Markell launches blog for state stories
Gov. Jack Markell launched a blog to share stories of compassion, commitment and innovation across the state. “I want to highlight the people and businesses that make up our great state,” said Markell. “I spend much of my time learning about great ideas from Delaware’s dedicated state employees, our hardworking entrepreneurs, our great educators and promising future leaders, along with so many other citizens. I want this blog to be a new outlet to share these stories across the state. I have been overwhelmed and deeply moved by the response,” wrote Markell in an email to employees. “As I read your messages, the feelings of gratitude conveyed by and for our co-workers across the full spectrum of jobs was as strong as can possibly be expressed in words.”

School board to hold special meeting
The Cape Henlopen school board will meet at 6 p.m., Tuesday, March 23, at the district office in Lewes. The board will hold an executive session to discuss ongoing negotiations over support-staff contract renewal.

Dewey appoints election committee
Dewey Beach commissioners voted Saturday, March 13, to appoint an election committee. Beverly Corelle and David Kaminsky co-chair the committee, and Joan Claybrook, Shirley Grutkowski and Gloria Roberts are volunteer members. Mayor Rick Solloway and Commissioner James “Zeke” Przygocki had earlier opposed Kaminsky’s appointment. Kaminsky, a Dewey property owner, had authored a private email regarding limited-liability-corporation voting rights Przygocki described as skewed and hateful, leading him to fear Kaminsky might disenfranchise voters. Solloway said he would approve the election committee in the interest of progress. Commissioners approved the committee unanimously.

RBHA to start beach grass plantings
The Rehoboth Beach Homeowners’ Association’s regular monthly meeting will be at 8 a.m., Saturday, March 20, at CAMP Rehoboth on the second block of Baltimore Avenue. All are welcome. The meeting will adjourn at 9 a.m. to Wilmington Avenue and the Boardwalk to join in the annual beach grass planting. All interested residents, whether members or not, are encouraged to participate.

Boardwalk committee to meet March 24
The Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk Committee will meet at 1 p.m., Wednesday, March 24, in the city commissioners’ room, to discuss the ongoing Phase 2 of the Boardwalk reconstruction project. The committee will also discuss what types of finishes to use on the wood pavilions at Wilmington and Brooklyn avenues, and Laurel Street. There will also be consideration of mileage marker designs, way-finding sign placements and sign types, and a Boardwalk maintenance program. The committee will also continue discussion of refuse pickup on the Boardwalk. Public comment is welcome at the meeting or by email boardwalk@cityofrehoboth.com.

Rehoboth post office to hold Passport Day
The Rehoboth Beach Post Office will participate in Passport Day in the USA 2010 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, March 27. The post office will accept applications, and provide passport photograph service for new passports and renewals. The new passport fee for those 16 and older is $100 and $85 for those under 16, with passport photos an additional $15. The cost for renewed passports is $75.

DelDOT closes Nine Foot Road
The Delaware Department of Transportation closed Nine Foot Road between Wheatfield Road and Route 16/Hickman Road near Greenwood due to crossroad pipe failure. The road is closed until further notice. For the southbound detour, take Nine Foot Road to Wheatfield Road onto Fishers Bridge Road to Todds Church Road onto Route 16/Hickman Road and back to Nine Foot Road. To detour northbound, take Nine Foot Road to Route 16/Hickman Road onto Todds Church Road to Fishers Bridge Road to Wheatfield Road and back to Nine Foot Road. Real-time travel and construction information is available online at deldot.gov.

Advocacy workshop set for March 31 in Dover
The Greenwatch Institute and the Delaware Coalition for Open Government invite the public to a workshop on ways to be an effective advocate in the General Assembly. The free workshop will be from 10 to 11:30 a.m., Wednesday, March 31, in the House of Representatives hearing room on the second floor at Legislative Hall. Topics will include information on various lobbying techniques, methods and practical ways that citizens can affect the legislative process to advance their agendas in the General Assembly. At the conclusion of the workshop, participants can attend committee hearings and a session of the General Assembly. A copy of the Lobby Handbook, compiled by the League of Women Voters of Delaware and printed with funds from the Delaware Commission for Women, will be available, along with tips on meeting with and writing to elected officials. The book was compiled by the American Civil Liberties Union. In addition, a how-to citizens’ guide for obtaining information about regulatory actions affecting the Delaware River watershed, compiled by the Mid-Atlantic Environmental Law Clinic, is available electronically by request. For more information, call John Flaherty at 302-521-0394, or email jdf0000@aol.com.

