By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Dec. 20, 2018) The Snow Hill Town Council and an attorney representing Toy Town Antiques said they’re working to resolve a dispute between the two, but the disagreement has ignited a firestorm among local business owners. At the center of the controversy is a 2016 memorandum of understanding signed by then… Read more »
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Community rallies around Jake Newcomer
Rachel Ravina, Staff Writer (Dec. 20, 2018) It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas – after a community rallied around 11-year-old cancer patient Jake Newcomer to give him a night he surely would not forget. Newcomer’s step-grandfather, Ocean Pines Police Department Lt. Greg Schoeph, said the boy’s illness prevented him from attending celebrations in… Read more »
Utility deficits eroding general fund, audit shows
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Dec. 13, 2018) A Town of Berlin fiscal 2018 audit report on Monday night came with several notes of caution, as representatives from Ocean City firm PKS & Company said negative fund balances were rapidly eating away at the general fund. Auditing Partner Michael Kleger began by presenting an unmodified, or… Read more »
Disbelief following cell tower lease rejection
By Rachel Ravina, Staff Writer (Dec. 13, 2018) Calvert Crosslands partner Barb Pivec said she was blindsided by the Worcester County Commissioners’ decision last week to reject a lease agreement for a cell tower site at the Ocean Pines Wastewater Treatment Plant. Pivec said she entered the meeting with the belief the lease would be approved…. Read more »
County found not in compliance
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Dec. 13, 2018) Based on an Oct. 9 complaint filed with the state’s Open Meeting Compliance Board by this paper, the Worcester County Commissioners were cleared of violating the open meeting act in one instance, but found not in compliance in another. In a letter dated Dec. 10 from Jonathan A…. Read more »
Gazette Editorial: ‘Person of the Year’ honors are reminder
Rachel Pacella, formerly of Ocean Pines, and Rick Hutzell, who started his newspaper career in Ocean City, are among those honored by Time magazine this week as its “Person of the Year.” They and the rest of the staff at the Capital Gazette in Annapolis join Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post reporter who was murdered… Read more »
Berlin resident recalls meeting Pres. Bush
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Dec. 6, 2018) Berlin resident Mike Wiley last week marked the passing of 41st U.S. President George Herbert Walker Bush on Nov. 30 by sharing a story and photos of the time they met. Wiley was a shift lieutenant at Anne Arundel County Fire Station 23 when Bush was vice president… Read more »
‘Artists Giving Back’ build bridges
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Dec. 6, 2018) Organizers of the third annual “Artists Giving Back” last Tuesday at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Berlin said the event was about more than filling a few hundred empty stomachs with free meals. The larger impact, organizers said, was breaking down barriers – both social and geographic… Read more »
‘The friendliest police dog you’ll ever meet’
By Josh Davis, Associate Editor (Dec. 6, 2018) Dock, a one-year-old golden retriever that just began working with the Berlin Police Department and Worcester County Bureau of Investigations, is bringing new meaning to “Officer Friendly.” The outgoing pup is full of energy and loves to be around people – just ask first before you pet him…. Read more »
Commissioners pan Ocean Pines cell tower
By Rachel Ravina, Staff Writer (Dec. 6, 2018) No Verizon cell tower will be erected on county property in Ocean Pines, following the Worcester County Commissioners’ rejection Tuesday of a lease agreement that fell far short of what the commissioners expected. The tower, which would have been built and owned by the Calvert County company, Calvert… Read more »