Online Registration for Summer Rec Opens Monday

For the first time, registration for Ocean City summer recreation programs will be available online and in-person at the same time this year -- and it opens at 9 a.m. Monday, May 2.

The city offers a diverse and popular mix of summer activities for youths and adults, and in recent years, registration has entailed waiting in line at the Ocean City Sports and Civic Center on a Saturday in June for sign-ups. Many parents arrived far in advance of the registration opening, beach chairs and coffee in hand, to make sure they could secure spots before programs filled up.

Online registration was available last year, but it opened up only two days after in-person registration was complete.

The 2011 summer recreation brochure is posted on the city's website. Click here to view it.

At the same time online registration opens on Monday morning, live registration will be held at the City Hall Annex at 9th Street and Asbury Avenue.

The programs will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis, according to Recreation Manager Wendy Moyle.

Moyle encourages families and individuals interested in participating to create a CommunityPass account in advance of May 2. The CommunityPass system will be used for the online registration process. If information is entered in advance, families will be able to visit the site on May 2 and simply "do their shopping," Moyle said.

A "Register Now" link to sign up for a CommunityPass account is available on the Recreation Department page of the city's website.

The city's lineup of summer programs covers sports — including basketball, tennis, field hockey, soccer and lacrosse. It covers ages from men's and women's leagues to "Biddy" leagues for young children.

It covers a variety of interests from arts and crafts to Little Miss Ocean City to lifeguard and firefighter camps. Venues stretch from the Civic Center just off the Boardwalk to the Bayside Center to the Aquatics and Fitness Center at 17th Street and Simpson Avenue.

Moyle said some of the quickest programs to fill are the gymnastics and theater programs.