MediaWize

As Ocean City continues to recover from the pandemic, Mayor Jay Gillian is predicting an exceptionally strong summer tourism season with the arrival of the Memorial Day weekend. "After a long year, everybody deserves to have some extra fun this summer, and I think it’s going to be a blockbuster season. Enjoy every minute of it, and remember to take care of all the local shops, restaurants and businesses that make Ocean City so special," he said Friday in his weekly message to the public His entire message follows.

The National Weather Service has issued a Coastal Flood Advisory in effect for Ocean City from 9 p.m. Friday through 3 a.m. Saturday. A near-full-moon tide, easterly winds gusting up to 35 mph and heavy rain are expected to contribute to flooding conditions.

The Ocean City Tabernacle opens its summer season with bestselling author and radio host Eric Metaxas speaking on Sunday, May 30, at the 8:30 a.m. traditional service and 10:30 a.m. contemporary service. Metaxas is the New York Times No. 1 bestselling author of “Martin Luther,” “If You Can Keep It,” “Bonhoeffer,” “Miracles,” “Seven Women,” “Seven Men,” and “Amazing Grace.”

The Ocean City boys lacrosse team defeated visiting rival Mainland 17-4 while celebrating the senior class in front of a hometown crowd. The win raised the Red Raiders record to 10-5, with a perfect 6-0 conference slate. Mainland dropped to 7-7 (7-5 in conference). Ocean City senior Jake Schneider had an extra special senior night, scoring both his 100th career goal and 100th career assist, finishing the night with three goals and five assists to lead all scorers. 

The Ocean City Beach Patrol will be guarding the beaches for the Memorial Day weekend. Beaches are guarded from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekends and holidays and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. The list of guarded beaches follows.

Ocean City High School’s girls lacrosse team closed out its regular season with a thrilling 11-10 victory over the visiting Mainland Mustangs on Senior Day. The win upped the Red Raiders record to 10-3 (9-0 conference), while Mainland dropped to 10-4 (10-2 conference).  Ocean City honored its six seniors pre-game for their dedication to the program the past four years.

The summer trash and recycling collection schedule starts on Monday, June 14 and continues through Sept. 11. The schedule includes twice-weekly pickup. Details follow.

In a long-standing Ocean City tradition, city officials will turn a ceremonial wooden key to officially “unlock the ocean” for the season at noon Friday. The free public event provides an early start to Memorial Day weekend and welcomes a long-awaited summer. The “Unlocking of the Ocean” includes a newer tradition: The march of fully clothed business persons into the chilly Atlantic Ocean for the first swim of the summer (to the strains of an Ocean City High School band playing “Pomp and Circumstance”). Details follow on Ocean City's lineup of events for Memorial Day weekend.

Gov. Phil Murphy announced Monday that fully vaccinated people will not need to wear masks indoors, except under certain circumstances, beginning on Friday, May 28. Cape May County has had one of the strongest vaccination programs in the state. CDC reports that 64 percent of the county’s adult population is fully vaccinated. The goal is to reach 70 percent by the end of June, according to a county news release.

The newly rebuilt Ventnor Square Theatre in Ventnor officially opened to the public Saturday with a ribbon cutting, but a couple hundred close friends of the building’s redevelopers got a sneak peek Thursday evening at the 1920s-inspired decor. Theater owners Clint Bunting, Scott Kaufman and former Ventnor resident Brett DeNafo and their partners held a soft opening that featured an open bar, refreshments and a preview of the phenomenal Dolby Atmos sound system in the largest of three movie screens that will rock customers in their reclining seats while watching the latest action movie.