HORSES: OC Council decides to
’62 STORM: If you remember it or
allow horseback riding on the beach on a trial basis, leaving some with burrs under their saddles PAGE 6
want to know more about one of the most devastating weather events to hit the coast, put March 7 on your calendar PAGE 28
INSIDE THIS ISSUE: BUSINESS . . . . . . . . . 34 CLASSIFIED . . . . . . . . 52 ENTERTAINMENT . . . . 45 LEGALS . . . . . . . . . . . 23
LIFESTYLE . . . . . . . . . 41 OPINION . . . . . . . . . . . 16 OUT&ABOUT . . . . . . . . 47 SPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . 36
COUNCILMAN’S FACEBOOK COMMENT CAUSES PUBLIC ARGUMENT…PAGE 7
Ocean City Today WWW.OCEANCITYTODAY.NET
FEBRUARY 10, 2012
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STATE DEPT. DECISION COULD AFFECT OC BUSINESSES Recruiting program has certification revoked by feds after complaints about working hours NANCY POWELL ■ Staff Writer (Feb. 10, 2012) Ocean City businesses are expected to be unaffected by the loss of one of the largest State Department-certified sponsors of the program that brings international students to work in the resort, but they could be affected if the students’ work hours are limited. The State Department revoked
the certification of the Council for Educational Travel USA, known as CETUSA, Jan. 30, because of the dissatisfaction of international students working in a Pennsylvania packing plant. According to a published report, many of the nearly 400 students working at a factory packing Hershey chocolates in Pennsylvania protested their working conditions. They said the work involved hard physical labor and they were
left with little money after rent was deducted from their paychecks, the article stated. CETUSA was one of the sponsoring organizations that brought thousands of international students to work in the Ocean City area. Many were already hired to work here this summer, but they will still have jobs, said Anne Marie Conestible, who was CETUSA’s regional manager in Ocean City, on Friday. “We are in negotiations with a good and solid sponsor who is willing to take over our students See LIMITED on Page 10
OCEAN CITY TODAY/TOM RISEN
Mihai Dascalu of Romania started working at Fat Daddy’s on 82nd Street as a J-1 foreign student worker and recently applied for new worker status. A federal decision could affect work hours for foreign students in the resort.
Rate increase at existing meters nears approval TOM RISEN ■ Staff Writer (Feb. 10, 2012) The Ocean City Council will take a final vote on Feb. 21, on whether to increase the rate for parking meters from $1 to $1.50 per hour. The additional revenue from that increase would fund road repair projects. During Monday’s meeting, the council voted 5-2 to approve the first reading of the ordinance, with Council members Margaret Pillas and Joe Hall in opposition. Both contended that the option of adding meters in nonmetered areas across the resort, instead of raising the rate, should be discussed further. The increase is part of an effort to pay for an estimated $41 million in road repairs and upgrades on Public Works’ long list of infrastructure maintenance projects. See COUNCIL on Page 15
OCPD EDUCATES COMMUNITY ABOUT NEW TOOL
OCEAN CITY TODAY/NANCY POWELL
Sgt. Dennis Eade of the Ocean City Police Department, a Taser instructor, explains its usage during Thursday’s informational symposium at Northside Park. Fourteen members of the police department were trained last week to use the weapon. Police Chief Bernadette DiPino said the training would be ongoing and that the Taser “would reduce injuries to officers and suspects.” In March 2013, the police department must tell the Governor’s Office of Crime Control and Prevention how many times it was used.