City Financials, 4th of July Report, La Spiaggia Ristorante Feature & Much More!

THE SHORES INSIDER

June Wrap-Up, 2023

Presented by the Ocean Shores Branch of Greater Grays Harbor, Inc.

A Localized Voice for Business in Ocean Shores

Shores Business News

City of Ocean Shores Financials

The City of Ocean Shores remains focused on strict fiscal accountability and the results are extremely impressive. Overall, the city has reduced debt from $44.8 million dollars in 2016 to $13.6 million in 2023; having paid down $31.2 million dollars or 70% of our overall debt.

The assessed value of Ocean Shores has increased by 169% in that same time, from $935,256 in 2016 to $2,513,133 today.

The city has also reduced the levy rate by $3.04, down 62%, while our LID debt has decreased from over $15 million to a little under $2 million today.

On the whole, the City is in excellent financial health and the General Fund balance increased by more than 1.6 million dollars since 2016.

Shawn Pease as Street Department Crew Chief

The City of Ocean Shores has hired Shawn Pease as our new Street Department Crew Chief at Public Works. Shawn has been with the City since 2021 as a Maintenance Worker II in the Street Department and prior to that, worked for Pierce County on technical specialized maintenance for parks and recreation.

The Ocean Shores Fire Department on the 4th of July

The Ocean Shores Fire Department responded to 22 calls for service on July 4, 2023! About half were medical responses and thankfully there were no major brush fires this year. The City’s emergency responders also extinguished some trash fires and dumpster fires.

The dumpsters that the Ocean Shores Street Department placed were helpful in keeping the fires contained and prevented fires from spreading into the dune grass areas. The City had fire crews on every major beach approach on "Fire Watch" with brush engines patrolling up and down the beaches keeping the people at least 100ft away from the dune grasses. This provides a buffer or zone that the brush engines can travel and also keeps fireworks and campfires at a safe distance. They also had a command post set up on the top floor of one of our local hotels for a bird’s eye view of the entire North End of town from Ocean Lake Way to the Damon Road beach approach. Having this perspective along with firefighters up and down the beaches patrolling worked!

People were very receptive and friendly. Our first responders found that being proactive vs. reactive has been extremely effective in preventing large fires and property loss or injuries. This year was a huge success with all of our partners within the City and our state and local law enforcement agencies. The Ocean Shores AVERT Volunteers also helped by setting up two first aid tents along the beach to triage and mitigate minor injuries. We consider this a huge WIN for our community, and we look forward to next year! 

Stay Informed by Following Mayor Jon Martin's Facebook Page!

Shores Spotlight

La Spiaggia Ristorante

Authentic Italian cuisine has landed in Ocean Shores! Open since the summer of 2022, La Spiaggia Ristorante is locally owned and operated by husband and wife duo, Rhonda Wirkman and Doug Cox. Having renovated a former Mexican restaurant on Point Brown Ave., the owners incorporated the colors of Italy to create a cozy and intimate space that's family-friendly but also perfect for date night.

Le Cordon Bleu classically trained chef, Doug believes excellent ingredients speak for themselves as he crafts menus that change seasonally and include local favorites like house-made gnocchi, spinach and ricotta rotoli, tiramisu, and imported wines. Additionally, to better serve their customers, 90% of their menu can be made gluten-free per request as well as their vegetarian and vegan options.

Greater Grays Harbor was thrilled to be a part of their one year anniversary celebration at the end of June and assisted with a ribbon cutting to mark the occasion. Be on the look out for information on their November Business After Hours event, which if you don't make it in for a fabulous meal before then, will serve as the perfect time to try out their spectacular menu!