Ocean View

The Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce’s (BFACC) 30th annual award-winning Bethany Beach Boardwalk Arts Festival is set for Saturday, Sept. 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The festival features jewelry, art glass, pottery, sculpture, watercolor and oil painting, basketry, woodworking and much more. And the event is bigger and better than ever this year, according to the Chamber.

The Millville Volunteer Fire Company will be holding a Texas Holdem Poker Tournament on Saturday, Aug. 23, at its firehouse on Route 26. Entry fee is $100, with two $25 re-buys available.

Doors open at 6 p.m.

Dealing begins at 7 p.m. You must be 21 or older to attend. Up to $80,00 in prize money paid out depending on player participation.

Concerns about finances in Ocean View and financial decisions made by the Ocean View Town Council have been the subject of heated debate for several years. But even this spring’s elections and change in the mayor and town council positions have not quelled the fire around the topic.

Pet owners in the Ocean View area have traditionally had to drive to either Dagsboro or Berlin, Md., to visit a veterinarian, but not anymore. On Aug. 4, the Ocean View Veterinary Hospital will open its doors. Located at 118 Atlantic Avenue, Suite 101, next to Lord Baltimore Elementary School, its hours of operation will be from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The Route 26 roadway improvement project planned for the 4 miles between St. George’s Church in Clarksville and the Assawoman Canal is now expected to begin in 2011 and conclude in 2014, according to the Delaware Department of Transportation’s (DelDOT’s) current schedule and funding, with work slated to be completed in one-mile sections.

This Saturday, July 26, the Ellen Rice Gallery in Ocean View will feature an evening of fine art and premiere paintings by Rice, fine cuisine by DiFebo’s restaurant and fine wine from Beach Liquors from 5 to 7 p.m. Patrons can also enjoy music from the ‘60s and ‘70s. And, for this one night only, everything in the store — excluding originals — will be 10 percent off.

When it comes to public participation in a community, in many cases the same people are involved in multiple organizations. Such is the case in Ocean View, where town council members are also involved in other town groups. But some say this is a conflict of interest, leading last week to a formal request for an investigation.

In an effort to give citizens ample time to speak on issues before the council, the Ocean View Town Council recently created a second citizen’s privilege opportunity.

In the past, police officers in Ocean View have been able to take their vehicles home, even during shifts when they didn’t work. Now, a new policy passed by town council only allows the officers to take the police cars home during the nights and days when the officers have worked.

The new policy was passed 4-1, with only Councilman Bill Wichmann in opposition.

Several Ocean View town employees will be getting new offices in the public safety building. The move was approved Tuesday, July 8, by the town council after a presentation on space utilization by Town Manager Conway Gregory.

But some residents say the move is a waste of prime space and of money the town doesn’t have.

Next week, the 17th Annual Beach and Bay Cottage Tour, benefiting the Friends of the South Coastal Library (FOSCL), will once again return to the area, allowing participants to walk through 10 exquisite homes throughout the Bethany Beach and Fenwick Island areas.

With a contract for the design and construction of the new Indian River Inlet Bridge expected to be awarded in July, Skanska USA Civil Southeast Inc. is the apparent winning design-build team for the project, which could start construction in early fall, to carry traffic no later than December 2011.

What better way to celebrate Independence Day than with the charm of a small-town parade? In the Bethany Beach area, parade lovers have the opportunity to attend two! In addition to the traditional downtown Bethany Beach parade, the Ocean View community of Bear Trap will celebrate the Fourth of July in style with a parade of its own.

CurveSmart, the revolutionary technology five years in the making, is available at two local Curves studios, in Ocean View and on Route 54 in Williamsville Country Village.

It’s good to be first. In a real estate market that is struggling to get back on its feet, it’s easy to focus on the struggles and hefty competition and much harder to get recognized for doing something positive and out of the ordinary. But that is just what Bob Thornton of SilverWoods has managed to do.

Troopers seek information on suspect

The Delaware State Police mid-week were investigating a robbery that occurred Monday, June 30, about10:15 p.m., after a person imposing as a police officer allegedly stopped a motorist and took their wallet.

With a contract for the design and construction of the new Indian River Inlet Bridge expected to be awarded in July, Skanska USA Civil Southeast Inc. is the apparent winning design-build team for the project, which could start construction in early fall, to carry traffic no later than December 2011.

Late spring and early summer thunderstorms have brought a bevy of rain to the area, causing lawns to explode with growth and grass to grow well higher than a grasshopper’s eye. For some area property owners, that has meant extra time spent mowing their lawns. For others, it has meant letters from town hall, official citations, fines and even expensive mowing fees.

The Ocean View Town Council on Tuesday, June 10, in a marathon session that lasted until past 1 a.m. on June 11, moved to adopt a series of cost-cutting measures for the town, which Councilman Perry Mitchell soon afterward described as reversing “much of the town policy for the last three years."

For Barbara Farrell of Ocean View, the Ocean View Police Department’s Senior Check-in Program is one of the best things about living near the beach.

“I’m a widow and I’m here by myself. And just knowing that they’re looking out for me, I’m not afraid to be here. I really can’t say enough about it,” she said about the program.

Mike Mercer has worked at Counter Source Industries (CSI) for six years, and his wife, Sandy, has worked there for two. Now, they own the store, but they plan to keep things pretty much the same, continuing a successful owner-employee partnership that led them to buy the business.

The Ocean View Town Council voted on Tuesday, June 10, to table discussion on a proposed new gas station on Route 26 until its July meeting.

Views were split in the packed town hall Tuesday. This was the second public hearing held by the town council on the gas station proposal, following hearings on the issue before the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission earlier this spring.

Ocean View officials on May 31 aired a proposal for a drainage project that would aim to improve flooding problems in the West View development and its vicinity.

As Ocean View battles falling transfer taxes, the growing-pains of past annexations and the long-term consequences of past spending decisions, the town is also looking to its future, as the first stage of drafting the town’s five-year comprehensive plan update takes place.

Strong winds and heavy rain hit the area late on Wednesday afternoon, as residents braced for possible severe weather while under a tornado watch that covered the entire Delmarva Peninsula until 8 p.m.

This year’s Ecumenical Vacation Bible School (EVBS) will be called “Rainforest Adventure” and will be held at Mariner’s Bethel United Methodist Church in Ocean View, at Route 26 and Central Avenue, from Monday, June 16, to Friday, June 20, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. each day.

For Mike Kappes and his kin, family is truly everything. Next Saturday, May 31, they will reiterate the importance of support from loved ones as they host their 3rd Annual Wine Tasting and Silent Auction at Bear Trap Country Club, to benefit the Ryan Scott Kappes Foundation.

Ocean View resident Wally Brown dropped a bombshell on town council members at their Wednesday, May 7, meeting, revealing his intention to file a lawsuit against council members over the town’s requirement for all property owners to connect to the town’s new central water system.

Homeowners packed the seats, and left standing-room only in Ocean View Town Hall last Wednesday, May 7, during the monthly town council meeting, as the town hosted the first of two public hearings for an ordinance that could allow a new gas station along Route 26.

For Dana Banks, owner of The Parkway Restaurant in Bethany Beach, the most exciting thing about taking over the Royal Zephyr restaurant in Ocean View is the fact that she’ll be able to cook like she cooks at home.