Dear Friends,
I would like to remind everyone about our annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. events set for this weekend. There’s a possibility of a light snow in the forecast, but it’s not expected to accumulate here at the shore. That should make it easy for everybody to travel to the celebration on Saturday.
It’s always a great honor for me to be a part of this annual tradition. Some people may not know how rich and diverse Ocean City’s history is. But so many different people have come together to make our town the close-knit community that it is. It’s one of the things that makes living here so special.
The celebration starts at 1 p.m. Saturday (Jan. 14) at the Bill and Nancy Hughes Performing Arts Center at Ocean City High School (enter from Sixth Street). It’s a free event and everybody is encouraged to attend. The celebration features a lot of great music, reflections on Dr. King’s life and legacy, awards to community volunteers, and the announcement of student essay contest winners. After the event, everybody is invited back to the school cafeteria for a free home-cooked soul food dinner.
In another growing tradition, volunteers will meet at the Senior Center at the Ocean City Community Center (18th Street and Simpson Avenue) at 9 a.m. on Monday (Jan. 16) to get assignments and supplies for a citywide volunteer event. It’s part of the national Day of Service honoring Dr. King. I ask everybody who has the day off to stop by and help out. And I’d like to thank Councilman Keith Hartzell, Councilman Antwan McClellan and all of City Council for their continued dedication to promoting these important events.
At my request, City Council last night (Jan. 12) did not move forward with a proposed ordinance that would regulate boardwalk performers. I remain committed to finding a balance between young performers and our merchants on the busy summer boardwalk. But I want more time to get a proposal that works for Ocean City. Members of the city team will continue to meet with both boardwalk merchants and performers as we work to craft a better set of guidelines. Thank you all for your patience.
The nights are still cold and dark, but there’s still plenty to do in Ocean City. Tonight, the Ocean City Community Center hosts a “Fridays With Friends” event for local teenagers. The evening of fun is free for Ocean City and Upper Township students in grades 8 to 12. It offers a safe option for teens to hang out, play wallyball, sing karaoke, play Xbox, swim, eat pizza, watch scary movies and more. See the complete schedule of upcoming “Fridays With Friends” and more information.
The Community Center (at 18th Street and Simpson Avenue) and the Civic Center (at Sixth Street and Boardwalk) offer a variety of winter recreation programs for all ages. See ocnj.us/recreation/ for complete schedules and information. Our exceptional Ocean City Free Public Library has its own set of activities and events to cater to a wide variety of interests. See oceancitylibrary.org/ for more information.
Finally, I’d like to remind everybody that the 34th Street Bridge will be closed from 10 p.m. Monday to 5 a.m. Tuesday as part of the ongoing redecking project. Please plan alternative routes if you’re traveling Monday night or before dawn on Tuesday.
I hope you all have a great weekend, and I hope to see you at the Martin Luther King events.
Warm regards,
Jay A. Gillian
Mayor
