Application deadline May 10; Association will elect three to board of directors

By Josh Davis, Associate Editor

(April 19, 2018) Ocean Pines officials are encouraging homeowners in good standing to file for board of directors candidacy ahead of the May 10 application deadline.

Three slots will be available on the seven-member panel this year.

“For anyone interested in public service, the Ocean Pines Board of Directors is the avenue in which you can make a difference,” Denise Sawyer, director of Marketing and Public Relations for the Ocean Pines Association, said. “Property owners who are passionate about Ocean Pines and its progress are encouraged to run for election.”

Association Secretary Colette Horn encouraged people from all walks of life to file.

“One of the things that [Association President] Doug [Parks] and I discussed informally about the search and the election process is the importance of letting it be known far and wide that all different kinds of people are needed,” she said. “We don’t need just one toolbox, one skill set in directors. The more diverse the board is, in some ways, the more rich the conversation is.”

According to association bylaws, “The affairs and business of the association shall be managed by a board of seven directors, each of whom shall be a member of the association eligible to vote. The terms of the directors shall be for three years and until their respective successors are duly selected. No member of the board of directors may at the same time be an employee of the association.”

To be eligible, candidates must be “one of the owners of record of real property in the subdivision on the first day of January of the year in which the election is to be held and eligible to vote under Section 3.01(c). No member may be a candidate for election as a Director of the Association if he or she is an incumbent Director completing a second consecutive elected full term of office.”

Section 3.01(c) states, “Payment of the annual charge levied by the board of directors is a prerequisite to the right to vote. No member may vote if, thirty-five days prior to the voting deadline, the member has failed to pay the annual charge, including any assessed interest levied by the association. The voting rights of a member may also be suspended during any period the member is in continuing violation of the Declarations of Restrictions after the existence of the violation has been declared by the board of directors.”

Candidate applications can be obtained from the administration building on 239 Ocean Parkway, online at www.oceanpines.org/forms-docs-cat/board-member-application, or from any member of the Ocean Pines Search Committee. For a full list of committee members, visit www.oceanpines.org/administration/advisory-committees/search-committee.

Per association bylaws, at least two more applicants than vacancies are required. This year, because there are three vacancies, at least five are needed. Three have filed as of press time.

A candidate information meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 26 at 7 p.m. in the East Room of the Ocean Pines Community Center on 235 Ocean Parkway.

According to a press release, “The meeting aims to outline the responsibilities of board members, describe the qualifications of the candidates, and receive input from attendees about finding interested candidates.”

Search Committee Chairman Ken Koroknay said he is working to promote the meeting, to include Parks and members of the elections committee as well.

“Past history would suggest this doesn’t get a lot of foot traffic, but I think there’s at least a couple people that have contacted me that are going to show up,” he said. “My thinking is any candidate can read the bylaws, any candidate can read the application … but the idea is to let them know this is kind of an open session.”

He said the intention is to give “a little bit more color to the election process.”

“You don’t have to view it as some kind of a torture chamber out of an Edgar Allen Poe novel,” he said. “We’re trying to make them a little more comfortable as what they might look at and feel during those summer months [during the campaign], and also give a little background … as to the director role – how much personal time it takes … to be a director, what are the most effective ways to be a director, how do you do work sessions and committee assignments – a little bit of background information you might not otherwise get from the bylaws.

“Let that person say, ‘Yeah, I think that kind of fits my profile. I think I could be successful in that role.’ Or, perhaps they might learn something and say, ‘Nah, this year is not my year to run,’” Koroknay added.

The association recently updated its list of important upcoming elections dates. They are:

• Friday, June 8: Candidates will draw for position on the ballot, 11 a.m. at the Ocean Pines Administration Building, boardroom
• Wednesday, June 20: Candidates’ forum, 7 p.m. at the Ocean Pines Community Center
• Tuesday, July 3: Cutoff for Ocean Pines voter eligibility
• Tuesday, July 10: Ballots are mailed
• Saturday, July 14: Possible second candidates’ forum, 10 a.m. at the Ocean Pines Community Center (if deemed necessary by elections committee)
• Wednesday, Aug. 8: Deadline for ballot receipt
• Friday, Aug. 10: Ballots counted and announced
• Saturday, Aug. 11: Annual meeting/validation of election results, 10 a.m. at the Ocean Pines Community Center, Assateague Room

For more information, call 410-641-7717 or email elections@oceanpines.org.