OCEAN CITY — The Ocean City Regional Chamber of Commerce has thrown its weight behind a controversial boardwalk hotel project.
In a news release issued about 5 p.m. Thursday, May 22, the chamber said members met with Eustace Mita, who owns the former Wonderland Pier amusement park site at Sixth Street and the boardwalk, and has decided his proposal for a 252-room hotel there aligns with the chamber’s mission.
“Following careful review and discussion, the chamber’s Board of Directors feel this project aligns with our mission and voted to support the project, contingent upon several key recommendations aimed at ensuring alignment with the character and values of the community,” the release stated. “The chamber recognizes the importance of preserving Ocean City’s unique identity while embracing thoughtful development.”
The chamber made several recommendations:
– A comprehensive traffic study to evaluate and address potential congestion and infrastructure impacts.
– Ongoing community engagement to secure neighbor input and build consensus.
– Preservation of Ocean City’s traditional charm and appeal.
– A strong commitment from the developer to act as a responsible neighbor and community partner.
– Collaboration with the local business community to ensure inclusive economic benefit.
– Donation of the iconic giant wheel to the city as a symbol of goodwill and legacy.
Mita helped rescue Wonderland Pier in early 2021 after a bank called in $8 million in loans owed on it by owner Jay Gillian, Ocean City’s mayor. He paid off the loans and bought the property and leased it back to Gillian to allow the amusement park, one of Ocean City’s iconic attractions, to continue to operate.
However, in August 2024, Gillian announced it was no longer financially viable and announced it would be closing after nearly 60 years in mid-October 2024.
Gillian’s father, Roy Gillian, former mayor of Ocean City, opened Wonderland Pier at the location and sold it to his son after he retired. Gillian’s grandfather opened Gillian’s Fun Deck nearly a century ago and Roy worked for his own father before striking out on his own with Wonderland Pier.
Mita made several public presentations in fall 2024 about his proposal for a 252-room boardwalk hotel at the site that would include about a dozen shops and would retain a few rides including the giant wheel, the century-old carousel and jet boats. The project would cost between $135 million and $150 million, Mita estimated.
Mita owns Icona Resorts, which operates high-end hotels in Cape May, Wildwood Crest, Avalon and Stone Harbor, and Achristavest Fine Home Builders, a construction company focused on luxury homes.
His plan has met with some support and significant opposition from community groups and neighbors opposed to a hotel. Current zoning does not allow boardwalk hotels and the opponents have been lobbying Ocean City Council not to allow changes.
The citizens group Friends of OCNJ History & Culture and the advocacy group Ocean City 2050 have formed since Mita’s announcement about the hotel and are actively opposing it.
After seeing the chamber’s news release, Bill Merritt, one of the principles of both groups, responded by saying Ocean City 2050 “welcomed the news” from the chamber but focused on the “critical conditions” it presented for Mita’s proposal, known as ICONA at Wonderland.
Merritt, in a letter to the Sentinel (see the full letter on the commentary page in this week’s newspaper), cited the “comprehensive traffic study, securing neighbor input and building community consensus, preserving Ocean City’s traditional charm, and a strong commitment to acting as a responsible neighbor and community partner.
“These are important, values-based conditions,” he wrote. “And it’s important to note, the current design can’t possibly satisfy them.”
His interpretation of the chamber’s announcement is that “the takeaway is that a meaningful discussion needs to start and the current high-rise resort design proposal needs to change.”
Merritt wrote that the hotel as planned couldn’t be a responsible neighbor because it would tower over them and would not preserve the city’s charm because boardwalk high-rises have been “vociferously opposed for decades.” ICONA at Wonderland is a seven-story structure.
He said the group applauded the request for a traffic study and added there also should be a study related to market need, sewage and environmental impact.
“There’s a path forward, but it will involve a significant redesign — one that may include reducing scale, reintroducing amusements that drive foot traffic or rethinking the site’s purpose entirely. In fact, the best solution may be a completely different vision — one shaped by the community from the start,” Merritt wrote. He added that “if the conditions the chamber have set forward for this boardwalk proposal can’t be met, then their support should also evaporate.”
The chamber concluded its release by saying “the business community believes this project represents a rare opportunity to both preserve and grow all segments of the local economy, serving as a potential model for community-centered development.
“As Ocean City continues to navigate the challenges of operating within an over-regulated and heavily taxed state, projects like this demonstrate the possibility of attracting meaningful investment that benefits residents, visitors and businesses alike — without compromising the town’s core values.”
– By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
