OC Today-Dispatch

14/07/2025

Vanishing Ocean City With Bunk Mann

In 1878, the US Life Saving Service opened a small station on Caroline Street in the tiny village of Ocean City. There was no permanent Boardwalk, Inlet, or Pier in those days and less than 50 year-round residents in the whole town. The lifesaving service was tasked with the mission of saving shipwrecked sailors along the mostly deserted beach. It was hard and dangerous work.
In 1891 the station was replaced with a larger 2 ½ story frame building that is now located at the Inlet where it was moved in 1977 to become the Ocean City Life Saving Station Museum.
The US Life Saving Service merged with the Revenue Cutter Service to become the US Coast Guard in 1915 and the Coast Guard continues to play an important role in Ocean City to this day.
Pictured is the Coast Guard Station circa 1945.
To purchase one of Bunk Mann’s books, click over to www.vanishingoc.com.
Photo courtesy of the OCLSSM

11/07/2025

AT&T, city move forward on agreement ... with addition

Bethany Hooper
Associate Editor
Resort government officials say AT&T has agreed to install additional City Watch cameras in exchange for the City Council’s blessing of its plan to place small cell antennas at the inlet.

After tabling its decision last month, the council on Monday voted to approve a license agreement with AT&T for the installation of small cell equipment at the inlet. As part of the arrangement, the company has agreed to purchase additional surveillance cameras and equipment for the city’s use.

“The attorneys worked it out …,” AT&T representative Diane Quigley told the council this week. “They added the provision that AT&T would pay for and install the cameras.”

In an attempt to improve cell service during the city’s yearly music festivals, Quigley came before the city council at its June 10 work session with a request from AT&T to install additional small cell antennas in the downtown area. To do so, officials said, would require a license from the city to place the company’s equipment in the city right-of-way.

The company has plans to install five antennas at the inlet parking lot, one near the Ripley’s building and another near a Boardwalk bathroom. The antennas, the company proposed, would be mounted on light poles ahead of next year’s C3 festivals.
More:

Resort government officials say AT&T has agreed to install additional City Watch cameras in exchange for the City Council’s blessing of its plan to place small cell antennas at the

11/07/2025

County names new emergency services leader

Brian Shane
Staff Writer
The just-retired Ocean City Fire Department deputy chief has been hired as the director of Worcester County’s Department of Emergency Services.

In his new role, Chris Shaffer will be responsible for all matters relating to emergency management, including the county’s 911 system, its radio broadcasts, and development of emergency operations plan. The position also liaises with the county’s fire, ambulance, and police departments. He starts next month.

“Chris is a seasoned and highly respected public safety professional who has established strong working relationships with all of the fire stations in the county,” said Ted Elder, president of the Worcester County Commissioners, in a statement.

“His skills, training, and professionalism make him ideally suited to bring together the people and partnerships Worcester County needs to plan for, respond to, and bounce back from any crisis, whether it’s a natural or manmade disaster,” Elder added.
More:

(July 11, 2025) A just-retired Ocean City Fire Department deputy chief has been hired as the director of Worcester County’s Department of Emergency Services.

11/07/2025

Planning Commission recommends Route 589 rezoning

Brian Shane
Staff Writer
A petition to rezone a protected parcel outside Ocean Pines into a commercial zoning district passed muster with Worcester County planning officials last week, though it’s too soon to say how the owner will redevelop the property.

The county’s Planning Commission at its July 3 meeting voted unanimously to approve rezoning 0.81 acres at 10329 Racetrack Road (Route 589) from RP Resource Protected District to a C-2 General Commercial District. C-2 is a designation for more intense commercial development, like a shopping center.

Attorney Mark Cropper said his client’s rezoning was warranted because the character of the neighborhood had changed, an argument he supported by citing the county’s 2024 rezoning of 15 adjacent properties from agricultural to commercial.

He also argued that officials in 2009 erred when they classified the parcel as Resource Protected, a zoning for environmentally sensitive areas like wetlands and conservation areas.

“There should be no dispute at all that there has been a change in the character of the neighborhood to commercial,” Cropper told the Planning Commission. “That’s why the county commissioners rezoned all those properties across from the casino.”
More:

(July 11, 2025) A petition to rezone a protected parcel outside Ocean Pines into a commercial zoning district passed muster with Worcester County planning officials last week, though it’s too

11/07/2025

Convention center set for new LED lighting; color-changing perimeter lights part of continuing upgrades

Bethany Hooper
Associate Editor
Ocean City Officials this week selected a vendor to install new exterior lighting at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center.

The City Council on Monday voted to accept Lebow Lighting Solutions LLC as the sole source vendor for an exterior lighting project at the convention center.

Tourism and Business Development Director Tom Perlozzo said the project is part of an effort to refresh the facility’s appearance and expand convention center business.

“It's going to stand out,” he said of the lighting project. “It will be a great attraction.”

Perlozzo said the new LED lights would be installed along the building’s perimeter and can be programmed to change colors. For example, he said lighting could change to green for St. Patrick’s Day or red, white and blue for the Fourth of July.

As the vendor provided a proprietary product, Procurement Manager Matt Perry also told the council this week the competitive bidding process could be waived.
More:

Ocean City Officials this week selected a vendor to install new exterior lighting at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center.

11/07/2025

West OC property owner trying again for multifamily housing project

Brian Shane
Staff Writer
With the backing of planning officials, a local businessman is one step closer to bringing new workforce housing to the West Ocean City corridor behind his existing shopping plaza.

