The July OPA Board Meeting was held at the Yacht Club. From left, Linda Martin, Kathleen Cook and John Viola.

By Cindy Hoffman, Staff Writer

(July 20, 2023) General Manager John Viola updated the Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors on work being done by his staff and contractors around Ocean Pines during the board’s Saturday meeting.

He noted that the North Gate bridge is getting trim work done. The North Gate fountain has been repaired and will be delivered this week. Ocean Pines will also be purchasing a new fountain so that the pond will have two fountains on either side of the bridge.

Viola reported that the aquatics department has 38 lifeguards on staff, far surpassing the 24 guards it had last year at this time. Over Memorial Day, the pools were fully staffed and operating during normal hours.

There were six days in total, early in the season, when one individual pool was down, but all other pools were open during normal hours. All pools have operated under normal hours for four weeks straight.

Viola expects all pools to operate during normal business hours until the second week of August, as college and high school students return to school and sports. With their full staff, the department has been able to support Ocean Pines Camp and Family Fun Night.

Notifications on any pool closings or reduced hours go out in the weekly email blast and are posted on the website, OPA social media and on the aquatics Facebook and OPA Facebook pages.

Turning to golf, Viola reported that the Ocean Pines Golf Course is “the best it’s ever been.”

Hydro Designs has been hired for the irrigation system design phase. The next step will be to get bids. The design phase cost is projected to be $20,000.

Maintenance and renovations happening at the racquet center include the installation of a new shade structure, the repair of leaking pipes in the ball field and the installation of new directional arrows at the parking lot at the club house. In addition, the railings and handicap bench in the ladies room of the beach club were repaired.