September 13, 2013 The Dispatch/Maryland Coast Dispatch Page 43 The Dispatch Forever In Memory Of Our Founder, Dick Lohmeyer (May 25, 1927-May 5, 2005) The Dispatch, Serving Greater Ocean City Since 1984, Is Published By Maryland Coast Dispatch Inc. Weekly On Friday Mornings MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 467 Berlin, Md. 21811 PHYSICAL ADDRESS: 10012 Old Ocean City Blvd. Berlin, Md. 21811 PHONE: 410-641-4561 FAX: 410-641-0966 WEBSITES: www.mdcoastdispatch.com www.facebook.com/thedispatchoc J. STEVEN GREEN Publisher/Editor editor@mdcoastdispatch.com HOW WE SEE IT Out With The Old Usually A Positive In The Long Run It’s always with mixed emotions to see an old, rundown motel torn down with plans to replace it with a modern franchise hotel. That’s what is currently happening on 32nd Street as the old Ocean Voyager Motel, a two-story facility known as the Yankee Clipper previously, was demolished and the site is currently being cleared to allow for the construction of the 101-room La Quinta Inn & Suites, which will also feature a 2,700-square-foot restaurant and pool bar. People are sentimental about Ocean City and that’s why there was a reluctance expressed on social media this week when a photo of the venerable motel being razed was posted. Concerns about higher room prices at the new hotel and Ocean City losing its sense of place were expressed. While these worries are understandable, history shows us that most of the time these sorts of major redevelopment projects result in positive changes for the visitors as a whole, surrounding businesses and the resort at large. It’s progress and that’s a must in Ocean City. Businesses must be always striving to enhance their product and reinvesting in commercial properties is a necessary requirement. The successful proprietors understand that and it plays out in the winter and spring months each year. Redeveloping and reinvesting are the keys to success in Ocean City, and there are numerous examples to prove the point throughout the town. Staying in the vicinity of the old Ocean Voyager, there are plenty of redevelopment examples in the lodging industry. The nearby Hilton on 32nd Street is a prime example of a property owner, the Harrison Group, redeveloping for the better. Further south along Baltimore Avenue, the Flamingo Motel and the Brous family are always enhancing their property and growing its potential. Another Harrison Group property, the Holiday Inn on 16th Street, is another example of what can happen when a dilapidated facility is replaced with a larger, more modern operation. The same goes for what the Conner family did when it razed the venerable Santa Maria Motel in favor of the Courtyard by Marriott on 15th Street. It’s perfectly suitable to be hit in the heartstrings when old, storied businesses are being replaced by new, non-rooted operations, but the fact is the consumers at larger always benefit from the business owner’s desire to redevelop with improved amenities and living conditions. The price of the enhancements is usually higher fees, but nearby precedents confirm visitors will pay for that within reason. Between The Lines By Publisher/Editor Steve Green It was refreshing to hear Ocean City will be seeking more tall ships and attractions like it to visit the area in the future. It’s certainly a worthwhile effort for the town’s special events discussion to undertake in the coming months based off the tremendous popularity of the El Galeon’s recent twoweek visit. Bringing more tall ships to the area should not cost the town additional funds because the preparations were made in advance of the El Galeon last month. Additionally, it should be welcomed by the business community because it does not require free hotel rooms and complimentary dinners, like some other special events in town do. These sorts of attractions are valueadded amenities that make visitors’ trips more enjoyable and also enhance the quality of life for local residents. Additionally, and perhaps most importantly these days, it brings tremendous (and free) public relations exposure to Ocean City. This publication alone was contacted by a wide range of national and regional media outlets for the photos we printed and posted online of the ship’s arrival and departure. CNN even contacted us for video coverage of the tall ship’s arrival. It’s a clear no-brainer to pursue bringing more tall ships to the Ocean City area. The Ocean City Police Department was roughed up quite a bit after the July 24 robbery of the Susequehanna Bank off 94th Street for not being able to apprehend the suspect. Critics questioned how a bank robber could evade police in a congested resort like Ocean City with only a couple escape routes with such ease. Well, it turns out the OCPD was not alone in that inability, as law enforcement agencies