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Windmills Delayed (Full Details)
š” Ocean City, NJ's only weekly newsletter
Kyle Scott
September 01, 2023
As we head into the holiday weekend, we have some big news regarding offshore windmills and a list of improvements coming to Ocean City over the offseason.
Otherwise, a light email today.
In the email today:
š Upcoming events
šĀ Sponsor: Knockaround Sunglasses
š Windmill updates
ā¬ļø Upgrades
š³Ā Be careful in the water
š Real estate update
š Weather and tides
š Upcoming Events in (and around) Ocean City
September 1
Beach Concertā Red (Somers Point)
When: 7:00 p.m.
Where: William Morrow Beach
Description: 80s tribute.
September 2
Somers Point Farmers Market (Somers Point)
When: 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Where: Somers Mansion, 1000 Shore Rd.
Description: Itās a farmerās market, folks.
Concert Under The Starsā Elvis Tribute (Sea Isle)
When: 7:30 p.m.
Where: Excursion Park
Description: Free outdoor concert.
September 3
John Williams Strikes Back
When: 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Where: Music Pier
Description: The OC pops performs Star Wars and 80s movie music. Tickets here.
Stone Harbor Farmers Market (Stone Harbor)
When: 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Where: 95th Street and Second Ave.
Description: Farmerās market.
September 4
Labor Day Race
When: 9 a.m.
Where: 23rd Street Beach
Description: 5-mile run, 1-mile walk. Details here.
September 6
Farmers Market
When: 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Where: Tabernacle Grounds at 6th and Asbury
Description: Farmers market.
Maestro Lee at the Keys: Dueling Pianos Presented by the OC Pops
When: 7:30 pm. to 9:30 p.m.
Where: Music Pier
Description: Maestro Lee plays piano. Tickets here.
Also note the Ocean City Library has many events for adults and kids alike on their calendar, which can be viewed here.
You can see the full list of events in all nearby Shore towns with the following links: Ocean City | Sea Isle | Margate | Avalon | Stone Harbor | Somers Point | Wildwood | Cape May | Ventnor
Other events to look forward to: Street Rod Show (September 9), Corvette Show (September 10)
š Sponsor: Knockaround Sunglasses
Just so you know we fully endorse this oneā here is my collection:
Knockaround Sunglasses are perfect for the beach, Boardwalk, and basically everything you do down the Shore. They are ultra affordable (~$30), stylish, well-made, and feature UV400 protection (the highest UV protection) built into every pair. They literally block the sun better than my $200 pair of Ray-Bans, which I now wear only rarely because Knockarounds are just better for almost every daily use.
Whatās more, they have cool collaborations will also sorts of brands, including Major League Baseball, US Soccer, and even Shark Week.
You can get up to 15% off your first order by clicking here.
š¤³ News Bits
Windmill Updates (Lots of Them!) š
BIG NEWS over the past 48 hours: Danish offshore windmill company Orsted saw its stock plummet 20% after their recent earnings call and announcement that offshore wind projects in the US face significant headwinds (irony!).
There is a lot of conjecture floating around on social media right now about this. Hereās what this means (and doesnāt mean):
The windmills off our coast are delayed but not canceledā¦ yet
Ocean Wind 1 - the project off our coast - has been delayed and wonāt be operational until sometime in 2026, according to Orsted
It was originally supposed to be up and running in 2024, then it was delayed until 2025, now it is delayed until 2026
Orsted cites 3 reasons for the delay: 1) supply chain issues, 2) lack of additional tax credits from the US government, 3) high interest rates
Future wind projects at earlier stages in development by Orsted appear to be in jeopardy
Orsted has profitability concerns and is seeking a 40% tax credit on their investment from the US government vs. the 30% they are currently set to receive
Last month, New Jersey approved an additional ~$1 billion in tax credits to Orstedā those credits were originally supposed to go to utility customers
Protect Our Coast New Jersey, the predominant group against the project, said in a statement they plan to fight even harder
āPOCNJ is pleased by Orsted's announcement of a delay; however, we remain resolute in preventing the industrialization of the Atlantic Ocean and destruction of the New Jersey coastline. Despite the delay, it is anticipated wind developers will continue their preliminary construction work to place these gigantic structures off the coast of New Jersey. reconstruction test work along the 35th Street corridor between the beach and bay in Ocean City is scheduled to begin in early September. POCNJ will hold a press conference and walk on September 10 at the 35th Street beach in Ocean City at 12 Noon to provide updates on recently filed lawsuits and other actions being undertaken to prevent industrial development along our coast.ā
So, they still expect construction work related to a transmission line set to be laid under Ocean City.
Deeper dive: There are several planned wind projects off the East Coast of the United States. Ocean Wind 1 is the first major project in New Jersey, and it has received many green lights from regulatory bodies and the state.
