| 05/09/08
“We do not want to be the great city of Troy. Move the units next to Breakwater – those people have not moved in yet.” – Jeff Broderick, president of the Bay Breeze Estates Home Owners’ Association commenting at a Tuesday, April 29, public hearing on Showfield at Lewes’ subdivision and zoning request. Broderick voiced opposition to Showfield’s plans to build six multifamily housing units adjacent to the Bay Breeze community.
“All governments are struggling with budgets. There is no good guy or bad guy in this story. This is a pain going through federal, state and local government,” said Hal Godwin, Sussex County Economic Development Director. He referred to a lawmakers’ consideration to redistribute the real estate transfer tax.
“You don’t belong here. People move here in droves – they don’t know about your unlined landfill, your nasty pollutants and how you fought state regulations. You have no excuse for the way you maintain those fly ash pits,” said Citizens for a Better Sussex President Joan Deaver to Indian River power plant executives. DNREC held a public hearing on new mercury control technology for the plant Wednesday, May 7.
“We allocated the money and it’s been set aside and there’s nothing wrong with the selection. I’m confused – are we going back on our word?” asked Sussex County Councilman Vance Phillips during a discussion about allocation of land preservation funding in collaboration with the Sussex County Land Trust. The council voted to release $900,000 if the General Assembly does not change the real estate transfer tax formula.
05/02/08
“Building so close to the water that you have to stop the natural migration of the shoreline is great for a few people who want the view, but it negatively impacts the ecology and fishery of the bays and everyone else who enjoys them,” said Chris Bason, science and technical coordinator for the Center for the Inland Bays on Robert Tunnell’s request to be allowed to stabilize the shoreline of his Rehoboth Beach property.
“I’m opposed because they’re rushing these things through,” said Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach. He referred to two House bills that were recently released from committee. The bills would require state education department spending records to be posted online. “There’s been no fiscal note attached to them. We agreed they’d go to the Appropriations Committee, but they just showed up on the agenda,” he said.
“The $150,000 repairs are not the end-all cure – that’s far from the truth. We are fighting a losing battle and are at a quandary what to do. The best-case scenario would be to build a new pier, but there is no money for that,” said Pat Cooper, Cape Henlopen State Park administrator, commenting on structural problems with the popular fishing pier at the state park.
04/25/08
“Who’s going to say when it’s time to evacuate? We hope it’s you.” – Gene Donaldson, operations manager of DelDOT’s Traffic Management Center, at a Wednesday, April 23, presentation in Lewes on the state’s all-hazards evacuation plan.
“It’s a cruel irony that Sen. McDowell chose Earth Week to launch his broadside against the largest, most significant pollution-free energy project in the state’s history,” said University of Delaware professor Jeremy Firestone about the Senate Energy and Transit Committee’s report which criticizes the proposed Bluewater Wind project as too expensive for state ratepayers.
“Beware of government. They are not here to help you – they are here to screw you,” said Wayne Baker of Lewes during a public hearing on the proposed Sussex County land use plan.
04/18/08
“If wind power were actually available for $62 to $72/MWh, why wasn’t Delmarva Power buying wind previously, rather than local dirty power for $110/MWh?” asked University of Delaware professor Willett Kempton, who recently issued a report analyzing the comparison of onshore and offshore wind in response to a Delmarva Power preliminary report showing the cost of onshore wind power compared to the cost of wind power from Bluewater Wind’s proposed offshore wind farm.
“People at the top of the party are doing side-hustles. I’m a grassroots representative who is fed up with the lack of teamwork by the party. I represent a full-scale revolt in the Republican party,” David Graham said. Graham, who is running for governor, calls himself a grassroots Republican.
“I’m not sure why Sen. McDowell continues to try to find fault with this process. If he didn’t think it was being done properly, why didn’t he say something before? He didn’t have a problem with it until Bluewater got the nod from the PSC,” said Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach, of the leaked draft copy of the Senate Energy and Transit Committee report on the proposed Bluewater Wind project. The report is critical of the way the Public Service Commission hearings on in-state power generation were handled.
“It is complex, because trees are complex. They are growing things. They are not static. And yes, there’s ambiguity because trees are ambiguous; they don’t grow in the same direction all the time.” – Rehoboth Beach Commissioner Dennis Barbour on a possible review of the city’s comprehensive tree ordinance.
“Businesses should go with the stricter interpretation to stay out of trouble,” said Sussex County Administrator David Baker, referring to county and state regulations regarding outdoor signs.
04/11/08
“The state needs to put its money where its mouth is. We’re saying to all of our subjects out there, ‘This is good for you.’ But for us, on the other hand, we’ll go do whatever we want and save our money where we can,” said Rep. Joe Booth, R-Georgetown. Booth proposed an amendment to the House Concurrent Resolution seeking to have Bluewater Wind’s proposed offshore wind farm approved, that would have the state join on and purchase the power alongside ratepayers.
