Parking is big bucks in Ocean City, as an average of $6 million in revenue is generated annually from paid parking each year at municipal lots and streets in the downtown area. It seems Ocean City thinks the revenue should be much higher with some comments this week about missed dollars in recent summers. It was predicted net parking revenue could increase an average of $120,000 per year over current levels with this change after a neutral first year due to associated costs with hiring a new administrator and enforcement staff. The key to the revenue spike seems to be enhanced enforcement, according to city officials.
During a presentation this week at City Hall, a consultant said the resort’s paid parking space occupancy rate is far lower than industry norms. It was said the occupancy revenue should be 55% and Ocean City’s last summer was 46%. It seems people are using the street and lot spaces without paying for the use at the kiosks. Enforcement is a problem because there’s a need for personnel to monitor the vehicles in the spots. It was also reported revenue from fines had fallen 67%, from $120,000 to $40,000 last season.
Creating a new parking division seems wise for what’s a $6 million line item, but it’s unfortunate it comes with an estimated $600,000 in new expenses to the resort in the form of a full-time parking manager and five enforcement officers. The phrase, “it takes money to make money” applies here. As Public Works Director Hal Adkins put it, “You’ve got a $6 million revenue source, call it a ship floating out in the ocean, and nobody is steering it … I think there’s a great potential here for growth, control and management.” Councilmember Carol Proctor added, “I think we’re leaving a lot more on the table then we think we are. I think by putting this division together we’re going to be able to make the sound decisions we need to make as a council. Before we add paid parking throughout town, we really need to know what we have and what we need to do with what we have.”
Back in 2019, there were 698 bonfire permits issued for the Ocean City beach. A huge spike was recorded during the pandemic, hitting a peak of 3,557 during fiscal year 2022. The pace has leveled off in recent years with 3,416 permits issued in fiscal year 2023 and 3,245 in the current fiscal year. Nonetheless, the growth is astounding. Last fiscal year the revenue from beach bonfires was nearly $360,000, compared to $59,000 in fiscal year 2020. It’s going to decline this fiscal year, but it remains an impressive program.
As a reminder, I am a member of the Berlin Council.
The Town of Berlin is at a critical juncture when it comes to cleaning up the former poultry processing buildings located at Heron Park. The Request For Proposal for demolition work approved by the council this week will soon be available for bidders to review and submit estimates for the work.
A bright spot in the years since Berlin acquired the former Tyson chicken plant property was the securing in late 2021 of a $500,000 grant from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development that must be executed by June of 2024. Of the $500,000, there will be about $450,000 available for demolition work with the remainder going to the engineering evaluations and project work to get to this point. At this point, it appears the town should be able to demolish the two areas in the worst shape. The consultant ranked the buildings in terms of one through eight with the larger number being the best buildings. The two best buidings are those along Old Ocean City Boulevard which houses Tyson offices and a cafeteria at one time. Buildings one and two must go for safety and the consultant said this week building three along the railroad track should also go.
The town will know more once the bids come back but it’s important to know a part of this process is also securing the buildings once demolition takes place. The town wants to make sure whatever buildings are left remain structurally safe as well as are secured from public access, which has been available for many years. The consultant broke the bid up into two pieces. The base bid will involve demolishing the unsafe two buildings and related site work. The “Add Alternate” aspect will be for demolishing the third building and cleaning up the interior of the remaining buildings.
When asked this week, the consultant seemed confident the town could knock down the worst three areas with the remaining amount of the demo grant, but I am concerned because it’s broken out by base bid and add alternate. At this point, the town is rightly so focused on the demolition effort and then it will be up to the Mayor & Council on next steps — whether to form a committee to debate and discuss future uses, issue another RFP for sale/redevelopment from prospective developers or retain it.
My biggest question at this point will be answered soon. If the successful demo bid can only take down the two weakest structures and part of the third building, the town will have a decision to make on funding. I will not vote for spending any more money on demolishing structures and improving the site beyond the demo funds. The town is already paying $200,000 in debt service each year owning this property. Time will tell but the hope is the demo grant will be able to accomplish knocking down the three buildings, cleaning up the exterior areas and securing the parcel. Then the question is, what’s next?
