cox, Jr. will be president of Chesapeake’s newest subsidiary. Chesapeake currently provides natural gas distribution and propane distribution service to approximately 103,800

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS 7 customers on the Delmarva Peninsula. The acquisition of the Austin Cox assets will enable Chesapeake to provide a broader range of services to customers on the Peninsula. In addition to HVAC, plumbing and electrical services, Austin Cox can perform in-home conversions for those customers who choose to convert their systems from alternative fuels to natural gas. On May 31, 2013, Chesapeake’s subsidiary, Sandpiper Energy, acquired the operating assets of Eastern Shore Gas Company, enabling the company

to significantly expand its footprint in Worcester County. Over the next few months, Sandpiper Energy will evaluate the potential conversion of the ESG facilities from propane to natural gas and will proceed with conversions where economically feasible. Ocean Pines is likely to be considered a prime candidate for conversions. “Converting customers to natural gas will require teamwork and assistance from contractors in our service areas. Austin Cox has a long standing history and strong reputation in the greater Salisbury area and we are excited

to work with them to assist in this key strategic initiative,” said Michael P. McMasters, President and Chief Executive Officer of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation. The Cox family has been serving the Delmarva community for over 60 years. Founded by Austin Cox, Sr. in 1947 to serve commercial customers, Austin Cox, Jr. took over the business from his father in 1988 and in 2009, formed Austin Cox Home Services, Inc. to focus solely on residential and commercial customers providing HVAC, plumbing and electrical services.

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

By TOM STAUSS Publisher hile personally agnostic on whether creating a municipality to govern much of Ocean Pines and environs is in the interests of residents and members of the Ocean Pines Association, members of the OPA’s budget and finance advisory committee are certain of this much: It’s an idea worth considering and deserves additional study, despite the issue’s many complexities and hurdles in the way. At the committee’s June 28 meeting, members unanimously agreed to proceed with further study, with the next step inviting representatives of the Maryland Municipal League to a committee meeting as soon as possible. Committee member John Trumpower is taking the lead on the project, delivering to his colleagues a brief outline of possible advantages and disadvantages of municipal incorporation, questions that need answers, and next steps. While emphasizing that no committee member has enough information to support or oppose municipal incorporation at this time – a position echoed by committee chair Dennis Hudson – Trumpower said a decision whether to proceed will come down to its “impact on your wallet, and no one knows” the answer to that as of yet.

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Budget & finance committee forging ahead on Ocean Pines municipality study Committee members agree the concept is worth more investigation, may ask the OPA board for money to hire professional help He told the committee that the road to creating a municipality could be long and arduous, requiring support from both the OPA board of directors and the Worcester County Commissioners and residents of the area under consideration for incorporation. To proceed, the OPA board of directors would need to draft a letter to the commissioners indicating interest in the possible municipal incorporation of Ocean Pines. “Then a definitive cost study (of the impact on municipal incorporation) would need to be completed,” he said. Trumpower told his colleagues that as part of the process, the county “would have to go to the legislature (Maryland General Assembly)” for enabling legislation.

A petition requesting a referendum on the creation of a municipality, within clearly defined boundaries, would have to be signed by 25 percent of eligible voters in the area under consideration for municipal incorporation, he said. The referendum vote would be restricted to eligible voters who are residents in the area, a limitation that would exclude non-resident property owners from the process. Renters, on the other hand, those who are eligible voters in county, state and national elections, could vote in the election on whether to create an Ocean Pines municipality. The precise boundaries of a proposed municipality would be critical as would the group of individuals assigned to draw the lines. Municipality proponents

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in past years have said that commercial areas in the vicinity of Ocean Pines could be included within the boundaries, making it possible to assess municipal property taxes or even business license fees on included area businesses. The OPA is effectively barred from collecting taxes or fees from area businesses, which nonetheless benefit from police, fire and ambulance services funded and/ or provided by the OPA. If the board of directors is unwilling to draft a letter of interest to the county commissioners, or if the county commissioners are unwilling to conduct a referendum of voters, the process would stop, Trumpower said. “Even if the effort fails, we would have assembled a lot of information” on the subject for future reference if it resurfaces, he said, noting that the issue was the subject of a 1987 study by the Institute for Governmental Service at the University of Maryland. It reportedly came up again in the late 1990s with the involvement of county commissioner Judy Boggs. Hudson said he’s been unable to secure a copy of any written materials on the issue developed when Boggs had pursued the idea. Trumpower said that Ocean Pines is not the only community in the state in-

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OCEAN PINES Municipality

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

From Page 8 vestigating the possibility of municipal incorporation, citing Lake Linganore in southern Frederick County as another community run by a homeowners association that is studying the concept. The Lake Linganore Association’s Web site confirms that an ad hoc committee has been working on the idea for some time, with some important questions answered but many more remaining. One important point discovered by Lingamore, Trumpower said, is that an HOA could continue to exist to own and manage the HOA’s amenities in the interests of property owners, at the same time that a municipality is created to manage departments and activities funded by the HOA lot assessments. Trumpower said he was not certain whether it would make sense to keep the amenities in the hands of the OPA, since they’re open to the public anyway. But Hudson later told the Progress that keeping the amenities and other OPA-owned assets in the hands of the OPA might make the process of creating a municipality easier and more politically acceptable. Indeed, one of the obstacles of creating a municipality would be the process used to convey HOA-owned assets to the new municipal corporation. Such a con-

veyance would, according to language in the OPA bylaws, require an affirmative vote of OPA property owners. If the conveyance excludes amenities, such as the Beach Club in Ocean City or the golf course, or community swimming pools, where the HOA’s wealth is concentrated, what’s left in the inventory to convey might be more palatable to property owners voting in a referendum to convey certain assets. On the other hand, any attempt to divide assets between the OPA and a municipality could be vexing and complicated. Would the Community Center and HOA-owned parks be part of the conveyance? At this point, it’s a question barely on the radar screen, but it would be one of many should the study proceed to more a critical phase. Under a system in which the OPA continues to own and operate amenities, departments that might be transferred to a municipality could include police, administration, Public Works, recreation, compliance and permitting. The municipality could assume responsibility over roads and drainage and other community maintenance activities now managed by the Public Works Department. Trumpower advised the committee that instead of HOA assessments, the municipality would have the power to

levy municipal property taxes based on assessed valuation, similar to the way county taxes are levied now. While HOA fees are not deductible for tax purposes, property taxes generally are, and thus even property owners with higher priced homes could benefit from a municipal structure, he said. In his hand-out to committee members, Trumpower said one possible advantage to residents could be more efficient government, but the same handout said a possible disadvantage could include “more government” and the potential for increased costs to residents. His list of possible advantages include eligibility for state “tax equity program contributions,” which the hand-out didn’t explain. Other possible advantages include greater control over planning and zoning, greater control over environmental impact and development, access to state and federal grants, and the ability to fund projects through municipal bonds. Other possible disadvantages include start-up costs of the incorporation process, possible increases in liability exposure, and increased reporting and documentation requirements by state and federal bureaucracies. Questions that need answers include a determination as to whether a municipality is a good idea for Ocean Pines, does the community want to do it, will

9

the board of directors support it and will the county commissioners support the idea, Trumpower said. Looming large over all those questions is the financial impact on OPA members. In addition to inviting Maryland Municipal League staff to a future committee meeting, Trumpower itemized other steps that should be taken. One such step, agreement by the committee to continue working on the issue, has been decided. Another step is to assess the level of support from the OPA board of directors and county commissioners for the idea. Another is to decide whether to ask the OPA for a $25,000 contribution to hire professionals to help the committee in its work, including the hiring of an attorney to discuss the process and legal aspects of incorporation. Trumpower also suggests developing a definitive cost analysis of incorporation, possibly using other municipal charters in Worcester County as a reference point. He suggests conducting community workshops to educate OPA residents about the concept to determine if they support it. Finally, he says the committee would need to decide whether to move forward with gauging support for an Ocean Pines municipality at the state level.

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July-Early August 2013

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First phase of capital improvement plan falls short of motion’s policy objectives OPA Director Dan Stachurski said he would have preferred if the draft plan had contained more detail, but at the same time he said he’s happy that the process is ‘moving in the right direction.’ By TOM STAUSS Publisher he first phase of a draft capital improvement plan presented to the Ocean Pines Association’s board of directors by General Manager Bob Thompson at the board’s June 26 monthly meeting falls substantially short of policy objectives specified in a motion offered by Director Dan Stachurski last September. At best, it’s only a down payment on what Stachurski’s motion was intended to accomplish – “a comprehensive, accurate, workable ten-year plan including requisite work and financing that the board can vote to approve in June, 2013.” What Thompson delivered to the board during the June meeting was in no sense a document that the board was in any position to approve during the June meeting. Director Dave Stevens offered a motion to discuss part one of the CIP at a special meeting to be scheduled sometime before the July regular meeting. The motion passed unanimously. Stevens expressed irritation at the fact that the draft plan was delivered during the June board meeting, and not several days beforehand, to enable the directors to review it before the meeting. Thompson said he produced it in accordance with what he promised the board last October. In addition to missing the June deadline for an actionable document, the draft CIP contains schedules of proposed capital spending, not for ten years specified in Stachurski’s September motion,

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but for five years, including the current fiscal year. All projecs were those previously identified in a 2011 projectl ist. Thompson said he would deliver a second part of the CIP in the September/ October timeframe that would contain proposed new capital spending as called for in Stachurski’s September motion. In effect, much of what Stachurski had hoped would be delivered to the board in time for action in June has been effectively punted to October, absent any directives from the board to move up that timetable. Thompson told the board that the October timeframe for part two of the CIP would allow any capital expenditures approved at that time to be incorporated into the Fiscal 2014-15 draft budget under development then. Stevens retires from the board in August after six years of service, so much if not all of board policy-making on the plan will occur after Stevens, a frequent Thompson critic, is no longer a director. Moreover, the draft CIP includes no information or recommendations about financing, another policy area that Stachurski’s motion had specified. The draft plan also seems to lack the detail of the so-called “rack and stack” of capital projects that the board reviewed, but did not formally adopt, in June of 2011. In offering his motion, Stachurski had said that the June 2011 listing of projects was “an excellent model wherein much of the basic asset and project identification work has been done, but priority selection, careful definition of the scope, time and cost of each project

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OCEAN PINES Capital improvement From Page 10 has yet to be accomplished. Now is the time to reopen this project with the goal of putting a true master plan for asset management into place.” There is little or nothing in the plan thus that lists projects by priority; nor do the summary schedules contained in the draft CIP define the scope or any detail at all of each listed project. Projects are briefly identified with a cost estimate attached, making it necessary for those unfamiliar with these proposed projects to guess what they might entail. As one example, one of the tables in the plan lists $1.6 million in Country Club renovations in each of two fiscal years, 2017 and 2018, for a total proposed renovation expenditure of $3.2 million. The Country Club’s maintenance building appears as a $225,000 item in FY ’16, with no indication what this project might entail. In fact, there is no Country Club maintenance building in Ocean Pines; this item probably refers either to the cart barn facility or the golf course maintenance building located at one end of the golf driving range. Part two of the CIP may very well address this lack of detailed scope. Stachurski told the Progress that while he is not happy that the first part of the CIP did not strictly comply with his motion from last September, he is well aware that what he proposed last

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS year is a very large undertaking and that a relatively new OPA department head, facilities manager Jerry Avila, has been tasked by Thompson to lead the effort. “I would have liked to have seen more, but at the same time I’m happy that it’s moving in the right direction,” Stachurski said. “I suspect by October, after a new board is in place, that we’ll be able to take it to the next level.” He said he’s met with Avila and is impressed with what he’s bringing to the process. He said what his motion was intended to produce is a detailed planning document that he would like to take to the OPA membership for a referendum vote as soon as possible. “It is designed to set capital spending policy in the years to come,” he said, at the same that it would preserve the right of property owners, consistent with OPA bylaws, to approve or disapprove specific projects that exceed a certain cost threshold. Currently, that amount is roughly $1.6 million per project. Even with its limitations, part one of the plan contains a summary schedule of all capital expenditures, in total dollars, planned for the current fiscal year (2013-14) and for the four ensuing fiscal years (table 1). This schedule includes projected expenditures for each of five fiscal years, totaling $15,571,695. Fiscal 2014, the current year, is budgeted for $4,330,100 in expendi-

11

Teach a kid to fish

The Ocean Pines Anglers Club recently hosted its annual Teach A Kid To Fish at the South Pond in Ocean Pines. Event organizer Lee Phillips said over 180 youth, parents and grandparents were on hand to learn about regulations, lure selection, casting, fish handling, knot tying and the joy of fishing. Bait was provided so the youngsters could try out their new skills and the Anglers Club members were on hand to help out with any problems. A free rod and reel was raffled and some of the youth put their new found skills to work and a few even caught some fish. tures, followed by $3,417,485 in FY ’15, $1,742,475 in FY ’16, $4,074,560 in FY ’17 and $2,007,075 in FY ’18. Table two in the draft plan identifies future capital expenditures for these same five fiscal years by campus – Beach Club, Country Club, Manklin Meadows, the Sports Core pool, Swim and Racquet Club, White Horse Park, Yacht Club and a previously unidentified campus, the Ocean Pines community, which combines bridges, road resurfacing, Public Works main building, dredging, bulkheads, Community Center, the Salt Grass crabbing pier and the Mumford’s

Landing pool. Table two lists capital projects by year under each identified campus and then totals project spending by year. This subset of total capital spending projects annual spending less than the projections in table one, probably because table one includes total project spending as well as more pedestrian capital replacement of vehicles, equipment and furniture, which are listed in aggregate numbers in table three. Table three lists projected capital expenditures not by campus but by department.

