It’s that time of year to look back on how I fared with my annual predictions made last year. In hindsight, it turned out to not be my best effort, but I am already looking ahead to next week’s predictions for the year ahead.
On The Money
•I didn’t get much right this year on the prediction front, but I was Nostradamus-like when I four months before official word came down boldly said, “The Dew Tour will not return to Ocean City in 2015.”
•As expected, there was no talk of a sequel to the Ocean City-based movie “Ping Pong Summer.”
•Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan did make a major funding commitment and renewed legislative approach to cracking down on heroin shipping into Maryland.
•As I figured, Worcester County did not make any decision on whether it should continue answering Ocean City’s 911 calls rather than allowing the resort to do it on its own. As far as I know, it never was discussed in public.
•Ocean City’s planned public boat ramp near the Route 90 bridge did not open this year. I thought permitting would slow the process and it did along with private property negotiations.
•Wallops Island was a lot quieter on the major launch front this year after a major explosion in October of 2014. That was not much of a leap admittedly.
•I was right that excellent weather teamed with the first-ever performance by the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels would make the 2015 OC Air Show the best ever.
•October was indeed automotive month in Ocean City with the H2O automotive event bumped to the first weekend in October followed by Cruisin and then the corvettes.
•Author Bunk Mann did end up ordering in 2015 a second printing of his wildly popular “Vanishing Ocean City” historical account.
•If I’m not mistaken, gasoline prices did remain below the $3-a-gallon mark all year. In fact, they are currently below $2.
What Was I Thinking?
•I couldn’t have been more off when I predicted “nothing will officially happen in regard to Berlin purchasing the Tyson property in 2015.” I thought the studies would take longer than anticipated and it would slow the process, but that didn’t happen and the town has agreed to buy the land through a $3 million bond. The town will officially purchase the land in the first quarter of next year.
•Contrary to what I thought would be done, the Ocean City Mayor and Council did ban smoking on the Boardwalk.
•I thought Worcester County would purchase equipment to begin recording their meetings and post videos on its website. That never happened. Initial funds were included, but quickly removed due to constraints leading to one of the largest single-year tax increases ever for local property owners.
•Two tall ships did not come to Ocean City last summer. In fact, there was not even one.
•The Maryland General Assembly did not “narrowly approve” the post-Labor Day school start bill. That legislation never stood a chance of getting passed in the 2015 session.
•Ocean City was not forced to reconsider electronic Boardwalk tram ads as a result of the general public’s disgust over the visual pollution.
•A new type of moonshine in the state’s liquor industry did not require government intervention.
•Two new chain restaurants did not open along Route 50 east of Herring Creek.
•The self-proclaimed “pole doll” was not seen in Ocean City — at least on the boards — this summer. I thought she would return a few times.
•There was no boom in the population of the Assateague Island horse population. In fact, there was only one foal born, leading island officials to tweak its ongoing contraception program, which is aimed at controlling the herd’s size.
•A major re-organization of the command staff of the Ocean City Police Department did not take place this year as I thought it might in an effort to reduce personnel costs.
•The Seattle Seahawks did not defeat the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl as I predicted. It went the other way with the Patriots winning yet another title.
Still In Limbo
•A plan does appear to be in the works to dissolve Worcester County’s Department of Liquor Control, but no official vote took place to shutter the operation at the end of 2016, as I expected.
•It was my belief, “some improvements will be made in 2015 to Coastal Highway’s median, but most of the major construction will have to wait till 2016 due to government’s slow pace.” While some largely unnoticeable improvements were made, I put this in this category because it might not be 2016 when median enhancements take place, although that seems to be the city’s goal.