OCEAN CITY – Following his last meeting at the dais after 20 years of service, Councilman Lloyd Martin was feted this week by his colleagues and friends.
Ocean City’s municipal election was Tuesday with three candidates elected to fill vacant seats, including incumbent Council President Matt James and two newcomers. One of those seats has been filled by Martin for the last 20 years. However, when the candidate filing deadline neared last month, Martin had decided not to throw his hat in the ring one more time.
By most reckoning, Martin attended somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,000 council meetings, including hundreds he presided over during his stint as council president. However, Monday was his last with the municipal election set for Tuesday. Near the close of the meeting, he was fondly recalled by friends and his colleagues at the dais.
Before the Mayor and Council comment period arrived on the agenda, longtime resident and events promoter Brad Hoffman took the opportunity to thank Martin for his years of service.
“I would just like to thank Lloyd for his steady-handed leadership,” he said. “You have always been level-headed and fair, and that cannot be understated. You’re one amazing councilperson and you always put the locals, visitors and businesses first. That was always your goal. You’ve been an all-star councilperson.”
City Manager Terry McGean also thanked Martin for his many years of service on the council.
“I would like to thank Councilman Martin for his years of service,” he said. “We all wish you well on the next chapter of your life.”
Martin was first elected to the City Council in 2002. He was nominated council secretary in 2006 and council president in 2012. As a councilman, he also served on the police commission and the recreation and parks committee. In his private life, he owns and operates a family convenience store business. Council Secretary Tony DeLuca said he first met Martin while he was working behind the counter of his family convenience store business.
“I met Lloyd 12 years ago,” he said. “Every week I would walk into 7-11 and ask Lloyd to please put me on a committee. It finally happened and here I sit all of these years later.”
Councilman Frank Knight said he has been admiring Martin’s work on the council, first from the audience when his wife Mary sat on the council and then through his own time as an elected official.
“I’ve watched you for 14 years,” he said. “I’m always impressed. You’ve been a great leader and a voice of reason. For that, we will always be grateful.”
Councilman John Gehrig echoed some of the same sentiments.
“It’s always a pleasure to work with people smarter than you are,” he said. “You’ve negotiated us through some tough times. You’re the kindest person who has been up here and you clearly care for Ocean City, its residents and visitors.”
For his part, Martin recalled some of his early days on the council and the makeup of some of the bodies he had worked with in the past.
“Rick [Meehan] was council president and we had a lot of tough councils back then,” he said. “To me, it just didn’t make sense. You smile and you move on to the next thing. We have a good body now.”
Martin said there was a learning curve for him, but he had long since moved from pupil to mentor.
“You learn a lot from the people around you,” he said. “Hopefully, the good stuff rubs off on you. You guys are good at it now. We’re trying to make good news and this group is achieving that.”
Martin was quick to praise the staff, which puts into place the policies the council crafts.
“The key is the people we have working for us,” he said. “From public safety to public works, they keep us clean and safe. If you want to be number one, you need a number-one quarterback. That’s what we have here right now. I hope you guys continue to keep that going.”
Mayor Rick Meehan praised Martin for his strong commitment to the position of councilmember.
“You’ve had around 950 meetings, and that doesn’t count all of the committee meetings and other commitments,” he said. “You’ve been on the front lines for 20 years.”
Aside from his formal duties as councilmember, Meehan said Martin was always accessible to his constituents behind the counter of his family business.
“You’ve probably had more face-to-face time then anybody who has ever served,” he said. “When people came into your 7-11, they knew you would listen. People called the 7-11 the city hall of north Ocean City.”
Meehan said Martin was a key member of the negotiation teams when the town’s police department and fire department unionized.
“You’ve always been a strong supporter of the police department and the fire department, and you helped us navigate through the union negotiations,” he said. “You always fostered an atmosphere of fairness.”
Meehan said through it all, Martin always made a difference.
“I served with a number of councilmembers, and you are a consistent voice of reason and patience,” he said. “When you speak, you have the attention of the entire Mayor and Council and everybody in the room. We’re going to miss your knowledge and your respect for anybody who comes up here. Did you make a difference? Absolutely.”
