OCEAN CITY — The new boat ramp at 64th Street in Ocean City is closer to becoming a reality this week after resort officials accepted the low bid for the project.
The Mayor and Council on Tuesday accepted the low bid from Murtech Marine of $714,849 for the construction of the new public access boat ramp at 64th Street. The project was originally budgeted for roughly $1.5 million with the state’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) funding 100 percent of the needed dredge work to facilitate the new ramp up to $500,000 and 50 percent of the site work up to $315,000. City Engineer Terry McGean said all of the three bids for the project came in under what was budgeted, but the accepted low bid for Murtech did not exactly represent a windfall for the resort.
“All were substantially below the estimate,” he said. “I caution you a lot of this was grant funding, so not all of the savings will be realized by the town.”
In 2012, the Mayor and Council approved a new public access boat ramp at 64th Street in an area acquired by the town adjacent to its vast Public Works complex. The project includes dredging the channel in the surrounding area and constructing a two-lane boat ramp with access for the public. The project also includes a 31-space parking area for trailers and small comfort station and other amenities.
The new boat ramp at 64th Street will replace the town’s only other existing public access boat ramp in the Little Salisbury area. After years of wrestling with an outdated and over-utilized public boat ramp in the Little Salisbury residential area, along with complaints of traffic, parking, noise and litter, the town identified the site at 64th Street as a more appropriate location for the city-owned boat ramp because of it is surrounded by commercial and governmental uses and is located closer to the center of the resort.
Once the 64th Street site was identified, the town purchased additional space to accommodate the trailer parking and other amenities. However, acquiring all of the property needed for the project was complicated by conflicting appraisals for the lots during the purchase negotiations.
With the low bid accepted, work on the new boat ramp at 64th Street could begin as soon as June, according to McGean. A tentative completion date has been set for April 1, 2017 although the timetable is subject to change.