…City Seeks Compromise

If the $13.3 million check and financial records aren’t in Washington by April 10, Flannagan said he’ll turn the affair over to the Office of Inspector General for an investigation. The FAA has also threatened to cut off maintenance and upkeep grants for the airport, which the Dispatch says run between $100,000 and $500,000 a year. City officials said they were shocked at the ultimatum because they thought they had already reached a compromise with the FAA. Mathias, the city mayor, remains curiously optimistic that some sort of compromise can be reached before April 10. “There’s got to be a reasonable place here,” he told the Dispatch. But the FAA doesn’t seem in a conciliatory mood and its rancor could hurt a couple of nonprofit groups. It’s accusing Ocean City of subsidizing the Lions Club and Humane Society by allowing them to lease parcels of the federally purchased land for below fair market value.