Ocean City to file lawsuit against offshore wind project

OCEAN CITY -- The Town of Ocean City, along with local organizations and businesses, is filing a lawsuit against the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management regarding the US Wind project.

The announcement was made on Friday afternoon via a press release on the Town of Ocean City website. 

Several local organizations and businesses are joining the lawsuit, including the Town Council of Fenwick Island, the Worcester County Commissioners, Hotel-Motel-Restaurant Association (HMRA), Delmarva Community Managers Association (DCMA), Ocean City Development Corporation (OCDC), Greater Ocean City Chamber of Commerce, Coastal Association of Realtors, the Commercial and Recreational Fishing Industry. 

The town expressed concerns for the US Wind Project, which would construct 1143 offshore wind turbines 10.7 miles off of Ocean City's coast at 938 feet tall, according to the press release. These concerns include "potential negative impacts on the view shed, local environment, tourism industry, and the fishing community." 

"We have a responsibility to protect our ecosystem, our economy, view shed, and our future," said Mayor Rick Meehan in a statement. "For the past seven and half years we have been trying to work with the State of Maryland and the federal government to address our concerns with this project. All of our concerns were either ignored or considered insignificant. It is unfortunate that it has come to this, but the Town was left with no choice but to file suit against BOEM and challenge their favorable record of decision on the US Wind project."  

Marzulla Law, LLC, will be representing the town and local organizations in this case. 

Stay with WJZ CBS Baltimore for the latest updates.