City Wants to Preserve Land Proposed for Housing

By DONALD WITTKOWSKI A sign attached to a chain-link fence at the corner of 16th Street and Simpson Avenue in Ocean City strongly suggests it is inevitable what is going to happen to the surrounding property. “22 LOT SUBDIVISION,” it blares in capital letters. “3 lots under contract.” The sign also notes that the housing lots are selling from $599,000 to $749,000 and that settlement is expected in the spring of 2020. The housing project proposed for the entire block of land bordered by 16th and 17th streets between Simpson and Haven avenues follows an unsuccessful attempt by the city to acquire the land in 2019 for $9 million. But now the city has renewed negotiations with the land owner, Klause Enterprises, in a second attempt to buy the sprawling property before it is developed for homes. Mayor Jay Gillian has tentative plans to preserve the land as open space and use a portion of it for parking to support the nearby Ocean City Community Center. He wants to protect the property from densely packed housing construction that would add to the town’s overdevelopment. The city would like to preserve the property for open space and to use a portion of it for parking for the nearby Ocean City Community Center. City Business Administrator George Savastano, the mayor’s top aide, said the city hopes to reach a deal to buy the land from brothers Jerry and Harry Klause of Klause Enterprises. “We just want to make it clear and put it on the record we are looking to purchase these properties for the purpose of open space and parking for the community center,” Savastano told members of City Council at their Dec. 30 meeting. Savastano did not divulge how much the city is willing to pay. Previously, City Solicitor Dorothy McCrosson said the city had not ruled out using its power of eminent domain to condemn the land and seize it if negotiations with Klause Enterprises failed. In the meantime, the mayor is planning to hold a town hall meeting in the first quarter of 2020 to gather public input on what should be done with the land if the city acquires it, Savastano said. Gillian and City Council attempted to acquire the land from Klause Enterprises last year for $9 million, but the deal fell through when the community group Fairness In Taxes circulated a petition drive for a voter referendum to block the purchase. The former Perry-Egan Chevrolet dealership site is being cleared by construction equipment to make way for new housing. The housing project proposed by Klause Enterprises would be built on land that had served as the location for the former Perry-Egan Chevrolet dealership. An old building that was once the dealership’s showroom was demolished recently. Heavy construction equipment is on the site to clear out the concrete and asphalt rubble that remains from the former car dealership. The construction site is surrounded by a chain-link fence. Attached to that fence is the sign that announces the property will be developed into 22 housing lots. Next to the sign is an architectural rendering that gives a sneak peek of what the project will look like when finished. The project was granted final Ocean City planning board approval in October. Avery Teitler, the attorney for Klause Enterprises, said in an October interview that the Klause brothers are serious about developing the housing project, but he did not rule out the possibility of negotiating a deal for the property’s sale to the city. Brothers Jerry, left, and Harry Klause, of Klause Enterprises, own the land.