TOURISM: A call is issued for
JEEP WEEK: Annual Ocean City
creation of a long-term tourism plan and getting more definitive answers about how the resort is doing PAGE 26A
Jeep Week kicks off next Thursday with events taking place around the county throughout the weekend PAGE 1B
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
Ocean City Today BUSINESS . . . . . . . . . . . 1C CLASSIFIED . . . . . . . . . . 5C ENTERTAINMENT . . . . . . 5B LEGALS . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9C
LIFESTYLE . . . . . . . . . . . 1B OPINION . . . . . . . . . . . 43A OUT&ABOUT . . . . . . . . 13B SPORTS . . . . . . . . . . . . 39A
WHITE MARLIN OPEN RESULTS BY CATEGORY…PAGE 1B
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AUGUST 16, 2013
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City might go retail with web Fairness issue arises as officials propose selling space on ococean.com ZACK HOOPES Staff Writer
a film. El Galeón (The Galleon) is owned by Nao Victoria Foundation of Seville, Spain, a maritime history organization that had the replica of the West Indies trading vessel built in 2009. Since its commissioning, the ship has sailed some 35,000 miles, the most recent of which have been along the East Coast, where it is likely to remain for the
(Aug. 16, 2013) The frequent conflict between the Ocean City government’s role as the resort’s premier marketing agency and as its sovereign administrator will likely be brought to the fore again in the coming weeks, as the city continues to investigate a proposal to add advertising and price-tiered listings to its municipal tourism website, ococean.com. At the direction of the city’s Tourism Commission, a survey will be sent to members of the city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau, as well as the Ocean City Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association and the Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, to gauge interest in the proposal. But the core issue is not one of efficacy, but of principle – as to whether the city should be using a taxpayerfunded website to sell a product that competes with private advertising media and places some businesses above others on the official online face of the city. “You’re going to get push-back from some businesses, I think,” said HMRA Executive Director Susan Jones. “They
See SHIP on Page 5A
See CVB on Page 3A
LEARNING ABOUT SHARKS
OCEAN CITY TODAY/LISA CAPITELLI
Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum Curator Sandy Hurley talks about sharks with children and adults attending the museum society’s Children’s Day on the Bay at Sunset Park on South Division Street, last Sunday.
Spanish ship El Galeón sailing to OC (Aug. 16, 2013) With fair winds and benevolent seas, the two taller masts of the three-masted El Galeón should breach the horizon sometime Tuesday or Wednesday, signaling the arrival in Ocean City of the 450-ton replica of a
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16th Century Spanish trader. Brought to the resort for public inspection by the National Air, Sea and Space Foundation Inc., the 170-foot El Galeón has been touring ports on the East Coast from Florida to New York as part of the 500th anniversary celebration of Ponce de Leon’s arrival in Florida. The layover in Ocean City comes as the ship makes its way to Puerto Rico, where it will be used in the production of
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16th Century replica will offer tours while docked at bayside pier on 3rd St.
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