As Ocean City prepares for St. Patrick’s Day parade, local businesses look forward to major economic impact
OCEAN CITY, Md. – Ocean City is feeling lucky. With the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade just days away, droves of people are expected to show up to the resort town to enjoy the festivities.
Director of the Hotel-Motel Restaurant Association, Susan Jones, said the hotel industry is expecting booked rooms across the board.
“We definitely always want this to be an amazing weekend. We have had a lot of bad weather and Covid in the last couple years, so really this is getting back to normal,” Jones said.
Jones said the event is typically a catalyst to a successful season for many local businesses, and with the accommodations put in place by the town, visitors are able to enjoy their time with peace of mind.
“It’s just such a great festive weekend. People are in a happy mood, they’re wearing green, they’re riding the bus, they’re drinking but not driving, which is fantastic, so it’s an all-around wonderful weekend,” Jones said.
And the restaurant industry shares the same excitement. Owner of Bull on the Beach, Phil Houck, is looking forward to the foot traffic the event will bring to his establishment.
“We do very good here for the parade, because once the parade is over, we get pretty crowded over here,” Houck said. “It’s a good crowd, a good, happy crowd, so we’re happy with them.”
In business for over four decades, Houck has seen his fair share of events in Ocean City, but he said the St. Patrick’s Day parade is different, because it offers his business a new pot of golden opportunities each year.
“We look at St. Patrick’s Day as the beginning of a great new season,” Houck said.
From different restaurants, to hotels, to outdoor activities, Houck said spending your dollars locally is so important, because it helps catapult all of the small businesses over the economic rainbow.
“Always support the local guy cause we’re the ones that make Ocean City what it is. That’s why people come here,” Houck said.
