Workforce Specialist Hired
SNOW HILL – The commissioners welcome Nancy Schwendeman as the new workforce development specialist within Worcester County Economic Development (WCED). She stepped into her new role on March 28. Schwendeman earned a bachelor’s degree in hotel and restaurant business management. She brings 36 years of experience in the hospitality industry to her new position.
Nancy Schwendeman
“We are thrilled to bring on Nancy as part of the Tourism and Economic Development team,” Tourism and Economic Development Director Melanie Pursel said. “She brings an outstanding set of skills, solid experience, and excellent relationships in the Worcester region. She will truly be an asset as we move forward to address the workforce and training needs of our community.”
Prior to joining WCED, Schwendeman worked with the Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, where she served as the publications manager and later as the interim director and then deputy director. In her new role, Schwendeman will oversee the county’s workforce development initiatives to educate and train individuals to meet the needs of current and future businesses and industries offering livable wages. Her primary responsibilities will include creating, managing, and delivering workforce development programs and services.
“I am so excited to be working for Worcester County Economic Development,” Schwendeman said. “I look forward to partnering with the businesses and industries throughout the county and offering the services and support they need.”
Schwendeman will serve as the primary liaison with local, state, and federal partners, including Worcester Technical High School, area chambers of commerce, Maryland Department of Commerce, DLLR, Small Business Development Center, and the Small Business Association.
X
Restaurant Sold
OCEAN PINES – Senior Advisor Wesley Cox, CCIM of SVN Miller Commercial Real Estate announces the sale of an Ocean Pines local restaurant, DeNovo’s Trattoria.
Wesley was engaged by the owner’s to confidentially sell their restaurant after 17-years of operation. Upon executing a confidential marketing plan, Wesley connected with Meredith Mears, also of SVN, who represented the buyer in this transaction.
DeNovo’s, an Italian restaurant, was located just four miles west of Ocean City within the Manklin Station shopping center located at 11310 Manklin Creek Road, Ocean Pines, Md. A favorite among locals, DeNovo’s has been family owned and operated for 17 years and will continue to be family owned and operated by the new owner whose name will be released at a later date. The owners of DeNovo’s will continue to operate their other restaurant, Pop’s Kitchen, located in downtown Berlin, Md.
The new owner of this location will undergo a short renovation period of the 4,860-square-foot restaurant and plan to reopen shortly under a new name. The new owners have a 30-year history of operating restaurants, and they are excited to enter the Ocean Pines market.
“It was a pleasure to work as part of the team of dedicated professionals who cohesively saw this very detailed transfer through,” said Mears, who represented the buyers. “I’m incredibly excited for my clients, who are well established, heavily experienced, and successful restaurateurs.”
The buyers have announced they will honor all previously purchased and unused DeNovo’s gift cards. Once the Ocean Pines restaurant opens, gift cards can be redeemed until Sept. 30, 2022. Gift cards will be honored at Pop’s Kitchen in Berlin, Md., indefinitely.
Kelli Beck, the owner of DeNovo’s had this to say about the transaction, “Our agent Wesley Cox gave a lot of time and attention to all the details in this transaction. Even though our deal was smaller than the typical deal Wes works on, I never felt that he gave any less than 100% attention to the details. Thanks to his efforts we had a successful ending.”
Cox later commented, “I grew up in my family’s restaurant, so I can personally relate to many aspects of the business including the heart and sole the owners put into it. After 17 years of operating this successful restaurant, I was honored to help Kelli and Bob sell their asset and make one step closer to retirement.”
X
Promotions Announced
SALISBURY – The architectural and engineering firm of George, Miles & Buhr, LLC (GMB) is pleased to announce the following promotions.
Stephen Marsh
Stephen L. Marsh, P.E., LEED AP, CPSWQ has been promoted to east region director of operations. Marsh is a senior vice president with the firm and
has served on the Board of Members since 2013. He began his career with GMB in 1994 as a civil engineer focused on hydrology and low-impact development, ultimately establishing the firm’s Site/Sustainable Design Group. Marsh has served as prime engineering consultant for the award-winning Bayside community in Selbyville, Del., for over 20 years. He now oversees our Salisbury, Md., and Seaford, Del., office operations.
X
Jason Lytle
Jason M. Lytle, P.E. has been promoted to west region director of operations. Lytle joined GMB in 1998 and has served as a senior vice president on the Board of Members since 2019. He has designed and managed water and wastewater engineering projects throughout the Chesapeake Bay region, including Cambridge Farms Water Treatment Plant in Frederick County, Md., which recently started construction. Lytle oversees our Sparks, Md., office operations.
X
Christopher Derbyshire
X
Christopher B. Derbyshire, P.E., Morgan H. Helfrich, AIA, LEED AP, and Katherine J. McAllister, P.E. have been selected as senior vice presidents on GMB’s Board of Members, after serving six years as vice presidents.
Derbyshire joined GMB’s Water/Wastewater Engineering Group in 2002 and now serves as group leader. His expertise lies in the planning, managing, designing, and constructing of water and wastewater treatment facilities throughout Maryland and Delaware. He is currently working with the Town of Rock Hall, Md., and the City of Seaford, Del., where he is designated as city engineer, on upgrades to their wastewater treatment plants.
X
Morgan Helfrich
Helfrich has served as GMB’s architectural group leader since 2016, after joining the firm in 2006. A registered architect in Maryland, Delaware, and Virginia, she works with public and private clients on a wide variety of projects, including residential, commercial, industrial, hospitality, healthcare, institutional, and educational. Currently, she is managing the second GMB design of a new community health center in Federalsburg, Md., for Choptank Community Health Systems, Inc.
X
Katherine McAllister
X
McAllister joined GMB’s Water/Wastewater Engineering group in 2005. As a project director in the Salisbury office, she has extensive knowledge of
municipal public works, funding agency requirements, rate structures and grant writing, as well as strong technical skills. She serves as city engineer for the City of Fruitland, Md., where she recently completed a new water supply well and upgrades to the water treatment plant.
X
New Medical Facility
BERLIN – Chesapeake Health Care (CHC) has opened a new medical facility in Berlin that provides adult and pediatric care, behavioral health, and lab services to residents in Worcester County.
The brand-new 7,200-square-foot building is located right off Route 50 at 9958 N. Main Street in Berlin, Md. The facility replaces CHC’s smaller medical office which was located nearby in Berlin Main Place.
This new state-of-the-art facility gives residents convenient access to a variety of health care services. Features of the new Berlin medical building include 17 therapy rooms for mental health services, eight exam rooms and a lab for adult and pediatric care. There is also space to provide group therapy and telehealth treatment. CHC is now accepting new patients in Berlin. For more information, or to schedule appointments, call 410-973-2820.