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MARCH 31, 2023
SERVING NORTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY
ROOM TAX
HELD UP IN SENATE
Political arguments stall a state bill that would allow the county to raise lodging fees – Page 7
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MALLORY PANUSKA/OCEAN CITY TODAY
Members of the Ocean City career and volunteer fire departments pose on Monday behind dirt and shovels set up for a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Fire Station 3 in front of the public safety building on 65th Street.
New station Baltimore Ave. talk gets testy gets symbolic Gehrig, Meehan exchange shovel salute sharp remarks about how to fund planned upgrades By Mallory Panuska Staff Writer (March 31, 2023) A request to look into funding a portion of planned upgrades to Baltimore Avenue in the fiscal 2024 capital improvement plan got heated Tuesday before a City Council majority decided to stick with original plans to hold off on the project for another year. Councilman Peter Buas, a staunch advocate for the long-running plans to bury utility lines, widen sidewalks
and perform other updates to Baltimore Avenue from North Division to 15th streets, asked staff members earlier this month to determine the cost of burying the utility lines without the other upgrades. The request came after a council majority agreed to pull the project from a fiscal 2024 bond issue to give staff more time to find money for the estimated roughly $44 million price tag. City Manager Terry McGean and City Engineer Paul Mauser presented a potential alternative on Tuesday that would allocate $26.2 million, phased out over the next three fiscal years, for only undergrounding the
utilities. The scenario would include widening the east side sidewalks, as the west side would no longer be feasible, in fiscal 2028. While Buas was intrigued by the idea, the rest of the council members were not. They ultimately voted, with Buas opposed, to stick to the original plan of delaying any improvements on Baltimore Avenue until fiscal 2025. Before the vote, however, Councilman John Gehrig argued passionately against the alternative plan. He began by challenging claims that the project would increase property values and spur development See ARGUMENTS Page 4
By Mallory Panuska Staff Writer (March 31, 2023) With loud banging and beeping from nearby road construction in the background, Ocean City officials and fire department personnel gathered in the parking lot of the public safety building early this week to mark construction of a new midtown station. “I wish that was our construction starting,” International Association of Firefighters President Ryan WhittingSee STATION Page 4