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12 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

Thompson proposal projects $15,571 in capital spending over five fiscal years A Country Club renovation is projected at a cost of $3.2 million, spread over two fiscal years, 2017 and 2018. Beach Club bathhouse renovation is scheduled for FY 2015 at an estimated cost of $600,000. Golf course drainage would resume in FY 2015 at a cost of $600,000, with another $600,000 allocated two years later. By TOM STAUSS Publisher draft capital improvement plan for the Ocean Pines Association delivered by OPA General Manager Bob Thompson to the board of directors June 26 lists total capital improvements at a cost of $15,571,695 in the current fiscal year through FY 2018. The estimated cost includes spending for capital improvements, such as renovating the Country Club at a cost of $3.2 million over two fiscal years, 2017 and 2018, as well as more routine purchases of vehicles, office equipment and furniture during that five year period. Fiscal 2014, the current year, has

A

$4,330,100 in projected expenditures, followed by $3,417,485 in FY ’15, $1,742,475 in FY ’16, $4,074,560 in FY ’17 and $2,007,075 in FY ’18. Table two in the draft plan identifies future capital expenditures for these same five fiscal years by campus – Beach Club, Country Club, Manklin Meadows, the Sports Core pool, Swim and Racquet Club, White Horse Park, Yacht Club and a previously unidentified campus, the Ocean Pines community, which combines bridges, road resurfacing, Public Works main building, dredging, bulkheads, Community Center, the Salt Grass crabbing pier, and the Mumford’s To Page 14

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

Capital spending

July crafter of the month

Luz Castillo has been chosen the Pine’eer Craft Club crafter for the month of July. Luz, shop treasurer, crafts handmade mosaic tiled mirrors as well as vintage postage stamp magnets and pins. But her latest surprise was the glass shelved displayed cabinet and showcases that she designed and built for the shop. Her items and her carpentry work can be seen every Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Pine’eer Craft and Gift Shop, White Horse Park, Ocean Pines. The Pine’eer Craft Club meets every third Thursday at 9:45 a.m. in the Community Center, and all residents of Ocean Pines and neighboring communities are invited to attend.

From Page 12 Landing pool. Table two lists projects that had been identified as of October, 2012, and thereby omits one major project, a new swimming pool at the Yacht Club for roughly $850,000. Hurricane Sandy delivered a fatal blow to the old pool late last year. Table three lists projected capital expenditures not by campus but by department, just another way of presenting much of the same information. Many projects listed in table two also appear in table three. In the capital improvement project list for the current fiscal year, a Yacht Club renovation is listed at $3.3 million, which is incorrect in at least two ways. A new Yacht Club is under construction; it’s not a renovation. The total approved cost for the new Yacht Club is $4.3 million, of which roughly $500,000 was expended last year, according to the OPA controller, reducing this year’s approved expenditure to about $3.8 million. Another project in this year’s approved list is $60,000 for pool resurfacing at the Sports Core pool, which Thompson has not committed to despite its inclusion in this year’s approved capital budget. Other items that appear in the plan’s list for the current year is $18,000 for a new fence at the Beach Club pool and $20,000 for a new fence at the Mumford’s Landing pool. Both projects could occur by the end of the fiscal year in April of 2014. Fiscal 2015’s project list includes

$600,000 for the Beach Club bathhouse, possibly a renovation of the downstairs locker rooms at the Beach Club. Recent comments by Thompson have suggested that repairs at the pool following Hurricane Sandy may only be temporary, and that the pool may have to be replaced, which would require a change in the plan. The project list also includes $200,000 in Beach Club parking lot paving, an item that never seems to survive the OPA budget process whenever it is included in a draft capital budget for the year. Also in 2015, the draft plan anticipates $600,000 in golf course drainage improvements, $20,000 in a golf school structure, and $19,000 in golf bunkers, for a total of $639,000 in Country Club campus expenditures. At the Manklin Meadows campus, FY ’15 capital projects include $175,000 for ballfield lighting, $24,000 in ballfield parking, $37,000 for basketball courts, and $17,000 for tennis court sprinklers. The Sports Core pool campus parking lot would be paved at a cost of $35,000, while the Swim and Racquet Club pool would be resurfaced at a cost of $37,000. The plan’s newly created “Ocean Pines community” campus is assigned $400,000 in road resurfacing while the Public Works main building is allocated $20,000 during the 2015 fiscal year. Future project spending in FY 2016 includes $423,000 at the Country Club campus, with $50,000 set aside for golf bunkers, $225,000 at the maintenance building, $78,000 at pump station #18, $50,000 at golf course restrooms, and

$23,000 for irrigation. At the Manklin Meadows campus, the FY ’16 list includes $24,000 for the playground and $40,000 for a parking lot. At the Sports Core, $16,000 is set aside for pool heaters, while $200,000 is set aside for the White Horse Park boat ramp. The boat ramp reconstruction could be expedited, for either later this year or to FY ’15. The Ocean Pines community campus project list for FY ’16 includes $170,000 for bridges, $30,000 for a crabbing pier, and $53,000 for Mumford’s Landing pool resurfacing. There has been some discussion that pool resurfacing might be moved up before summer of 2014. The FY ’17 project list includes $2.25 million in Country Club projects, $1.6 million in renovations, $600,000 in drainage improvements, $30,000 for golf bunkers, and $20,000 in irrigation. The draft plan anticipates $250,000 for the Swim and Racquet Club bathhouse, presumably a renovation. The community campus list includes $100,000 for the White Horse Park parking lot, $425,000 for road resurfacing, $52,500 for bulkheads, and $100,000 for the Community Center parking lot. The final year in the plan, FY’16, is sparsely funded, dominated by $1.6 million for Country Club renovation, the second of two consecutive years with identical $1.6 million allocations. The golf course campus list includes another $20,000 for golf course sprinklers. The plan has no money included for the other campuses in FY ’16.


OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS 15

OPA FINANCES

Golf generates modest surplus for first month of fiscal year

By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Ocean Pines Association’s financial performance for May, the first month of the 2014 fiscal year, was solid for golf but much less so for marina operations and aquatics and also for food and beverage operations at the Yacht Club and Beach Club.

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While the Yacht Club posted an $803 surplus for the month, almost $10,000 less than budgeted, the Beach Club posted an actual loss of $5,813, almost $7,500 off budget. Golf was boosted by a golf course fully operational and in the best condition it’s been in for years. Golf generated a $10,746 surplus for the month, $6,662 better than the budget had called for. This is the first time that golf has produced both a positive surplus and positive variance to budget in the same month since the earliest months of Billy

OPA Net Financial Operations through May 31, 2013

Casper Golf ’’s tenure in Ocean Pines, now in its third year. Aquatics was affected by a decline in memberships recorded in May, probably caused by the unavailability of a Yacht Club swimming pool so far this summer and perhaps because of a boost in membership rates. Marina operations suffered from the lack of gasoline sales during the month – that situation was remedied in early June – and the fact that available boat slips have not been fully rented. The OPA apparently is paying a price

in lost revenue because the Yacht Club campus is currently a construction zone. While the old Yacht Club remains open as construction of a new Yacht Club and new Yacht Club pools kicks into a higher gear, OPA General Manager Bob Thompson told the board of directors in June that construction “on both sides of the (existing) building” apparently has affected people’s willingness to spend money at the club. He said conditions there affected both gasoline sales and boat slip rentals at the marina, as well as food and beverage sales. Conditions could improve as early as late July or August, when Thompson hopes the new pool will be open. That in turn will mean the pool tiki bar will reopen, making outside food and beverage sales possible again. While he said gasoline sales were aggressively budgeted given construction conditions on site, he noted that more marinas in the area are selling non-ethanol blends, offering more competition to the OPA. He also said that as the summer progresses, boat slip rentals that fail to materialize probably will be lost for the year. For May, the OPA had a negative operating fund variance of $52,999, on revenues under budget by $117,873 and expenses under budget by $64,873. May’s financial reports, prepared by OPA Controller Art Carmine, were distributed to the board in mid-June. Because new lot assessments show up on the books in May, the association is substantially in the black for the year, a condition that persists until the last month of the fiscal year, when cumulative negative variances can dwarf revenues and produce a net operating loss for the year. That’s what happened in the fiscal year that concluded this past April 30. It’s far too early to make any predictions for the current fiscal year, but one positive sign is that golf is off to a solid start relative to budget. Last year, golf operations lost about $500,000, the primary reason that the OPA produced a $400,000 operating deficit for the year. During the board of directors’ June 16 monthly meeting, Thompson for the first time since February offered some after-the-fact budget commentary. He said he had been reluctant to do so in recent months because whatever he says or presents, some directors are pointed in their criticism of the numbers and him particularly. He told the directors that the $52,993 negative variance to budget in May was caused by marina gasoline sales that did not materialize – a $45,000 revenue shortfall compared to budget – as well as by shortfalls in aquatics memberships and Beach Club parking passes. He emphasized the positive: Golf ended $7,000 better than budget, triggering comments from directors Dave Stevens q

Marina operations, drop in aquatics memberships contribute to $53,000 loss for the month


16 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

OPA financials From Page 15 and Marty Clarke that suggested that this year’s May revenues and bottom line, while much better than a year ago, when golf operations lost $56,000, compare unfavorably to the first May under Casper management. Stevens noted that golf revenues for May of this year were still substantially less than budget. Thompson said that Casper, reacting to the situation, managed its expenses better than it did last year, producing a surplus and positive variance to budget. “That’s good news,” he said. The general manager also said that, in constructing the month-to-month golf budget for the year, Casper officials realized that, even with all 18 holes of the course open for play beginning May 1, it would take time for word to filter out that the Ocean Pines golf course is back in business after greens replacement and drainage projects were completed. Thompson said package play promoters will be very supportive of the Ocean Pines in the fall. Clarke expressed caution about the numbers, informing his colleagues that in the four years prior to last year, May had produced surpluses that averaged a

positive $57,593. This year’s May surplus is “off 80 percent from the previous four years,” he said. Stevens asked for copies of Casper’s monthly budgets to enable him to dig deeper into profit-loss numbers, and Thompson said he would produce them. Stevens said having monthly budgets to compare to actual performance will make it possible to have a better idea whether the company will meet the $150,000 loss target for FY ’14. OPA President Tom Terry echoed that sentiment, and said that Casper is on notice that contract renewal depends on performing well relative to budget this year. He said it will be clear by the fall how well golf operations are faring. Carmine’s summary for May indicates of all the major amenity departments, only golf had both a positive variance to budget ($6,662) and an actual operating surplus ($10,746). The Beach Club was the only department to have both a negative variance to budget (-$7,422) and an actual operating loss (-$5,813). Tennis’ surplus was $29,526, with a $2,884 negative variance. Marina operations were $121,945 in the black, but with a $44,428 negative variance to budget, attributable to a lack of gas-

oline sales and boat slip rentals under budget. Beach Club parking, a perennial solid money-maker for the OPA, produced a $236,629 surplus for the month, but that was $8,536 less than the budget had projected. Aquatics produced a $73,145 surplus for the month, $30,006 less than what the budget anticipated. The Yacht’s actual surplus was $803, with a $9,663 negative variance. Status of reserves – The reserve summary released as part of the May financials shows that the OPA’s reserve balance stood at $8,437,653, a sharp increase from the balance of $4,733,893 at the end of April. The $3,703,760 increase is attributable to the influx of lot assessment dollars that flow into the reserves at the beginning of the new fiscal year. The OPA’s actual financial condition is even better than the $8.4 million reserve number. According to a summary of CDAR and money market investments held by the OPA as of May 31, the total value of these funds is $9.5 million, about $1 million more than that earmarked for various reserves. The summary was distributed during a meeting of the budget and finance advisory committee in late June. The balance in the roads reserve through May is $66,663, compared to

April’s negative $153,245. The improvement reflects $220,000 in casino revenues allocated to the roads reserve. The bulkhead and waterways reserve through May stands at $1,066,221, a sharp increase from April’s $311,485 positive balance, attributable to $822,367 in contributions from the waterfront lot assessment differential. That fund should remain flush for much of the year, as there are no current plans to start another cycle of bulkhead replacement. The previous cycle ended last year. The latest draft of the OPA’s capital improvement plan contains no bulkhead expenditures until Fiscal Year 2017, when $52,500 is listed. The major maintenance and replacement reserve remains as the OPA reserve most flush with earmarked assessment dollars. Its May balance stood at $7,485,163, up from the April 30 balance of $4,914,176. The increase includes $2,696,753 in new assessment contributions, from two funding streams. Funded depreciation in the so-called “historical” column produced $1,598,773, while the so-called five-year finding plan produced $1,097,980. This reserve will be substantially reduced by the end of the year, perhaps by as much as $5 million, reflecting the cost of the new Yacht Club and swimming pool.

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July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

17


18 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

By TOM STAUSS Publisher hile the first phase of the fiveyear capital improvement plan delivered to the board of directors by General Manager Bob Thompson on June 26 is obviously a work in progress, with many additions and subtractions possible in the second phase and before it wins board approval, a preliminary analysis by the Progress indicates that, at the current level of OPA assessments and reserves, there will be plenty of money available to pay for the plan’s $15,571,695 in anticipated five-year capital spending. Indeed, at the current assessment of $910, anticipated assessment dollars over five consecutive fiscal years, including this one, could easily exceed anticipated spending by just less than $10 million, a rather staggering amount of money. That raises the possibility that, as at least one candidate for the board of directors has argued recently, the OPA may be collecting from property owners much more than is needed in assessments. In the current fiscal year, the approved budget allocates $3.9 million to reserves, a record amount, although the May 30 reserve summary indicates that the contribution is actually $3.7 million, probably reflecting an akllowance for delinquencies.

