Officials like concept, but not at expense of existing renovation plans for bldg.
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor
(Feb. 1, 2018) Calls for a fitness center in Ocean Pines will apparently not be answered at the association country club.
The board of directors received more than 100 emails asking for a fitness center on the second floor of the club, currently in the middle of a renovation that would transform the long-unused space into several rooms for community and board meetings.
The emails came from a Jan. 24 Facebook post by Jeff Williams, who encouraged “those interested in a fitness center at Ocean Pines, please join us and send a support email to the OP board.”
A link to an automated email was included in his post.
“The more emails we send the better. Let’s fill their inbox! You are only 2 click away!!” Williams wrote.
The text of the email, apparently identical one Williams himself sent to the board, read:
“Dear Ocean Pines,
“I’m writing to express my concern regarding the plan for the second floor of the country club. I don’t believe Ocean Pines should be investing in any additional restaurants or catering spaces. We should focus on amenities that add value to our community, specifically a fitness center.
“It is clear to me that our food and beverage division requires the most homeowner subsidy. In FY17 the Yacht Club is projected to lose $452,070 and the Tern Grill $31,856. Please stop investing in additional restaurants or catering spaces until our current facilities are self-sustaining.
“Many folks in the community, including myself, believe Ocean Pines needs a fitness center. A fitness center will not only enable residents to stay healthy, it will add more value to our summer rentals. Many condo associations, hotels and HOAs offer free fitness centers to their members and guests. We need to stay competitive in the market.
“I hope you’ll agree that a fitness center has tremendous community support and adds more value to our community than another unprofitable restaurant space. Please reconsider the design of the country club.”
Association Vice President Cheryl Jacobs, on Monday, had a three-word reply to the proposal: “that’s not happening.”
Jacobs said she inquired about a fitness center last year and tasked the parks and recreation advisory committee with looking for a suitable space.
“I’m totally in favor of [a fitness center] and I do think there’s an interest enough out there in the community that we need to explore that and see where could we put that, or how could we go about having that,” she said. “We will address it, but it’s not happening in the country club on the second floor.”
General Manager John Bailey said he and the board received more than 100 form letters “pretty much saying the same thing.”
He shared many of the sentiments expressed by Jacobs.
“The second floor of the country club is probably not the best place for it,” Bailey said. “Let’s move ahead with what we’re working on … and not let this building sit idle for forever and a day – that’s already happened.”
Bailey said more research was needed on a potential location, what would be involved in running a center, and what kind of equipment it would require.
“Throwing that into the mix now … would just delay things further,” he said. “Let’s look at the possibility of doing a fitness center, but not in conjunction with this project.
“From my two cents, I have certainly dealt with a lot of places that have tried to put a fitness center into a room or a building that wasn’t designed for that purpose – and what you get is a fitness center in a room or a building that wasn’t designed for that purpose,” Bailey added. “Not that you’d need a new building, but you need to have the space designed for that purpose.”