Other projects, however, have faced hurdles for various reasons. There is plenty of public pushback, especially along coastal communities (as you are well aware).
Some of these projects, including Ocean Wind 1, began planning prior to the pandemic. Since then, supply chain issues, inflation, and higher interest rates have made it much more difficult for Orsted to operate profitablyā something that already required government tax credits.
This summer, Orsted threatened to pull manufacturing jobs from New Jersey and bring them overseas if they werenāt given additional tax credits from the state.
Governor Murphy rolled over and signed a bill giving Orsted nearly $1 billion in additional credits. These were supposed to go to utility customers.
Clearly that wasnāt enough, though, because Orsted is still pushing for additional credits. They want a 40% credit on their investment vs. the 30% they are currently set to receive, and there is an implicit threat that they may abandon all projects if they donāt get it.
Our take: Even proponents have said that for offshore wind to make a meaningful impact on the electrical grid it will require large-scale investments up and down the coast. Think thousands of windmills, not hundreds.
While Ocean Wind 1 is on the leading edge of the countryās desire for offshore wind, it only represents 98 windmills. If other projects are increasingly less likely to move forward, then why, on Earth, would you experiment with a one-off on one of the most densely populated, tourist-heavy section of beaches in the country, in a county with the countryās most expensive second homes?
The plan was for windmills to dot the coast from Massachusetts to Carolina. That would have generated a meaningful amount of electricity. Your stance on windmills as a source of clean energy aside, if a large-scale rollout is almost certainly off the table for various reasons, then why allow this single project to move forward and serve as an expensive beacon for a failed initiative?
Further reading
Lots of articles on this today:
Upgrades ā¬ļø
Last week, Mayor Gillian announced a slew of upgrades coming to Ocean City. You can read them all here, but here are a few highlights:
Beach replenishment coming to the South End between 45th Street and 59th Street this fallā project includes Sea Isle and Strathmere
New electric car chargers at 9th and Haven
Environmental remediation for the new open space between 16th Street and the Community Center will start after the fall block party
Paving West Avenue from North Street to 9th Street
New police substation coming to 8th and the Boardwalk sometime in 2024
Shore up pilings and beams under the Music Pier (Iāve always wondered how the hell that thing keeps standing)
Working to identify projects for the new $100 million Boardwalk Preservation Fund signed by Governor Murphy
Redoing the tennis courts - both hard and soft surface - at 5th Street
Approving construction plans for Grimes Field, which, if youāve ever been there, appears to be 8 feet under sea level
Going out to bid for a major drainage project for Merion Park
In the words of the great Jimmy Buffet in Fruitcakes: Your tax $ at work, folks.
News Links š
Free Wawa coffee for teachers in SeptemberĀ š©āš«
š³ Be Careful in the Water
This from Maddie Vitale at OCNJ Daily:
Although the hurricanes werenāt a direct threat to the New Jersey coast, they have churned up treacherous surf and rip currents at the shore in their wake.
Hurricane Franklin was moving over the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean, creating a steady stream of rip currents through Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
Rough surf may continue through the weekend. Here is a list of guarded beaches:
ā¢ Surf Road
ā¢ North Street
ā¢ St. Charles Place
ā¢ Brighton Place
ā¢ 8th Street (extended hours to 7 p.m.)
ā¢ 9th Street (extended hours to 7 p.m.)
ā¢ 10th Street
ā¢ 11th Street
ā¢ 12th Street (extended hours to 7 p.m.)
ā¢ 18th Street
ā¢ 24th Street
ā¢ 30th Street
ā¢ 34th Street (extended hours to 7 p.m.)
ā¢ 39th Street
ā¢ 50th Street
ā¢ 58th Street
Be careful out there.
Remember:
š Real Estate Update
Did you know Walking The Boards has a newsletter dedicated to Ocean City Real Estate?
If you would like to opt-in, just click the subscribe button right here:
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š Weather and Tides
As always, we recommend getting up-to-date forecasts from THE GOAT of South Jersey weather, NorEaster Nick, directly on his Facebook page. You can also download his app.
Tides (9th Street):
Friday (9/1)
Low: 3:26 AM
High: 9:28 AM
Low: 3:43 PM
High: 9:50 PM
Saturday (9/2)
Low: 4:12 AM
High: 10:17 AM
Low: 4:36 PM
High: 10:38 PM
Sunday (9/3)
Low: 4:58 AM
High: 11:07 AM
Low: 5:31 PM
High: 11:28 PM
Monday (9/4)
Low: 5:45 AM
High: 11:58 AM
Low: 6:29 PM
Tuesday (9/5)
High: 12:21 AM
Low: 6:35 AM
High: 12:53 PM
Low: 7:29 PM
Wednesday (9/6)
High: 1:18 AM
Low: 7:28 AM
High: 1:51 PM
Low: 8:34 PM
Thanks! Enjoy the weekend.