OC Today WWW.OCEANCITYTODAY.COM
NOVEMBER 27, 2020
SERVING NORTHERN WORCESTER COUNTY
Holiday The offices of Ocean City Today and Bayside Gazette will be closed Friday after Thanksgiving and will reopen Monday at 8:30 a.m.
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LISA CAPITELLI/OCEAN CITY TODAY
ALL LIT UP
Ocean City’s annual Winterfest of Lights opened Thursday night at Northside Park on 125th Street. Guests will have the opportunity to stroll through the park and observe the light displays this year.
Restaurants need more help State/county program will provide some assistance but it won’t be enough By Elizabeth Bonin Staff Writer (Nov. 27, 2020) Numerous restaurants in Ocean City are continuing to operate, but the winter season and the regional rise of covid-19 cases could change that. Restaurants have been hit particularly hard by the pandemic, as they were shut down except for carryout in the spring, then increased to 50 and then 75 percent capacity for indoor dining and have recently seen indoor seating limits pulled back to 50 percent capacity. To assist restaurants, the state of Maryland awarded counties with a certain amount of funding a few weeks ago based on the number of
restaurants it has. Worcester County was awarded $1.4 million. Worcester County opened applications on Monday, Nov. 16. Restaurants have until Monday, Nov. 30 to submit applications and the county must disperse the funds by Wednesday, Dec. 30.
‘We’re hoping there’s something else on the horizon here if they’re going to keep us running with regulations.’ — Justin Acita Tom Perlozzo, director of recreation and parks, economic development and tourism, said there are three tiers of relief based on the number of full-time employees. Businesses with zero to 10 full-time employees are eligible for $5,000, 11 to 25 for $7,500 and 26 and up for $10,000.
“I anticipate that almost 50 percent of the funding right now will be awarded in the next two weeks,” Perlozzo said. “Checks will be cut by the county next week, and we’ll continue to stay open as long as the money lasts.” He added that if there are any issues with any of the applications, such as missing information, county staff will contact the applicant. So far, all 100 applicants have been accepted. Perlozzo said that funds will See STRUGGLING Page 4
Styrofoam ban limping along With little info coming from state, it’s a struggle By Josh Kim Staff Writer (Nov. 27, 2020) Maryland is leading the nation in banning the sale or distribution of polystyrene, or styrofoam, but lackluster communication from the state has left local government agencies attempting to juggle enforcing the new law and guiding struggling businesses and nonprofit organizations trying to adapt to it. Maryland became the first state to impose a statewide ban on Styrofoam when the General Assembly in April 2019 approved legislation prohibiting its use. The ban was scheduled to go See STYROFOAM Page 4