By Greg Ellison

(Sept. 17, 2020) Despite coronavirus slowing down most aspects of life during 2020, the Ocean Pines Beach Club, which closed for the season after Labor Day Weekend, managed to stay afloat financially with hopes of a return to normalcy by next summer season.

Matt Ortt Companies cofounder Ralph DeAngelus said the Beach Club was able to open over Memorial Day Weekend, initially for carryout service only due to state-issued covid-19 safety precautions.

“Which really didn’t help us at the Beach Club if people were going to get food,” he said. “It’s not really a giant carryout place.”

One saving grace during the opening weekend at the Beach Club was the ability to serve carryout drinks.

“Memorial Day Weekend was a disaster compared to last year,” he said. “Once we were allowed to serve on the deck, that helped us.”

By the weekend after Memorial Day, reopening plans in Maryland were expanded to include limited outside dining.

On May 27 an executive order from Gov. Larry Hogan permitted Maryland food and beverage establishments to begin serving patrons outdoors under social-distancing guidelines.

“The biggest problem all year was the pool,” he said. “The pool being [initially] limited to 25 percent capacity really hurt us.”

DeAngelus said pool capacity restrictions, which were later increased to 50 percent, had the largest impact on business volume at the Beach Club.

“The Beach Club is a destination location for the pool and ocean,” he said. “You don’t come to … eat or drink. That’s what you do there, but you do it because of the beach and the ocean.”

Patrons dissuaded from using pool facilities because of head count limits often left the Beach Club without indulging in food and drinks.

“So we might get one drink out of the person that couldn’t get to the pool,” he said. “Sometimes people would not be able to get in the pool and then go to beach.”

DeAngelus said what helped keep profit margins in the black this season at the Beach Club was receipt of Payroll Protection Program funds totaling $250,000.

“We were able to use all of it for labor because we don’t have rent or utilities,” he said.

DeAngelus said the financial picture would have been disastrous without the federal support.

“PPP completely salvaged our food and beverage operations,” he said.

DeAngelus said the Matt Ortt Companies were able to use the entire PPP allotment within prescribed time frames solely for labor costs.

“The biggest financial push was obviously the Yacht Club, but originally the managers from the Beach Club before we got going were working at the Yacht Club and they were on PPP.”

DeAngelus said keeping staff members employed before restaurants were allowed to open helped food operations launch efficiently.

“We were able to open seven days a week … because we used our PPP money wisely to pay our staff,” he said.

DeAngelus said staffing shortages were largely avoided by keeping managers engaged before reopening in late May.

“They didn’t go anywhere else to get a job or decide to quit in general,” he said.

Lack of banquet events at the Beach Club also dealt a financial blow.

“We didn’t do any banquets [and] the upstairs at the Beach Club was not used one single time,” he said.

DeAngelus estimates at least a half-dozen catered events were cancelled at the Beach Club this summer.

“It’s at least $60,000 in lost revenue,” he said.

By comparison, DeAngelus estimated loses of $250,000 for banquet services at the Yacht Club.

DeAngelus said looking ahead a number of private events are already planned for 2021, with hopes of a vaccine being developed for coronavirus by that point.

“We’ve already got banquets booked for next year,” he said.