Twenty-five years ago, Berlin businessman and then County Commissioner Jim Barrett had an idea about how to add a little life to what was then a mostly quiet downtown. Why not, he wondered, have a fiddling competition such as the one he had just seen in Elkins, Va.? Throw in some bluegrass-style entertainment, pile some… Read more »
Editorial
As it turns out, we are ‘urban’ after all
The question, it would seem, is why the new "Urban Area, Stay Alert" traffic sign on the highway in Berlin employs the word "urban, when it’s obvious that Berlin is hardly an urban area. Or is it? First, though, as Mayor Gee Williams said regarding that particular sign language, he doesn’t care what it says… Read more »
In this instance, it’s OK to color outside the lines
Worcester County’s Habitat for Humanity is taking a bold and non-traditional step with its plan to develop a housing project geared toward artists. Although Habitat’s purpose generally is to provide reasonable and affordable housing for families, its proposed 6,000-square foot complex adheres to the nonprofit organization’s principles while also taking an entrepreneurial step that is… Read more »
Non-meeting no big deal
The supposedly secret organizational meeting that didn’t happen in Ocean Pines last week before the full OPA board of directors met on Monday isn’t as big a deal as the subsequent mini uproar would suggest. It might, at first blush, sound surreptitious on the part of directors Tom Terry and Pat Renaud, who tried and… Read more »
Balanced board ahead
Congratulations to Tom Herrick and Cheryl Jacobs, who were elected to the Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors on Saturday. The voters themselves also deserve recognition for making a pair of excellent choices. The addition of two people who ran as independent thinkers should bring balance to the board and do well by the community,… Read more »
Put aside your agendas
To employ a cliché, it’s all over but the shouting, and possibly that is over as well, as the voting deadline passes in Ocean Pines’ Board of Directors election. The results of the months-long campaign will be revealed Saturday and the two winners will be installed on the Ocean Pines Association’s ruling body. The business… Read more »
GM shouldn’t factor in vote
As the voting deadline approaches in Ocean Pines, property owners who have yet to mail their ballots would be wise to keep in mind that this election should not be considered a referendum on the Ocean Pines Association on how the general manager should do his job. It is, and should always be, about which… Read more »
Hats off to Chamber, Water Resources team
What can we say about last week’s Berlin Bathtub races, except that we came in second to the military-industrial-government complex of Berlin’s Water Resources department. While it is true that its entry was somewhat faster than ours, that’s what anyone would expect when word is that Water Resources called in favors from some of its… Read more »
OP politics embarrassing? No, and here’s why that is
People who cringe at what they perceive to be the negative cloud that seems to float over Ocean Pines Association politics and government don’t realize how fortunate they are. The frequently unrestrained public discussions, disputes and assertions that are viewed by many as a source of embarrassment are actually refreshing as compared to the subtle… Read more »
With Bathtub Races, Berlin just having fun
Ah yes, the annual Berlin Bathtub Races. It’s so nice to have something on which to expound besides local politics, even if it is plumbing related. This also one of the rare instances when we can talk about people pushing each other around without having to worry about a public backlash. That, after all, is… Read more »