“The solution in the county is to approve whatever the big violation is,” said Sussex County Councilman George Cole, referring to a proposed ordinance to update the county’s sign regulations.
“We haven’t been sued in the past month,” said Milton town attorney John Brady, to an applauding audience at a Monday, April 4 town council meeting. Brady reviewed a town solicitor monthly report, and on March 26, Gov. Ruth Ann Minner signed off on town charter revisions.
“I think Ronald Reagan said, I never quote Ronald Reagan, ‘Trust but verify.’ I think that’s what this is all about. We’re saying, ‘OK, we’re willing to trust you guys but you’re going to have to take this up on Thursday and give us assurance you are going to act on that basis.’ Then we can move forward but if that doesn’t happen the trust is going to dissolve and we end up where we started.” – Rehoboth Commissioner Dennis Barbour speaking to representatives of the Cape Henlopen School Board about a compromise on the proposed Educational/Residential zoning district. The commissioners tabled the rezoning to allow lawyers from both the city and the board to hash out an agreement.
04/04/08
“I’m running to come in first. We need some bold thinking in the state,” said Republican gubernatorial candidate David Graham. Graham, who called himself a grassroots candidate, addressed the Sussex County Republican Women’s Club Wednesday, March 26. He told them he decided to run after becoming frustrated with state party officials.
“It is the responsibility of the board to oversee the finances of the district, which includes salaries, especially the local side. I don’t think people realize this was falling through the cracks until relatively recently,” said Cape Henlopen school board member Allan Redden. The school board will discuss the possibility of deciding year by year whether to give administrators raises on the local part of their salaries.
“We’ve got a lot people that are leaving [New] Jersey like they’re rats on a sinking ship.” – Ed Ratledge, director of the University of Delaware’s Center for Applied Demographic and Survey Research commenting on what’s driving growth in Sussex County at a Friday, March 28 Land & Sea lecture in Lewes.
03/28/08
“We have a really tight budget this year. There isn’t much fat in this.” – Lewes Mayor Jim Ford commenting Tuesday, March 25, following the city council’s unanimous approval of Lewes’ $3.6 million budget for fiscal year 2008-09.
“As demand for property increases, so does the price, and Sussex and Kent counties are fast becoming two-class worlds with a vast chasm between the classes: the wealthy who retire here, or vacation here or who profit from the development here . . . and the rest who serve them. The result is communities increasingly divided by economic status.” - Chancellor William Chandler speaking at a Livable Delaware conference at the University of Delaware.
03/21/08
“Were looking at some bad times ahead. We’re in a bind. People don’t want to say the word, but we’re in a recession. We are in some serious financial conditions. The good news is, we are not as bad as the other states. Delaware is one of the last ones to get in a recession, but the first one to get out,” said Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth Beach. He referred to a drastic reduction in Sussex County’s real-estate transfer taxes.
“It’s not our business. If someone has 50 cars on their property, I don’t give a damn,” said Sussex County Council President Finley Jones during a discussion Tuesday, March 18, of a proposed ordinance aimed at cleaning up abandoned vehicles and trashy lots.
“We analyze until we're paralyzed – that’s our motto,” said Sussex County Councilman Vance Phillips Tuesday, March 18, during a prolonged debate on an updated forested buffer ordinance.
“If you withdraw water for profit then you need to provide compensation to others for that impact. The cost should be borne by those people using the water. I have respect for this ordinance but there is one paragraph that will cause tremendous difficulty in administration – far beyond what you can comprehend. I’m not saying delete the paragraph, but address the impact,” said R.C. Willin of Seaford during a Tuesday, March 18 public hearing before Sussex County Council. The paragraph he is referring to is the addition of expanded wellhead protection areas in the proposed source-water protection ordinance. Willin is a member of a county advisory committee charged with writing the ordinance.
03/14/08
“It reached the stage where it became apparent to me I was not going to be able to raise enough money to run a campaign,” said retired Superior Court Judge Bill Lee. He announced on Wednesday, March 12, he would not run for governor this year.
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“With three votes, we can do anything we want,” said Sussex County Councilman Vance Phillips during a discussion at the end of the Tuesday, March 11 meeting. He was debating an issue with council-watcher Dan Kramer of Greenwood.
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“We are setting a precedent if we let a petitioner continually come back and say ‘I didn’t get it right, can I try again?’ This is not the planning commission slot machine where you can keep pulling the handle and essentially come up with a few cherries. It just can’t work that way.” – Rehoboth Beach planning commissioner Dave Mellen addressing an application for partitioning at 507 Lee St. The applicant was asking the commission to rehear its petition, with slight modifications, which the commission agreed to do.
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