in western Maryland, West Virginia, Tennessee and Missouri were also unable to apprehend the suspect after he robbed banks in those areas. In fact, it took a media publicity campaign calling out the “I-55 Bandit” to apprehend the 19-year-old man, who walked into an FBI office in St. Louis on Wednesday and turned himself in. Big changes loom for the Casino at Ocean Downs as a significant expansion is currently making its way through the county’s planning department. The addition to the current facility received the Planning Commission’s approval yesterday and will be home to table games, among other things. In the meantime, the casino reportedly enjoyed its best month ever in August, generating just under $6 million, according to a Maryland Gaming release issued this week. August’s figures represented an increase of around $150,000 over the $5.8 million the facility near Ocean Pines grossed in July. The August 2013 figure represents an increase of $305,739 over August 2012, or around 5.4 percent. The gross gaming revenue per machine per day in August came in at $240.99, which was also the highest total ever at the facility. Those are some big bucks, but it’s likely to get even bigger if table games begin operating sometime next year as expected. Reports on the other casinos in Maryland included $71 million being grossed at the Maryland Live casino in Anne Arundel County, representing a 64-percent increase over last August, largely due to table games being added to the mix; Cecil County’s Hollywood Casino, which recently added table games, grossed about $7.7 million in August, representing an increase of over $1.1 million over August 2012; and the new casino at Rocky Gap in western Maryland generated just over $4 million in August. NEWS DEPARTMENT SHAWN J. SOPER News Editor Sports Editor ssoper@mdcoastdispatch.com JOANNE SHRINER Staff Writer joanne@mdcoastdispatch.com TRAVIS BROWN Staff Writer travis@mdcoastdispatch.com SALES DEPARTMENT TERRI FRENCH Account Executive Entertainment Editor terri@mdcoastdispatch.com JEANETTE DESKIEWICZ Account Executive jeanette@mdcoastdispatch.com MANETTE CRAMER Account Executive manette@mdcoastdispatch.com ART DEPARTMENT CINDY WARD Art Director art@mdcoastdispatch.com LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Cleaning Acknowledged Editor: I would like to thank the men and women who clean the sand, Boardwalk and streets of Ocean City every day. They do a fantastic job. We have been going to Ocean City for the past 34 years. They start cleaning the beach when the people are off. I walk the boards between 5:30 and 6 a.m. and they are out here cleaning the boards. I especially pay tribute to the people who clean on Saturday, Sunday and Monday mornings. People really can be slobs on vacation. If I had $1 for the all the cigarette butts in between the boards or around the beautiful plant areas, I could spend the entire summer in Ocean City. The napkins, paper plates and soda cups are unreal. Here is the best part, there are two garbage barrels at the end of each section of benches on both sides, not just one, making it a minimum of 14 barrels on one block alone. The best one was an empty Styrofoam food container, napkins and soda cup left on a bench, all they had to do was to extend their left arm out and drop it into the garbage barrel. Unreal. I can't say enough about these people who are taken for granted every day. They are out there rain or shine. Since I am voicing my opinion, I must go all the way and say who is the brain surgeon who decided to put a foot shower in front of which I think is the best bar and grill in Ocean City? A foot shower is one thing, but one that has three tiers to it – unreal. There is nothing I like better than to sit on the patio and watch uncouth people strip their children naked and wash them off. The only thing missing was the soap, but you never know what next year will bring. Thank you for letting me voice my opinion but especially those that wonderful town workers. Patricia A Miller Morristown, N.J. JENNIFER T. O’BRIEN Graphic Artist COLE GIBSON Graphic Artist Webmaster BUSINESS OFFICE PAMELA GREEN Bookkeeper Classifieds Manager classifieds@mdcoastdispatch.com The Maryland Coast Dispatch (USPS #015125) is an official and legal newspaper for Worcester County. Periodical postage paid at Berlin, Maryland, and additional mailing offices.. The Maryland Coast Dispatch, 10012 Old Ocean City Blvd., Berlin, Md. 21811, is published weekly on Friday mornings, 52 weeks a year. Subscription rates are $75 per year, $55 for six months. POSTMASTER: Please send change of address to Maryland Coast Dispatch, P.O. Box 467, Berlin, Maryland 21811. Maryland Coast Dispatch offices are located at Route 346 and Graham Avenue, Berlin, Maryland. EMS Fee Appalling Editor: I would like to bring to the attenSEE PAGE 47