The Worcester County Planning Commission voted to support a change to zoning law, one that would allow for limited multifamily housing to be built on certain commercially-zoned properties. The amendment would require the approval of the County Commissioners to take effect.

The July 3 vote came on the petition of jeweler and developer Todd Ferrante, who wants to change the zoning law so he can legally build a three-story, 12-unit apartment building behind his Park Place Plaza shopping center. Each floor would house a pair of two-bedroom units around 900-1000 square feet, and another pair of three-bedroom units around 1,100-1,200 square feet.

While its retail storefronts – including Ferrante’s flagship Park Place Jewelers – sit directly along the south side of Route 50, the shopping center property extends back hundreds of feet into a dense wooded area and could accommodate the housing project.
More:

(July 11, 2025) With the backing of planning officials, a local businessman is one step closer to bringing new workforce housing to the West Ocean City corridor behind his existing

11/07/2025

REACTION: OC vows to fight tumultuous pop-up events

Bethany Hooper
Associate Editor

Ocean City government officials said they will explore ways to deter a pop-up gathering, such as the one that broke out last Friday night, from coming back to Ocean City.

At the conclusion of Monday’s Ocean City Council meeting, during which two residents spoke of the unruly and illegal activities witnessed in town late last week, City Manager Terry McGean made it clear that Ocean City would not tolerate the behavior associated with a “takeover” event organized on social media ahead of the July 4 holiday.

He said he would be meeting with Police Chief Raymond Austin and City Solicitor Heather Stansbury this week to discuss solutions, which will ultimately be forwarded to the city’s police commission for review.

“We don’t tolerate what happened, and we're not going to tolerate what happened,” he said. “I think we got that message out. That’s why there was a difference Friday night versus Saturday night.”

During the public comment period of Monday’s meeting, resident Martin Branigan shared the misconduct he had witnessed from those who came to Ocean City for last week’s “takeover” event. He warned city officials to be prepared for upcoming Fourth of July holidays, which will fall on a weekend the next two years.
More:

Ocean City government officials said they will explore ways to deter a pop-up gathering, such as the one that broke out last Friday night, from coming back to Ocean City.

11/07/2025

IN REVIEW: Frenzied Fourth brings chaos to Ocean City

Bethany Hooper
Associate Editor
Panic on the Boardwalk. Large gatherings at the beach. A shooting in the street.

These are just some of the incidents police responded to last Friday in the midst of Ocean City’s Independence Day celebrations.

While it was reported the city’s police, fire, and emergency services

operations were fully staffed heading into the Fourth of July weekend, officials said Friday was challenging as

illegal and disruptive behavior intensified throughout the evening.

“It was a difficult night,” City Manager Terry McGean said this week. “And it’s not something we’ll tolerate going forward.”

Fireworks discharge cause Boardwalk panic

Chaos erupted Friday night at the start of Ocean City’s downtown fireworks show after one or more persons discharged fireworks into the Boardwalk crowd.
More:

Panic on the Boardwalk. Large gatherings at the beach. A shooting in the street.

11/07/2025

IN REVIEW: Frenzied Fourth brings chaos to Ocean City

Bethany Hooper
Associate Editor
Panic on the Boardwalk. Large gatherings at the beach. A shooting in the street.

These are just some of the incidents police responded to last Friday in the midst of Ocean City’s Independence Day celebrations.

While it was reported the city’s police, fire, and emergency services operations were fully staffed heading into the Fourth of July weekend, officials said Friday was challenging as illegal and disruptive behavior intensified throughout the evening.

“It was a difficult night,” City Manager Terry McGean said this week. “And it’s not something we’ll tolerate going forward.”

Fireworks discharge cause Boardwalk panic

Chaos erupted Friday night at the start of Ocean City’s downtown fireworks show after one or more persons discharged fireworks into the Boardwalk crowd.
More:

Panic on the Boardwalk. Large gatherings at the beach. A shooting in the street.

11/07/2025

Today’s page one

Digital flip edition link: https://issuu.com/oceancitytoday/docs/07_11_2025_oc_today-dispatch

08/07/2025

Individuals recovered after pontoon boat overturns in Inlet, courtesy of IAFF Local 4269, Ocean City Career Firefighter Paramedics Association

This was the scene earlier just after 5:00pm in the Inlet when a reported pontoon boat overtuned.

OCFD Fire Boat 1 is pictured with Maryland Department of Natural Resources - Natural Resources Police Boat rescuing victims with Ocean City Beach Patrol.

📷: Photo Credit C. Sanders

07/07/2025

Vanishing Ocean City With Bunk Mann

One of the more unique amusement rides in Ocean City’s history was “Tank Battle,” an attraction run by Trimpers in the early 1990s. Two riders – one to drive and another that sat in a turret inside the tank and fired balls from an air powered cannon – made up the crew. As many as four tanks participated in a screened arena on the west side of Baltimore Avenue near S. 1st Street.
Tanks were 9 feet long, 5 feet wide, and about 4 feet tall and had targets on their body which gave off sound effects when hit by an opponent. Riders had to be over five feet tall and wore lacrosse helmets for protection. Small Honda built motors powered the tanks.
Air powered guns lined the side of the arena and spectators could participate in the game. A bucket of balls cost $5 and onlookers enjoyed firing tennis balls at the slow moving tanks.
Tank Battle only existed for about five years but for those who played it the memories have lasted forever.
To purchase one of Bunk Mann’s books, click over to www.vanishingoc.com.

Photo courtesy Stephanie Trimper Lewis