Ocean City Rallies Behind Idea of a Low-Cost Downtown Makeover

A group of citizens will walk Asbury Avenue at 8 a.m. Monday morning (March 5) looking for opportunities to improve signage in Ocean City's downtown shopping district.

Another group will set out at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday to envision ways to improve landscaping.

The two groups are the end result of a public forum Thursday night (March 1) that invited suggestions for capital improvements to the downtown Ocean City shopping district. The forum took place at the .

Ocean City resident Michael Hinchman organized the forum and invited citizens, downtown merchants and city officials to attend. Hinchman is president of the community organization Fairness in Taxes and a failed 2010 mayoral candidate, but he was acting Thursday only as a citizen interested in taking advantage of what he calls a rare opportunity.

Hinchman said the completion of the $400 million Route 52 causeway project this spring and the opening of a "vibrant downtown anchor" in the form of a new gallery of co-op vendors at the former Stainton's department store gives Ocean City a brief chance to draw new attention to what he considers an already charming downtown shopping district.

Like many traditional "Main Streets" in American towns, Ocean City's Asbury Avenue shopping district has struggled at times to remain prosperous. "The Avenue" in Ocean City faces some unique challenges in seasonal population swings, a diminishing year-round population and competition from a high-profile big sister — the Boardwalk.

About 60 people attended Thursday night's forum, and Hinchman succeeded in focusing the group on a singular purpose: identifying low-cost improvements to the downtown.

The focus and the idea that many of the suggestions could actually be achieved seemed to energize the group, and a vision began to take shape — with flags and plants, lights and signs, doing the work of helping people to find, navigate and enjoy Ocean City's downtown district.

Leslie Skibo, president of Ocean City's Community Art Projects, suggested something as simple as colorful flags lining Ninth Street could help preserve "the excitement of coming down off the bridge."

Mayor Jay Gillian said the city is looking into an archway sign that could welcome visitors to the downtown district, and he said a renovation of the shoebox-shaped City Hall Annex at the downtown's central intersection (Ninth Street and Asbury Avenue) will be complete by summer. The renovated annex will include restrooms and a grass-covered pocket park along the Ninth Street side of the building.

Many of the suggestions dealt with keeping bicyclists off the sidewalks in the district.

"I know riding on the sidewalks is a problem," Drew Fasy said. "But right now, riding on the streets is a problem, too."

He suggested that "traffic-calming" measures could discourage through-traffic on Asbury Avenue and give bicyclists a safer place to ride.

A slideshow compiled by Tom Heist showed one example of "traffic-calming" that seemed to be popular with the group: curb extensions or "bumpouts" that could be constructed in the place of the yellow no-parking lines near intersections. The bumpouts would narrow the road near intersections, giving cars a visual reminder to slow down. But they could also be home to landscaping to give the downtown a greener look.

Heist's presentation also included examples of way-finding signs that could help visitors find parking and attractions, and informational directories that could list the locations of stores.

Summing up a wide-ranging set of ideas, Hinchman suggested that a short list of achievable improvements might include: flags, inexpensive lights in trees, landscaping, signs, the Annex improvements and possibly universal wi-fi access for the downtown (suggested by Ocean City resident Vic Staniec).

He solicited volunteers for the groups walking the Avenue next week. They'll work to identify specific suggestions, and he said a second public forum could be scheduled as early as two weeks from now.