July - Early Augfust 2015
443-359-7527
www.OceanPinesToday.com
Vol. 11, No. 4
www.issuu.com/oceanpinesprogress Stevens says data shed no light on need for policy change Ocean Pines Association President Dave Stevens has reviewed Community Center use data provided to him and the Board of Directors by General Manager Bob Thompson. Stevens’ verdict? The data shed no light on the question of whether the OPA board needs to revise a board resolution that governs use of the much-used facility. ~ Page 8
THE OCEAN PINES JOURNAL OF NEWS & COMMENTARY COVER STORY
Trendic DWI arrest roils OPA Board election
‘Hideous’ orange fence removed from South Gate pond
The Ocean Pines wildfowl population scored a victory of sorts just before the Fourth of July weekend when the orange fence installed along a portion of Ocean Parkway and the larger of two South Gate ponds was removed. Ocean Pines Association General Manager Bob Thompson had the fence taken down after Director Bill Cordwell, during the June 15 meeting of the Board of Directors, asked whether “we can’t rid of ” what he called that “hideous orange fence,” installed for the purpose of deterring geese and people from congregating on this portion of the pond’s perimeter. ~ Page 12
Choptank’s smart meters generate questions, criticism
With residents concerned about both the safety and costs associated with Choptank Electric Cooperative’s plans to install advanced meters throughout the community, the Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors wants to meet with representatives for the utility to clear the air. During the public comments section of a June 25 meeting, resident Pamela Wright broached the issue, saying that she has serious reservations about the installation of the so-called smart meters. ~ Page 18
Supporters rally behind candidate who stays in race despite post-midnight accident By TOM STAUSS Publisher he Ocean Pines Association’s annual Board of Directors’ election took a turn to the bizarre in-mid June when presumed front-runner Slobodan Trendic found himself in legal hot water, resulting from his arrest on charges of driving while intoxicated, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, negligent driving and violation of a corrective lens driving restriction. If any kind of publicity is good publicity, as the adage goes, Trendic’s chances of winning a seat on the OPA board probably won’t be much affected much. In the days after word of his arrested appeared in the local media, he dropped from first to second place in an on-line poll posted on oceanpinesforum.com, which historically has been a good predictor of OPA election outcomes. Supporters in the days following the accident rallied to his defense, among them soon-to-be-retiring Director Marty Clarke and local builder Marvin Steen, both of whom told the Progress that they continue to believe that Trendic would make a worthy successor to Clarke on the board. “It’s a charge, not a conviction,” Clarke said. “And I supported George W. Bush for president after he had a DWI.” Steen said everything he’s been hearing about the incident that led to Trendic’s arrest on June 20 by an Ocean Pines police officer tells him that there are extenuating or mitigating circumstances that could lead to dropped or reduced
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charges or a not-guilty verdict, should a trial take place in late August as currently scheduled. Trendic declined comment on the events of Slobodan Trendic June 20 on advice of counsel, other than to say he trusted in the legal system to render a just verdict based on the facts in the case. “I’m the same person that people got to know and liked before this happened,” he added. “Nothing’s changed. I hope people wait to render a judgment until after the system is allowed to work.” Investigative reporting by the Progress confirms that the police report issued by the OPPD after the incident omitted some key details that shed a more positive light on Trendic’s behavior on the night of the incident. One key point is that Trendic reportedly consumed only two bottles of Sam Adams beer at the Ocean Pines Yacht Club, in an evening spent with political supporters, and the bartender who served the beer has confirmed that in writing. OPPD Chief Dave Massey in a telephone interview told the Progress that his department would check with the Yacht Club bartender to confirm the two-beer narrative, which he said is common among those accused of DWIs.
The OPPD had not interviewed the bartender prior to filing charges against Trendic. That isn’t too surprising, given the time of night the incident occurred. Another factor is that Trendic suffers from Chrohn’s Disease and is pre-diabetic and that both might have contributed to temporarily losing control of his car at 82 Windajmmer Road the night of the incident, around midnight, causing damage to a car parked on the driveway and scattering landscape stone that rims the edge of the driveway. The car and home at 82 Windjammer are owned by Lanny and Kay Hickman, neither of whom were awake when the accident occurred. Massey told the Progress that the officer who responded to a late-night complaint of property damage, called in by a neighbor of the Hickmans, is trained in investigating DWI incidents. The officer asked Trendic whether there were any medical conditions that could have contributed to the accident. “He said no,” Massey said, but that contradicted what Steen said he understands occurred. “He doesn’t recall any such question being asked,” Steen said of Trendic, who spoke to the builder on the day after the incident. “And if the question had been asked, why would he say there was no medical condition? It makes no sense.” According to sources, Trendic also was intending to return to the scene of the accident immediately after it ocTo Page 20
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