Three Issues
One Election
Ocean City is a special place.
Your vote on these key topics can help ensure it stays that way.
We, the residents, pay the price for thoughtless spending and over-development.
We want city leadership who understands the enduring benefit of community vision, careful planning, and building smarter. We want city leadership who asks: What kind of city do we want to be for everyone who lives and works here?
#1
Smart
Compromise
Not a Massive Hotel
We can move forward on the Boardwalk if we work together for the public good — not against one another for personal gain.
Recently, the city has been fiercely divided over a proposal by a developer to build a massive, exclusive hotel resort, on our Boardwalk, despite it not being allowed under current zoning.
A lack of city leadership and transparency allowed the issue to be grossly mishandled from the very start. The poor guidance created division, confusion, and anger within our community after city leaders acted without real thought, without adequate planning, without community input, and without proper transparency. Only in the last few months — with the appointment of a Boardwalk Subcommittee — did some sense of calm and purpose begin to form, only to have that committee subbed and fought by a number of politicians currently running for office.
It’s time for leaders who place public good over personal gain, leaders who understand the value of building community, consensus, collaboration, and yes—we’ll say it again—smart compromise that moves us forward together. You know who they are…and who they are not.
The Boardwalk
Where children ride their first roller coaster.
Where couples walk at sunset.
Where grandparents revisit with their grandkids.
More than just a street, the Boardwalk is the economic and emotional heart of Ocean City and it’s iconic status is far from accidental. For decades, city leaders made intentional choices to keep the Boardwalk accessible, affordable, and centered on community and people over corporations and profits.
But that’s not to say it hasn’t been an economic success. To the contrary, it’s singularity—and enduring popularity because of it—is a major driver of Ocean City’s economy. Hotels, restaurants, shops, and other small businesses—the whole town thrives when it thrives.
When Wonderland closed…
The North End lost a beloved anchor attraction.
Half of Ocean City’s rides closed overnight.
2025 beach tag sales declined.
Parking revenue dropped.
That’s why we embrace transforming the North End to be the best version of itself yet: a world-class destination built to complement our town’s natural beauty and existing local businesses—and built on a sound foundation of data, due diligence, resource management planning, and fiscal smarts that ensure prosperity for everyone, not just the few, for decades to come. We believe there in a well-thought out, well-planned vision for 600 Boardwalk and we trust in the Boardwalk Subcommittee process to help achieve it.
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Despite the fact that the city should have been well aware of the Wonderland closure—considering that the owner of the struggling amusement park was also the mayor—city leadership failed to put in place a contingency plan, consider Ocean City’s master plan for development, or initiate transparency with the public.
What could have been a genuine opportunity for our city to reimagine together one of the most valuable pieces of real estate on the Jersey Shore, became a series of missteps that resulted in an unproductive, drawn out, divisive, and frustrating debate over the property. -
City data tells us clearly that…
The proposed hotel massively exceeds the zoning standards of the Boardwalk. At approximately 8 ½ stories tall it dwarfs surrounding buildings and blocks sea, sky, and sunlight.
While Ocean City would always welcome new lodging, including an upscale hotel, the data shows we do not have a hotel room shortage that would necessitate 255 additional rooms.
Ocean City has an entertainment gap left by the loss of entertainment, and also a value gap between the cost of visiting and the value received. The resort does not address this; it actually makes it worse.
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The Boardwalk Subcommittee was formed to study the question of development carefully to:
gather facts,
consult the data,
develop a framework for a consequential decision, and
help find a workable compromise.
This is exactly the right approach, yet… some current city leaders have not worked to find compromise, and even actively undermined it at times.
Mayor Jay Gillian never supported it.
Council Member Pete Madden actively worked to undermine it.
Council Members Tony Polcini, Terry Crowley, and Jody Levchuk tried to derail it.
#2
Smart
Budgeting
Not Running Up Debt
The mishandled buck stops here. Time to fix the city’s books, turn around the deficit, and fund our future.
Property values are up.
Our tax base is growing.
So why are taxes rising every year?
Why is our debt spiraling?
Poor Fiscal Management—No More!
Under the watch of our current mayor (who recently declared personal bankruptcy and had to shutter the iconic, 60-year old Wonderland park), our city debt has more than tripled. Now, more than 20% of our revenue goes to paying off Ocean City’s debt service (principal and interest on loans).
Think about that: $1 of every $5 dollars in our budget is unmovable, paying off loan debt accrued largely in the last 15 years.
That’s too much. Rating agencies grow cautionary when that percentage exceeds 20%. Ours is 21% and growing. It’s even higher when we take into account other non-discretionary items like pension payments. This
Hamstrings our strategic investment ability
Challenges our debt rating
Causes our future debt cost to rise
To add insult to injury, current leaders also sought to give developers tax breaks while increasing our taxes!
Time to Elect Leadership Capable of Responsibly Handling Our Town’s Money
We need to invest in infrastructure. That is not the issue. The issue is finding other revenue sources, and tightly controlling your other non-capital expenses, to reduce the amount of debt you need to take on to undertake these projects. That is where other NJ shore towns have succeeded, but this city leadership has failed.
We deserve leadership that treats taxpayer money with the same discipline and care that a responsible business owner uses to run a successful business.
Benchmark city spending
Prioritizing investments
Eliminate unnecessary expenditures and inefficiencies
Providing visibility and financial transparency
Our Ocean City has every advantage. What it lacks is competent stewardship. Let’s change that this May at the ballot box.
#3
Smart
Development
Not Any Old Development
Thoughtful city planning respects our unique town character, our residents, and our resources for growth.
Our Ocean City welcomes progress, to build and rebuild. But we need to do so with a smart plan. And we need to remember our roots.
Let’s Grow, But Not at the Expense of Our Town’s Livability
We have all watched it happen.
Wrecking balls running unabated throughout the town.
Tearing down small homes and replacing them with six-bedroom structures.
Growing is a good thing—larger homes create a larger tax base and that helps create investment capacity in infrastructure and other needs that make for a healthy city.
The question is, When does bigger become too big? Too much?
And when does “too much” sacrifice an equally important economic factor — livability.
When our neighborhoods are filled with jammed party houses for three months ? And then empty vinyl mansions for the remainder of the year….
When parking is an Olympic sport all summer? With no medals and no glory…
When you can touch your neighbors house from yours, and neither of you ever see the sun?
When our porches disappear? And our engagement with each other as neighbors disappears…
These things are not just inconveniences They affect what it is like to live here, which has a direct impact on value.
So, not every new build needs to ”max it out.”
That’s not smart development. That’s over-development. Development that snarls traffic and parking, robs us of sunlight, wrecks neighborhood scale, and crushes basic livability. Growing is essential — but without growing out of control.
We Want Growth for OC That Is
Evidence-based
Data-driven
Sustainable
Strategic for long-term growth
Mindful of quality-of-life issues for the people who live and work in Ocean City