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OPA may be overfunding reserves, analysis shows Current level of assessments allocated to reserves substantially exceed projects listed in first phase of capital improvement plan. The CIP’s second phase could include additional projects that might change that calculus. Candidate Roland Langevin has told property owners that he believes that assessments can be reduced even as the OPA faces challenges from aging facilities. That has been the consistent position of OPA Director Marty Clarke, while Director Dave Stevens, who is retiring from the board later this summer, has said that the OPA is collecting more than is needed in funded depreciation, which is allocated to the “historical” column in the major maintenance and replacement reserve. That so-called “historical” funding stream, a misnomer because it includes funded depreciation in this and recent fiscal years, sat at $5.6 million as of May 30. There isn’t anything particularly historical about it, other than the fact that the OPA has funded depreciation of its major and minor assets over many years. Funded depreciation is the

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largest of the two funding streams that comprise the major maintenance and replacement reserve. The other funding stream is the five-year major projects’ funding plan, now in its fifth year. The Progress analysis begins with the total of all six of OPA’S allocated reserves, $8.44 million as of May 30, the largest reserve balance in Ocean Pines’ history. Actually, that $8.44 million understates the OPA’s CDAR and money market position as of May 31. According to a document circulated during the OPA’s Budget and Finance advisory committee meeting on June 28, the OPA as of May 31 held a total of $9.5 million in such funds, including $9 million in a Bank of Ocean City CDAR, $249,962 in a Bank of Ocean City money market fund, $249,731 in a BB&T money market fund, and $6,295 in a

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

From Page 18 years. The sum total of all these funding sources is $24 million, substantially higher than the $15.6 million in capital spending listed in the CIP delivered by Thompson to the board in late June. A more conservative analysis would work with funding levels in the major maintenance and replacement reserve, rather than total reserves, but even then anticipated revenues exceed identified capital expenditures by a significant amount. The May 31 replacement reserve balance stood at $7.5 million, including a $2.7 million contribution from assessments for the current fiscal year. Over four additional years, if the same $2.7 million is allocated from assessments to this reserve, it would grow by $10.8 million, for a total of $18.3 million. Some of the projects listed in the draft CIP would not be financed from the replacement reserve, so the estimated $15.6 million in identified capital spending over the five-year planning period should be adjusted downward accordingly for purposes of analysis. The CIP lists $825,000 in roads projects over that time period, and $1.2 million in golf drainage, for a total of about $2 million. Neither roads nor golf drainage are funded out of the replacement reserves.

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Draft capital plan calls for better maintenance of OPA assets OPA facilities manager urges acquisition of computerized management system By TOM STAUSS Publisher he first phase of a draft capital improvement plan for the Ocean Pines Association is not exactly replete with details of future big-ticket capital expenditures, but is notable for at least one key ingredient: It strongly recommends that the OPA do a much better job of maintaining its existing assets. To that end, the CIP suggests that the OPA extricate itself from relying on a paper-based work order system that too often allows needed work to fall through the cracks. The plan’s principal author, newly minted OPA facilities manager Jerry Avila, wants the OPA to jettison that paper-based system with a modern, state of the art COTS CMMS, an acronym for commercial off-the-shelf computerized maintenance management system. Such a system manages and tracks capital assets and their maintenance history, at the same time that is sched-

T

ules regular preventive maintenance. It allows personnel to request service or report breakdowns and provides detailed reports on maintenance activities and its costs. Finally, such a system would generate reports on operational and regulatory compliance. “Currently, available systems are Internet based, requiring no maintaining and updating of legacy system,” Avila writes in his draft CIP. “Additionally, they employ capabilities to have mobile work order capability via smart phones and other mobile devices, migrates data from existing legacy data systems and contain a highly flexible, customizable and secure maintenance management system.” Avila writes that such a system, not currently an OPA budget item, can be purchased at a cost that is “approximately what Ocean Pines currently spends annually for its legacy work order system,” which he criticizes. “Currently, work order reports are generated by hard copy and passed on to various Public Works (Department) teams,” he writes. “Follow up is verbal and inefficient. Any reporting analysis must be copied manually to Excel spreadsheets.”

Avila goes on to say that under the current system, work order items might remain on a to-do list for an extended period of time because they require “capability” not present in the Public Works Department or lack authorized funding. Requested work “must compete with other budget items, which include replacement of equipment, critical services and other capital improvements,” he says. “Consequently, common maintenance tasks, such as replacing plaster in (swimming) pools, concrete decking repairs and fence replacement, lack sufficient urgency to be funded and are delayed for extended periods of time.” Computer infrastructure improvements from now through the 2018 fiscal year have been scheduled, and Avila is suggesting a review of these planned purchases “to determine (possible) savings through quantities and/or scheduling.” Avila writes that the OPA lacks a common infrastructure that links the 75 computers on the OPA network. He says there is no active directory domain, software volume licensing, or workstation or server deployment services. Because of that inefficiency, “disruptions to emq

20 Ocean Pines PROGRESS Analysis

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OCEAN PINES Election

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

posed expenditure of $15,000 to initiate a master planning effort, including base From Page 20 mapping/modeling and a strategic planployee productivity are commonplace,” ning process. he says, adding that the OPA has many He further recommends a formal acpieces of hardware that have surpassed quisition process from requirement to their useful lives. completion, a “single point of contact” His solution: the OPA needs to fund a within the OPA to manage acquisitions, computer system upgrade. continuation of the CIP planning proAmong other recommendations that cess, and annual approval by the board Avila includes in the draft is a pro-x 5.67” of directors of that plan. Ocean Pines Progress . 1/2CIP pg 10.125” 4C

Maintenance

advocating a decrease in assessments, Terry seemed to suggest that the present level of assessments are where they need to be to keep OPA operations afloat while setting aside sufficient funds for future capital expenditures. All six candidates, in fact, agreed that collecting funds in advance of major projects and parking them in the OPA reserves is a good idea, better than borrowing or any other way of financing large capital expenditures. All six candidates expressed varying degrees of skepticism about an issue that is being investigated by the OPA’s budget and finance advisory committee, the possibility of creating a municipality to assume responsibility for a range of departments – Public Works, police, fire, permitting and compliance, and recreation and administration – while the OPA presumably would continue to own and operate the amenity departments. Committee members have already agreed among themselves that this idea won’t gain any real traction unless it can be proven conclusively that residents will save money by this dual-government approach, which on the face of it appears counter-intuitive. Terry was the only one who seemed somewhat supportive of the committee’s investigatory efforts, but only on the legitimacy of asking questions and seeking answers as opposed to staking out a

favorable position. Even the budget committee hasn’t decided that it supports the idea, only that it’s an issue that’s worth investigating. If the candidates forum yielded very little of substance or differences among the candidates, with the notable exception of Langevin and, to a lesser extent, Collins, the election season’s temperature rose a few degrees at the board of directors’ meeting two days later. There, it was evident that opponents of Langevin’s candidacy, alarmed by his unabashed call for the resignation or firing of the general manager, turned out in force to speak out against him and to attempt to link him to OPA Director Marty Clarke, another persistent and relentless critic of Thompson. Most pointed in his remarks was former board member Tom Sandusky, who identified Langevin by name as someone who wanted to get rid of Thompson and therefore was unworthy of support in the election. He was similarly unreserved in his criticism of Clarke, also identifying him name. He blamed Clarke for influencing Langevin in his call for Thompson’s removal. Later, Thompson concluded that he erred in specifically naming Langevin and Clarke in his remarks. Langevin was visibly upset but declined to address the board during the q

From Page 1 ter job of guiding the general manager, however. Collins, who after the forum told the Progress that he’s not running on the same team as Langevin but respects him, takes a more subtle approach to spending. But he nonetheless struck a position at odds with a majority of the sitting board of directors – two of whose members are running for reelection this summer – on the board’s offer some time ago to purchase the former Pine Shore Golf Course property across Beauchamp Road from north Ocean Pines. Collins in effect said the board erred in not consulting with property owners before making the offer, which was turned down by the bank. Langevin said

the offer never should have been made because no purpose had been identified and it seemed like an extravagant and unnecessary waste of OPA resources. The other four candidates running for the board this summer – two incumbents, Terry and Ray Unger; one former director, Les Purcell, and one candidate who unsuccessfully ran last summer, Bill Cordwell – did not use the forum setting as an opportunity to launch a critique of OPA operations or board policies. Terry, in fact, is touting his three years on the board as a reason property owners should reelect him. He said the OPA has made a lot of progress in identifying and dealing with the overriding issue of aging amenities. That is essentially what Unger told the assembled property owners, and Purcell and Cordwell said nothing to the contrary. In contrast to Langevin, who was

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

Terry repeats warning to Casper during candidates’ forum Langevin, Collins express willingness to consider leasing out golf course if current management company fails to deliver on budget projections By TOM STAUSS Publisher hen candidates for the Ocean Pines Association board of directors in this summer’s election discussed amenity out-sourcing during the June 14 Election Committee-sponsored forum, it was OPA President Tom Terry who was the most outspoken on the need for one particular outside contractor to perform – or else. The contractor at issue was Billy Casper Golf, which is the third year of its contract to manage the Ocean Pines golf course. Terry told OPA members that he had informed Casper executives, with the contract up in the fall, there would be “no excuses” for poor financial performance. Golf operations lost about $500,000 in the fiscal year that ended this past

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April 30. “You either turn it around or no new contract,” Terry said. In contrast, candidate Bill Cordwell seemed more willing than Terry to give Casper more time to turn operations around financially. With the golf course not fully open until this past May, after completion of expensive green replacements and drainage improvements on holes 11 and 12, Cordwell said “it will take time” for Casper to meet revenue and budget objectives. In the approved golf budget for the current fiscal year, the golf deficit is projected to drop from last year’s $500,000 loss to $150,000. By fall, if not sooner, it should be clear whether Casper has a realistic shot at making the $150,000 loss target. The company got off to a reasonably good start relative to budget in May, recording a $6,662 positive variance to budget and a $10,746 profit. Among the other candidates, former board member Les Purcell and Jack Collins explicitly referenced Casper Golf during the forum. Purcell reminded OPA members that as a director when the Casper contract was executed he “wasn’t entirely in fa-

vor” of bringing the company on board. But then he seemed to lean more in Cordwell’s direction by saying that Casper had “been without a golf course until this spring,” suggesting that he, too, might be willing to give the company more time to succeed in Ocean Pines even if this year’s budget objectives aren’t met. Candidate Ray Unger, a sitting board member running for reelection, didn’t mention Casper in his answer to amenity outsourcing. Apparently having the Yacht Club food and beverage operation in mind, Unger said he thought that OPA employees there are “doing a good job” and that he didn’t think outsourcing was necessary. Roland Langevin, while not mentioning the golf course in particular, seemed receptive to leasing out OPA amenities to private contractors as a money-saving option. The practical difficulty to that is to “find someone” who is willing to lease OPA facilities even at $1 per year, he said, telling the audience that he was willing “to invest the time” to investi-

Election From Page 21 segment of the meeting reserved for member comment. He attempted after the meeting to rebut Sandusky’s remarks, but by then most of the audience had filtered out of the Assateague Room in the Community Center, leaving few people to hear what he had to say. The Progress invited Sandusky and Langevin to state their views in writing. Their dueling letters are reprinted in the Opinion section of this edition of the Progress. While Langevin and Collins are not exact copies of one another, one group that has surfaced from time to time in Ocean Pines, STOP, for Stop Taxing

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gate possibilities. In this regard, he seemed more or less aligned with OPA Director Marty Clarke on leasing, which is one way to out-source. The other way is to hire a contractor to manage OPA amenities while keeping control and absorbing any operational losses, which is what is happening at the golf course. Candidate Jack Collins said that the OPA “might have to look at” outsourcing as a way to solve certain operational challenges, citing Section 3 drainage issues as an area that might require “thinking outside the box.” He added that if Billy Casper doesn’t do it – by which he meant meeting budget targets – “then we’ll have a decision to make.” He said he might be willing to give the company an additional year to see if it could effect a turn-around, after which he said that “maybe we lease it out” if the turn-around doesn’t happen. Of the six candidates, only two – Langevin and Collins -- mentioned leasing as an option to be considered if Casper doesn’t make its budget. Ocean Pines, has purchased an advertisement in this edition of the Progress supporting both of them. Clarke has been identified with this group in the past. Clarke told the Progress that while he finds the candidacies of Langevin and Collins to be appealing, he is making no formal endorsements in this year’s OPA election. “I have to work with anyone who is elected,” he said. But he took exception to any notion that he was involved in any way with sponsoring or encouraging either man to run for the board. “Didn’t happen,” he said. “I never even talked to Mr. Langevin before he decided to run.”

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

23

Budget panel members differ on how to curb board spending authority

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titioned to the board by ten percent of OPA property owners. Committee member Bill Cordwell, a candidate for the board this summer, has declined to state his opinion on the matter. Hudson noted that Cordwell has said that he would not vote on the committee’s proposal. Trumpower said it was clear that the committee didn’t have “a handle” on what to recommend, and Hudson agreed. He said the issue would be taken up again at the committee’s July

meeting. Investment policy -- On another issue the committee has been grappling with in recent months, whether to change the OPA’s conservative investment policy, members still seemed a ways away from voting on and forwarding a recommendation to the board for review and action. Hudson said he would invite a representative from the OPA’s former investment bank to the next meeting of the committee to discuss the OPA’s

investment policy, which emphasizes preservation of principle and restricts investments to accounts covered by government deposit insurance. At previous meetings, the committee has said the OPA could consider investing in higher yielding municipal or investment-grade corporate bonds. At least one member of the OPA board of directors, Marty Clarke, has pushed back against any modification of the OPA’s investment policy.

