City Council is expected to decide Feb. 13 whether to appoint someone to fill an open seat.
By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
City Council introduced three bond ordinances Thursday night totaling nearly $12 million to purchase three adjacent pieces of property that would be combined to create a large swath of open space protected from development.
Altogether, the land encompasses a full block bordered by 16th and 17th streets between Simpson and Haven avenues next to the Ocean City Community Center. One of the parcels formerly served as the site of a car dealership and is now proposed for a housing project.
For more than a year, Mayor Jay Gillian and Council have been hoping to buy the land to prevent it from being used for densely packed housing construction that would add to the city’s overdevelopment.
Gillian has proposed preserving the property for open space and possibly using a portion of it for public parking to support the Community Center, a municipal complex that attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. The complex includes the Free Public Library, the Arts Center, the Aquatic & Fitness Center, the Historical Museum and the Seniors Center.
“Open space. It’s very simple. Clean and easy,” Gillian said in an interview Thursday night of his plans for the land.
The mayor intends to hold a town hall meeting sometime in the first quarter of 2020 to gather public input on what should be done with the property if the city acquires it.
The strategically located site would help to create a corridor of public land stretching from 15th to 20th streets, Councilman Tony Wilson said. It would connect the city’s Emil Palmer Park, the Community Center and other public facilities within the five-block area.
City Solicitor Dorothy McCrosson, seated next to Mayor Jay Gillian, speaks to City Council about the property negotiations.
As a first step, Council introduced three bond ordinances to provide the money to purchase the land from the private owners. City Solicitor Dorothy McCrosson told Council that negotiations continue with the owners in hopes of reaching a deal.
At the same time, the city has not ruled out the possibility of using its power of eminent domain to condemn the land and take possession if negotiations fail. McCrosson noted that the condemnation route would mean both sides would end up in court and a judge would set the price for the property.
The centerpiece of the city’s proposed acquisition of the three properties is the former site of the Perry-Egan Chevrolet dealership at 16th and Simpson. The city is offering just over $6.5 million for that piece of land.
The former car dealership site, surrounded by a chain-link fence, has been cleared out to make room for housing construction.
At the same time it is looking to buy the former auto dealership site from the Klause brothers, the city is talking to another property owner about acquiring two adjacent parcels that would round out the block bordered by 16th and 17th streets between Simpson and Haven avenues.
Those two parcels are controlled by Palmer Center LLC, a group owned by John Flood, a former city councilman who unsuccessfully challenged Gillian in the 2018 mayoral election.
The second bond ordinance introduced by Council includes $3 million to buy Palmer Center property at 109 16th Street. The land is currently vacant, but has been approved for a type of housing project known as coastal cottages, McCrosson said.
The third bond ordinance, for $2.3 million, is for more Palmer Center land at 1600 Haven Avenue. This site has no development approvals, McCrosson told Council.
Just like with the Klause brothers, the city hopes to negotiate a deal with Flood’s Palmer Center group to buy the land. McCrosson, though, noted that the city is prepared to condemn the Palmer Center land to acquire it if negotiations fail.
Meanwhile, City Council plans to hold a public hearing and take a final vote on the three bond ordinances at its Feb. 13 meeting.
City Council will follow up with a public hearing and final vote on the three bond ordinances at its Feb. 13 meeting.
