Ideas Shared For New Open Space In Ocean City

OCEAN CITY, NJ — What should Ocean City do with its newly-acquired city block? People have shared their ideas with officials, and they range from more parking to trails to pickleball courts.

In his weekly update this past Friday, Mayor Jay Gillian shared that 170 people had shared their visions for the block.

The city acquired the entire block from 16th Street to 17th Street between Haven Avenue and Simpson Avenue several years ago, and the soil was contaminated from its previous owner. Remediation is now complete, except for monitoring wells that are being maintained, officials said.

"The ideas are thoughtful, constructive and sincere, and I want to thank everybody who took the time to share their thoughts," Gillian said.

The ideas "vary widely," Gillian said, but generally fall into three categories: open space and passive recreation (featuring trails, gardens, fountains and amphitheaters), recreational (facilities like an outdoor pool, skating rink, pickleball courts and fields) and practical (such as additional parking or affordable housing).

"We acted initially to protect the entire city block from residential development before it was too late," Gillian said. "But now we can take our time to make sure we get this right. This area will be a community treasure for generations to come."

He said that the city is updating its capital plans now and likely will work with a planner "to incorporate as many of your ideas as possible."

"We’re looking at the entire area of publicly owned land from 15th Street to 20th Street and working in partnership with the school district," Gillian said. "Ideas could be implemented in different parts of this corridor."

"I look forward to continuing to work with the public as plans take shape," he said.