q

By TOM STAUSS Publisher lthough all members of Ocean Pines Association’s budget and finance advisory committee, save one, appear to support some sort of curb on the OPA board of directors’ spending authority, they have not yet been able to forge a consensus on precisely what form that limitation should take. During the panel’s June 28 monthly meeting, members debated a draft recommendation to amend the OPA bylaws to require a property owner referendum for any capital purchase in excess of 20 percent of the market value of the Association’s liquid assets. Liquid assets are defined by the committee as including money market funds or CDARs that can be converted to cash 30 w/Jerry. days. A document circulatJustin spoke He'd like to change Row 1 Columnthe 2 (LOOK JUSTindicated $160,000) that the ed during meeting OPA, as of May 30, had $9.5 million in to this: (photo attached) CDAR and money market instruments $299,000 MOTIVATED SELLER! on deposit at area banks. Twenty $9.5BR’s, million 2 MBR (1 percent up, 1 down),of2 add’l 3 1/2 is Custom built home w/great $1.9 baths. million, higher than the view $1.6of 4th milhole OP Golf can course. Recentnow upgrades incl.the lion the board spend under HVAC systems, Riner's Water Heater, Silestone OPA Counters.HOME bylaws, which say a referendum is BUYER WARRANTY INCL’D! required if 702# a project costs 20 percent of Call ext. the annual OPA revenues. The generally Then there is a priceof change on WATERFRONT accepted definition annual OPA revHOME BUILD. Price change is enues are ROOM thoseTOcollected from annual $190,000. lot assessments, while annual amenity membership dues are excluded from the formula used to determine the referendum threshold. Committee member John Trumpower repeated that he does not really support additional curbs on board spending authority, but he seems to be prepared to accept whatever the committee comes up with. Trumpower said the community elects directors to make “these spending decisions,” while other committee members said that authority is already restricted by the bylaws with larger expenditures requiring a referendum vote. OPA board member Terri Mohr, the board’s committee liaison, suggested that the panel should make its recommendation “a number,” without specifying what that number should be. Trumpower suggested that the percentage in the existing bylaws could be simply dropped from 20 to 10 percent, calling it “easier, cleaner” than the alternatives. Committee chair Dennis Hudson said doing so would reduce the current referendum threshold to about $800,000. The committee then debated whether the restriction should be on total capital spending for any given year, as opposed to each proposed expenditure, but Mohr said that the panel should take care not to be “too restrictive” in what it proposes, because the board probably would reject it. Bylaws changes, however, are not ultimately decided by the board. They require a majority vote of property owners in a referendum. Bylaws changes can be proposed by the board or can be pe-

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24 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

By TOM STAUSS Publisher t seemed like such a no-brainer when Ocean Pines Association Director Ray Unger offered a motion for consideration at the board of directors June 26 meeting: Pay off the Sports Core pool enclosure loan and a save a bundle in interest. His logic: the loan carries a 7.19 percent annual interest rate, and the OPA is earning a minuscule 1 percent or so on its money invested in CDARs and money market funds. To Unger and his colleague on the board, Marty Clarke, paying off the debt with money that yields a scant return to save $17,000 in annual interest payments makes good business sense. Not to do so, by extension, does not. In Ocean Pines, of course, it’s never quite so simple. OPA General Manager Bob Thompson jumped in tell the board that the OPA is earning almost 3 percent on most of its invested funds. A document circulated at the June 28 meeting of the budget and finance advisory committee confirms the general manager’s assertion. It turns out that $9 million that the OPA had on account in Bank of Ocean City CDARs as of May 31 carried a periodic daily interest rate of .0075 percent, which works out to a 2.73

I

OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

Board rejects Unger proposal to pay off Sports Core loan Gomsak persuades directors that payoff would blow a hole in current year’s operating budget percent annual rate. Another $500,000 was held in Bank of Ocean City and BB&T money market funds at a periodic rate of .0025, which works out to annual rate of .91 percent. Together these low yielding investments comprised a little more than 5 percent of the OPA’s investment portfolio, not enough to make much of a difference in the overall rate of return. Unger also made a tactical error in drafting a motion that sought to pay off the $248,700 in remaining principal on the loan from what he called the OPA’s historical reserve, which actually isn’t a separate reserve but one of two funding streams that comprise the OPA’s major maintenance and replacement reserve. The other component of that reserve is a funding stream attributed to the OPA’s five-year funding plan that is now in its fifth year. The problem in choosing the maintenance and replacement reserve as the

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funding source to retire debt, on what essentially was a new amenity funded back in 2007 and 2008, is that this reserve is designed to pay for capital replacement items. To shift funds out of the replacement reserve to pay for a new capital item, as opposed to a replacement item, Unger’s motion would have needed a supermajority of five directors to pass. Body language among the directors immediately after he offered his motion suggested that he was not likely to find a supermajority or even a simple majority of four to pass his motion. OPA Director Terri Mohr, who serves as OPA treasurer, immediately informed Unger that the business case for his proposal was not quite the slam dunk that it seemed on the surface. She didn’t try to explain why, other than to note that it would constitute an unbudgeted expenditure, something that Clarke normally reflexively opposes.

Spending authority From Page 23 Capital spending variances – For years, the board of directors and the budget committee have received monthly financial reports that attempt to explain variances in actual operational performance against the approved budget. For quite some time, committee member, Gene Ringsdorf, has asked for similar explanations of variances in the capital budget relative to actual expenditures. He repeated his request to OPA General Manager Bob Thompson, who had stopped in to answer questions because the previously invited guest, OPA Controller Art Carmine, was tied up with auditors. Thompson replied that he would look into the request and see whether it could be fulfilled.

She deferred to the OPA’s assistant treasurer, former OPA treasurer Pete Gomsak, who just happened to be sitting among the chairs reserved for spectators. He was armed with facts and numbers and his usual supply of persistence and persuasion. He convinced five of the seven directors that paying off the $248,000 in remaining principal as of June 30 to save $17,000 would not be so beneficial after all. Gomsak said paying off that much in principal would blow an immediate hole in Thompson’s operating budget for the new fiscal year, which already has a negative variance to budget of more than $50,000 after the first month of operation. He said the money couldn’t be taken out of the replacement reserve – the pool enclosure was not a replacement item – but would have to come from operating funds. In budgetary terms, he said the unbudgeted expenditure would have an impact of $30.82 per property owner, compared to the $8.25 impact of simply continuing with monthly principal and interest payments totaling $6,000 per month. Paying off the principal in a single payment would thereby produce a negative variance to budget of $22.57 per property owner, he said. Gomsak then described the impact of the pay-off per property owner in contrast to servicing the debt in accordance with the loan terms, which call for it to be paid off in June of 2017. He said the average annual savings in interest would be $7,325, equivalent to 87 cents per property owner. He had convinced most of the directors that paying off the loan was not worth the trouble. After Clarke said that any savings would be a good thing, noting that the operating deficit last year was in excess of $400,000, OPA President Tom Terry said that paying off the loan would add $197,000 in net deficit spending to this year’s budget and Director Dan Stachurski said Unger’s motion would be setting a precedent by “raiding a reserve fund” for a reason not related to the fund’s established purpose. The motion failed 5-2, with Unger and Clarke voting for it.


OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

Board directs Thompson to submit proposals for universal trash pick-up

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cause of higher rates. As part of a conversion to universal collection, the general manager said Waste Management could convert to a one-and-one weekly schedule of one regular trash collection and one recyclable collection per week. Director Sharyn O’Hare said during the meeting that she had asked Thompson to press for the one-and-one schedule as many residents now produce more recyclable trash than regular trash. Currently, Waste Management collects recyclables from customers every other week. OPA President Tom Terry suggested that Thompson return to the board of directors with options for universal coverage. “I would anticipate a dramatic cut in rates,� Terry said, adding that the trash company could propose anything it liked, but that it would be better if a number of options were presented for board review. The proposal has already generated some early opposition from some members of the OPA’s budget and finance advisory committee, who discussed the idea in negative terms during its June 28 monthly meeting. OPA Director Terry Mohr, the board’s liaison to the budget committee, seemed to downplay the idea’s chances of successfully producing four votes for passage, but that did not seem to appease committee members.

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By TOM STAUSS Publisher t remains to be seen whether the board of directors will actually pull the trigger on an idea likely to cause an explosive reaction among a segment of the Ocean Pines Association membership, but this much is clear: There’s now a credible chance that the board will decide, sometime in the next several months, to renegotiate a contract with Waste Management for universal trash pick-up in Ocean Pines, with the cost to be borne directly by the OPA rather than individual lot owners. Waste Management’s current exclusive contract expires in December. Universal trash pick-up is not a new idea in Ocean Pines, but it’s an idea that past boards of directors have resisted whenever trash haulers have proposed it as part of the bid process for exclusive trash collection privileges in Ocean Pines. Haulers like it for any number of reasons. It reduces administrative costs substantially, as individual customers no longer have to be billed. It eliminates the problem of non-paying customers gaming the system by depositing their trash on the driveways of their paying neighbors. A possible disadvantage is that the wear and tear of trash trucks could increase as universal pick-up probably increases the amount of trash collected from the driveways. Many residents take their trash to a dump station outside Berlin or to the county’s central landfill in Newark rather than subscribing to collection service through Waste Management. They will probably be opposed to paying for trash service through the OPA lot assessment. This might especially be true for non-resident homeowners who visit Ocean Pines on an irregular schedule. OPA General Manager Bob Thompson raised the possibility of universal trash pick-up during the June 26 monthly meeting of the board of directors. He framed it initially as a proposal to finance trash pick-up by including it in the lot assessments. He cited some potential benefits, including a lower per household cost for current Waste Management customers, who would no longer receive a quarterly bill from the trash company. He did not specify whether the annual OPA assessment would include a separate line item for trash collection, but that might be considered. Thompson said the proposal could result in an increased number of delinquencies from property owners who can’t or won’t pay their assessments be-

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26 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

Board makes gas contract extension official By TOM STAUSS Publisher mid mild rancor and after an admission by the Ocean Pines Association president that he had violated OPA bylaws in conducting board business via email without proper authorization, the board of directors on June 26 formally voted to reaffirm a six-month extension of the contract that governs the delivery of propane and natural gas in Ocean Pines. On a motion by Director Sharyn O’Hare, the board unanimously voted to affirm the contract extension with East-

A

ern Shore Gas Co. for six months, but only after debate over whether a previous approval of the contract extension via email was legal and in compliance with the bylaws. The new contract expires in October of this year. Eastern Shore Gas Co. has been sold to Chesapeake Energy, and Chesapeake’s gas distribution division is now trading under the Sandpiper Energy label. The contract with Eastern Shore Gas Co. presumably is an asset that has been assigned to the new owners. As it turns out, the email approval that occurred in late May was not in compliance with the OPA bylaws, which say that the board can conduct official business of the OPA via email only after all seven members agree to do so in writing. OPA President Tom Terry didn’t ask his colleagues whether they were OK

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with conducting business via email prior to asking them, via email, whether they supported the contract extension. Only five of seven directors responded that they were OK with the extension, with directors Dave Stevens and Marty Clarke objecting to the process. In discussion during the June 26 board meeting, Terry admitted that he had violated the OPA bylaws in asking for the extension using email, without first obtaining unanimous agreement among the directors to do so. Terry said he had acted as he did because of what he believed to be a critical timing issue, after being informed of it by OPA General Manager Bob Thompson. “If we hadn’t done something, they (Eastern Shore Gas) would not have had the legal right to continue to offer gas” to customers in Ocean Pines, Terry said. The letter to Thompson asking for a contract extension was dated April 22, and the email request to directors asking for a contract extension did not happen until May 13, or thereabouts, roughly three weeks later, Clarke said. He told the Progress that if the matter were so urgent that it required resolution via email, then Thompson should have asked Terry to act right after the April 22 letter arrived. Stevens also expressed irritation at the way the issue was handled by Terry. Stevens said he asked Terry to have OPA attorney Joe Moore answer a question about the contract and never received an answer. Prior to the vote on June 26, Stevens read the contract on file in the administration building, satisfying himself that a contract extension was justified. The question that he wanted Moore to answer was a basic overview of the con-

tract’s main points. “Maybe I’m getting old and fussy, but this isn’t any way to conduct OPA business,” Stevens later told the Progress, repeating his criticism of Terry for a number of process failures. Clarke asked his colleagues if any of them had actually read the ESG contract before they voted via email to support its extension. Only one director, Stevens, raised his hand, so that made only two directors, Clarke and Stevens, who say they read the contract before voting to approve it.

Boat ramp survey shows most users are Pines’ residents

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cean Pines Association Director Marty Clarke has been trying for some time to figure out a way to monetize the White Horse Park boat ramp, especially as it relates to outsiders who use the popular boat launch facility. He has said he believes the boat ramp could be a lucrative source of revenue for the OPA. OPA General Manager Bob Thompson has been lukewarm at best to the idea of charging for ramp access, even if it’s non-members of the OPA who would pay. Clarke has all but given up on the idea for this summer. Thompson recently conducted a poll of users of the ramp, and the results wouldn’t seem to bode well for any recommendation from him to propose an access fee. It would take board action to trigger some sort of fee system. Thompson told the board of directors during its June 16 monthly meeting that he had deployed members of the OPA aquatics staff to the ramp on four days, June 15, 16, 22 and 23, with the aim of determining the extent to which nonOPA members or Ocean Pines residents use the ramp. The general manager reported that on the four days surveyed, OPA staff counted 168 people who used the ramp, with 139 of them identifying themselves as Ocean Pines residents. Of the 29 people who were not Ocean Pines residents, half of them had some sort of affiliation with Ocean Pines, in some cases as guests or friends of Ocean Pines residents. Clarke did not take the opportunity during the meeting to push for some sort of access fee targeted at non-residents. OPA President Tom Terry said the board would take the poll “under advisement” but did not indicate whether or when the board might further address the possibility of imposing some sort of access fee. q

OPA president admits he violated bylaws in asking for board approval via email


County seeks bids for Pines Plaza connection

Bid documents for construction of the water and sewer lines for service to the Pines Plaza area were approved by the Worcester County Commissioners during a July 2 meeting. The project includes the installation of approximately 1,600 linear feet of gravity sewer and 2,300 linear feet of 8-inch water line. The project cost is estimated at about $500,000. Funding is proposed to come from a loan from the county’s general fund that will be repaid as commercial properties in the area connect to the water and wastewater system. John Tustin, county director of public works, told the commissioners that the Pines Plaza area at Route 589 has “received a lot of attention recently with the pending sale/auction of Pines Plaza” shopping center. He said any decisions regarding redevelopment of the shopping center by property owners and potential purchasers seem to be on hold pending clarification regarding the cost of connecting to the water and wastewater system, he said.

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

AROUND THE COUNTY ter County are continuing, with the appointment of Phil Thompson as finance officer and Jennifer Swanton as assistant finance officer. Former Finance Officer Harold Higgins was recently promoted by the Worcester County Commissioners to the position of chief administrative officer for the county, opening the door for Thompson and Swanton’s promotions as well. Thompson, a certified public accountant, joined the county in 1996 as enterprise fund controller. He served in that position for ten years before being promoted to assistant finance officer in late 2004.

