Sussex Preservation Coalition to meet Feb. 13

The Sussex Preservation Coalition will meet from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 13, at the Lewes Public Library and via Zoom.

Rescheduled from January, the meeting will kick off the coalition’s 2024 monthly programs that bring together local citizens with key decision makers and environmental experts to discuss residential development growth and its impact on the local environment, habitats and quality of life.

The Office of State Planning Coordination and its report on growth concerns in Sussex County will be the focus. Dave Edgell, OSPC director, and Dorothy Morris, OSPC principal planner, will keynote the session. The OSPC is the primary point of contact between Delaware’s local governments and the state government on planning and land-use issues.

Its recently released annual report found that most developmental growth is in Sussex County, especially in coastal areas, and home prices are so expensive that middle-income households as well as the poor struggle to find affordable homes. For 2022, residential development applications in Sussex County grew by 101%, the highest level in 14 years. Also, a disproportionate amount of new housing for Sussex County was planned in so-called Level 4 areas designated for conservation and preservation. The report says there is a long-term cost burden for developing in Level 4, and the loss of natural land is counterproductive to the state’s environmental protection and quality-of-life goals.

As an example of OSPC’s concerns, the Sussex Preservation Coalition will provide information at the meeting on a 637-acre new development planned near Lewes called Cool Spring Crossing. The proposed development comprises 1,222 homes, 246,500 square feet of noncommercial space, and 165,475 square feet of commercial space to be built in a Level 4 conservation area. SPC members believe Cool Spring Crossing would add unmanageable additional traffic to Route 9, destroy acres of forest, and add density to overburdened schools and health facilities.

To view the full report and its recommendations, go to sussexpreservationcoalition.org. 

SPC comprises individuals and local environmental groups in Sussex County dedicated to preserving and protecting local ecosystems. Its mission is to increase the impact of groups and individuals by working together to educate, organize, advocate and act.