Get Answers from the OC Insiders

As Bill indicated, vehicles this size are not allowed to park in public lots or on public streets in OC from 1 June to 15 September.

Some places where you can park are:

You can park in the West OC Park and Ride for the day, but you cannot park overnight there. This lot is on the south side of Route 50, just west of the Route 50 bridge to OC. You cannot park there overnight. See the image below for the regulations for the West OC lot.

The First Presbyterian Church at 13th Street has parking. Call them at 410.289.9340 for reservations and fees.

The Kitchen, a restaurant on Wicomico Street in downtown Ocean City used to have parking and may still. Fee charged. This is just a couple of blocks from the inlet parking lot. Call 410.289.2244 for more information.

You can also try Frontier Town and Castaways campgrounds.

You can get lots more info here.

Here is the info for the Park & Ride lot:

If you go back behind the ocean block near 4th Street you can likely find free street parking near St Louis Avenue. Side streets north of about 10th Street also have free parking. I have parked my cars on side streets in many areas of OC for several days at a time and never had any issues. The most important thing to check for is if there are times that you are not allowed to park at a location. Some places have a few hours each week where parking is prohibited to allow for trash pickup or street cleaning.

I would have to say that if you are guaranteed the time of year that you want each and every year, then I'd go for it if it makes financial sense for you.  The only nightmare I've heard regarding "time shares" per say is that people buy in, and can't get the time period they want...... so, I'd ask a lot of logistical questions before committing.... How many people are part of the time share?  How far out can you "pre-arrange" dates?  Etc........ I'd base my decision on whether I can get the time share at the time I want to be in Ocean City each year.  Hope that helps.

I highly recommend Nic Hills.  She does beautiful work and beach photography is her speciality.  Check out her work here:

https://www.facebook.com/nichillsphotography

A few years ago we had our family portraits done by The Photographer's Studio (410.250.1300). They did an excellent job. They are not inexpensive, but they are on par price wise with most professional studios and do an outstanding job. They shoot all high end digital and can do touch ups as necessary. They also have a real dune at the studio where they can control the lighting and environment very well (we used it and everyone thinks we shot on the beach), but they will shoot your pictures on the real beach or wherever you want. We will use them again next time we get a family photo done at the beach. Even if you don't use them, take a look at their website. It has lots of great tips for planning a successful beach photo shoot.

There are no wedding chapels in OC, but there are lots of nice historc churches in the area.

Although it will likey be too cold, you can use the beach for your wedding, but you need to coordinate a time and location with the Mayor's Office. You can call them at 410.289.8931 to do this. There is no fee. There is some more information here.
 Northside Park and Sunset Park are also very nice areas you could consider. Contact the Parks Department (410.250.0125) to get information on planning an event at any of OC's parks.

I'd suggest working with one of OC's wedding planning companies. They can offer you anything from just an officiant for the event to a full blown package. Here are some places that do planning and that can provide someone to officiate at your wedding:
Weddings by the Seashore 800.884.0026
Ocean City Wedding Pastor 410.603.9918
Beach Weddings by Rox 866.472.3012

You can get moire information about legal requirements for getting married in OC on this site.

Have a great wedding in OC!

The rules on street performers have changed over the past few years, and likely will continue to be refined. However, the bottom line is that they are allowed and they can be tipped. It becomes more of a grey area when they are selling products like artwork or similar that they produce. If you want more info you can contact the City Clerk's Office (410.289.8842). You can also review the street performer rules here.

Certain spots had it worse than others......... I went back to look over some photos that were taken at 118th Street and it appears that they didn't sustain too much damage to the beach......... I assure you that by the time you arrive in Ocean City, you'll see no evidence of beach erosion in the 115th Street...... whatever needs restored will be long before the summer season begins.

You can find a summary of all of the most broadly relevant ordinances, rules, and regulations on this Town Ordinances page.

You can review recently ratified ordinances on this page

Ocean city's entire city code is available at Municode.com. You can access it via this link. This site appears to be current into August 2012.

Keep in mind that OC is also governed by Worcester County codes and State of Maryland codes, so all ordinances are not necessarily covered by the sites I have identified.

Bench dedications cost $1,700 which covers the cost of the bench and the plaque. They are handled by the Department of Public Works. I recommend calling them at 410.524.0391 to get more information. Don't delay, at the start of last summer there were less than 100 benches left to purchase for dedication, and they expected them to be sold by the end of the year.

From their website (http://oceancitymd.gov/public_works/benchdedication.html):
The Public Works Maintenance Division is offering individuals the opportunity to purchase a bench and plaque in honor of or in memory of a loved one or friend. The benches are located on the boardwalk from the Inlet to 27th Street. The cost for the bench and plaque is $1,700. Please contact the Public Works Maintenance Division at (410) 524-0391 to obtain the bench dedication form that will need to be completed.