Ocean City Municipal Airport Preparing for Facelift in 2024

By DONALD WITTKOWSKI Victor Cimerol and his fiancée, Lori Hefele, made the 110-mile trip to Ocean City from their home in Allentown, Pa., in a super-fast 38 minutes. While countless Pennsylvania drivers were enduring the summertime slog down to the Jersey Shore on congested roads last weekend, Cimerol and Hefele were cruising high above them in Victor’s Cirrus SR22, a single-engine plane capable of flying 200 mph. “It’s much better than driving” Hefele said with a smile. Although the vast majority of visitors to Ocean City drive to the resort, there are others who take advantage of the city’s municipal airport to avoid the usual highway headaches. Recognizing the importance of the airport for visitors like Cimerol, Hefele and others arriving by plane, the city is planning to give the facility a facelift in 2024 highlighted by a new terminal building that will include a restaurant offering sweeping views of the surrounding bayside. City Council has hired an architect to design the project. No architectural renderings are available yet because the designs haven’t been finished, city spokesman Doug Bergen said. Planes line the tarmac on a summer weekend. The proposed terminal will be partly funded by a previously announced $3 million donation from Ocean City’s Berger Realty owner Leon Grisbaum, an aviation enthusiast now in his 90s who was a private pilot for nearly 75 years. “I want to again thank Leon Grisbaum for his generosity, because the airport is a vital resource in our community,” Mayor Jay Gillian said. The new facility will be named the “Leon and Elizabeth Grisbaum Airport Terminal” in recognition of Grisbaum and his wife for the donation. The money will be placed in escrow and returned to Grisbaum if the new terminal does not come to fruition, the city previously announced. Ocean City is planning to seek a grant from the Federal Aviation Administration this fall to potentially offset some of the estimated $5 million in city funding that would be combined with Grisbaum’s $3 million donation to build the project. The hope is to begin construction in late 2024, but it depends on the timing of the FAA grant, Bergen said. Among other amenities, the new terminal building will include better facilities for pilots, airport offices, a pro shop serving Ocean City’s public golf course next door and a new restaurant on the third floor with expansive views of the runway and back bay. Victor Cimerol wasn’t aware that a new terminal was planned, but gave his endorsement when told about the project after he landed with Lori Hefele. “I’m for anything that supports aviation,” he said. Airport attendant Scott Griffith refuels a plane. Cimerol noted that if he drove from his home in Allentown, Pa., to Ocean City, the trip would normally take about 3½ hours, compared to about 40 minutes for flying. After their leisurely flight to Ocean City on Aug. 5, Cimerol and Hefele were ready to grab a bite to eat and take a stroll on the Boardwalk while celebrating Lori’s birthday. Cimerol said the airport offers a convenient location on Bay Avenue at 26th Street, just a few blocks from the beach. It is not uncommon in summer to see people get out of their planes holding beach chairs and umbrellas. Built in 1935, the airport’s claim to fame is that it is the only one in New Jersey located on a barrier island. It is among just a few airports located on a barrier island on the entire East Coast. It handles mostly small, single-engine planes. But its nearly 3,000-foot runway is long enough to accommodate private jets. Pop superstar Taylor Swift is known to fly into the airport on her jet from time to time during visits to the Jersey Shore. The airport has roughly 3,450 takeoffs/landings annually, which is consistent with years past, Bergen said. Recreational pilots, commercial charter flights and military aircraft use the facility. “Our airport is one of the only ones located on a barrier island on the East Coast, and it provides important emergency access to the island for medi-vac and emergency management situations,” Gillian said. In the meantime, the airport’s control center continues to operate out of an aging, low-slung building that once included a diner. The diner has long since closed and has been replaced with a food truck located in the airport parking lot. A small, antiquated building currently serves as the airport's operations center.