Dear Friends,

At last night’s public meeting, City Council gave final approval to two ordinances that will improve parking in town. 

A bond ordinance will pave the way for the purchase of the property at the corner of Ninth Street and Central Avenue and help us create an uninterrupted stretch of parking lots from Eighth Street to Ninth Street along Central Avenue. This will fill an important need for both the downtown and the neighborhood.

Council also amended an ordinance to limit the times and places that construction dumpsters, trailers and vehicles can take up space on our streets. Among other restrictions, overnight street parking will be limited to the area immediately in front of a property being constructed from May 1 through Sept. 30. We’ve been working together with Council, residents, contractors, zoning and code officials and others on this new ordinance and it should meet the needs of both people improving their homes and people looking for more parking in their neighborhoods. The ordinance also requires contractors to take measures to contain the spread of sawdust, fiberglass dust and microplastics. The full text of the ordinance is available here.

Our local PBA brought National Night Out back to Ocean City on Tuesday, and it was great to see so many families from our community enjoying themselves. I want to thank our officers and the entire city team for their work in putting the event together, and I am looking forward to seeing it grow in the coming years. 

I had the honor yesterday of stopping by Hughes Performing Arts Center to see “Footloose” with the Ocean City Theatre Company and Ocean City Pops. All I can say is that, as always, this is a first-class production. What a display of exceptional talent and what a great show. Shows continue through August 14, and tickets are available online and at the entrance to the show.

The annual Miss Ocean City Pageant is at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Ocean City Music Pier, and we have a great group of contestants. I want to thank Taylor Mulford for doing an amazing job as Miss Ocean City 2025. And I want to thank all the sponsors, parents and volunteers who help put this event together.

A dear friend of mine turned 80 on August 4, and I want to say happy birthday to Mary Lou McDowell. Mary and her husband, Bob, operated 13th Street Bikes and Bathhouse for more than 50 years, and she has always been involved in many organizations and volunteer efforts in town.

Another exceptional citizen celebrated his 80^th birthday last week. Please join me in wishing Mac McNorton a happy birthday. Mac is a dedicated teacher and community volunteer.

I also want to congratulate Pete and Gerry Graziotto on their recent 60th wedding anniversary. Pete and Gerry listened to friends suggest honeymooning in Ocean City, Md., and in the best mistake of their lives, the newlywed couple traveled instead to Ocean City, N.J. Six decades and four generations later, Ocean City is beloved by the entire Graziotto family. A few weeks back, I had the honor of meeting with the family at City Hall and listening to their stories of being together in Ocean City.

The weekend forecast looks great. I hope you all have a chance to get out and enjoy everything that Ocean City has to offer.

Warm regards,

Jay A. Gillian
Mayor