Articles

Child Hit On Coastal Highway

OCEAN CITY - A St. Mary's County youth was struck be a vehicle while attempting to cross Coastal Highway on Tuesday and was flown to a hospital in Baltimore with injuries not believed to be life threatening. Around 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Ocean City Police and paramedics responded the area of Old Wharf Rd. and Coastal Highway for a report of a pedestrian struck by a car. The investigation revealed an 11-year-old Maryland boy was struck by a vehicle while attempting to cross Coastal Highway in an...READ MORE

County Opposes Commercial Aquaculture Plan

SNOW HILL - The debate over commercial shellfish aquaculture in bay waters near South Point continues with the County Commissioners' agreement this week to support residents' ongoing concerns in a letter to the state of Maryland. South Point residents are worried that the 500-acre aquaculture area in Sinepuxent Bay, off their waterfront, will interfere with recreational boating and water activities. The state's original plan had pre-approved clam aquaculture leases in 1,080 acres of Sinepuxent...READ MORE

OC's Off-Season Bus Service Cuts Close To Reality

OCEAN CITY •€' A handful of opponents and only a few disdainful comments couldn't sway the City Council's earlier decision to trim the city bus fleet this winter at Monday's required public hearing at City Hall. During the budget hearings in May, the City Council voted to scale back the winter bus deployment from three buses each shift to what Public Works Director Hal Adkins called a '2-2-1' deployment in one of their numerous cost cutting measures. 'Winter deployment starts the first...READ MORE

Ocean City Resident's Wind Turbine Plan Meets Resistance

OCEAN CITY •€' Jim Motsko has been trying to put a wind turbine on his downtown property for the better part of two years, but it seems he will have to wait at least a little bit longer before getting the green light to go 'green.' On Tuesday, the Planning and Zoning Commission elected to extend a public hearing to determine the conditional use of a 45-foot wind turbine that Motsko, a local realtor and White Marlin Open founder and tournament director, has proposed to install on his 6th...READ MORE

State Picks Parallel Route 50 Bridge Option

OCEAN CITY - After years of back-and-forth debate, the State Highway Administration (SHA) announced this week it had formally selected a preferred alternative to replace the aging Harry Kelley Memorial Bridge, choosing the option to construct a new bridge parallel to the existing span with a new system of ramps to keep traffic flowing in and out of the resort. SHA officials on Wednesday announced the agency had chosen Alternative 5A, which turned out to be the preferred option of Ocean City and...READ MORE

81% Of County Grads Planning To Go College Route

NEWARK - Over 80 percent of Worcester County's 2010 graduating seniors will go on to further their education. A report by school board staff presented this week showed that 81 percent, or 427 students of the 526 student graduating class, will attend a four-year college, two-year college or a specialized training school. Thirty-four graduates, 6.5 percent of Worcester's 2010 graduating class, decided to enter the military after receiving their diploma, according to the report. About 43 percent...READ MORE

Agencies Assist Guards With Rip Current Rescues

OCEAN CITY - The Coast Guard and Maryland Natural Resources Police (NRP) were called into action last Saturday night to assist the Ocean City Beach Patrol (OCBP) with two rescue incidents caused by dangerous rip currents. The Coast Guard received the first call around 6:50 p.m. last Saturday asking for assistance with the rescue of three boogie boarders caught in a rip current near the Inlet jetty. Coast Guard Station Ocean City launched a rescue boat and arrived on the scene a short time later....READ MORE

Berlin Child Porn Suspect Nabbed For Animal Cruelty

BERLIN - A Berlin man, arrested late last month on child pornography charges after a months-long federal and local investigation, was back behind bars last week on animal cruelty charges after allegedly leaving several dogs, including one that perished, in a 100-plus degree vehicle at a mall in Salisbury. Around 5:30 p.m. on Aug. 8, Salisbury Police responded to a call from the parking lot at the Centre at Salisbury for a report of canines secured in a dangerously hot vehicle. Upon arrival, the...READ MORE

County Staff Says Candidate Not Breaking Zoning Law

BISHOPVILLE - Accusations consistent with the election season are alive and well on the campaign trail, with a question recently raised that District 6 Commissioner candidate Jimmy Bunting, a longtime member of the county planning and zoning commission, may be violating county zoning law. The allegation turned out to be incorrect or at least not a clear violation of the county's code. Bunting faces incumbent Worcester County Commissioner Linda Busick in the Republican primary on Sept. 14. The...READ MORE

