October 9, 2026

Dear Friends,

I want to provide updates on a number of fall projects in the works or about to begin.

• Demolition of the 34th Street Sandcastle Park Recreation Area is complete. Pilings are in for the new restroom and office building. Foundations for the playground are going in, and we are prepping the tennis, pickleball and basketball court areas for paving. Everything is on schedule.

• Reconstruction of the Boardwalk from 14th Street to 16th Street is tentatively scheduled to begin next week.

• We notified neighbors that demolition of the police station headquarters on Central Avenue will begin on or about October 13. There will be limited access to the alley and no access to the driveways adjacent to the building during demolition work.

• We will open bids for construction of the Leon and Elizabeth Grisbaum Airport Terminal on October 15, and we hope to be able to award a contract shortly after.

• The county is getting ready to start Phase Two of its Roosevelt Boulevard Project. This will include elevating the West Avenue intersections at 35th Street, 36th Street, 37th Street, 43rd Street, 44th Street and 45th Street. Work will start at 45^th Street.

• We’re also hoping to break ground on our 19th Street to 26th Street flood mitigation project by the end of the month.

City Solicitor Dottie McCrosson has drafted an ordinance that will give our police department better tools to keep drivers from plowing through flooded streets and damaging homes with the wake they create. We will bring this ordinance to City Council for their approval sometime soon. It will include penalties for reckless driving through floodwaters.

I want to remind everyone that we will have a paper-shredding service at the Shelter Road Recycling Center from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. Shelter Road is also open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week for those who can transport material that was damaged in the nor’easter. The city team is continuing to pick up material left at curbside.

Our police and the Ocean City Ecumenical Council are seeking donations of food and supplies on Sunday, October 11 for “Faith and Blue Weekend.” They will be set up at both ACMEs in Ocean City from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday (Oct. 11). Team members will have a list of suggested items that you can check before going into the store. All donations will help stock our local Food Cupboard for the upcoming holiday season.

This is Fall Block Party Weekend. The forecast looks good, and the event is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Downtown and Boardwalk merchants will continue to offer discounts and special sales throughout the rest of the weekend.

Sales for First Night admission buttons open tomorrow. It’s not too early to think about joining Ocean City’s family friendly New Year’s Eve celebration. If you’re heading to the Fall Block Party, you can purchase your buttons at the City Hall Welcome Center, and online sales are open at firstnightocnj.com.

While the forecast for Saturday looks great, the remnants of Hurricane Isaias are expected to move into the area on Sunday and Monday, bringing potentially excessive rainfall. Please monitor the forecast and weather conditions, and don’t be caught off-guard. Heavy rain flooding can impact parts of the island that don’t typically experience tidal flooding, and flooding conditions can develop quickly.

Be prepared to move vehicles. The roads closer to the beach are typically at higher elevation as are mid-block parking spots away from storm drains near intersections.

Finally, I want to pay tribute to Ruth Halliday, who passed away this week a few days before her 92^nd birthday. Ruth and her late husband, Albert, raised five children in Ocean City, and their family grew to include 18 grandchildren and 42 great-grandchildren. The Hallidays have been great friends to me, and they have always supported our community in so many ways. Please join Michele and me in extending deepest condolences to the entire family and to all of Ruth’s friends and acquaintances.

Warm regards,

Jay A. Gillian
Mayor

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