By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

The Ocean Pines Association is operating at a positive variance of around $70,000 with a revenue surplus, according to the community’s unaudited April finances.

OPA’s Budget and Finance Committee met last week to review April’s finances. During the evaluation of the unaudited numbers, it was understood that the association is operating at a favorable variance. Committee member Jack Collins inquired as to why, considering the favorable financial position, homeowners saw a $25 increase in their assessment fees, which now sit at $875 for basic non-water lots per the 2025-2026 fiscal year budget that was passed in February.

“We keep coming up in a positive vein in terms of revenue,” the committee member said. “… I get confused because when I see these positive variances and they come back with, ‘well we have to increase our dues $25’ … The question to me is, why are we increasing rates, increasing revenues, when we have all of this revenue surplus? Both on the budget side and on the actual side.”

Doug Parks, the budget committee’s chair who sat on the neighborhood’s board of directors for seven years before stepping down in 2023 as president, argued that while he cannot pinpoint an exact reason for the assessment increase, he supports maintaining a healthy reserve balance.

“I am a big proponent of having the right reserve amount,” Parks said. “When I was on the board, one of the things we pushed for, and [the general manager] and his team have delivered wholeheartedly, is that we wanted to make sure we had ‘x’ amount percentage in our reserves compared to the asset base. I think we’re now up to 24%, 25% … Future proofing might not be the right word, but you’re looking ahead to ensure we have enough in our reserves.”

Parks added that a stable monetary position is necessary to ensure a smoothly run homeowners association. The finances could be required for replacement work, bulkhead, drainage, capital projects, or unforeseen situations. A bolstered reserve is also needed to ensure the association can front expenses from major events or accidents, which, while insurance is likely to contribute, may not cover the entire cost.

“The worst thing that could happen to a budget is an unplanned expense,” the committee chair said.

Safety costs have also likely contributed to the increase in assessments. According to a report from OPA General Manager John Viola at the community’s May 24 board meeting, 44% of the assessment revenue aids safety efforts. The rise in fees is likely to cover costs associated with hiring additional emergency personnel to compensate for the staff shortage the neighborhood experienced around two years ago.

Furthermore, in early 2024, the police department raised its starting salary by over $12,000 to around $63,500 to attract and retain officers. The budget and finance team said this additional expense has also likely contributed to the assessment’s hand in public safety.

Collins said he does not mind the increase but would like to know the exact reason for its implementation.

“I don’t have a problem with a $25 increase, I just would like to know why if we’re running a $1 million positive variance on actual numbers and $472,000 on a budget,” Collins said.

The team intends to ask the general manager for specifics about why the assessment was raised and what exactly the investment in public safety has paid for. The responses will be included in next month’s minutes.

Last week’s budget review was based on unaudited numbers. Parks said the audit is scheduled for mid-June, and results are expected by the end of the month or early July.