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Beach Reservations

OHCA IS CURRENTLY ACCEPTING RESERVATIONS FOR 2023, BUT THEY WILL REMAIN TENTATIVE UNTIL MARCH 31, WHEN OHCA’S BOARD FINALIZES DATES FOR COMMUNITY-SPONSORED EVENTS. OHCA DOES NOT ACCEPT BEACH RESERVATIONS FOR FEDERAL HOLIDAYS — SMALL PRIVATE PARTIES ON HOLIDAYS ARE FINE BUT CANNOT INTERFERE WITH OTHER RESIDENTS ENJOYING THE BEACH AND PIER. PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOUR GUESTS COMPLY WITH ALL HEALTH CODES AND OHCA’S PARKING/BEACH RULES.

• BEACH RESERVATIONS APPLY ONLY TO OHCA FACILITIES SUCH AS THE GAZEBOS, BBQs, AND PICNIC TABLES. THE COMMUNITY BEACH AND PIER REMAIN OPEN TO ALL RESIDENTS—AND ONLY OHCA RESIDENTS—AND THEIR ACCOMPANIED GUESTS FROM DAWN UNTIL MIDNIGHT 365 DAYS A YEAR.

• THE MAXIMUM SIZE FOR PRIVATE BEACH EVENTS IS 50 PEOPLE. NO DOGS OR PETS ARE ALLOWED ON THE BEACH AT ANY TIME, LEASHED OR UNLEASHED.

• MOTORIZED CRAFT—INCLUDING JET SKIS—ARE NOT ALLOWED ON OHCA’S BEACH, NEAR THE NETTED SWIM AREA, OR INSIDE THE BREAKWATERS AT ANY TIME. HAND-POWERED PADDLEBOARDS, CANOES, WIND SURFERS, AND KAYAKS ARE FINE WHILE THEIR OWNERS ARE ON THE BEACH OR SWIMMING.

• FIREWORKS ARE PROHIBITED AT ALL TIMES. MARYLAND STATE LAW BANS PRIVATE FIREWORK DISPLAYS AND THE IMPORTATION OF FIREWORKS FROM OTHER JURISDICTIONS, INCLUDING VIRGINIA AND D.C.

• PLEASE KEEP NOISE LEVELS REASONABLE AT ALL TIMES. PARTIES AND MUSIC ON THE BEACH SHOULD STOP AT 10 PM TO CONFORM WITH THE COUNTY’S 2021 REVISED NOISE ORDINANCE. (CLEAN-UP CREWS AND QUIET CONVERSATIONS CAN CONTINUE UNTIL THE BEACH CLOSES AT MIDNIGHT.) THE COUNTY DEFINES EXCESSIVE NOISE AS ANYTHING PRODUCED BY AMPLIFIED MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS, TVS, STEREOS, RADIOS, OR DJS IN A RESIDENTIAL AREA THAT CAN BE HEARD MORE THAN 50 FEET AWAY. PLEASE RESPECT YOUR NEIGHBORS WHO MAY RETIRE EARLY, SLEEP WITH THEIR WINDOWS OPEN, OR HAVE CHILDREN/THE ELDERLY AT HOME.

CHECK THE BEACH CALENDAR AND MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS ONLINE AT WWW.OYSTERHARBOR.ORG. SEE YOU ON THE BEACH IN 2023!!

OHCA welcomes use of the community beach by local residents and hopes you have a good event.  Please remember that reservations apply only to facilities (gazebos, BBQs, and tables) not to the beach itself or the pier, which remain open to all OHCA residents between dawn and midnight.  Residents can book two small quiet parties each year (up to 50 people, not on Federal Holidays) and can check on existing reservations at OHCA’s website, www.oysterharbor.org.

Please ensure that your guests do not block mailboxes or park illegally on community streets, swales, or private property — including driveways and the empty double-lot across the street.  Park only on the apron along the Bay side of Shore Drive between Ellis and where the beach fence ends.  Remember: there is no street parking in Oyster Harbor except along the east side of Shore Drive.  OHCA can and will tow illegally parked cars.  Direct overflow parking to your own driveway, the Booker or Fishing Creek Pier lots, Washington Drive boat ramp, or the community parking lot at Harbor and Creek.

Swim at your own risk — there is no lifeguard.  Keep your children and rafts away from the nets and pilings, which have splinters, nails, and critters.  Do not swim in the boat channel nor dive from the pier or bulkheads.  CAUTION:  there were lots of jellyfish in 2022, and some stung swimmers inside the netted swim area.  Check the water first.

Please help us keep our beach clean for everyone’s enjoyment by picking up all your trash, bagging it, and putting recyclables into containers.  Take trash back to your house if possible, especially if bins are already full (during the summer we add a Friday pickup to the regular Sunday sweep.)  Do not leave cigarette butts in the sand or gazebos.  Please check for personal belongings and try to leave the beach in better shape than you found it.  If you notice any problems or broken equipment, including the electronic beach gate (get your code online in the residents’ area of OHCA’s website), please report them to OHCA’s Community Manager at 410-280-8999 or online at www.oysterharbor.org.

A port-a-potty is located at the pumping station near the beach gate from May until November.  Please help keep it sanitary and report any problems directly to GOTUGO, whose phone number appears on the unit, or OHCA’s Community Manager.

OHCA gets its beach water tested annually for intestinal bacteria (enterococci) May through August by AA County’s Dept. of Health (DoH) and AA Community College’s Operation Clearwater (AACC).  The EPA considers fecal bacteria levels below 105 safe for swimming.  Readings in 2022 varied from a low of 2 on 8-2 (DoH) to a high of 240 on 6-15 (AACC, which was above the EPA alert level.  However, AACC usually gets higher readings than DoH because it samples shallower water along the shore where geese tend to congregate.).  DoH has not issued any health warnings for OHCA’s beach in many years but does have a standing 48-hour “do not swim” advisory after more than 1/2 inch of rainfall because the rain flushes animal waste like dog and goose feces into the water (which is one of the reasons why OHCA has a firm “no pet” rule on the beach).

Beach Reservation Request