Dear Friends,
Even though the weather is starting to turn cold, the city is making progress on a number of important off-season projects. We have many road, utility and drainage jobs in the works, and here are some updates on other major infrastructure projects:
The boardwalk is newly decked in front of the Ocean City Music Pier and will allow access from Moorlyn Terrace in time for First Night on Dec. 31. A section of outfall pipe with greater durability and capacity is buried under the sand at Eighth Street in anticipation of future drainage improvements. And pilings are in place for a section that will reconnect the Music Pier to the northern end of the boardwalk. The entire project to reconstruct the section between Eighth Street and 10th Street is on schedule to be complete by the end of March.
Work to rebuild the Ocean City Fire Department station at 29th Street and West Avenue continues on schedule. With a foundation and metal frame already in place, crews will be able to work through the winter in anticipation of a project completion date by Memorial Day.
The historic Ocean City Transportation Center reopened today after being closed for three months for major exterior and interior renovations. Originally constructed in 1898 as a railroad station, the facility is now home to N.J. Transit operations seven days a week. A $501,000 grant from the New Jersey Historic Trust covered almost the entire cost of the project.
Trucks are hauling material away from Site 83 off Roosevelt Boulevard to make room for new dredging projects for Ocean City’s shallow lagoons and bays. The project there is just one of several in the planning or conceptual stages as our consultant, ACT Engineers, works to provide relief to all parts of the bay side and to develop a sustainable plan for regular maintenance. Taking into consideration feedback from a recent town hall meeting, the city continues to seek a way to use alternative dewatering technology to provide a substantial 2017 program. This work will help protect the safety of everybody who uses the bay and help preserve property values throughout Ocean City.
The city has acquired the abandoned BP station at the Ninth Street gateway, and negotiations continue for the purchase of the neighboring Getty Station at the corner of Ninth and Bay. Some fill and site preparation work is underway at BP. The city is seeking land acquisition funds for the purchase of both properties.
These are just some of the many road, drainage and facility projects currently underway. I thank you all for your patience as this important infrastructure work continues.
There’s a little more than a week left until Christmas. As always, I urge you to shop local and support our Ocean City merchants.
I hope you all have a great weekend.
Warm regards,
Jay A. Gillian Mayor