Dad Faces First-Degree Assault Charges

OCEAN PINES - An Ocean Pines man was arrested on first-degree assault and other charges this week after allegedly beating his 8-year-old son with a belt for telling a lie. Last Saturday, Ocean Pines Police were notified of an alleged child abuse patient in the emergency room at Atlantic General Hospital in Berlin. Ocean Pines Police responded to the emergency room at Atlantic General and met with a nurse the 8-year-old boy who had arrived at the hospital and appeared to have been beaten with a...READ MORE

District 4 Primary Preview

BERLIN - Longtime incumbent District 4 Worcester County Commissioner Virgil Shockley will face challenger Tommy Tucker, a retired high school principal, in the District 4 Democratic primary Sept. 14. The Dispatch spoke with both candidates this week for an overview on their positions. ----- Virgil Shockley: With three terms as commissioner already, Schockley, a farmer and school bus driver, wants to come back for a fourth term for one main reason - to ensure the Snow Hill High School (SHHS)...READ MORE

District 5 Primary Preview

BERLIN - Incumbent District 5 Worcester County Commissioner Judy Boggs is being challenged by Bob Thompson, a financial professional recently named as general manager of the Ocean Pines Association (OPA), in the Republican primary on Sept. 14. The Dispatch spoke with both candidates this week for an overview on their positions. Judy Boggs: Boggs, with eight years as a county commissioner on her resume, is too cautious to make any detailed predictions about the county's financial state next...READ MORE

Four Republicans In Primary Battle For Southern District

BERLIN - Four Republicans in the south end of Worcester County hope to compete with a Democratic candidate in the general election for the District 1 County Commissioner post. The Dispatch spoke to the four Republican District 1 candidates last week in advance of the Sept. 14 primary. Larry Ward: 'We need change and we need change fast,' said Larry Ward, owner of a tree service company, on why he decided to run for commissioner. The county needs to be run more efficiently, he feels. Layoffs and...READ MORE

Next Big Thing Band Eyes Ocean City Stop On Sunday

OCEAN CITY •€' It would be safe to assume that there will be hundreds of little girls screaming at the top of their lungs on Sunday on the Ocean City Boardwalk. Ocean City's much publicized partnership with Radio Disney will hold its swan song of events for the summer as a band being touted as the •€˜Next Big Thing' and even the •€˜next Jonas Brothers' will play a free show Sunday afternoon as part of the Sizzlin' Summer of Stars free events on the Boardwalk. In 2009, the four...READ MORE

Ocean City News In Brief

OCEAN CITY •€' In the brief this week, a few pending ordinances took steps to getting solidified into law, one ordinance did get penned in officially and a downtown business was given permission to charge for parking after hours. Grilling In Public Lots Illegal Without Permit The Mayor and Council breezed through the second required reading of an ordinance that would make it unlawful to grill or cookout in a public parking lot without a city permit via an unanimous vote on Monday. Concern...READ MORE

Railroad Widening Project Called Critical

SNOW HILL - The local economy could suffer a severe blow if Worcester County does not receive federal funds to widen the Snow Hill freight railroad line, which carries grain for poultry feed, to accommodate larger rail cars. Expanding the railroad to carry larger cars, which can transport more grain, is vital to keeping the poultry industry in Worcester County alive, said Commissioner Virgil Shockley, a farmer who raises Tyson chickens and grows corn and soybeans. The smaller rail cars that...READ MORE

Ruppert Growing Fenwick Island Retail Scene

T.K. Dickerson Staff Writer FENWICK ISLAND - Nancy Ruppert is no stranger to owning and operating retail stores in Fenwick Island, as she has owned Body Double, a swimwear store, for nearly 25 years. When she realized that her customers' need for casual wear was growing and Body Double alone could not accommodate, she opened her most recent venture - Under the Banyan Tree. Since its opening this past April, the resort-wear store has been a success. Ruppert attributes the fairly easy transition...READ MORE

Suspected Cocaine Dealer Faces Federal Distribution Charges

BERLIN - A Berlin man arrested in May in one of the most significant cocaine busts in recent county history had the local charges against him dropped last week after he was indicted earlier this month in U.S. District Court on federal drug distribution charges. The Worcester County Sheriff's Office criminal enforcement team this spring concluded a 10-month investigation into cocaine distribution in the Berlin area with a grand jury indictment on Tyrone Darnell Lawson, 37, of Berlin on a dozen...READ MORE

Undercover Probe Results In Cocaine Dealing Charges

OCEAN CITY - Two Salisbury residents were arrested on cocaine distribution charges last week after allegedly selling the illegal narcotic to an undercover OCPD detective on several different occasions over the last month or so. During the month of July, an undercover OCPD narcotics detective initiated an investigation into a suspected dealer known as Dujuan Terrell Williams, 33, of Salisbury. On July 8, the detective contacted Williams via cell phone to inquire about purchasing cocaine. During...READ MORE