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Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save OCEAN CITY — A red sticker on a Glenn Cove bulkhead indicates work has come to a halt on boat slips in the city’s smallest lagoon, at least for now. For years, neighbors have sought to derail plans to install 10 boat slips at the site, bringing their campaign to City Council meetings and a proliferation of lawn signs to “stop the marina” and to “save the lagoon.” Plans are for the slips to be built behind a single-family house in the 100 block of West 10th Street.
The lot includes a detached garage and is listed as available as a summer rental. Opponents describe the work as creating a commercial marina in a residential neighborhood poorly suited for the use, raising concerns about safety for kids swimming off backyard docks and increased traffic, both cars and boats. Owners Thomas and Beverly Gill have approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection and from the U.
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City officials say the slips will need municipal approval before being used. Bob Hellyer, a neighbor, was back at a recent council meeting, again calling for the city to step in and block the plans. OCEAN CITY — To the delight of neighbors and boaters, a redevelopment plan for the former Da.
.. At the meeting, he suggested work should not have started, saying the state approvals require all local permits to be in place before any work begins.
He suggested the city may have quietly given a green light. “People were wondering if the land side had already been done, kind of behind the scenes,” he said. “We don’t understand how the machine works.
” City officials said there has been no variance granted or other local approvals for the work, or for the marina operation. Dottie McCrosson, the city’s attorney, said she believes local approvals are needed, including a use variance to allow the operation in a residential zone. “A commercial marina is not a permitted use,” she said at the meeting.
“The application was for a commercial marina. In my opinion, that would require a site plan and a use variance. And a mercantile license.
” “I’m just wondering if the owner knows that,” said Councilman Keith Hartzell. Hartzell also raised questions about parking requirements. McCrosson said the owner has been informed of the city’s position that he needs local approvals.
It’s been more than a year since the city gave notice that the property is in a residential zone, which would not allow the operation of a marina without a use variance. Keith Davis, Gill's attorney, indicated that the state and federal approvals are enough, and that the work is not creating new boat slips, but rather replacing slips that were already there. “What is occurring now is merely the renovation and reconstruction of docks that have been there since 1945,” said Davis.
“The work that is ongoing has been approved by the DEP and the Army Corps of Engineers.” OCEAN CITY — The redevelopment plan for the former Dan’s Dock and Seafood at 10th and Palen ..
. This week, that work is no longer ongoing. The city construction office has red-tagged the project, meaning it has ordered the work to stop.
This was not related to the work on the water side of the bulkhead, but rather on the steps leading to the new docks. McCrosson said this week that the steps over the bulkhead require a construction permit. Davis declined to comment on the city’s assertion that a use variance is needed for the marina to begin operation, or on the red tag now affixed to the bulkhead.
The Gill family operates Tackle Direct, launched by Thomas’ son Patrick Gill. The family has long operated a marina in the neighborhood, at 10th Street and Palen Avenue. Dan’s Dockside Marina had a restaurant, fuel for boats and multiple slips.
The Gills operated the property from the 1970s until the start of the 21st century, but the business closed after they sold it. About a decade ago, with the site on the bay at 10th Street closed and deteriorating, and at times described as a dangerous eyesore, the Gills worked with the city to renovate the property they once owned. As the principals of Bayport Preservation Foundation LLC, they worked with the city to have the area declared in need of rehabilitation, which allowed the city to help finance the work.
In 2013, the city’s Planning Board supported a development proposal that included repairs to the bulkhead, remediation of underground fuel tanks, creation of a 23-slip marina and construction of a three-story building with a restaurant and retail space on the ground floor and residential uses upstairs. City Council approved the designation as an area in need of redevelopment in 2014, and in the spring of 2016, the Planning Board approved plans for the 10th Street Wharf. News reports from the time indicate there was a single no vote, but many neighbors praised the plan, and looked forward to improvements on Palen Avenue.
The remediation work is completed and the city’s loan has been paid back, according to officials, but the building was never constructed. There is a café at the site, and a spot for boaters to fuel up. Contact Bill Barlow: 609-272-7290 bbarlow@pressofac.
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