Obama nominates judge for Delaware
President Barack Obama nominated Judge Leonard Stark to U.S District Court, District of Delaware, Wednesday, March 17. Stark is a U.S. magistrate judge for the District of Delaware, a position he has held since 2007. Previously, he was an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Delaware and an associate in the Delaware office of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. He began his legal career in Wilmington as a law clerk to Judge Walter K. Stapleton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Stark graduated from the University of Delaware in 1991 with three degrees: a master’s degree in history, a bachelor of science degree in economics and a bachelor of arts degree in political science. He earned a doctorate in politics in 1993, from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes scholar. He earned his juris doctorate from Yale Law School in 1996.

Distressed cemeteries topic of meeting
Delaware’s Division of Public Health will hold a public meeting on cemetery registration and the distressed cemetery fund at 10 a.m., Friday, April 30, at the public health training room in the Blue Hen Corporate Center, Dover. The distressed cemetery fund provides for the improvement of conditions in distressed cemeteries and is administered by the Delaware Cemetery Board. The fund assists individuals, groups and/or owners in maintaining and preserving cemeteries by making needed repairs and improvements and addressing safety and health concerns which they would not be able to do without these funds. Funding amounts range from $1,000 to $2,000. To qualify, a cemetery must be registered with the state of Delaware.

Rehoboth to adopt budget March 19
The Rehoboth Beach commissioners are set to approve the 2010-11 budget at the regular meeting of the commissioners at 7 p.m., Friday, March 19, in the city commissioners’ room. The commissioners will also consider several ordinances related to the $13.5 million budget. The proposed ordinances would increase the fees for seasonal parking permits, increase the fine for disturbing the peace from $25 to $100, increase the application for a restaurant permit of compliance to $1,000, set the fee for plumbing permits, increase refuse rates by 15 percent, increase water rates by 15 percent and increase sewer rates by 20 percent. In addition, the commissioners will consider an ordinance to increase the penalty for a parking ticket unpaid for 30 days to $110 and $150 for tickets unpaid after 60 days. The commissioners will also hear a permit of compliance request for Richard Steele of RB – Azafran Inc. The permit is to operate a new restaurant with patio dining to be known as Café Azafrán, which would operate at 18 Baltimore Ave. In old business, the commissioners will continue discussion of proposed revisions to the city’s tree ordinance. Finally, there will be discussion of changing the times or days of commissioner meetings for reasons such as scheduling conflicts.

Dr. Earl Bradley to be arraigned March 24
The arraignment of former Lewes pediatrician Earl Bradley is scheduled for 2 p.m., Wednesday, March 24, according to the Sussex County Superior Court. Jason Miller, spokesman with the Department of Justice, confirmed the date and said Bradley must appear, either in person or via videophone. Miller said the department did not know how Bradley would choose to attend. Bradley’s attorney, Gene Maurer of Wilmington, was not available for comment.

Rehoboth to discuss CDP March 20
The Rehoboth Beach commissioners will hold a special workshop meeting at 9 a.m., Saturday, March 20, in the city commissioners’ room, to review and discuss the draft of the updated comprehensive development plan. The commissioners will also discuss the process for approving the plan. The commission has approved the comprehensive plan.

Rehoboth adjustment board to hear two cases
The Rehoboth Beach Board of Adjustment will hear two cases at its regular meeting at 7 p.m., Monday, March 22, in the city commissioners’ room. The board will hear a variance request to allow the replacement of two existing nonconforming buildings with a 500-foot storage building at 7 Brooklyn Ave. Vince Robertson of the Griffin & Hackett PA law firm is requesting the variance on behalf of the owner, Fasnacht Realty Co. The board will also hear a request for an appeal of a building inspector’s decision to require two off-street parking spaces at 21 Baltimore Ave. John Sergovic of the Sergovic & Carmean PA law firm has requested the appeal on behalf of the owner, Mohammad “Richie” Shihadeh.

Dewey council gives nod to ECI for Bayard
Dewey Beach Town Council approved a bid by Engineering Consultants International to design a plan to alleviate flooding on Bayard Avenue. Infrastructure committee Chairman Rick Judge said the firm started work Monday, March 15, and the design’s $54,000 price tag would be covered by donations from Rep. Gerald Hocker, R-Ocean View, and Sen. George Bunting, D-Bethany Beach. Mayor Rick Solloway said the town intends to begin construction in early September.

Lincoln Day dinner set for March 22
Sussex County Republican Women’s Club and Eastern Sussex Republican Club will celebrate President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday from 5:30 to 9 p.m., Monday, March 22, at the Atlantic Sands Hotel in Rehoboth Beach. Neil Newhouse, a national pollster, is a featured speaker, and a Lincoln impersonator will give a presentation. Tickets are $50 per person. Donors can reserve tables for 10 guests at $1,000. RSVP to 542-0900 or 228-5088. Reservations can also be made by mailing $50 along with a name and phone number to SCRWC, 414 Mulberry St., Lewes, DE 19958. For more information, email CommercialDE@aol.com.

