UPDATED: Ocean City Voters Say No to Short Term Rental Restrictions
UPDATED 07/22/25 – The Special Election Referendum question has been defeated. The ordinance passed by the Mayor and Council earlier this year will not remain in effect. This affects only the R-1 Single Family and MH Mobile Home Residential Districts.
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UPDATED – 07/20/25 – Voters in Ocean City will vote on Tuesday, July 22 on a referendum question that would impose the length of stay for homes in the R-1 Single Family Residential District and the MH Mobile Home Residential District. The Mayor and Council approved an ordinance 2025-04 on March 3, 2025 that imposes a 31 consecutive overnight minimum length of stay for any dwelling in these residential districts beginning on January 1, 2027.
The deadline for voter registration has ended, but if you need an absentee ballot – you can request an absentee ballot through 4:30pm on Monday, July 21. An Absentee Ballot Application must be received by the Board of Supervisors of Elections of Ocean City, c/o the Office of the City Clerk, 301 N. Baltimore Avenue, Ocean City, Maryland, 21842, no later than 4:30 p.m. on Monday, July 21, 2025. Please allow ample time to receive the ballot in the mail and to return the ballot to the Board of Supervisors of Elections (c/o the City Clerk’s Office).
The special election will take place on Tuesday, July 22 from 7am to 8pm at the Roland E. Powell Convention Center.
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UPDATED – 04/28/25 – On Monday, Mayor Rick Meehan told the Talk of Delmarva’s Mike Bradley that the Board of Elections is scheduled to have an administrative meeting in early May and may use that time for validating the signatures on the petition. He also added that the City has never discussed extending the short term rental ordinance to any other areas in town. The R-1 and M-H zoning districts are about 3% to 4% of the overall rental properties in Ocean City – there are still well over 9000 rental properties available without the short term rental restriction.
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A petition with over 1300 signatures has been submitted to the Town of Ocean City for a referendum on the short term rental restrictions for the R-1 residential and M-H mobile home zoning districts. Now the city’s election board has to validate the signatures. According to the city’s ordinance 2025-04 on the petition process – the current ordinance limiting these neighborhoods to a 5-day minimum length of stay remains in effect – until an election is held. The Council can decide to hold a special election or wait until the next regularly scheduled election. If the petition is valid – and the Council does not – or can not hold an election within 60 days of April 21st – then the Town cannot enforce the ordinance beginning on the 61st day, which is June 21st, until an election is held.