Kuhns set to name committee chairs Oct. 30

Rehoboth Beach Mayor Paul Kuhns will begin fulfilling one of his campaign promises by naming new committee chairs at the Monday, Oct. 30 commissioners meeting.

During his campaign, Kuhns said the city’s committees languished under his predecessor, Sam Cooper, and he planned to revive committees as a way to engage the community in government.

Kuhns said he plans to create a parking advisory committee that would focus on residential and commercial districts, as well as a charter and ordinance committee that would workshop potential legislation.

He said he wants to merge the Parks and Shade Tree Commission with the Mayor’s Advisory Committee on Trees. Kuhns said he wants this committee to primarily focus on finding opportunities to plant more trees throughout the city, work on improving the tree ordinance and maintaining city parks. He said he was still undecided how this new committee would handle the Parks and Shade Tree Commission’s judicial duties - reviewing appeals of tree permits that have been denied by the arborist - but one option could be to have a subcommittee handle appeals.

“There are a lot of things we can do to make the city more beautiful, whether it’s flowers, whether it’s trees,” Kuhns said.

Kuhns said he will recommend reconstituting the Streets and Transportation Committee to look at transportation issues. He said his vision for this committee was to examine ways to make the city more walkable and bikeable and get cars off the streets. Kuhns said also wants to resurrect the Bandstand/Special Events Committee, which he envisions working with Rehoboth Beach Main Street to bring new events downtown.

Kuhns said with the opening of City Hall, the City Hall Master Plan Task Force is no longer needed, nor is the Communications Committee, since a full-time communications director has been hired.

Kuhns said once chairs are selected from amongst the commissioners, the call will go out to citizens to fill the ranks.

“This is a good way to bring the public together with the commissioners,” he said.

Commissioner Stan Mills said, “All these committees, I think the mission statement is very important. What is their scope?”

Mills said Bethany Beach has an ordinance committee that has worked very well, and while every piece of legislation is not reviewed, it allows the public and business community a chance to weigh in on new legislation.