News Briefs 02/21/20

Dewey to hold Feb. 29 town meeting
Dewey Beach commissioners will hold an executive session and town meeting Saturday, Feb. 29, at the Lifesaving Station, 1 Dagsworthy Ave. Executive session, which is closed to the public, will begin at 8 a.m., when commissioners will hold strategy sessions involving legal advice with respect to pending litigation.

The town meeting will convene at 8:30 a.m., when commissioners will possibly vote to authorize reasonable reimbursement of legal fees incurred by indemnified Commissioner Paul Bauer. Other possible votes include amending parking fee rates, applying for a law enforcement grant and accepting an engineering proposal to provide support to the planning and zoning commission for review of bulk standards in the NR, RR and PR zoning districts.

Milton Crossing change gets Sussex OK
At its Feb. 13 meeting, Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission approved a revision to conditions placed on approval of the Estates at Milton Crossing subdivision near the Reynolds Road-Route 1 intersection near Milton. Commissioners backed the developer’s request to reduce a 40-foot buffer along Route 1 to 30 feet. The subdivision contains 87 single-family lots on 102 acres.

Feb. 25 Sussex council meeting starts early
Sussex County Council will meet at 9 a.m., Tuesday, Feb. 25, in the county administration building, 2 The Circle, Georgetown. Included on the agenda is a presentation by the Office of State Planning on the state strategies map. See a complete agenda at www.sussexcountyde.gov. Meetings are broadcast live on the county website.

Sussex council awards councilmanic grants
Sussex County Council awarded the following councilmanic grants during its Feb. 18 meeting: $500 to Stronger After Cancer for free physical therapy for cancer survivors and $1,500 to Ocean View Historical Society for the Hall’s Store Visitors and Education Center.

HOA info workshop scheduled for Feb. 26
The Delaware Department of Justice’s Common Interest Community Ombudsman will host a workshop focused on homeowners associations from 5 to 8 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 26, at the Sussex County Association of Realtors office, 23407 Park Ave., Georgetown.
The What Do I Need to Know About How My HOA Operates? workshop is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Register via email at DOJ.Ombudsman@delaware.gov.

Sussex council not meeting on March 3
Sussex County Council will not meet Tuesday, March 3. The next regularly scheduled meeting is at 10 a.m., Tuesday, March 10, in the county administration building, 2 The Circle, Georgetown.

Cape district to hold referendum meeting March 31
Cape Henlopen School District Superintendent Bob Fulton will provide information about the Tuesday, March 31 capital expense referendum and answer questions at a community meeting at 6 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 26, at Love Creek Elementary School.

DNREC accepting grant proposals for projects
DNREC’s Division of Watershed Stewardship is now accepting project proposals for matching grants for community water-quality improvement projects. Delaware nonprofit organizations, conservation districts, community organizations and homeowners associations are eligible to apply. Proposals must be received by 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 18.

Community Water Quality Improvement Grants assist in implementing projects or programs to improve water quality on developed lands with specific watershed improvement plans and strategies. Programs and projects selected must demonstrate innovative and sustainable methods, techniques, and/or practices for water quality improvements, with cost-effective and measurable results. Projects will be recommended for funding by the Delaware Water Infrastructure Advisory Council through a competitive grant process.

Funding for projects receiving a grant award in this cycle is expected to range from $25,000 to $75,000. The grant requires a 25 percent cash match, which may be federal, state or local cash. Applicants may submit up to two project proposals per grant cycle. Proposals should be submitted by email to NPS.grants@delaware.gov, subject line: Community Water Quality Improvement Grant. Proposals submitted by email must be less than 10MB. Project guidelines and the application can be found on DNREC’s website on the Environmental Finance webpage. For more information, contact Sharon Webb at 302-739-9922.

Jennings announces leadership change at Department of Justice
Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced Feb. 14 that Secretary Rob Coupe will join the Department of Justice next month as its new chief of staff. “I am thrilled that Rob will be joining our team,” said Jennings. “His reputation precedes him, not only as a leader in state government, but as a public safety official who for decades has earned the admiration of everyone he has worked with. I have worked alongside Rob for years and I’m looking forward to working with him on the issues at the heart of our mission: making Delaware’s justice system more fair and equal for everyone, upholding public safety, and protecting Delawareans’ rights from injustices in our state and nationally.”

Coupe joins the Department of Justice after years as secretary of the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security, where he oversaw 11 divisions, including the Delaware State Police, the Delaware Emergency Management Agency, and Capitol Police. Prior to that, he served as commissioner of the Delaware Department of Correction from March 2013 to January 2017; and he served over two decades with the Delaware State Police, including three years as superintendent.

DelDOT schedules Bethany Beach project
Delaware Department of Transportation contractor A-Del Construction Co. will begin a water-quality improvement project to the Anchorage Canal drainage area in Bethany Beach, including intersection improvements to the Route 1/Pennsylvania Avenue/Westway Drive intersection. The work scheduled includes construction of a wet pond, a Route 1 northbound right-turn lane onto Pennsylvania Avenue, signal modifications, installation of four box culverts, a shared-use path and pedestrian improvements.

The project is scheduled to begin Monday, March 2, and be completed by mid-June. Phase 1 work will be performed under a detour of the right-turn lane on Pennsylvania Avenue, which is anticipated to take place March 2 through Friday, April 17, pending weather. Motorists traveling from westbound Pennsylvania Avenue onto Route 1 northbound will be detoured to turn left onto Route 1 southbound, and then make a U-turn to go northbound. Phase 2 and Phase 3 will be performed using daytime shoulder and lane closures.

For additional information go to www.deldot.gov/Programs/tap/index.shtml or contact Michael Hahn at 302-760-2131.