Well, the town of Dewey Beach is at it again.  The Citizens to Preserve Dewey-driven leadership of the town is going to spend $70,000 that it doesn’t have to hire an engineering firm to do a job that is already being done by state and county agencies.

In a recent mailing, the CPD outline what they think that this engineering firm should be doing in this regard.  Their laundry list of tasks is largely composed of items that are already being done by the Sussex County Building Code Department, the Delaware Department of Public Health, the State Fire Marshal, the State Energy Office, the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, and probably a few others I have overlooked.

I have to ask if CPD and the town believe that these state agencies are incapable or incompetent at doing their own jobs. If so, I suggest that they write them a letter expressing that sentiment. If not, then I have to ask just what the town thinks it’s doing proposing to oversee regulations that it has absolutely no jurisdiction over?

And how do they think that the town can afford this anyway?   Do they think Santa is going to bring them the money?  The town is already $300,000 in the red due to its own gross mismanagement. The bulk of the police department has resumes out seeking new jobs already, in no small part due to broken promises over pay and bonus.

There is only one possible reason for this action - it’s a not so subtle attempt to harass the developer and attempt to find things to stall the project.  What CPD has not been able to do through the courts, it’s now going to try and do through regulations.

Make no mistake.  CPD now controls the town 100 percent.  They control every seat on the council and every committee.  Several of the best and brightest members of committees have been pushed out or quit.  Three town managers and the town chief financial officer have been fired or have quit.  And now the town is busy throwing them all under the bus and trying to blame them for everything besides the hurricane; and no doubt they are working on that one.

It’s time to stand up to these people and scream “stop it!”  They have already driven this town close to bankruptcy and one more absurd move will push things over the edge. Regardless of what you believe of their motives, the leadership of this town is simply incompetent.

Graham Smith
Dewey Beach