Five candidates are running for three open seats on Ocean City Council in the May 13 municipal election.
The winners will serve four-year terms in at-large positions. City Council includes seven members — four elected from the city’s individual wards and three elected at-large by the entire Ocean City electorate.
Candidates are (in reverse alphabetical order): Eric Sauder, Pete Madden, Mike Hyson, incumbent Keith Hartzell and incumbent Michael Allegretto.
The following includes biographical and platform information provided by the candidate and a brief profile — along with a favorite Ocean City memory (just for the fun of it).
BIO:
Age: 54
Education: Archbishop Ryan High School
No. of years lived in Ocean City: Two years as a full-time resident, 10 years as a second homeowner
Family: Married 33 years to wife, Bonnie; Two adult children, Nicole, Greg and his wife, Bethany, both serving in the U.S. military; granddaughter, Emmaline, 9
Occupation: Retired after 22 years of service with the Philadelphia Police Department
Public service: Volunteer with American Legion Post 524; Ocean City Community Association member; applications pending with Utility Advisory Commission and Local Assistance Board
PLATFORM:
- Roads and Drainage: “I’ll continue supporting the improvements to roads and drainage and pursue other sources of revenue to increase our efforts in this area.”
- Public Safety: “Public safety will never be compromised under my watch, and we will continue to provide the highest level of service that Ocean City residents expect from their police, fire and EMS services.”
- Cost Savings: ”Scrutinize budgets and expenditures while looking for cost-saving methods to minimize the tax burden to our citizens.”
- Character of Ocean City: “Continue to uphold the traditions and moral values that Ocean City represents.”
REPORTER’S PROFILE:
Hyson offers a view from both sides of the bridge — as a second homeowner for 10 years and as a year-round resident for two.
“You do have a voice, if not a vote,” Hyson says of being a nonresident property owner.
And as a regular attendee and participant in public City Council meetings, Hyson has provided a voice of reason on various issues.
A retired Philadelphia police officer, Hyson said he would be committed to providing the same level of police and fire services in Ocean City, a resort that swells to accommodate more than 100,000 people on any given day in the summer.
“Walking a mile in their shoes, it would bring a different perspective to the table,” Hyson says.
Hyson says he would try to achieve cost savings in the public safety departments as in any other. But he says he would like to see Council work with the chiefs, rather than try to micromanage their departments.
He has experience in negotiating union contracts and sees potential for savings in requiring employees to make greater contributions to medical benefits.
Like the existing Council members and other candidates, Hyson shares a commitment to spending money to fix Ocean City’s roads and provide better drainage.
He says he would like to see the city’s worst-roads-first rating system updated to reflect current conditions. The city’s website lists Ocean City road ratings from 2012. He said he’s excited about the potential for pumping stations to mitigate street flooding, and experiments in Merion Park and in the north end could be models for other areas.
After watching City Council vote on first readings of a series of complex zoning ordinances with little time to review the detailed material, Hyson said he would like to see better use of scheduled council workshops to go over complicated material. At minimum, he says, council should hold off on some votes.
“There’s no shame in tabling things,” he says.
Hyson says Ocean City’s rich history and tradition of family values are what drew him to the town, and he would do everything in his power to uphold them.
DEFINING OCEAN CITY MEMORY:
Hyson’s summer memories include staying at campgrounds on Route 9 … “but the coolest thing was the Ocean City Boardwalk.” He remembers scenes frozen in time with kids and families enjoying rides and food and fun. It reminded me of some place I would eventually want to live.”
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