Thompson graduated from the Perdue School of Business at Salisbury University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and his CPA. Swanton joined the county in 2005 as the enterprise fund controller. She graduated from Washington & Jefferson College with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in math. Afterward she attended Salisbury University where she took accounting and earned her CPA. Thompson and Swanton along with Higgins and Budget Officer Kathy Whited comprise the financial team that earned Worcester County Government the GFOA Certificate of Achievement

for Excellence in Financial Reporting for four consecutive years for financial practices that exemplify exceptional financial management.

Pesticide containers to be recycled

Worcester County has announced that the Newland Park Landfill, located on Brick Kiln Road in Salisbury, will serve as the Maryland Department of Agriculture’s 2013 pesticide container recycling center for Worcester, Somerset, Wicomico and Dorchester counties. This is the only pesticide container collection site on the Lower Eastern Shore; no collection site is available in Worces-

Thompson , Swanton promoted in finance office

Changes to the leadership in Worces-

Boat ramp From Page 26 Clarke recently told the Progress that he’s waiting for Thompson to bring a proposal to the board of directors for review, but that’s not happened, and it looks increasingly unlikely that he will. In brief remarks at the board’s April 24 regular monthly meeting, Clarke had said that his objective is not to force Ocean Pines property owners and residents to pay for the privilege of launching their boats, since they already pay for the privilege when they pay their annual lot assessments. Instead, he said his intention is to “eliminate the free use of the boat ramp” by those who don’t live or own property in Ocean Pines. He said that while he’s aware that Worcester County includes the ramp in its brochures promoting boat usage in the county, White Horse Park “is not a county ramp.” Nor is a similar launch facility near the Mumford’s Landing swimming pool, Clarke said. Whatever proposal Clarke comes up with – and he has said he continues to meet with Thompson to see if they can reach some meeting of the minds on a proposal both can support – there are some indications that at least some directors will have difficulties with the concept and particulars. After the April 24 meeting, Clarke said he doubted that Thompson would support a boat ramp fee proposal in time for implementation this summer. Nothing has occurred since then to change that assessment.

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28 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

July-Early August 2013

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July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

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When Grace builds your home

Progress at the Yacht Club pool

Ginny Reister photo

This photo from late June shows the framing that’s been installed at the Yacht Club swimming pool site, along with a new pumphouse that’s well under way. OPA officials hope that the new pool will be completed and ready for use in late July or August, but no one really knows for sure.

AROUND THE COUNTY From Page 27 ter County. The collection dates, between the hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., are, July 26, Aug, 23 and Sept. 27. All containers must be made from high density polyethylene and have held an Environmental Protection Agency-registered pesticide or adjuvant, crop oil, etc. Any size container will be accepted but containers of more than 30 gallons must be cut prior to recycling. Pesticide containers must be properly pressure-rinsed or triple-rinsed. Caps and other non-HDPE parts, such as metal handles and rubber linings, cannot be recycled. Stained containers are acceptable, provided no material can be smeared or removed when touched by a rubber glove. Remove lids and label booklets prior to recycling. For more information regarding contact Worcester County Recycling Manager Ron Taylor at 410-632-3177.

Worcester County offers summer sports camps

Worcester County Recreation & Parks 2013 recreational and sports summer camp season has begun. Eighteen camps are offered this summer at the Worcester County Recreation Center in Snow Hill and other locations across the county. The camps are open to children entering grades 1 through 8, with golf camp being open to children ages 7 to 11 years old. These week-long camps will run through the week of Aug. 12. Financial aid is available to those who show a demonstrated need. WCRP will offer traditional camps that teach fundamental skills in basketball, soccer, tennis, track, golf, and flag football. Participants will take part

in daily drills, modified games, and full game situations. For children who cannot choose just one sport, WCRP offers sports combo camps and recreation sports camps that will cover a wide range of traditional and non-traditional sports. Sports Combo Camps include traditional sports, such as basketball, soccer, volleyball, and flag football, as well as, additional activities, such as badminton and table tennis. For a full listing of summer camp options, visit http://www.co.worcester. md.us/recreation/rec.aspx.

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Adult education earns high marks

Worcester County Public School’s Adult Education Program earned one of the highest instructional rankings in the state, out of the 26 adult education programs in Maryland. The Maryland Department of Labor & Licensing Regulation, which oversees adult education programs statewide, says Worcester County Public Schools’ Adult Education Program achieved the “Highest Performance” ranking in six of the 10 instructional categories evaluated, for the 2011-2012 school year. In addition, the English as a Second Language, Adult Basic Education, and General Education Development programs performed above the state average in eight of the 10 categories. “We attribute this high level of success to many factors,” Mark Ferraro, program facilitator, said, “but if I had to narrow the reasons to one word, the word would be dedication. We have dedicated instructors who want to empower our students with a great education. We have dedicated students who are willing to face the challenges of earning a rigorous education through a less traditional pathway.”

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30 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

July-Early August 2013

J

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OCEAN PINES Monday, July 8 Friends of the Ocean Pines Library, monthly meeting, 10 a.m., library. Refreshments 9:30 a.m.. “Hot Summer Reads” by librarian Robin Long. Members to contribute suggestions of great books they have recently read. All welcome. 410-208-4014. Wednesday, July 10 Worcester County Democratic Club’s annual picnic, Fiesta Park, 141st Street and Bayside, Ocean City, 5 p.m. Guests include Congressional Candidate Dr. John LaFerla, Maryland Senator Jim Mathias, Delegate Norm Conway, and Salisbury Mayor Jim Ireton. Tickets $10, reservations necessary, Lanny Hickman, 410-600-0552. Wednesday, July 11 Star Charities’ Western Night at the Races, 4:30 p.m., Ocean Downs racetrack, reservations required for limited seating. Tickets $26. Chicken and fish buffet, live harness racing, free program, door prizes, best western dress prizes, live entertainment. RSVP 410-208-9514, 410-208-0430. Benefits Worcester County Development Center. Saturday, July 13 Kiwanis summer pancake breakfast, Ocean Pines Community Center, 8-11 a.m. Tickets $5 adults, $3 kids under 12, free kids under 5. Pancakes, sausages, fruit cup, orange juice, coffee

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July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

HAPPENINGS or tea. Pre-purchase tickets from Ralph Chinn at 410-208-6719 or at the door. Carryouts available. Tuesday, July 16 GPS seminar, sponsored by the Ocean City Power Squadron, 7 p.m., Ocean Pines Community Center’s Marlin Room. How to operate GPS on the water. $10. Books available for purchase. Course given by OCPS PC, Tony Smith, AP. 410-641-5603 asmith@prosyn. com , or Morton Brown 410-641-8040 brownmn1@yahoo.com for information and to enroll. Thursday, July 18 Pine’eer Craft Club, monthly meeting, Ocean Pines Community Center, 9:45 am. Project to be a woven reindeer. $2. To reserve a kit call Grace at 443944-9601. Discussion and vote on by-law changes. Worcester County Tea Party, monthly meeting, Ocean Pines Community Center, 7 p.m. Special guest speaker, Charles Lollar, chairman of New Day Maryland. Doors open 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 3 Pine’eer Craft Club of Ocean Pines’ 36th Annual Arts and Crafts Festival, White Horse Park, 239 Ocean Parkway, 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. Free parking, food vendors. More than 100 artisans and crafters. Quilts, original artwork, candles, pottery, floral design, jewelry, personalized items and holiday décor, Ocean Pines Farmers Market. Vendor applications can be downloaded from www.oceanpines.org or call Barb O’Connor at 410-208-2944 for information. Ocean Pines Chamber of Commerce 6th annual flounder fishing tournament.

7 a.m. - 3 p.m. Cash prizes. Weigh-in 1-4 p.m. Entry forms at the Ocean Pines Chamber of Commerce office 11031 Cathell Road, or register online at oceanpineschamber.org. $35 per person with discount for multiple fishermen. 410-641-5306 or info@OceanPinesChamber.org.

Ongoing

Sole jam shoe donation drive, bring your “slightly worn” or new shoes to help support local families in need. Contributions will be divided among 3-4 families while the rest will be donated to Diakonia Inc. Month-long event starting July 1. Drop box can be found at the Ocean Pines Community Center. Pine’eer Craft Club, White Horse Park, Ocean Pines, open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Handcrafted home decor, jewelry, and fashion accessories, created by members of the Pine’eer Craft Club. Ask a Master Gardener clinic, May to September, offered by the University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Service, Ocean Pines Library, 11107 Cathell Road, Ocean Pines. Free, every Tuesday 1-4 p.m. Master Gardeners will be available to help with gardening questions. Those with damaged plans should place samples in a plastic bag and label the bag with a name and phone number. Questions that can’t be answered at the time of submittal will be researched and someone will get back in touch at a later date. Pancake breakfast every Saturday, 8 a.m. till noon, Ocean City Airport, to support the Ocean City Aviation Association’s Huey Memorial Display restoration and continuous maintenance fund. The display is located near the Terminal and requires

31

no security procedures to view. Contact Tom Oneto, 410-641-6888, or Airport Operations,410-213-2471. Suicide Grievers’ Support Group, 3rd Wednesday every month, 6 p.m., Worcester County Health Department, Healthway Drive, Berlin, adjacent to Atlantic General Hospital. Open to anyone who has lost a friend or loved one to suicide. Free of charge. Quiet listening, caring people, no judgment. 410-629-0164 or www.jessespaddle.org. Kiwanis Club meets every Wednesday at 7:45 a.m. in the Ocean Pines Community Center except Wednesday, Nov. 14, and the third Wednesday of the month when they meet at the Woodlands in Ocean Pines from January through May 2013 for an evening dinner meeting starting 6 p.m., $18 per person. Doors open 5:30 p.m. all 410-641-7330. Ocean Pines plant clinic, Ocean Pines library lobby, every Tuesday 1-4 p.m. May 1 until Sept. 25. Got plant problems or bugs? Bring your bagged samples by and let expert master gardeners find solutions to your questions. Sanctioned duplicate bridge games, Ocean Pines Community Center, Sundays 1 p.m., Mondays noon, Tuesdays 10 a.m. Partners guaranteed. $5, special games $6. Third Sunday of every month is Swiss teams (no partner guaranteed for teams). Felicia Daly, 410208-1272; Pat Kanz, 410-641-8071 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. Kabbalah class with Saturday services, coffee, juice and bagels, 9:30 a.m., Saturdays, Temple Bat Yam, 410641-4311. To Page 33

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OCEAN PINES

July-Early August 2013

Aquatics panel completes work on five-year plan for OPA pools Advisory panel formalizes recommendations for upgrades, better maintenance By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Ocean Pines Association’s aquatics advisory committee has completed a detailed plan of action for Ocean Pines’ five swimming pools, in the hopes that its recommendations will be included in the five-year capital improvement plan currently under development by the OPA administration and board of directors. In a brief introduction to its various recommendations, the committee said it was motivated by concern for the condition of Ocean Pines pools and a need for better planning. “We feel the adoption of a plan and a process for specifically executing that plan, relating it to necessary budget expenditures over the next five years, combined with flexibility within the budget process (for unforeseen events as happened this year), is essential,” the committee writes. Echoing language used by OPA Facilities Manager Jerry Avila is his initial draft of an OPA capital improvement plan, delivered to the board of directors in late June, the committee urges the adoption of maintenance schedules for each pool and says that “each year’s plan should be reviewed in advance every year for any change in needs, so that budgets can reflect those changes.” In addition to specific recommendations for each of the pools, the committee takes a firm position in opposition to a new a new indoor swimming pool complex, sometimes called a natatorium, to replace the existing Sports Core pool. The committee was asked by General Manager Bob Thompson to research the possibility of building the facility, with no particular timeframe suggested. In response to that request, committee chairperson Virginia Reister assembled what she calls a Natororium Notebook that contains the work product of her research effort. It will be updated as additional information is obtained. According to the committee’s plan of action, the group “does not favor the construction of, or collecting of funds for, a new aquatics center at the Sports Core within the next ten years.” As an alternative, the committee urges consistent maintenance of the existing pool after pool resurfacing and other improvements are made. In addition, the committee says that if the existing pool “should experience a catastrophic failure within the next ten years, the most cost effective solution would be to rebuild it in the existing footprint.” Committee members said that in

