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Hurricanes and land use; looking ahead

Friday Editorial
October 6, 2016

It's autumn: days shortening, lots of reflecting on the summer season and looking forward to our many festivals right up through Christmas, thoughts that include the exciting new Winter Wonderfest planned for the ferry terminal and Cape Henlopen State Park.

It's also time to think about what 2016 has been like, what lies ahead, and how our county continues to progress.

The most immediate concern is the uncertainty of what Hurricane Matthew might bring and how we need to prepare. Our location in the center of what's known as the Mid-Atlantic Bight has given us relative protection over recent centuries, but that's never to be counted on. Who saw last week's torrential rains coming, rainfall that exceeded levels meteorologists expect only once every 100 years?

A longer concern is how Sussex County will continue to develop over the next decade. We are the largest county on the Delmarva Peninsula, in geography and population. With agricultural-residential zoning controlling most land use across the county, the two-units per acre allowed is also the most permissive zoning on Delmarva and will fuel development here for decades ahead.

Can our transportation system keep up with development? Based on what we're seeing on the east side, the question is real.

Can we preserve enough open space to ensure our wildlife has enough habitat to remain viable, and to maintain a human quality of life balancing urban amenities with rural beauty? Can we protect waterways from pollution that can make us a less desirable retirement option?

All of this is being considered as part of the county's comprehensive plan process that has begun and will continue through 2017 and into early 2018. Public meetings have been held and many more are coming to gauge the public's sense of what our priorities should be for the next 10 years. This is a critical process, and our elected and appointed officials deserve and need to hear how we want Sussex to look and function.

The Cape Gazette will do its best to keep our readers informed of upcoming meetings and the dialogue that arises so all of us can be part of planning for our future.

  • Editorials are considered and written by Cape Gazette Editorial Board members, including Publisher Chris Rausch, Editor Jen Ellingsworth, News Editor Nick Roth and reporters Ron MacArthur and Chris Flood. 

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