CIB to hear update on Inland Bays March 19
The Delaware Center for the Inland Bays board of directors will meet at 9 a.m., Friday, March 19, at the center’s headquarters on Inlet Road in Delaware Seashore State Park, just north of Indian River Inlet bridge. The public is invited. Capt. Bill Baker will present a progress update on the activities of the Inland Bays Water Use Plan Implementation Committee, which serves as an ad-hoc advisory body to the board of directors in identifying environmental effects and improving conditions related to water-use activities in Delaware’s Inland Bays. For more information, contact Sally Boswell at 226-8105.

Dining with Progressives meets March 21
Dining with Progressives dinner and town hall meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m., Sunday, March 21, at Fish On in the Villages of Five Points. Ed Lewandowski, executive director of the Center for the Inland Bays, will moderate the meeting and discuss the responsibilities of federal, state and local agencies in restoring and protecting the Inland Bays. Lewandowski will also talk about regulations he believes are needed to protect and improve the Inland Bays, wetlands and waterways of Sussex County. Dining with Progressives provides a nonpartisan forum for civil and open discussion and welcomes all interested individuals. Those planning to attend are asked to RSVP to jcabry@gmail.com or call Joanne Cabry at 226-5019.

Water committee to meet March 24
The Source Water Protection Citizens and Technical Advisory Committee of the Source Water Assessment and Protection Program will meet from 9 a.m. to noon, Wednesday, March 24, in Conference Room 220 A and B in the Kent County Administrative Offices on Bay Road in Dover. The agenda includes a program updates on the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Source Water Assessment and Protection Program, the drinking water state revolving fund, groundwater availability in Sussex County, U.S. Geological Survey samplings of public wells in the unconfined aquifer and the Christina basin pollution control strategy. For more information, contact John Barndt at 302-739-9945.

Horseshoe crab survey training dates set
The Delaware National Estuarine Research Reserve wants volunteers to help with this year’s horseshoe crab survey at the Ted Harvey Wildlife Area, Kitts Hummock and North Bowers beaches. Training will be at St. Jones Reserve, 818 Kitts Hummock Road, Dover, from 10 a.m. to noon, Saturday, April 10, and 6 to 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 28. Counts begin Wednesday, May 12, and continue through the end of June. To register, contact Kimberly Cole at 302-739-3436.

Delaware records seventh H1N1 death
The Delaware Division of Public Health has reported the state’s seventh H1N1-related death Sunday, March 7. A 47-year-old Kent County man was hospitalized Feb. 8, and he tested positive for H1N1 Feb. 19. The man had several underlying health conditions. For more information, visit flu.delaware.gov.

Sussex officials serious about collections
Sussex County’s amnesty program is bringing new cash into county coffers. Since the program began, the county has collected more than $192,000 in delinquent school and county property taxes on 520 accounts. About $8 million - $6 million to Sussex school districts - is still outstanding. The county has collected more than $296,000 in delinquent sewer and water district billings. The programs allow for a 50 percent reduction in accrued interest and penalty charges. County Council President Vance Phillips, R-Laurel, said county administration should be prepared for the next phase of the program and put serious collections measures into place. “Following the amnesty program, we need to ratchet up collections,” he said. He also suggested the top 10 or 20 tax delinquent names be published on the county’s website.

Bus plan requires early start at Cape
A plan to remedy long rides on overcrowded school buses would alleviate those problems by starting and releasing Cape Henlopen High School 15 minutes early. Cape business director Oliver Gumbs said the state is not offering funding for new bus routes. District office staff recommended the school board approve starting the high school day early by dropping high school students off first, then sending 14 buses out to pick up elementary and middle school students. The plan would spare elementary and middle schools from changing start times, Gumbs said, and the new times would benefit high school athletes, because they would miss less instructional time at the end of the day when they have competitions.

OSHA cites Allen Family Foods
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the Allen Family Foods Inc. poultry processing facility in Harbeson for exposing workers to a variety of workplace safety hazards. Proposed penalties total $182,200. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) initiated an investigation Sept. 9, in response to a referral made by Maryland Occupational Safety and Health after numerous serious and willful violations were issued at a similar processing facility in Maryland. OSHA has cited the company with 45 serious violations and proposed a penalty of $182,000, and two other-than-serious violations with a proposed penalty of $200. The serious violations address hazards with industrial trucks, falls, personal protective equipment, machine guarding, electrical hazards, process safety management, respirators and emergency response. OSHA issues a serious citation when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result and the employer knew, or should have known, of the hazard. The company has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. For more information about OSHA, visit osha.gov.