With three seats up for grabs during this year’s OPA Board election in August, the field is likely to be crowded with candidates.
Larry Perrone, 61, was the first to declare his candidacy, in March.
A Pennsylvania native, Perrone served for two years as an air defense officer in the U.S. Air Force, 82nd Airborne, followed by four years in the reserves. Professionally, he worked for 36 years in the commercial insurance industry.
When he retired last year, Perrone, after watching the politics of Ocean Pines play out during the 30-plus years he has been a property owner, said he felt it was finally time to get involved.
“The last 6-7 years have been very disappointing with what I’ve seen on the board,” he said. “Since I retired in July, I now have the time and the energy to come down and get some things done. For me, it’s been very disappointing how the board has run things.”
While he admitted his is not a huge fan of Bob Thompson, Perrone said he is not among those who are calling for the general manager’s head.
“That’s not my intent,” he said. “I don’t think the general manager has had time to really show whether he can do the job or not, because the board has just let him run free. I’ve managed a lot of people over my career.”
As a board member, my position would be, this is what the board wants done based on what we think the community wants. Tell us what you need to do to get there, and then put some timeframes on it,” he continued.
At the top of his to-do list, Perrone said he favored improving – not necessarily replacing – the country club. He added that he would likely not back the proposal to replace the building with a smaller structure that includes an attached cart barn.
“If the bones in the structure of the country club are good, I think I would prefer to have it refurbished,” he said. “We don’t know what the costs are going to be at this point, but I don’t think losing that square footage is the best idea.”
He would also like to address the bathrooms at the Beach Club, which the board budgeted for in fiscal year 2017.
“I think that’s in the process of being done, however, as we’ve seen in the past a lot of times, they talk about getting things done and they don’t,” he said. “I’m a problem solver, and that’s one of the things that I think needs to be done.”
As for the bridges, Perrone said he would consider replacement of two structures the board is currently discussing repairing.
“I’m not sure that I would have made that decision,” he said. “I think I would like to know exactly what total replacement would be at this point, as opposed to dumping in another $400,000 into it, just for temporary repairs.”
He also questioned the wisdom of the recent reserve study, which suggests Ocean Pines should fund reserves at 100 percent, or, about $14 million.
“I’m not sure that’s necessarily needed, particularly since we went ahead and replaced the yacht club. I think we have another 40 years to build the reserves to cover that issue,” he said.
During the next few months, Perrone is hoping to have an in-depth discussion on the bigger financial picture with Controller Art Carmine, and also wants to have a sit-down with Thompson.
If elected, he hopes to change the tone of the board, which, he feels, has been too aggressive during recent years.
“We need some civility and cooperation,” he said. “During the last 6-7 years, it’s just been pounding back and forth between the majority and the minority. I don’t think that’s productive for the community, and I don’t intend to be that way.
“I have always been very pragmatic. I consider myself a problem solver. I think, at this point, that’s what we need,” Perrone continued. “I don’t think we need someone coming in and waving a flag and saying, ‘we’re going to fire the GM,’ or, ‘we’re not going to fire the GM.’ I don’t think that’s the issue at this point.”
Instead, Perrone said he would like to see how Thompson responds to “proper direction and control” from a more measured board of directors.
“Whether or not he can do the job – I won’t know that until I’ve had an opportunity to work with him and to make that evaluation,” he said. “Over the years, I’ve had to hire and fire a lot of people. Without having the knowledge of actual performance standards, you just can’t say, ‘I’m going to fire that person.’ I don’t think that’s appropriate.”
Larry Perrone, 61, was the first to declare his candidacy, in March.
A Pennsylvania native, Perrone served for two years as an air defense officer in the U.S. Air Force, 82nd Airborne, followed by four years in the reserves. Professionally, he worked for 36 years in the commercial insurance industry.
When he retired last year, Perrone, after watching the politics of Ocean Pines play out during the 30-plus years he has been a property owner, said he felt it was finally time to get involved.
“The last 6-7 years have been very disappointing with what I’ve seen on the board,” he said. “Since I retired in July, I now have the time and the energy to come down and get some things done. For me, it’s been very disappointing how the board has run things.”
While he admitted his is not a huge fan of Bob Thompson, Perrone said he is not among those who are calling for the general manager’s head.
“That’s not my intent,” he said. “I don’t think the general manager has had time to really show whether he can do the job or not, because the board has just let him run free. I’ve managed a lot of people over my career.”
As a board member, my position would be, this is what the board wants done based on what we think the community wants. Tell us what you need to do to get there, and then put some timeframes on it,” he continued.
At the top of his to-do list, Perrone said he favored improving – not necessarily replacing – the country club. He added that he would likely not back the proposal to replace the building with a smaller structure that includes an attached cart barn.
“If the bones in the structure of the country club are good, I think I would prefer to have it refurbished,” he said. “We don’t know what the costs are going to be at this point, but I don’t think losing that square footage is the best idea.”
He would also like to address the bathrooms at the Beach Club, which the board budgeted for in fiscal year 2017.
“I think that’s in the process of being done, however, as we’ve seen in the past a lot of times, they talk about getting things done and they don’t,” he said. “I’m a problem solver, and that’s one of the things that I think needs to be done.”
As for the bridges, Perrone said he would consider replacement of two structures the board is currently discussing repairing.
“I’m not sure that I would have made that decision,” he said. “I think I would like to know exactly what total replacement would be at this point, as opposed to dumping in another $400,000 into it, just for temporary repairs.”
He also questioned the wisdom of the recent reserve study, which suggests Ocean Pines should fund reserves at 100 percent, or, about $14 million.
“I’m not sure that’s necessarily needed, particularly since we went ahead and replaced the yacht club. I think we have another 40 years to build the reserves to cover that issue,” he said.
During the next few months, Perrone is hoping to have an in-depth discussion on the bigger financial picture with Controller Art Carmine, and also wants to have a sit-down with Thompson.
If elected, he hopes to change the tone of the board, which, he feels, has been too aggressive during recent years.
“We need some civility and cooperation,” he said. “During the last 6-7 years, it’s just been pounding back and forth between the majority and the minority. I don’t think that’s productive for the community, and I don’t intend to be that way.
“I have always been very pragmatic. I consider myself a problem solver. I think, at this point, that’s what we need,” Perrone continued. “I don’t think we need someone coming in and waving a flag and saying, ‘we’re going to fire the GM,’ or, ‘we’re not going to fire the GM.’ I don’t think that’s the issue at this point.”
Instead, Perrone said he would like to see how Thompson responds to “proper direction and control” from a more measured board of directors.
“Whether or not he can do the job – I won’t know that until I’ve had an opportunity to work with him and to make that evaluation,” he said. “Over the years, I’ve had to hire and fire a lot of people. Without having the knowledge of actual performance standards, you just can’t say, ‘I’m going to fire that person.’ I don’t think that’s appropriate.”