Henlopen Acres announces new town manager

The Henlopen Acres town manager position is about to go from one of the state’s longest tenured to the state’s newest.

Current Town Manager Tom Roth announced his retirement in early May after 19 years. Mayor Joni Reich said June 5 the town had found his replacement – Sally Slook, a Delaware native and Lewes resident who has 15 years of town manager experience in townships around the Philadelphia area, including Willistown Township and Upper Merion Township.

Reich said the town is delighted to have her and expects that she will do a wonderful job for the town’s residents.

Henlopen Acres is a triangle-shaped community that sits on 123 acres – Rehoboth Beach is immediately to the south, the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal is to the north and the Atlantic Ocean is to the east. It was officially incorporated as a town in 1970 after being developed in the 1930s by Col. Wilbur S. Corkran.

Slook said she’s honored and excited to have been selected to serve the citizens of Henlopen Acres.

“I'm looking forward to working with the mayor and the board of commissioners, the dedicated staff, and residents in such a beautiful seaside community,” said Slook in an email June 11. “I'm also happy to be back working in my home state.”

Slook attended Wesley College in Dover for her undergraduate degree and Villanova University for her master’s in public administration. She has taught as an adjunct faculty member in the university’s MPA program since 2014.

Some of her first priorities will be to strengthen communications with all residents, as only about 35% of homes are occupied year-round, said Slook.

“One component of this will be a revision of the town's website,” said Slook. “The current website has a lot of great information for residents and guests, but needs to be updated for new functionality and technology.”

Slook is expected to start July 3, with Roth providing some level of assistance during a transition in July and August, said Reich.

“During his tenure, Tom was instrumental in improving the financial position of the town and increasing its reserves to put us in the position of being able to undertake vital infrastructure improvements, such as modernizing our water plant,” said Reich.