Second Ward Councilman Keith Hartzell
Keith Hartzell, candidate for Ocean City Mayor, sets the record straight and calls for honesty and transparency.
After receiving another communication from the "Unity in the Community" team that called into question his voting history, Keith wants to set the record straight.
As Councilman for the past 16 years, Mr. Hartzell is proud of his voting record and the council's ability to communicate the best interests of their constituents to the mayor's office.
As Keith explains, “99% of the time, with my and council’s support, we, not just the mayor, were agreeable, like all our persistent flood mitigation efforts throughout the years, and our efforts to keep our tax rates stable.”
It's Ocean City’s elected officials, as a whole, that have helped to make Ocean City the greatest resort in America.
Mr. Hartzell continues, “However, it is that 1% of the time where we did not agree, that has made all the difference.”
He cites as example the 2018 city Master Plan, which was reviewed by the mayor-selected Planning Board. A recommendation was made by the group for residential aspects on the Boardwalk.
It was then, Mr. Hartzell says, that he started to see some things that were moving “in a glaringly wrong direction like more no-bid contracts, an unregistered lobbyist, crazy nepotism, the proposed plan to import a neighboring community’s sewage into our facilities, a proposed overpriced and poorly placed public safety building, and most alarming of all, a clear pathway for our family-friendly Boardwalk landscape to be changed forever.”
It was due to this that Mr. Hartzell knew he could no longer just sit on council and watch this happen. This is why he decided to run for mayor!
“Let’s be clear, the mayor’s business partner is seeking to build hotels in Ocean City,” says Mr. Hartzell. “The mayor was alongside of the developer’s pitch but nevertheless remains silent as to his own business partner’s hotel development plans.”
He noted that, if this is allowed to happen, in the future hotels will take up critical commercial Boardwalk frontage and put many local Boardwalk businesses out of business.
This could lead to less tourists due to fewer commercial businesses on the Boardwalk – which also means less summer rentals for so many real estate investors who rely on seasonal renters. This leads to less for everyone but a select few.
However, Mr. Hartzell is hopeful for the future of the city and believes it just needs better management. “I have gone door to door almost every day over the past months listening to you and hotels, condotels or residential growth on the Boardwalk is NOT a path the residents of Ocean City want.”
Your Vote is Your Voice. And a vote for Keith Hartzell as Mayor is a vote to preserve our town and secure our future.
Paid for by “Hartzell for Mayor”
