Ocean City Council: Lower 'Ocean City Homes' and Help Drain Merion Park Streets

At its public meeting Thursday, Ocean City Council introduced a $69.7 million city budget and agreed to schedule a public forum on a proposed skateboard park site, but here are a handful of things that might be of special interest: Ocean City Homes Attics and Building Heights: City Council approved the second reading of an ordinance that limits the height of attics in the Ocean City Homes neighborhood at the south end of the island to six feet. The measure was designed to a regulate attics in that part of town and amended last month in an effort to limit overall building heights. But City Solicitor Dorothy McCrosson suggested to council that the ordinance as written does not necessarily achieve that goal. Council members agreed to solicit feedback from residents and form focus groups within the next two weeks before considering further height restrictions. Merion Park Drainage Improvements: City Council awarded a $2,739,554 contract to F.W. Shawl & Sons of Marmora for road and drainage work and construction of pump stations to help drain streets in a flood-prone neighborhood. The contract would be one of the final pieces of a plan to bring relief to an area where tidal salt water floods streets many times a year. The first phase of the project is expected to begin in April. New Track at Carey Field: City Council voted to table a resolution that would have awarded a $484,750 contract with All Surface Asphalt Paving of Point Pleasant to remove and replace the track surface at the city-owned Carey Field at Ocean City High School. Citing a last-minute issue raised by a potential bidder, the city administration asked that Council wait two weeks to consider the resolution. The potential contract would also include drainage work that would help pave the way for a planned artificial turf field. Ninth Street Crossing: City Council voted to award a $238,857 contract to Diehl Electric Company of Hammonton to install a user-activated traffic signal to help bicyclists and pedestrians cross Ninth Street. The signal will provide a safe crossing of the busy gateway for bikes traveling on a north-south bike route under development. It also will provide a link for traffic coming from the new Ninth Street Bridge pedestrian and bicycle lane. The signal will be installed near Haven Avenue and provide easy access to an existing bicycle corridor running south from there. It will be activated only by a push button, and it will be timed to work in coordination with the traffic light at Ninth Street and West Avenue. A state grant brought in $100,000 for the project. Father’s Day Fireworks: City Council approved a permit for fireworks displays on June 14 and July 16. The displays are sponsored by the Boardwalk Merchants Association and are first-time events for Father’s Day Weekend and the third week of July. Pecks Beach Village: City Council voted to award a $517,000 contract to J. Wilhelm Roofing Company of Vineland to replace the roofs on low-income senior housing at Pecks Beach Village near Fourth Street and Haven Avenue. In casting an affirmative vote, Councilman Antwan McClellan said he was "disheartened" to see the local Housing Authority at issue with the city over a $1.2 million repayment for repairs the city made to the buildings in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy. "Hopefully, commissioners will see the light," he said. For complete text of agenda items and supporting documentation, see the City Council Agenda Packet. [widgets_on_pages id="Recent Posts"]