T

order for community support for a new aquatics center to be potentially feasible, usage of the existing Sports Core facility would need to increase substantially. “There is no discernible demand from within the Ocean Pines aquatics community for a new complex at the present time,” the committee said. In addition, the committee expressed doubt over whether there would be any significant support for a new indoor pool outside the OPA aquatics membership. According to the action plan, factors that could be considered in the future in evaluating the need for a new aquatics complex could include cost, availability of land, other activities in the area, local user population estimates, member needs and wants, green design, and financial resources, including joint venture potential. The committee noted that the Mid-Delmarva Family YMCA owns land on the southern perimeter of Ocean Pines. Plans for this site could materialize in coming decades and could include an indoor swimming pool. The committee’s action plan mentions a few common issues affecting all the pools. The panels recommends that the OPA solve communication issues with electronics, add Wi-fi capability to all the pools, and complete OSHA compliance at all the pools. The rest of the committee’s recommendations are contained after brief descriptions of each of the pools. Highlights follow. Yacht Club pool: The new Yacht Club pool is currently under construction by Parrish Pools of Timonium and Ocean City. It is being built in the same footprint and will be the same size except for a six-foot deep end, since depth for a diving board is no longer needed. Harkins Construction is responsible for building a concrete deck with gray pavers and the pump room at deck level. Parrish will furnish the pump room with new equipment. The pool will include white coping stones, a blue tile line and a Diamond Brite quartzite finish with blue flecks. The committee recommends the purchase and installation of a pool safety cover at the conclusion of the 2013 summer season. The pool should be winterized, with the pool filled with water at a depth a foot or two below the level of the pool decking, and covered to protect the finish and prevent biologic growth. The committee has obtained two quotes for pool covers with perimeter padding and a third is being sought. A pool cover will insure protection for the pool and pro-

vide an aesthetically pleasing view of the pool from the new Yacht Club when completed. Beach Club pool: Originally built by Boise Cascade in the later 1960s, this pool was replaced in the 1990s within the frame of the old pool. After plaster repairs and cleaning this spring in preparation for the season, the pool would not hold water. Parrish Pools was called in to investigate and discovered that the piping under the pool was crushed, a possible result of Hurricane Sandy. Parrish repaired the piping and replastered the pool where needed. It remains a damaged structure that might have further problems in the future. OPA should be prepared to replace this pool in the event of catastrophic failure. Improved maintenance practices may extend its life beyond five years. The pool should be winterized, filled with water, and provided with a pool cover at the conclusion of the 2013 summer season. In addition to protecting the pool finish, combatting biologic growth and providing a greater degree of safety, a pool cover at the Beach Club pool will help prevent sand infiltration. Other recommendations:  Replace fencing and add a sand-trapping bulkhead on the beach side.  Add a shaded area for staff at work, perhaps with an awning attached to fence.  Install a wind-resistant umbrella for the lifeguard stand.  Pay close attention to chemical storage in pump room. Keep chlorine vat and HTH containers separated from muriatic acid carboys. Use signage to remind staff of the dangers of storing these compounds close together.  Develop a plan for a new pool at the Beach Club. Mumfords Landing pool: This pool was built in 1998 under Balfour Holdings supervision. It is a family pool with a fenced and gated baby pool. The shallow end also includes an L with steps into the shallow water and the shallowest part is roped off, creating a safer area for small children to play. Mumfords is a very good pool for teaching swim lessons. It is very popular with young families, with older adults who enjoy morning and evening water exercise classes and for pool parties in the evening around the day’s regular schedule. Recommendations:  Meet ADA requirements for the baby pool this year by making a graduated, zero depth entry to the present

baby pool or replacing it with a splashpad with kid spray toys. The committee is researching feasibility, space demands, and cost of a splashpad. This is a required priority for fall of 2013/spring of 2014. The committee is leaning in favor of a splashpad as an alternative to the baby pool.  Make additional repairs and resurface this pool before the 2014 summer season. This pool has a large crack that runs across the center of the pool and extends up the walls on both sides. This pool has leaked for many years. The crack, said to be where the original tile line was removed, was filled as a temporary fix prior to the 2013 season. There is a further issue of settling at the far right corner of the pool. Parrish Pools has examined this subsidence area and has proposed a plan to rejack the corner by injecting a mud and concrete mix under the corner until it is level again. There are many smaller cracks on the deck and in one area the pebbles in the concrete are exposed. The committee recommends replastering with a Diamond Brite finish.  Repair waterline tile at the same time as Diamond Bright installation.  Once refurbished, install a pool cover with perimeter padding.  Winterize it in the same manner as the other outdoor pools, with an emphasis on keeping it filled with water within a foot or two of the decking level, starting in 2013.  Recaulk and equip skimmers with weirs.  Replace fencing to match other pools.  Consider pool deck lighting to extend evening use.  Install lane line anchors for a potential lap lane at Mumfords on right side. A line with floats would suffice initially for a lane line which would only be used when pool use could accommodate. Swim & Racquet pool: This is our largest pool, with seven lanes. It’s a 25-yard competition pool and is home to the Hammerheads, the Ocean Pines swim team. The pool was renovated by Harkins and Atlantic Aquatech in 2010 after piling damage was discovered. The wooden deck was removed and replaced with concrete. New pool equipment was added to current standards. Nothing new was added to the pump room equipment. The pool was replastered with Marblelite. Plaster delamination, sometimes called spalling, began to occur in 2010 and worsened in 2011 and 2012, despite repairs. New repairs of large spalls on the bottom of the pool were made this spring by a different method. Recommendations:  Build a splashpad/spraypark as an alternative to the baby pool, preserving the raindrop fountain. Add several more activity items as space permits. This is a required priority item for fall of 2013, but should be completed no later

q

32 Ocean Pines PROGRESS


OCEAN PINES than spring of 2014. ADA improvements are required for the baby pool prior to the 2014 season if the splashpad/spraypark option is not implemented. This will do away with the need for a lifeguard at this pool and may lower insurance costs.  Build pedestrian ramp with ADA standards to get from pool level deck to lower deck. Adjust fencing placement to permit. Do at the same time to permit fence removal and equipment access.  Depending on the condition of the pool plaster after the 2013 season, scarify off old plaster and replace with Diamond Brite before the 2014 season.  Protect the pool by keeping it filled with water, consistent with winterization practices recommended for all of Ocean Pines’ outdoor pools. Protect with new pool cover after 2014 season.  Add new waterline tile when finishing pool with Diamond Brite.  Make concrete repairs along building side of pool to prevent further scaling.  Resolve plumbing issues with filter backwash and size of catch basin so that backwashing does not flood pump room. Complete before 2014 season.  Renail or screw external ramp to make nail/screw heads flush with wood to prevent injuries. Immediate priority  Replace old Marlowe pumps with new Pentairs, as needed.  Install salt-generated chlorination equipment (2014)  Evaluate pool building for condition and future usage increase.  Study pool-access portable ramps for future use, movable by single lifeguard. Sports Core pool: The Sports Core pool was enclosed in 2007 by Structures Unlimited and serves as OPA’s yearround indoor pool. Additional cement was poured to fill out indoor decking areas and create outdoor decks on either side of the pool. The pump room in place was used along with an adjacent electric room. A very large dehumidifier unit was placed in the courtyard area to deal with humidity control. The pool serves 4 swim teams, many adult classes, lap swimmers, birthday parties, swim lessons, training opportunities for various organizations, birthday parties and other special events. Recommendations:  Use the $60,000 included in the 2013-14 capital budget for this purpose to refurbish this pool with new skimmers and equalizers, coping, tile line and plaster.  The committee recommends a Diamond Brite finish. As this project has been delayed for two years or more, the committee recommends that planning begin immediately to facilitate completion of this work in August of this year, at the same time as the twice-annual pool purge and cleaning, when other pools are available for use.

July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

33

OPA swim classes move back to Mumford’s pool

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lagued by cold water, lack of sun and frequent thunderstorms in early June, the Ocean Pines Association’s swim academy program under the direction of Michelle Hitchens and her instructional staff encountered difficulties at Mumford’s Landing Pool. The program moved into the Sports Core pool, where the thunder threat was still the same, but the water was reliably warmer and the wind negligible. With summer back in the forecast, the program moved back to Mumford’s as of Monday, July 1. Morning sessions (eight classes, two-week sessions) will run Monday through Thursday at 8:30 to 9:10 for 3 to 8 year olds (youth group). The junior group (ages eight and up) meets from 9:20 to 10 a.m. A shorter evening session (four classes, two-week sessions) is also available on Mondays and Wednesdays from 5-5:40 p.m. for the youth group and from 5:50 to 6:30 p.m. for the junior group. Both sessions continue through the rest of the summer. Sessions start July 15-25; July 29-Aug. 8 and Aug. 12-22 for morning sessions and July 15-24, July 29-Aug. 7, and Aug. 12-21. Junior group lessons end on Aug. 7. There are no evening sessions from Aug. 12-21. After the August lessons are completed, the next session of the OPA swim academy will begin in October. The Sports Core pool is scheduled to be closed from Aug. 26-30 for its semi-annual cleaning and will reopen for Labor Day Weekend. Also at the Sports Core pool, the Little Lambs summer camp program has swim lessons at 9:30 and 10 a.m. for four weeks on Fridays. The Little Lambs swim program has been in existence at Sports Core since 2009. This summer Little Lambs daycare and summer camp programs have recreational swimming at the Mumford’s and Swim and Racquet Club pools on certain Mondays from 2 to 5 p.m. OPA Recreation Department day camps (Camp Ocean Pines and Camp Endless Summer) also use the swim facilities one afternoon a week: Tuesdays at Mumford’s and Swim and Racquet from 11 a.m.-3 pm. Various other local organizations engaged in summer youth programs may also reserve some pool play time. Schedules are posted at the pools. Instructors Michelle Hitchens, Nancy Hendricks and Matthew Oldland are currently certified Red Cross WSIs (wa-

 While deck problems have been remediated somewhat by recaulking over rusting metal expansion joints, research deck coverings to make deck look attractive and safe while maintaining cleanliness underneath. Consider future use of pavers to amend this issue.  For benefit of air and water

Ocean Pines swim lesson instructors Nancy Hendricks and Michelle Hitchens. ter safety instructors); Hendricks, OPA Aquatics Director Tom Perry, and Annie Pendleton are currently certified Red Cross LGIs (lifeguarding instructors). Other instructors are certified through the American Swim Coaches Association (ASCA), which also teaches competitive water skills and safety.

The Aquatics Department can schedule private or semi-private lessons at your convenience. Baby and toddler classes as well with parents are offered, with a range of times and offerings available. Those interested in lessons should call 410-641-7052 to register.

HAPPENINGS

a.m. Help in coping with any type of loss. 410-641-5433. 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. Beach Singles, every Thursday, 4-6 p.m., Castaways, Coastal Hwy. at 64th Street, Ocean City, 45+ singles for socializing and monthly activities, 302-436-9577. 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. YOGA, James G. Barrett Medical

Office Building, Berlin, rotunda, Tuesdays 5:30-6 p.m. All levels welcome. Contact Georgette Rhoads at 410-6419734 or grhoads@atlanticgeneral.org with any questions. Cost: $72 for 8 sessions, or $10 drop-in fee for first time. T.O.P.S. of Berlin, Group 169, Atlantic General Hospital, Conference Room 1. Mondays 5-6:30 p.m. Take Off Pounds Sensibly is a support and educational group promoting weight loss and healthy life style, meeting weekly. For more information contact Edna Berkey, 410-629-1006. Bereavement Support Group, Atlantic General Hospital, Conference Room 1, 7-8 p.m. Fourth Wednesday of every month. Pre-registration is not necessary. For further information, please call Pastoral Care Services, 410641-9725. American Legion Post 166 Auxiliary monthly general meeting, Ocean City, third Tuesday of the month at the post, 11:30 a.m. Survivors of Suicide support group meeting, third Wednesday of every month, 6 p.m., Worcester County Health Department, 9730 Healthway Drive, Berlin, adjacent to Atlantic General Hospital. Open to anyone who has lost a friend or loved one to suicide. No cost. 410-629-0164 or visit www.jessespaddle. org, news and Announcements tab.

quality, the committee recommends installation of equipment for salt-generated chlorination and ultraviolet (UV) filtering, which will make an appreciable difference to patrons. Use of both operationally may enable reduction of need to dump the pool twice annually because of TDS buildup with present system.

Once installed, the improved environment can be used to promote year-round swimming memberships and pool usage.  Conduct an education program with signage and articles to reduce fecal incidents and promote pool cleanliness.  Replace old Marlowe pumps with Pentairs when needed.

From Page 31 Life after loss support group, second and fourth Tuesday of each month at the Community Church at Ocean Pines, 11227 Race Track Road, Berlin, 11


34 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

CAPTAIN’S COVE

July-Early August 2013

Utility Co. investors write a check for $265,000 to keep ops afloat By TOM STAUSS Publisher

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ustomers of the Captain’s Cove Utility Co. may recall that, earlier this year, as part of the recent settlement of the protracted rate case, many Captain’s Cove homeowners received a rebate check for funds they had paid the company while interim rates were in place. Some funds were held in escrow by the company pending resolution of the case. As part of its final order, Virginia’s State Corporation Commission said another group of customers had paid too little during the interim period, for which the utility company was expecting some sort of credit to offset the funds it was expecting to rebate to those who had overpaid. Utility Co. president Tim Hearn, in a June 20 meeting in Captain’s Cove with company customers, said the credit the company was expecting never materialized, as the SCC ruled instead that the company could collect the underpayments over time rather than through a retroactive credit. That confronted the

company with a situation it had not prepared for. “It has been a challenging six months from a financial standpoint,” Hearn told the residents, telling them that he and his partners had to write a check in the amount of $265,000 to keep the company afloat, and also had to take out a loan to deal with an operating deficit that carried over from the utility company’s previous owners. The company’s cumulative operating deficit, he said, was $852,651.92, that the former owners had covered in the form of operating subsidies representing hundreds of thousands of dollars per year. The former owners, a group that including Worcester County developer/businessman Robert Warfield, acquired the utility company and other Cove assets in the early 2000s, only to lose them as the result of a called bank loan and eventual bankruptcy. A group of Maryland investors, including Hearn, acquired those assets after a protracted foreclosure process. With the investors writing a check to the company for $265,000 earlier this

year, Hearn said the company was finally able to close out the Warfield era. Suffice it to say, the return on investment thus far has been slim to none, but that may be changing in the future. As part of the final settlement of the former rate case, the SCC told the utility company that it needed to file a new rate case, with increases in rates, once it completes a detailed cost of service study. Hearn said the company has several ways it could propose a rate increase, such as a flat ten percent increase across all rate categories, or it could propose higher percentage increases for homeowners with both water and sewer services and a smaller percentage for others. That hasn’t been decided, Hearn said, but the filing of a new rate case is expected to happen by the end of the year. With respect to water quality improvements that are in the works in the Cove, Hearn told the residents of federal and state grant and loan money that the company expects to settle on before the end of this calendar year. The $2.3 million in funds are comprised of

$500,000 in grant money and $1.8 million in loans, carrying an interest rate of 2.5 percent over a 25-year amortization. The funds will be used for new wells, new pipes and a new ionization/reverse osmosis system that Hearn said “will produce the best water around.” For 18 months after the funds are received, Hearn said there would be no impact on water rates. He told the residents that the company is still having issues raising $700,000 needed as part of the water improvement project but expects to resolve them in a timely fashion. In an answer to a question from a resident, Hearn said that the wastewater treatment plant in the Cove is functioning adequately but that the collection system “is a mess.” The company is working on solutions. Board of directors – It wasn’t that long ago that the Cove was embroiled deeply in skirmishing for effective control of the Cove property owner association’s board of directors. Last fall, when Hearn, together with business associates and allied Cove homeowners took over board control andUthereby ED the asREDandCdiscord could sociation, divisiveness have resulted. There’s been no indication of that in the wake of a substantial reorganization of the Cove’s administrative apparatus. The board of directors To Page 37

