OCEAN CITY – The City Council unanimously voted to pass the first reading of an ordinance increasing the towing fees throughout the town this summer, an increase operators say is necessary with rising fuel costs.Several representatives from local towing companies were present at a Police Commission last month to discuss the current towing prices; prices… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – Planning for OC Beachfest is preceding smoothly, reported event coordinators last week, noting that while the running component of the three-day sporting event will be seeing some changes, the rest of the events remain on track.Event planners Brad Hoffman and Jack Hennen returned to the Tourism Commission last week to update members… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – Area police this week are looking for a suspect in a reported strong-arm robbery of a juvenile at the Park-and-Ride in West Ocean City.Around 2:45 a.m. on Wednesday, Maryland State Police troopers responded to a reported robbery that had just occurred. The victim, a juvenile from Berlin, had been dropped off at… Read more »

SNOW HILL – The Marvin Steen owned property near Rt. 589, adjacent to the land once meant for a YMCA, will go before the Worcester County Planning Commission in May for a rezoning recommendation.The 20-acre parcel of agricultural land between the south border of Ocean Pines and Gum Point Rd. must be rezoned to residential… Read more »

BERLIN – A report released last week by a national research company presented a snapshot of the town of Berlin, its people, their quality of life and even their collective political tendencies and compared the town to similarly sized municipalities in Maryland and across the country.According to the town profile prepared by CityTownInfo.com, the independent… Read more »

BERLIN – Three suspects are in custody this week after an armed home invasion involving a handgun at a residence in Snow Hill last weekend.Around 5:15 a.m. last Saturday, Maryland State Police troopers and investigators from the Worcester County Bureau of Investigations (WCBI) responded to a residence on Shockley Rd. in Snow Hill for a… Read more »

SNOW HILL – A new subdivision is a step closer to adding 126 homes to the Route 589 corridor after the Worcester County Planning Commission approved the Mapleton Farms plat lat week.Members of the Worcester County Planning Commission questioned landowner Charles Nichols and project engineer John Salm closely over the use of individual septic systems… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – A retired U.S. Navy destroyer moved closer to finding a home as an artificial reef off the coast of the resort this week when Gov. Martin O’Malley officially endorsed the plan.O’Malley on Monday joined New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine and Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner in support of the Maryland Artificial Reef… Read more »

OCEAN CITY – Despite ongoing work on the Route 50 bridge, the 2008 Ocean City Half-Marathon is scheduled to go off as planned next Saturday with a start line at the Inlet parking lot and a finish line at Assateague Island.For the last three years, Extreme Dream Events has produced the annual Ocean City Marathon… Read more »

BERLIN – With taxes increased on seemingly everything in Maryland in recent months, from an increase in sales tax to gasoline tax to the tax on cigarettes, residents in the state will have to work harder and longer this year to meet their combined tax burden, according to a report released last week by the… Read more »