Ocean City Officials Look For Ways To Fix Financial Issues

OCEAN CITY, NJ — An Ocean City business owner told Councilman Bobby Barr they usually generate over $100,000 on Memorial Day weekend. The unidentified business owner made $18,000 this time.

"As a city, as citizens, as a council, as an administration, we need to think and do outside-the-box things to help our local economy and get it going," Barr said at Thursday's virtual City Council meeting.

Ocean City reintroduced its 2020 municipal budget Thursday because of current and expected financial difficulties associated with the coronavirus crisis, including an anticipated decline in revenue from seasonal tourism.

There's also early discussion of making part of Ocean City's downtown into a pedestrian walkway, according to Councilman Keith Hartzell. That would temporarily mean no cars or bikes in parts of downtown in an effort to increase foot traffic and shopping downtown.

Discussions with business owners and officials remain in preliminary stages. The temporary change would affect traffic and parking, so officials are still looking into whether it makes sense and would create a committee to decide on how it would work.

"There are all sorts of opinions on that, so I won’t go through that," Hartzell said. "But I thought it would be important that the public knows that because there are a lot of people that come downtown."

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City Council members are still deciding whether they support the idea, but several said it's time to think outside the box to come up with revenue solutions.

Cities and towns across the nation have needed to scrap budget plans because of the coronavirus. Officials noted that Ocean City has many streams of revenue to help reduce taxes, but that also makes them more vulnerable during some emergencies, such as the pandemic.

The original proposed budget, introduced in February, included a half-penny increase to the municipal tax rate. That would've meant an owner of a $500,000 property would expect an additional $25 in taxes this year.

The new proposed budget, reintroduced Thursday, features no tax increase and uses $4 million in surplus funds. A public hearing and final vote on the plan are scheduled for the June 25 City Council meeting.

The city would cut $700,000 in expenses, according to Financial Management Director Frank Donato. Some of the savings stem from holding off on filling open positions, expecting a few retirements, analyzing COVID-19's effects on seasonal operations and savings through hosting May 12's election by mail instead of in person.

Barr also discussed increasing pressure on Governor Phil Murphy to reduce coronavirus restrictions on small businesses.

Stage 2 of the state's economic restart plan would allow for more activities with safeguards and modifications, such as outdoor dining.

Murphy said Thursday he wants more data before moving New Jersey into Stage 2. The governor had set a goal of 20,000 tests per day by the end of May, a goal that was met last week. By meeting that goal, New Jersey could find itself moving to stage two as early as this week. Read more: When Will NJ Hit Stage 2 Reopening? It's All About The Testing

"I am more vulnerable to this virus than most," Barr said. "But at some point we have to let our folks do business and let things start to get back to normal with rules and social distancing and all that."

Watch the full City Council meeting:

Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

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