Maybe the Country Club is salvageable, after all
Commentary by Tom Stauss
A commentary in the May edition of the Progress took the position that the Ocean Pines Country Club is a prime candidate for a tear down and reconstruction. The premise of the commentary was that the building is an aging dinosaur, seldom used, in poor condition, and not very attractive.
The alternative suggestion was a much smaller building, at least as measured by square footage. The new building would house a golf pro shop and a restaurant, perhaps a bag room, but no lockers and showers. It could all be done on one level. And given the depressed state of the local building industry, it could probably be done inexpensively.
Recent “facts” have emerged that challenge some of those assumptions. It turns out that the old girl has some life in it, after all. Reports of its moribund status were premature.
For one thing, the Worcester County Board of Elections is giving a serious look at it as an Ocean Pines voting precinct, perhaps to replace the Ocean Pines Southside firehouse. Elections Board President Kay Hickman, an Ocean Pines resident, is quite enamored with it, and is not concerned about elderly voters having a tough time making it up the stairs to the second floor. The elevator is new and is in good working condition, she says.
Now there’s word that the Ocean Pines Players, the venerable acting troupe, will be staging a Neil Simon play there at the club during June. While it remains to be seen how conducive the Country Club is for a transmutation into the Bistro Theater, there’s no reason to think it can’t be successful. The seldom-used bar area might even get some business during intermission.
OPA General Manager Bob Thompson has also transferred some card games over to the Country Club from the new Community Center. He’s made some cosmetic improvements inside and some structural improvements on the outside, in the process fixing a leak that no doubt contributed to an odor of mildew and mold.
All of this leads to this conclusion: Maybe the Country Club is salvageable, after all.
Casper Golf apparently has found the kitchen to be in decent condition, and with some encouragement or old-fashioned initiative the company might find new ways to bring life back to the club.
Some renovation, maybe even a major rehab, might well be in order. The locker rooms truly are relics of the past; they could be eliminated, or at least reduced in size substantially, to create more room for a larger Tern Grille and, if needed, a larger pro shop.
These are all points to ponder as the OPA begins to consider the future of its aging amenities.
Uploaded: 6/1/2011