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July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

35

FORECLOSURE SALE OF REAL ESTATE IN CAPTAIN’S COVE

August 15, 2013, 12:00 PM

To be held at the Marina Club in Captain’s Cove Subdivision 3323 Dock Court, Greenbackville, VA 23301 The following properties will be auctioned: Section/Lot:1-0471, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A10100047100 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $1,400.00

Section/Lot: 3-1851, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A30100185100 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $500.00

Section/Lot: 10-0008, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A60200000800 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot: 13-0280, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100028000 Assessed Value: $2,500.00 Minimum Bid: $500.00

Section/Lot:1-0641, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A10100064100 Assessed Value: $2,500.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot: 4-1948, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A40100194800 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $900.00

Section/Lot: 13-0011, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100001100 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot: 13-0300, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100030000 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $500.00

Section/Lot:1-0681, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A10100068100 Assessed Value: $20,300.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot:4-2162, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A40100216200 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $1,100.00

Section/Lot:13-0097, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100009700 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot: 13-0318, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100031800 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot:1-0748, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A10100074800 Assessed Value: $4,200.00 Minimum Bid: $1,100.00

Section/Lot: 4-2236, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A40100223600 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $1,400.00

Section/Lot: 13-0133, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100013300 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot: 13-0360, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100036000 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot:3-1565A, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A301001565A0 Assessed Value: $7,500.00 Minimum Bid: $700.00

Section/Lot: 5-2473, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A40300247300 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $1,000.00

Section/Lot: 13-0158, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100015800 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot: 3-0362, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100036200 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot:3-1595, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A30100159500 Assessed Value: $7,500.00 Minimum Bid: $700.00

Section/Lot: 7-0053, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A60100005300 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot: 13-0190, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100019000 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot:3-1715, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A30100171500 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $1,900.00

Section/Lot: 7-0098, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A60100009800 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot: 13-0192, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100019200 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $600.00

Section/Lot: 3-1771, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A30100177100 Assessed Value: $7,500.00 Minimum Bid: $600.00

Section/Lot: 7-0123, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A60100012300 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot: 13-0246, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100024600 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

Section/Lot: 3-1797, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A30100179700 Assessed Value: $7,500.00 Minimum Bid: $500.00

Section/Lot: 7-0227, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A60100022700 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

Section/Lot: 13-0260, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100026000 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $300.00

TERMS: Announcements made at auction time take precedence over any print, electronic, or verbal information, including but not limited to the Minimum Bid. Successful bidder will be required to deposit with Trustee a deposit (non-refundable) in an amount equal to Minimum Bid or 10% of successful bid (whichever is greater) in cash or certified funds at time of sale, with the closing to occur within thirty days of the date of said sale. Written one-price bids will be accepted for any of the properties pursuant to the terms set forth in Va. Code § 55-516. There is no warranty relating to right, title, interest, or the like in this disposition. Property is being sold pursuant to Va. Code § 55-516, and title will be conveyed pursuant to statute and subject to all liens or encumbrances as provided in said statute. All information for review by appointment only or one hour prior to auction time at auction location. Notwithstanding the Minimum Bids set forth above, the Trustee reserves the right to accept and/or reject all offers. Time is of the essence. Other conditions may be announced at the sale.

Section/Lot:3-1823, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A30100182300 Assessed Value: $7,500.00 Minimum Bid: $600.00

Section/Lot: 9-0211, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A50400021100 Assessed Value: $17,500.00 Minimum Bid: $1,000.00

Section/Lot: 13-0268, Captain’s Cove Tax Map No. 005A70100026800 Assessed Value: $4,000.00 Minimum Bid: $400.00

TRUSTEE: Pender & Coward, P.C., 222 Central Park Ave., Virginia Beach, VA

Phone: (757) 490-6261 Email: capcove@pendercoward.com


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July-Early August 2013 Ocean Pines PROGRESS

37

COMMENTARY

Too much deferred maintenance in Ocean Pines?

Captain’s Cove From Page 34 for the most part has been a bastion of civility, as the directors tackle a host of issues and challenges under the benevolent direction of Hearn. The board election this coming fall won’t be particularly competitive, as Captain’s Cove Group Note, LLC, the developer, controls sufficient votes to dictate the outcome. In comments delivered early on at the board’s June 20 meeting at the Marina Club, Hearn signaled that the make-up of the board will change little after the votes are counted. He said there was “no reason the developer wouldn’t” cast ballots for director Buz Williams and board secretary Patricia Pelino, should both decide they want to continue to serve by seeking reelection.

The OPA’s spending plan is just that, a plan, and as everyone knows, plans change. A budget is a guideline, not a straight jacket, and moving a project from one fiscal year to another is occasionally justified. in the pantheon of capital items needing attention, nonetheless ballfield lights in Ocean Pines were once fully functional, allowing for latenight ballplaying, and now they’re not. Replacement lights showed up on a deferred list of items in the Fiscal Year 2014 draft budget at a cost of $175,000: items that could have been funded but, for whatever reason, were not, almost as if the OPA couldn’t afford them. Has anyone checked the OPA’s reserve balance lately? Or its CDAR and money market fund portfolio? The board of directors could have funded them, as it did a $1,000 batting cage, but decided other ways of spending association dollars had priority. It’s now very high on the list of items that members of the OPA’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee regard as top priorities. Ballfield lights show up in next year’s capital expenditure list in the recently completed draft of an OPA Capital Improvement Plan (CIP), and that’s a good thing, not that inclusion on a list necessarily makes anything happen. It really should be expedited, done this year, even though not funded in the current year’s budget. The OPA’s spending plan is just that, a plan, and as everyone knows, plans change. A budget is a guideline, not a straight jacket, and moving a project from one fiscal year to another is on occasion justified. Another arena in which deferred maintenance rules is aquatics, where less than optimal conditions at OPA swimming pools are the accepted norm. A “rogue” member of the aquatics advisory committee recently appeared before the board of directors to complain that management had failed to produce request for proposals (RFPs) to fix a number of pool defects, including a crack in the pool surface, partial subsidence and a small leak that has been known about for years at the

Hearn said the board is currently prospecting for candidates to fill the role of alternate board member, an individual who serves in the absence of a regular board member and is the logical person to be tapped to fill a board vacancy should one arise before the annual board election. Marina Club rip-rap – While the view of Chincoteague Bay from the Marina Club is generally acknowledged as stunning, some of the landscaping on the water side of the building leaves something to be desired. Erosion is an issue, too, which has prompted the waterfront committee chaired by Buz Williams to come up with a solution. Subject to available funding, the intent will be to protect the building with riprap. Williams made the disclosure during the board of directors’ June 20 meeting.

Mumford’s Landing pool. His reward was a scolding delivered at an aquatics committee meeting by the OPA president (and board committee liaison) for violating committee protocol and throwing OPA staffers under the bus. The OPA president later graciously apologized for the tone of his remarks. Since then, the aquatics committee working as a group has produced an action plan that confirms much of what its “rogue” member outlined to the board, minus the rougher edges and tire treads. The committee is very much concerned about the condition of the pools, where delamination, sometimes referred to as plaster spalling, has been a common occurrence. Temporary fixes at the old Yacht Club and Swim and Racquet pools have been failures; the patched areas fail just as often as the original plaster, if not more so. For this season, there’s not enough time to do much more than the usual temporary patches, in the hopes that they’ll make it through the summer. The better solution would have been to move more quickly, sooner, with more permanent fixes in place well before now. The permanent solution, if there is such a thing, has been identified: It involves scraping off the original plaster and applying a totally new plaster surface, as opposed to the rudimentary patch jobs. A Diamond Brite surface adds to the aesthetics and durability. Then it’s extremely important to follow industry standards for proper winterization, essentially keeping the pools filled with water almost to the top, treating them over the winter with chlorine sticks and algaecide to reduce the cleaning necessary for the following season. Pipes should be blown out and antifreeze added as part of the winterization effort. Keeping the pools filled is absolutely and unambiguously critical to reducing the conditions that promote the delamination or spalling that has been afflicting OPA pools for quite some time. Keeping them filled also reduces the chances that some rogue storm will come ashore and uplift portions or sections of the pools through hydrostatic pressure, potentially causing hundreds of thousands of uninsured damage. If management won’t take the necessary steps to

Dinghy Park – The Long Range Planning Committee has submitted a recommendation to the board of directors that the Cove POA acquire privately owned lots 521 and 524 in Section 1 either through trade or purchase, subject to a wetland delineation prior to any purchase. Adjacent lots 522 and 523 are already owned by the POA. The intent behind acquiring lots 521 and 524 would be to combine all four lots into an area to be called Dinghy Park, creating one large area for a number of potential future uses. Possibilities include new maintenance facilities, boat/RV storage, and an EMS/fire substation. Board members raised no objections to the plan during their June 20 meeting. Road work – Separate from pending road surfacing that could begin in the Cove later this year in undeveloped

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ith all the focused attention on large capital expenditures and projects, from new golf course greens and drainage improvements to a rebuild of the Yacht Club pool and a new Yacht Club, it’s been far too easy to lose sight of the fact that, as Ocean Pines and its capital base ages, even more attention needs to be given to small-ball but vitally important general maintenance. Recent events suggest that all is not well on Ocean Pines’ general maintenance front, which is not to suggest that there is evidence of systemic acute deterioration or indifference on the part of Ocean Pines Association management. Rather, it seems like there’s a real competition afoot for management’s time and attention and, in much the way many families manage their obligations and responsibilities and finances, some items are pushed down on the “to do” list to be dealt with a later time. For a metaphor for what seems to a prevailing ethos of deferring maintenance on small-bore items, one need only drive over the North Gate bridge and notice that some of the bulb lights are not lit at night, a condition that is apparent even though there’s been some shifting around of the burned out bulbs to spread out the diminished illumination. There are reasons why this condition has been evident for many months with no solution in sight, both literally and figuratively: The bulbs are no longer manufactured. If that indeed is the case, and no reasonable facsimile can be found from somewhere on the planet, then some sort of alternative lighting solution is overdue. In a community that aggressively tends to its general maintenance, the proposed solution should have been executed before now or at least brought before the board of directors for review and discussion. Sadly, the topic is discussed periodically at the board of directors level with no action plan in place. The most recent discussion a few months ago resulted in the North Gate light bulb shuffle. There’s no permanent solution in sight. Another example in the field of illumination: Lights at the South Gate ballfield, an item discussed during the January-February budget season. Though perhaps ball field lights are not the most critical item

areas, the board of directors has authorized the expenditure of up to $80,000 to complete road surfacing of Smuggler’s Way and Barracuda in Section 7. The board vote to accept the price submitted by Branscome of Tasley, Va., was unanimous. A plan to resurface the parking lot at the Town Center, however, has been scrapped for this year, with restriping approved as the lower cost alternative. Meanwhile, the board was awaiting the submission of engineering work for all the uncompleted roads in the Cove prior to the end of June. When that occurs, the board will be making decisions on which areas of the Cove will be targeted initially with new tarand-chip roads. It has already been determined that a bank loan will be needed to help finance road surfacing, a top priority for the board.


July-Early August 2013

From Page 34 protect OPA outdoor pools over the winter, insisting that there is legitimate debate in the industry about whether outdoor pools should be filled, or not, then the board of directors needs to step up and tell management that as a matter of policy the pools will be filled over the winter. Anything short of mandating an action plan for proper pool winterization, assuming that management remains unmotivated, makes the board complicit in maintaining the pools in a substandard fashion, even hastening the day when a pool suffers a catastrophic failure and has to be completely replaced. Recent indications suggest that some of the directors, at least, are getting the message. The indoor Sports Core pool is another example in which deferring needed maintenance has been de facto OPA policy. This year, the board of directors included in the approved capital budget about $60,000 to resurface the badly eroded pool, along with repairing failed skimmers and adding some coping tile along the pool edge.

The best time to do this sort of work is in late summer, late August or September, when other pools are available for use and much of the guard staff is returning to school. As gratifying as it was to see the board budgeting for Sports Core pool resurfacing this year, merely including it in the budget does not guarantee that it will happen. At an aquatics committee meeting several months ago, the OPA general manager stopped well short of committing his management team to completing the Sports Core resurfacing this summer. At the committee’s early July meeting, however, OPA President Tom Terry, the committee’s board liaison, promised to discuss the Sports Core project with General Manager Bob Thompson, with the aim of producing a bid package in the very near future. While it remains to be seen whether Terry can make this project happen, it was gratifying to see him pledge his best efforts to light a fire under Thompson so this project can be completed in late summer In a sense, Thompson’s initial inclination to delay this project another year wasn’t too surprising: There’s an

unwritten rule in Ocean Pines that says inclusion in a budget doesn’t guarantee the budgeted money will be spent, just as its omission doesn’t mean it won’t. Granted, management has a lot on its plate at the moment, but a proposal for this work has already been submitted by an area pool company. It shouldn’t be too difficult to draft a bid package and solicit bids in the very future. In fairness to the general manager, he had been considering another idea for the Sports Core pool that would not have justified spending much money improve the existing pool. He seemed to be suggesting that a better approach might be to divert that modest $60,000 investment into a new indoor swimming pool complex at the Sports Core, sometimes called a natatorium, which could include competition-length swim lanes (50 meters), a warm-water therapy pool, and water features for the kids. There is zero support on the committee for a new indoor swimming complex in the foreseeable future, certainly not anytime in the next ten years, and even then there would have to be a significant upsurge in usage and aquatics members to justify giving any consideration to

what, to be charitable, is essentially a fantasy idea. The consensus on the committee is that the OPA needs to do a much better job of maintaining its pool assets before wasting time and energy on a project for which there is no known constituency in Ocean Pines. Moving on to an area receiving much attention of late: drainage, a festering sore subject over the years but which, other than some recent partial success in Section 3 and a start-and-stop approach to golf course improvements, never has been a top OPA priority. At the invitation of board member Dan Stachurski, two residents of the Section 3 neighborhood appeared at the April 24 meeting of the board and made a compelling case for why recent county-funded improvements to move stormwater out of Ocean Pines were only partially, albeit significantly, successful. The two resident property owners, John Roeder and Richard Clagett, produced photographic evidence of clogged drainage ditches that obstructed the flow of water during recent heavy rains. They suggested that a consistent program of

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38 Ocean Pines PROGRESS COMMENTARY

LETTERS

Sandusky vs. Langevin The following is a substantially revised and shortened version of comments delivered by former OPA board member Tom Sandusky at the June 26 meeting of the Ocean Pines Association board of directors. He submitted this letter for publication as an alternative to having his June 16 remarks reprinted as he delivered them. Following that is a response to Sandusky’s comments by Roland Langevin, a candidate for the board in this summer’s OPA elections, who was singled out for criticism by Sandusky at the June 26 board meeting.

