Members of the Ocean Pines Association’s Board of Directors approved the final version of the Fiscal Year 2025 budget at their latest meeting Feb. 17.
Ocean Pines North Gate
File photo
Includes some raised fees, new spending plans
By Tara Fischer, Staff Writer
The Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors approved a $15.3 million operating budget for Fiscal Year 2025 on Feb. 17, and also raised fees in certain areas, and established spending plans for roads, draining and bulkheads.
The association’s financial circumstances are good, with General Manager John Viola reporting that the balance sheet is the strongest in 20 years.
He also told the board that the community is well situated for the Displaced Moving Average study in November. The evaluation occurs when an outside contractor comes in and reviews all of Ocean Pine’s assets, funding, and reserves. The purpose is to better understand monetary trends and facilitate economic decision-making.
“We are positioned well,” Viola said. “We are positioned better than when they first came in five years ago. Everything we said we would do five or six years ago, where we said we would be with that balance sheet, is where we are.”
Board member and treasurer Monica Rakowski gave a financial report.
As of Jan. 31, she said, OPA had about $14.9 million in cash, which has increased by $1 million from the previous year. The association has invested $10.4 million in Certificate of Deposit Account Registry Services. This allows better access to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation coverage in the event of bank failure. The remaining $4.5 million is in Insured Cash Sweep, treasury bills, money market, and other operating accounts, distributed between two local banks.
Rakowski said the fiscal 2025 budget was adjusted following the Feb. 7 public presentation to the membership. The approved spending plan accounts for $15.3 million in operating reserves, $15.3 million in operating expenses, $1.6 million in bulkhead expenses, and $2.7 million for road and drainage replacement. Assessment interest revenue to reserves will be $3.4 million, assessment for non-water properties will decrease $36 to $850, and $1,275 is allocated for non-water estate assessments. There is $1,465 for water assessment, $2,198 for evaluation of water estates, $940 for water non-bulkhead review, and $1,410 for water non-bulkhead estate assessment.
According to the treasurer, the resolution includes a 10% increase in pickleball fees, a 7% increase in boat slip dues, and a 2% increase in seasonal aquatic memberships. There is also a reduction in daily parking rates for the Ocean Pines Beach Club, which Bylaws and Resolutions Committee Board Liaison Steve Jacobs said is expected to create a $50,000 drop in revenue.
The budget passed 6-1, with a nay vote from Jacobs. The full-length meeting can be viewed on the Ocean Pines Association’s YouTube channel. The next open gathering of the Board of Directors is scheduled for 9 a.m., March 23.