Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian To Ask For More Time On Boardwalk Performers Ordinance

OCEAN CITY, NJ — Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian will once again city council to delay a vote on a proposed ordinance governing performers on the boardwalk, the mayor announced on Friday.

“I’m still not confident that we have a working proposal that is right for Ocean City,” Gillian said in his weekly address. “I don’t want, in any way, to discourage young performers from sharing their talents.”

The proposal calls for a $25 application fee and a $50 annual license fee.

Two teenagers who spoke out against the original proposal in March returned to speak to council about the proposal when it was reintroduced last month.

The second reading of that ordinance was scheduled for Dec. 29, but Gillian asked council to delay a vote until the Jan. 12 meeting.

Since then, he said he and members of his administration have been engaged in meetings with performers and the boardwalk merchants whose concerns the city is trying to address.

Gillian said the proposal was modeled after an ordinance adopted by Atlantic City, but he recognizes that won’t necessarily work in Ocean City.

“I have asked our team to go back to the drawing board and take the time necessary to draft something that works for everybody,” Gillian said. “They will continue to work with all stakeholders for input. Thank you in advance for your patience as we work to get this right.”

The following is the rest of the text of Gillian’s address:

“The city last week submitted a Comprehensive Dredge Application to the Department of Environmental Protection and Army Corps of Engineers. The application requests authorization to dredge the island ‘tip-to-tip' and partner with state and federal agencies to address all dredge areas in the back bay of Ocean City to within five feet of the existing bulkheads. The application is one of the first to include areas of public and private responsibility and seeks to provide Ocean City and its property owners a framework to maintain their waterways for the next ten years and beyond. The application also includes a request to extend the use of the haul road, which is currently in use along Roosevelt Boulevard for emptying CDF 83, to assure the city can conduct routine maintenance dredging and recover from future storm events as necessary. The application review process is expected to take 3 to 6 months.

“I’d also like to report that the city went out to bid last week for the major road and drainage project in the low-lying area roughly between 26th Street and 34th Street. Work is expected to begin in February or early March. The project will include replacing, reconfiguring and expanding the capacity of a failing storm drain system in that part of town. It also will include the addition of four pumping stations to power a vastly increased drainage rate. The bulk of the drainage and pumping station work will be done by Memorial Day. The city usually stops all road work for the summer, but final paving work is now expected to be complete in July.

“I’m excited to know that shovels will be in the ground early in the year for this long-awaited project, and I’m confident that even neighbors beyond the immediate project area will see the benefits. I look forward to seeing the project through and continuing to provide relief to all parts of Ocean City.”

Patch file photo