Ocean Pines Budget Deficit Expected

OCEAN PINES – Ocean Pines Association officials kicked off budget discussions with acknowledgment of the deficit expected at the end of the current fiscal year.

While they declined to speculate as to how much of a deficit the homeowners association was facing, board members asked the Ocean Pines Budget and Finance Advisory Committee to take it into account as the financial plan for the coming year was developed.

“We need some recommendations,” board member Ted Moroney said.

During a meeting with the committee Wednesday, board members said the association ended the previous fiscal year with a $363,000 deficit and that a larger deficit was expected at the end of the current fiscal year.

“This loss needs to be addressed,” said John Viola, the association’s former finance director.

John O’Connor, chairman of the committee, said he saw three options. He said the association could increase assessments to cover the loss, take the money out of reserve accounts or offset it by making a profit next year.

“A loss is a loss,” he said.

Aside from his comments Wednesday, board members asked the committee to consider the pending deficit as the coming year’s budget was developed. Another issue discussed was amenity performance during the past year. While the committee’s general practice is to predict amenity revenue no higher than has been achieved in the recent past, several board members pointed out that the past year’s amenity performance was not the norm.

“You can just forget about last year,” board member Cheryl Jacobs said. “It’s an anomaly. It should be set aside.”

Gene Ringsdorf, the association’s assistant treasurer, said another issue that should be addressed during the coming budget process was the bulkhead account. He said the association had continued to collect fees from homeowners whose properties featured bulkheads but had yet to use the money to fund maintenance or repairs.

“We need justification to give the homeowners,” he said.

Moroney said the association was “close to a contract” for bulkhead repairs and that the issue would be discussed at the next board meeting.

As the budget process progresses, General Manager John Bailey is expected to submit his proposed spending plan for 2018 to the budget and finance committee by late December. In early January, Bailey will meet with committee members to discuss the document. The budget will be presented to the board in late January and is expected to be approved by the end of February, 60 days before it goes into effect.

About The Author: Charlene Sharpe

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Charlene Sharpe has been with The Dispatch since 2014. A graduate of Stephen Decatur High School and the University of Richmond, she spent seven years with the Delmarva Media Group before joining the team at The Dispatch.