Return incumbents to board of directors

With ballots on the verge of going out for this summer’s Ocean Pines Association’s Board of Directors election, property owners should recognize that this is not just a matter of five people competing for one of the three open seats for the term ahead.

Not only is that an oversimplification of the situation, but it also obscures what is at stake besides deciding who will join or be returned to association leadership for a three-year term.

 In addition to voting on the candidates for director, voters also will be weighing in on how they feel the association’s affairs are being overseen.

In other words, this election is also a referendum on how the association is being run by the General Manager John Viola and his staff. He is allowed to operate the way he does because of the good relationship he has with the current board of directors.

There is no disputing the fact that good things have happened as a result: the Ocean Pines Association has been turned into a financially vigorous enterprise, run by a staff that remains responsive to residents’ needs, and is governed by a business-minded board of directors that knows when to listen.

Given these circumstances, we see no compelling reason for change. We support the return of the incumbents, John Latham, Elaine Brady and Patrick Lehnerd, to office.

When ballots arrive next Monday, Ocean Pines voters will have 44 days to decide whether the maintaining the stability of the current course of operations and finance outweighs the risk of pursuing untested alternatives.

As it is, the association’s financial performance and the steady improvement of community amenities because of the working relationship between the board and Viola make it difficult to argue that shaking things up will somehow be helpful in maintaining, much less to improving, the community’s well-being.