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OCTOBER 27, 2023
SERVING NORTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY
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School board, law enforcement still at it Dispute over crime reports remains in public eye with dueling public statements By Stewart Dobson Editor (Oct. 27, 2023) The war of words between the Worcester County Board of Education and the county’s state’s attorney and sheriff continued this
week, with the board making public a response to the suggestion by the law enforcement officials that school administrators are suppressing reports of crime in the schools. In an Oct. 23 letter to State’s Attorney Kris Heiser and Sheriff Matt Crisafulli, school board President Todd Ferrante began on a conciliatory note by saying all parties involved have failed to communicate
effectively and that the board “welcomes constructive criticism with a goal of helping improve Worcester County Public Schools.” The full texts of the exchanges appear on page 4
But then, in a reference to a Sept. 21 statement from Heiser and Crisafulli that suggested the schools are glossing over incidents that have threatened the safety of students, he
wrote, “The Board fails to see how engaging in a truth-versus-fiction dialogue through public forums is helpful in maintaining school safety.” Heiser and Crisafulli countered with a statement released Tuesday. “After waiting for over a month to receive any response, it is now abundantly clear that school officials plan to take no meaningful action to reSee SCHOOL Page 4
Wind meeting style not what many hoped Session turns out to be more info, explanations than gathering opinions
HUNTER HINE/OCEAN CITY TODAY
Commenters prepare to drop their remarks in a box at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s public meeting on US Wind’s proposed turbine project at Ocean City Elementary School on Tuesday.
Rising insurance costs hit condo associations By Hunter Hine Staff Writer (Oct. 27, 2023) As coastal condominium and cooperative housing associations in Ocean City renew the insurance on their buildings this year, some are seeing the price of plans more than double.
Some are finding it difficult to find an insurer who will even cover a coastal condominium. Local property managers are reporting historic leaps in insurance prices for master plans that cover damages from things such as wind, flooding and other losses for See RISING Page 10
By Hunter Hine Staff Writer (Oct. 27, 2023) Ocean City officials said they were disappointed by the format of a public meeting on Tuesday about the wind energy project that US Wind proposes to build off the Maryland and Delaware coast. The meeting, which was at Ocean City Elementary School, came during a 45-day public comment period regarding the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, or BOEM’s, draft environmental impact statement for US Wind’s three-phased offshore wind turbine project. The comment section’s deadline is Nov. 20. “I think [attendees] were here anticipating that this was going to be an auditorium where everyone had a chance to get up and speak their point of view, whatever their point of view was, ask questions regarding the environmental assessment, and that’s not what it is,” Meehan said at the meeting. People were able to ask questions, See ABSENCE Page 3