By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
Mayor Jay Gillian and challenger Keith Hartzell engaged each other in what was more of a gentlemanly sparring match than a contentious showdown Monday night, but there were sharp differences between them on some key issues facing Ocean City.
Hartzell, a veteran member of City Council who is leaving the governing body to run against Gillian, dropped one bombshell by revealing that he would serve no more than two terms if elected mayor.
“When you get to the top executive level, I think change is good,” Hartzell said in response to a question about whether he would support term limits for mayor.
Gillian, who has served 12 years as mayor, said he didn’t support term limits in local politics because he believes voters should have the freedom to choose the people they want as their elected representatives.
“I think it’s just a way to get rid of people you don’t like,” Gillian said of term limits.
(Video courtesy of Just Right TV Productions and Ocean City Sentinel)
During a candidates’ forum, Gillian repeatedly touted his accomplishments as mayor since he first took office in 2010, including citywide infrastructure improvements, keeping taxes low and what he said is his ability to work in partnership with City Council and local residents.
“The mayor thing has been an unbelievable 12 years. I started there unifying everyone,” Gillian said. “It has been a collaboration of so many people.”
“I think sometimes you have to go back in the past to find out who your mayor is. I love it here. I think this town is thriving. We have great leaders and great citizens. I am proud to be your mayor,” he added.
Hartzell, a councilman since 2006, said a major reason he is running for mayor is to have greater influence in shaping the town’s planning and policies.
“The past 16 years, I’ve been a fierce advocate for the people,” he said.
While campaigning for the May 10 election, Hartzell said he has been hearing from voters that there is a need for change in the Mayor’s Office. He also said he believes new leadership is needed because Ocean City is “at a tipping point” in where it is heading in the future.
Although the two are election opponents, Gillian and Hartzell remained civil toward each other – even joking at times – throughout the hour-long candidates’ forum held at the Bill and Nancy Hughes Performing Arts Center at Ocean City High School. The forum was sponsored by the Ocean City Sentinel, with the newspaper’s editor, David Nahan, serving as moderator.
About 250 people attended the forum in person and another 250 watched via Zoom, organizers said of the crowd size.
After making opening statements that focused on their longtime ties to Ocean City and their involvement in the community, Gillian and Hartzell took questions from Nahan that had been submitted in advance by local residents.
Often, their responses were similar to questions about major issues affecting the town. They both spoke about the importance of keeping the city clean and safe, promoting tourism and boosting the downtown shopping district. They also agreed that the Boardwalk, the beaches and the bay remain centerpieces of the local economy.
Similarly, Gillian and Hartzell both emphasized that they want to preserve Ocean City’s family-friendly image by keeping it as a dry town that bans alcohol sales. They also said they would not support allowing restaurants to become BYOB establishments.
“When it comes to alcohol, I’m absolutely against it,” Gillian said.
“I’m absolutely dead set against alcohol sales and BYOB,” Hartzell said.
One election controversy brought up during the debate is whether high-rise hotels might possibly be built on the Boardwalk. Under Ocean City’s existing zoning laws, hotel construction is not allowed on the Boardwalk and high-rises are prohibited throughout town.
Gillian and Hartzell both said they are opposed to high-rises and do not support hotels being built on the Boardwalk.
“As long as I’m mayor, it’s not going to happen,” Gillian vowed.
Hartzell, though, said he believes that high-rise hotels on the Boardwalk are “a clear and present danger” as long as Gillian is mayor.
Hartzell noted that Gillian attended a February meeting with Boardwalk property owners during which Gillian’s business partner, Eustace Mita, outlined his desire to build a $150 million hotel at Wonderland Pier or somewhere else in Ocean City.
“I think it is serious. I think it’s a clear and present danger,” Hartzell said of a Boardwalk hotel.
Mita is the owner of the Icona luxury resort properties in Cape May County. Last year, Mita invested in Wonderland Pier, the Boardwalk amusement park owned by Gillian, after Gillian encountered financial difficulties.
Despite rumors and speculation swirling during the campaign that Mita might be eyeing Wonderland Pier as a possible site for hotel construction, Gillian shot down the idea Monday night.
“It doesn’t matter what people wish or think they can do. At the end of the day, I can’t be bought. It is not going to happen, Wonderland is thriving,” Gillian said of not having a hotel at Wonderland Pier.
The issue has become a hot topic leading up to the election amid fears that high-rises could dramatically alter or damage Ocean City’s family-friendly image. Even the possibility of a high-rise hotel having a liquor license has been mentioned.
Perhaps the most glaring disagreement between Gillian and Hartzell during the candidates’ forum was their stance about the possibility of an offshore wind farm being built from Atlantic City to Stone Harbor, passing by Ocean City in the process.
Hartzell said he was adamantly opposed to the project and believes the “majority of the public is against it.”
Gillian said it is his job as mayor to educate the public about the project, helping them to make up their own mind whether to support or oppose the wind farm.
Opponents of the project fear it would harm Ocean City’s tourism, real estate values, the commercial fishing industry, migratory birds and marine life. They are also worried that the gigantic wind turbines that would pass by Ocean City 15 miles offshore would create a visual blight when viewed from land.
Gillian said he has tried negotiating with Orsted, the Danish energy company that plans to build the wind farm, in hopes of gaining community benefits for Ocean City. He also said he is trying to get Orsted to build the wind turbines farther offshore than 15 miles.
“We have been working with them to get them to move them out farther and compensate us,” Gillian said.
Hartzell countered that Gillian negotiated with Orsted for two years without City Council knowing about the talks. He said Council was “shocked” to learn of the negotiations. Hartzell said he wanted to have a public referendum to determine if Ocean City residents support or oppose the project.
On Feb. 2, Orsted filed a petition with the state Board of Public Utilities to install an underground transmission line through Ocean City to connect the offshore wind turbines to a substation next to the decommissioned B.L. England Generating Station in Upper Township.
Editor’s note: On Tuesday, OCNJDaily.com will publish a story about the public forum Monday night for the six candidates running for three at-large seats on City Council.