Sandusky comments

I have been somewhat troubled since my comments at the [June 26 board meeting.] After correspondence with Director Dave Stevens, I agree that some of my commentary was inappropriate to the “public comments” time I was afforded. Thank you, Dave, for prompting my understanding the principal reason I was troubled after that meeting. I will, however, firmly maintain my extreme disdain for Director Clarke’s history, and for his continuing disruptive and community-damaging board behavior and actions. I will also continue my disdain for any candidates, past or present, who seek election with the shameful expressed intent to fire OPA employees, especially general managers. But I do

regret, and sincerely apologize for my attack on a particular candidate by name and in public. I will also send this correspondence to him. I will continue to maintain my repugnance for what very many in this community see as a patently, highly unjustified and obvious campaign by Director Clarke to have Mr. Thompson dismissed. I reiterate my opinion that Bob is the hardest working GM I’ve seen in 15 years and, by far, the most proactive. Running off a fourth consecutive general manager, in my view, will dissuade any competent and experienced individual from ever considering coming to work for the OPA. Tom Sandusky Ocean Pines

Langevin responds

It’s a shame and apparent that some members of the Ocean Pines community have forgotten the words of one of our founding fathers when he said that “I may not like what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” On my birthday I was given the special gift of an orchestrated attack on my integrity, without an opportunity to respond. You can judge for yourself by viewing the video tape of the board meeting of June 26. It was evident, and I subsequently confirmed, that the public comments

regarding the general manager were pre-planned. Some but not all were direct attacks on me and by implication on another unnamed candidate. Comments supporting or criticizing the general manager, or the board, are certainly within the bounds of what are acceptable public comments. But, using the public forum to disparage an individual candidate, who has no opportunity to respond, is well beyond fair play. Mr. Sandusky’s apology, if it could be called that, comes well after the damage is done. As a former director and member of this year’s Search Committee, it is simply incredible that he would not know how inappropriate and damagingly inaccurate his comments were. I do care about the amenities and have been a year-round pool member. I take pride in the appearance of the community and this is reflected in my home and my efforts in keeping my neighborhood clean by personally picking up trash. But mostly I care for those in the community who are struggling to pay assessment fees for over-priced and underutilized amenities. I was not one of the individuals contacted by the Search Committee appointed by Mr. Tom Terry, the OPA president and chair of the June 26 meeting. Mr. Terry, a candidate for reelection, made absolutely no attempt

to enforce the board’s own resolution against personal attacks. Mr. Sandusky’s remarks and letter appears to shift the focus of his ire from me to Director Clarke while at the same time implying that Director Clarke led me to the conclusion that the general manager should be replaced. That is blatantly untrue. I have never heard Director Clarke say the general manager should be fired. I have heard from business leaders and members of the community that they believe there is something wrong with the direction in which Ocean Pines is being led. Our general manager may not be the only cause of the problem, but he is at the core of it. I am not a one-agenda candidate, as Mr. Sandusky has only to view the candidate forum video from June 24 to see that cost control, doing away with unjustified secret board meetings, and stopping the yearly assessment fee increases are a big part of my candidacy, along with proper maintenance of our infrastructure (which includes the golf course). This attack on me speaks volumes of just how bad things have gotten in the Pines. I find Mr. Sandusky’s apology disingenuous and ask him to keep it. And I will keep my righteous indignation. Roland Langevin Ocean Pines


OPINION July-Early August 2013

Ocean Pines PROGRESS

39

Thompson tenure turns into election issue

O

cean Pines property owners can be forgiven if they’ve come to believe that firing or keeping Bob Thompson as the Ocean Pines Association’s general manager is the main issue in this summer’s board election. It isn’t, not by a long shot. One candidate, Roland Langevin, has cited Thompson’s removal as something he supports, but he’s the only one who’s taking that controversial position, and it’s just one of several policy planks in his campaign for the board. Since Thompson’s removal as GM isn’t going to happen anytime soon – it’s not even remotely realistic, given his solid support among sitting board members – it’s hard to fathom why it would thusly become THE issue in this summer’s electoral festivities. Langevin has one ally on the board, Marty Clarke, who would likely vote to oust Thompson, but that isn’t enough to put the GM’s job in serious jeopardy. Another Thompson critic, Dave Stevens, is leaving the board once new directors are sworn in, so the balance of opinion about Thompson won’t shift one iota should Langevin be among the top three vote-getters. Another candidate who’s sometimes thought to be in the anti-Thompson camp, Jack Collins, really isn’t, based on his comments during the recent candidates’ forum. He went out of his way to say that both he and Thompson had been employed by the same banking institution in a previous lifetime, suggesting a coziness in the relationship. Collins and Langevin may be on the same page in some of their campaign positions – a willingness to lease out losing ame-

COMMENTARY From Page 38 removing debris from the ditches – not just the annual leaf removal program – could dramatically improve flood conditions in their neighborhood. The initial response from management seemed to suggest less interest in what should be routine ditch maintenance – especially the larger ditches that form the backbone of Ocean Pines’ stormwater management system – and more interest in some structural changes, fixing 90-degree angles and elevation issues with some of the infrastructure. The two options are not mutually exclusive. But improved general maintenance, systematic cleaning of all of Ocean Pines’ drainage ditches, large and small, should be the highest priority. The last time there was an aggressive program of ditch cleaning was in the administration of former General Manager Dave Ferguson. In a related drainage issue, management has been giving attention of late to fixing a drainage issue on St. Martin Dive, the old truck entrance into Ocean

LIFE IN THE LIFE INPINES THE PINES

ties to private contractors if certain operations continue to lose money. That’s An excursion through the curious cul-de-sacs An excursion through theby-ways curious and by-ways and cul-de-sacs essentially the Marty Clarke position. of Worcester County’s County’s most densely community. of Worcester mostpopulated densely populated community. The other four candidates running for the board this summer were silent on By TOM STAUSS/ By TOM Publisher STAUSS/Publisher leasing out amenities; their responses nities, among them – but axing the gen- fact that some amenities lose money, to the question about outsourcing were eral manager doesn’t seem to be among others make money, and in the end it’s mostly noncommittal and vague. them. essentially a wash, operationally, with OPA President Tom Terry was the Thompson may the personification of some years in the black and other years most outspoken on what will happen one candidate’s discontent with OPA ad- in the red, but usually close to break- should Casper Golf not meet its budgetministration, but that doesn’t make him even. At the same time, to the more ary goal: its contract to manage the golf OPINION the electoral season’s main issue. progressive thinker, the presence of a course will not be renewed. It’s background noise, basically. vast array of amenities in Ocean Pines Notably, Terry did not say who would This summer’s election can be framed – from the golf course, to tennis courts, manage the course if Casper leaves the partly as a debate for the financial fu- from pools to parks and everything in scene, but it’s a stretch to think that he, ture of Ocean Pines – a discussion about between, contribute to property values or any of the other three candidates, the level of assessments needed to ad- and make Ocean Pines a very appealing would seriously consider the leasing opdress the OPA’s aging physical assets. place to live. tion. Terry has said in other situations excursion through curious and excursion through curious by-ways andout cul-d The PinesAn Progress, aAn journal ofthat the It’s a debate that’s expressed in the YouOcean wouldn’t think necessarily that he’sthe notby-ways at all sure thatcul-de-sacs anyone of Worcester most populated community. news would and commentary, published great divide evident within the Ocean there have to be aisof lot ofCounty’s division County’s Worcester most densely populated comm theredensely would be willing to take on the Pines community – what might be de- over all TOM this, and it’s dif- risk of running the Ocean Pines golf monthly throughout the Publisher year.notIt too isPublisher By STAUSS/ Byindeed TOM STAUSS/ scribed as a progressive camp, com- ficult to find property owners circulated in Ocean Pines, Berlin, with West feet course. He may well be right. prised of those willing to prop up and planted firmly in both camps. Ocean City, Snow Hill, Ocean City and Clarke is waiting in the wings eager keep the amenities in OPA hands, and In thisCove, summer’s election, with Lan- to prove him wrong. Capain’s Va. its polar opposite, fiscal conservatives, gevin asand theother notable outlier, the progresLetters editorial submissions: Of course, it may not come to that, if those who think that the OPA is spend- sive vs.submit conservative divide Billy Casper Golf can build on its posiPlease via email only. We is do difficult not ing too much and collecting too much in toaccept identify the Thompson factor is tive start in May through the summer faxesonce or submissions that require lot assessments. taken outLetters of theshould equation. At the retyping. be original andElec- and into the fall. The conservative camp is willing tions Committee-sponsored candidates’ As always, stay tuned. exclusive to the Progress. Include phone to consider full-bore outsourcing – the forum, the only real manifestation of the leasing out of amenities that lose money divide came during discussion of out– while progressives, to the extent they sourcing amenities. 127was Nottingham have a position on it, have expressed There as much Lane, significance to Ocean Pines, MD little support for this approach. When what was not said – candidates are not Director Marty Clarke goes on about always forthcoming when they think it persistent losses in golf, aquatics and will lose them votes – as what candiThe Ocean Pines Progress, a journal of PUBLISHER/EDITOR PUBLISHER/EDITOR the Yacht Club food and beverage oper- dates actually had to say about the subnews and commentary, is published Tom Stauss Tom Stauss The Ocean Pines Progress, a journal of ations, the reaction among those more ject. tstauss1@mchsi.com monthly throughout the year. It is news and commentary, is published tstauss1@mchsi.com ‘progressive’ in their thinking is to reLangevin and Collins seemed to be on circulated in Ocean Pines, Berlin, West 410-641-6029 monthly throughout the year. It is circuspond with the proverbial eye roll. the same page when they expressed will410-641-6029 Ocean City, Snow Hill,Berlin, Ocean City City, and lated in Ocean Pines, Ocean Advertising To them, it’s a simple, not alarming, ingness to consider leasing out ameniCapain’s Cove, Va. Advertising and Captain’s Cove, Va. Letters and other othersubmissions editorial submissions: Letters and should be ART DIRECTOR Center. Please submit via email not Pines off Beauchamp Road. There apsent via email only. Weonly. do We not do accept ART DIRECTOR Rota Knott More than a handful of residents who pears to be a consensus fix to this probaccept faxes or submissions submissions that require faxes or other that require Hugh Dougherty use this facility on a regular basis have lem, but recent commentary from manretyping. Letters Letters should be original and and CONTRIBUTING come forward with complaints that it is agement here seemed overly concerned exclusive to to the the Progress. Progress. Include Include phone phone not kept clean; corners and flooring is ofwith consulting county officials before WRITERS CONTRIBUTING WRITER number for verification. less than sparkling taking the required remedial action. ten dirty, bathrooms Rota Knott Knott clean, nothing major, but still evidence Drainage is, after all, an OPA problem 127 Nottingham Lane, Ginny Reister Inkwellmedia@comcast.net 127 Nottingham Lane, of not placing the highest priority on and responsibility. Courtesy notice to Ocean Pines, MD. 21811 443-880-1348 Ocean Pines, MD community assets. county officials is fine, but not at the ex- maintaining Everyone knows that management PUBLISHER/EDITOR pense of lost time. Tom Stauss PUBLISHER/EDITOR Again, action seems slower than it is doing its level best to juggle major PUBLISHER/EDITOR tstauss1@mchsi.com construction projects at the same time should be. If Ocean Pines had a policy of Tom Stauss Tom Stauss 410-641-6029 aggressively fixing maintenance issues it is coping with another busy summer tstauss1@mchsi.com tstauss1@mchsi.com season. It’s possible that staffing and as they arise, this particular area would 410-641-6029 ADVERTISING 410-641-6029 funding is not adequate. If so, somebody have been rectified long before now. Advertising Tom Stauss needs to come forward to make that arA year or so ago, residents from the Advertising gument. Liberty Street area of Ocean Pines apART DIRECTOR ART DIRECTOR A quick read of the draft Capital Impeared before the board to complain of ARTRota DIRECTOR Rota Knott Knott provement Plan, phase one, written by drainage problems in their neighborHugh Dougherty new facilities manager Jerry Avila, sughood and, if memory serves, they even CONTRIBUTING gests that he understands the value of a CONTRIBUTING offered some possible solutions. WRITERS consistent and aggressive plan of mainThe silence in response to that preWRITERSWRITER CONTRIBUTING Rota Knott tenance. That’s a positive sign, but only sentation has been deafening, not inKnott Rota Knott Ginny Reister a step in the right direction. consistent with the prevailing OPA leit Ginny Reister Susan Canfora Inkwellmedia@comcast.net The point here really is simple: The motif of deferred maintenance. 443-880-1348 OPA needs to treat general maintenance Finally, it would be remiss not to PROOFREADING mention another example of a casual as its highest, most urgent priority. – Joanne Williams attitude towards general maintenance: Tom Stauss the condition of the new Community

LIFE IN THE LIFE INPINES THE PINES


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$ $ $

Tax & tags UP TO not included.

$

Tax & tags not included.

$ $ $

UP TO

$ MSRP $26,360

*All prices e *All prices exclude tax, title, license Dealer Dealer not responsible for typo

$

UP TO

UP TO


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.