In the first time in Ocean City history, a boarding house will be created with the goal of housing many international student workers while they work at resort businesses in the summertime.
Following an hour-long discussion, the Planning and Zoning Commission approved a site plan to convert roughly 5,900 square feet of the 10,950-square-foot commercial space on 84th Street into a 15-room lodging house that would accommodate 56 student workers.
The preliminary plans called for 16-bedroom facility that would house 72 J-1 visa students, all of whom would work at the Ropewalk Restaurant on 82nd Street this summer. Four students would be put in a bedroom, each sized at 160 square feet with closet space, which is accordance to Ocean City’s building code. Few of the bedrooms would have windows, but the building would have a sprinkler system.
Some commission members had reservations on the final project.
“Prison cells have more amenities than this,” Commission member Palmer Gillis told Chris Reda, the Ropewalk owner and site plan applicant. “I have a hard time seeing four people living in rooms like this.”
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26 comments:
It's about time! This has been suggested for about 30 years.
Why stop there with such a limited housing capability? And why just foreign workers?
So why just international students? Why not all Students that want to work in OC?
“Prison cells have more amenities than this,” Commission member Palmer Gillis told Chris Reda
Mr. Gillis, I suggest you visit a modern US Navy warship and see the amount of space one of today's Sailors has to live in. We would be more then happy with 4 people to 160 sq.ft.
What about American workers.
So once again they're bending over backwards for the foreign workers, while ignoring the local labor pool. For years now, not many students or young adults stand a chance at a job in OC, while your server doesn't even understand the language!
These students didn't join the military, you did. College is way more fun and leads to more better earning potential over a life time.
If I were coming to OC to work, I'd jump at the chance to have housing like this. It would be a dorm room, nothing fancy, but inexpensive and safe, the two things that OC is often short on.
Gillis must not be making any money on this. He's against anything he's not building.
Ocean City would approve most anything to add to the tax base and stack, pack and crowd the island.
4:22 When I was a teen in the 80"s, we fought over jobs and housing each spring. None of the teens i talk to now have any desire to work a summer job. A few have camps they go to for sports or science and they rest sleep most of the day and hang with their friends at a pool or go boating/tubing. None of them work.
They are not there on vacation. They are there to work and make as much money as they can. They do not need a vacation room to hang out in. Amenities are not necessary, except for safe sleeping quarters. It's a good deal, and more businesses should provide living quarters for their summer labor. For what the summer workers are paid, they cannot afford the summer rates for housing that are charged to tourists. At those rates, they are being exploited by OC, pure and simple(and have been for years).
My teens work a summer jobs at the beach. While they make a profit each summer, housing costs eat up much of it. All they need is a secure room. Bunk beds are fine. They're never at their apartment except to sleep and eat ramen, between working two jobs and enjoying a bit of beach time. I've met many foreign students over the years and they're motivated, but so are many American young people!!
Travel back and forth to Salisbury is cost and time prohibitive too. There are lots of local teens who would love to work in OC and surrounding areas if an affordable housing option was available!
4:32 I joined the military and retired from all work at age 50 w/o ever going to college. Own my home and don't have any debt. Have a nice guaranteed income plus over half a million in savings. How about you DA? Also what is with the "more better". As far as college being way more fun, you obviously have never been to Florida for spring break, or Paris in the spring, or the Caribbean in the winter, or Ireland in the spring, or NYC for fleet week, or NOLA for Mardi Gras, or Rio,Palma,Monte Carlo all for free.
He wasn't against building it. He wants it built like a Hilton.
Because they won't work as cheap as the Russians and Eastern Europeans.
Do all J-1 visa holders get a room? I ask because if not you will have 3 bedroom apartments with 5 on the lease, 7 more subletting. I already believe this will end up being a huge burden on the towns police.
If this happens and that many foreign workers crowd that establishment, I nor my family, will patronize this restaurant. I support local businesses that hire local workers. And if your kids won't work, it's because you haven't taught them the importance of hard work, college or not. America First. Period.
8:21 Great for you, it's a shame that the crappy local diner closed in Pittsville or wherever. Probably one of your favorites right? Supported him right out of business.
6:49
Two degrees, retired before 45, own 3 homes in 3 different states and 1 abroad. Only 1 mortgage for tax purposes to off set some passive income. I'm sure you had a blast in those port towns and went back to crawl in a bunk with your best boat buddy.
Glad you made it. Most don't even get out alive. Statistics show those with college and post grad degrees earn significantly more money than HS or GED graduates.
2:44 said it before I could. Gillis should spend some time in the fleet (and keep his comments to himself). If he had gotten the contract he would have been praising this facility.
I just had this discussion yesterday. What happened to hiring local teens? Keep the money in our communities! I'm not against foreign workers, but local teens depend on the resort for summer jobs because they fit the school sessions. I know plenty of teens who want to work, but a lot of year-round employers don't want the hassle of trying to work around a student's schedule! Is this housing also available to local teens who work in OC? Isn't that discrimination to deny them because they aren't on a visa? Walking a slippery slope here!
The thing is Trump Administration is starting to put the kibosh on this foreign worker VISA program so OC is assuming they'll be able to continue hiring foreigners. An assumption wise people wouldn't make in this day and age. It's a new era in our country, time for the antiquated relics at OC's City Hall came to grips with the changing tides. Agree with 1001, we do need to go back to the old days where kids from Salisbury and surrounding areas could go to OC and get summer jobs. A long forgotten era, it appears history may make a full circle back to the good old days once again!
Then we don't talk to the same "teens"! Al the teens my child associates with all have the same complaint: can't find a summer job because everyone wants year round or the foreign workers have all the beach jobs. Jolly Roger is THE perfect example. Very few employees speak English. Then they make fun of customers in their native language. Imagine his surprise when I cussed him out in Russian!
To all who say the hotels should hire locals I say this. By mid May the hotels and restaurants have already got their extra help hired 2-3 weeks before US students even think about looking for a summer job. Then most of the foreign students stay until after Labor day 2 weeks after most of the US students have gone back to school. OC needs workers from mid May(Spring fest and Mothers day) till end of September(Summerfest, etc.) In 6 years of working at a hotel in OC I only saw 3 local students apply for a job, 1 of which was hired because they had applied at the end of May.
4/22 @ 10:22
That's Bull. Every year major beach attractions close down before the close of the season because all their foreign workers' visas were up. Again, Jolly Roger is an example. Perhaps those employers should be going to the job fairs at the county schools (one is tues night). Lots of high school juniors and seniors looking for jobs to get a start on college $. I'll tell you why they don't. It's cheaper to hire J-1 visa workers. They can treat them like slaves and cattle because if they get fired they go back home. Employers and the visa worker also don't have to pay certain taxes. They hurt our community in more ways than one. The program is intended to be educational:
"Many hospitality employers use the Exchange Visitor Program which is intended to promote mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries by educational and cultural exchanges. Under the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, foreign students are allowed to enter the United States under J-1 visas as part of a specific training and internship program or as part of a college exchange program.
Since the primary purpose is education and cultural exchange, host organizations must provide training, oversight, and similar learning activities, and must not use J-1 workers to displace American workers or to serve a specific labor need."
Check the last sentence. The program is being abused. I hope our president takes further steps to enforce the guidelines that are in place for ALL visa workers and illegal immigrants. Maybe then our kids and seniors will have half a chance. And SS will become strong again. I know it will be bankrupt when my turn comes. 👎
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