Ocean City Council Candidate Profile: Pete Madden

Ocean City Council candidate Pete Madden 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: 36 Education: LaSalle High School 1995; St. Joseph’s University 1999 No. of years lived in Ocean City: Moved to Ocean City in October 2004 Family: Wife, Ashley; children Riley, 9, Avery, 7, Brynn, 5, and Carter, 2 Occupation: Broker manager at Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Fox & Roach's Battersea Road office Public service: Serving in second term on Ocean City Board of Education (former president); board member of nonprofit Ocean City Education Foundation; serves on St. Damien Parish Pastoral Council and Republican Committee (First Ward); served as ward leader with OCNJ CARE; board member with Ocean City Regional Chamber of Commerce   PLATFORM:

• Sound Financial Planning: “From property taxes to education, local government touches our lives most directly. That's why it's more important than ever that we elect good candidates who will make sound financial planning an important part of Ocean City's future.”
• Realistic Solutions: “Pete Madden has the right blend of dedication, experience and good sense to develop realistic solutions to our municipal problems, without disturbing the characteristics of our close-knit community.”
• Focusing on the Future: ”Pete will work with the mayor and council to protect Ocean City's quality of life and do the right things today to assure a better future tomorrow.”

REPORTER’S PROFILE: A young husband, father of four, and manager of a busy real estate office, Madden has found time to serve the city in different capacities, including that of school board president. "You get to intimately understand the public process when you get that involved," Madden said of learning to succeed under the constraints of  government. During his tenure as board president, the Ocean City School District became one of the pilots for Gov. Chris Christie's School Choice initiative, a program that now brings 190 students and $2.6 million of state money to the district. Madden also was president when Sea Isle City students were integrated into Ocean City schools after their own school was closed. The change brought more revenue to Ocean City. Madden also sees his experience in the real estate industry as an asset. "I talk to people all day every day," Madden said. That daily interaction brings him an understanding of the concerns and needs of year-rounders, second homeowners and visitors, he says. It also gives him knowledge of the zoning issues that have defined the city for better and worse over time. Madden is not positioning himself as a firebrand. He says he's "not trying to reinvent the wheel." Instead, he hopes to work with the current administration and council to make sure Ocean City continues to grow without disturbing the character of the community. DEFINING OCEAN CITY MEMORY: Aside from the cute blonde running by on the boardwalk (who later became his wife), Madden's fondest memories are of the sense of relief in driving over the Ninth Street Bridge into Ocean City on Friday nights and leaving the working world behind. And it was on a drive back to the Philadelphia area on a Sunday night that Madden quit his job and decided to move to Ocean City full-time.