It’s natural for there to be mixed reactions to the recent redevelopment trends in Ocean City.
The new, 101-room, four-floor LaQuinta Inn & Suites on 32nd Street recently opened and replaced the former Ocean Voyager Motel between Philadelphia and Baltimore avenues.
The former site to the Ocean City Health and Racquet Club will soon become a 150-room Residence Inn and Suites just south of the Route 90 Bridge.
A vacant parcel to the immediate north of the existing Quality Inn is being proposed as the site for a 15-story hotel featuring 101 units that will connect to the existing hotel in some fashion.
Plans were recently approved by the Ocean City Planning and Commission to transform the long dormant site of the former Misty Harbor Motel on 25th Street into a multiple-use project featuring a 92-room, 16-suite Fairfield by Marriott hotel, townhomes and potentially restaurants.
Eyes widened this week once again when a Hyatt Place Hotel was proposed for the site of the old Seascape Motel on 16th Street between the Boardwalk and Baltimore Avenue. Along with that block, the plan is to build on the western side of Baltimore Avenue as well for a total of 170 rooms.
A similar project off the island is the new 84-room, 16-suite Holiday Inn Express in West Ocean City that will be open in March.
Without question, a redevelopment boom is taking place. It does not mirror what was happening 10 years ago in the resort, when in most cases older rental properties were replaced with modern lot line-to-lot line condominium projects, but the addition of about 500 new hotel rooms to the industry over the next couple years is significant.
With the onslaught of these major hotel projects, there are concerns in the local and visiting community about the town being taken over by corporate America and losing its small business tradition and family-run feel. These are understandable worries, but there are two aspects to keep in mind here.
First, property owners have every right to try and maximize their investment and their futures. In this latest case, the Seascape is an aging property, upkeep on which is likely expensive and a high line item in its budget every year. We wonder if those upset by a Hyatt coming to the property would be take equal umbrage if the property owners were simply redeveloping it into a new, more modern hotel under the Seascape name. Change is difficult, but it’s important to remember these are private sector decisions that are beyond government control.
Secondly, the fact these brands are coming to Ocean City should be taken as a positive from a larger standpoint. It’s an indication the resort’s tourism industry is viewed favorably by outside experts. It’s a sign of confidence and stability in the tourism market and the fact a seasonal resort can bring about these sizable investments is impressive.
While concerns about the rapid rise in the franchise hotels have merit, we hope the issues here have more to do with the pace than the actual projects themselves because these changes are improvements for the most part.