By MADDY VITALE
“Meet me at the clock.” It’s been said countless times by countless visitors to Ocean City’s Boardwalk since the landmark timepiece was installed 25 years ago.
But like everything else, over time, things break down, need to be improved or replaced. That was the case with the former clock at Ninth Street and the Boardwalk.
Yes, time ran out for the old clock. Over the past week, visitors may have noticed something going on at the popular meeting place.
The clock was dismantled and in its place went up a better, newer version, but with the same old-fashioned look. It is a replica of the distinct post clock with a Roman face painted in black with gold accents.
And it works all of the time – not just some of the time, officials noted. The old clock was prone to mechanical glitches.
Mayor Jay Gillian spoke of the significance of the Boardwalk clock in an interview Sunday.
“It’s really a landmark,” Gillian said. “So many people meet up there and then go on the Boardwalk.”
Rain Gentner, of Philadelphia, sat on a bench near the clock along with several other visitors. She looked at her phone and enjoyed the unseasonably warm temperatures Sunday.
“I’m waiting for my husband, Jake, to get back from the car,” Gentner said. “We come to Ocean City a lot and decided to come down because it is such a beautiful day.”
She said the clock is definitely a place where people gather.
“The history of the clock is neat. It is a popular meeting spot for people,” Gentner said.
Then she joked, “Usually, my husband and I don’t meet up, but we did today.”
Gillian said that everyone liked the look of the former clock so much that the city opted to replace it with a virtual replica – only this one works 100 percent of the time.
“It looks the same, but there is different technology inside,” he said.
In August, Council approved a resolution for the replacement of the clock at a cost of $30,944. The funds are in the current capital budget.
“The existing clock dates back to 1999 from a purchase standpoint and at this point is beyond the useful life cycle and in disrepair. In addition to the functional issues, there are also appearance issues with the clock,” Steve Longo, manager of the city’s buildings and grounds, wrote in a memo to the city back in August.
The contract was awarded in August to The Verdin Company for replacement of the clock. The Verdin Company, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, is the same company that installed the former clock.
People took to social media to talk about the new clock over the past week.
Don Mason posted a few Facebook photos of the installation and wrote: “Looks like a new clock is going up at 9th & Boardwalk.”
This is what some of the other posters said in response on OCNJ Chatter, a community forum on Facebook:
“Thank goodness. It drives me crazy how all of the sides have the correct time except the one that faces the beach,” Donna Delsanter Jackson said.
Bob Wiggins said, “I believe the new one was manufactured by the same company that did the previous one. I knew it was ‘time’ to replace it, when the side facing the ocean stopped at 11:53, and it no longer illuminated. I like the Roman Numerals that the new one uses.”
The Verdin website www.verdin.com describes the post-style clocks like the one on the Boardwalk as “timeless” and “elegant.”
“American street or post clocks were an early form of advertisement adapted from popular public clocks of Victorian England. They first appeared in the eastern United States about 1870. Then and now, street clocks stand out against buildings and signage, and are frequently placed in front of city halls, train stations, banks, jewelry stores, and other public locations,” the website says.
