APRIL 6, 2023
BERLIN • NORTH WORCESTER COUNTY• OCEAN PINES
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Brady files for election to OP board Former Bayside publisher says communication key
CINDY HOFFMAN/BAYSIDE GAZETTE
NEW DECK
After a winter of work, a shiny new deck at the Ocean Pines Yacht Club is ready to be trod upon by boaters and the merely curious.
Town looks to cover budget hole Mayor, council need about $342K more in revenue to offset increased spending By Jack Chavez Staff Writer (April 6, 2023) Berlin Mayor Zack Tyndall and the Town Council praised their department heads for submitting fiscally conservative requests during an FY24 budget work session on Monday, but after most items discussed in the nearly fourhour session, one troubling question continued to persist: How are we going to pay for this? There is an obvious answer, of course, but that answer, raising taxes and fees, is one that town officials indicated over and over again they consider with regret.
“We don’t get joy (out of this),” said Tyndall said at the end of the meeting. “We don’t take any of those things lightly. On the other side of the equation, we want to keep Berlin as affordable as possible. “ The shortfall between revenues and spending faced by the town comes to about $342,000, against a requested $11.3 million. By keeping the real property tax the same, the town can expect an uptick of 7 percent in revenue, or about $275,000. But the town is also looking at other ways to maximize its revenues in ways that could soften the blow for residents. One idea was to create a fee for business licenses in the downtown area, which Councilmember Dean Burrell suggested in a question to
Town Finance Director Natalie Saleh. “My business license should not be the same for Flower Street as downtown Berlin,” Burrell said at the end of the meeting. Saleh didn’t exactly endorse the idea, saying that in such a small town — Berlin has about 4,500 residents — categorizing businesses is complicated. But she didn’t condemn the idea, either. “If you’d like to establish a special fee for downtown versus outside of downtown, it’s up for discussion,” she said. Tyndall pointed out that he and his colleagues would need to move quickly on such an idea, as it’d need to be in place by July 1 to have any effect on FY24. See TOWN Page 8
By Jack Chavez Staff Writer (April 6, 2023) Longtime Ocean Pines resident Elaine Brady is throwing her hat into the ring for the 2023 Ocean Pines Board of Directors elections. “I feel I can be an asset on the board as having a long career in publishing comm u n i t y newspapers (has) taught Elaine Brady me the value of communicating, and staying focused on issues,” Brady said in a statement. “I also learned to not only voice my own views but also the importance of respectfully listening to the views of others. Now retired, I have the time and desire to serve the community, and it would be my pleasure to stay connected to the community by serving on the board.” Brady’s connection to Ocean Pines began when her parents bought a lot in the community in the 1970s. They retired to the Pines in the 1980s. Her father, Dick Brady, served on the board for six years, including three as president, in the 1990s. He also served on the Worcester County Water and Wastewater Commission. See BRADY Page 8
Easter Festivities on Page 14
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