Dewey council fills vacant seat

Town council unanimously selected property owner David Jasinski to serve as commissioner for the remainder of former Commissioner Ellen Danaher’s term.  Danaher resigned Nov. 13, citing stress.  She served less than two months on council.

Jasinski did not attend the Jan. 10 meeting.  In a phone conversation he said, “I’m delighted to be working with all the commissioners.”

Jasinski, 48, is a full-time resident of Washington, D.C., who owns a home on Chesapeake Street – the northernmost road in Dewey Beach.

Rehoboth By the Sea owns much of the land on the north end of town, and many of the land leases are set to expire in the next 10 years, Jasinski said, opening a lot of opportunity for redevelopment on the north end.

As a commissioner, Jasinski said, he would like to work with the Planning Commission to seek public input on the community’s vision for the north end of town.

Commissioner Courtney Riordan, former chairman of the budget and finance committee, made a motion to appoint Jasinski, who was a member of the committee.

One of the budget and finance committee’s last initiatives before the committee dissolved was a gross receipts tax proposal – supported by both Riordan and Jasinski – which would have forced businesses to contribute more revenue to the town budget.

Dewey Beach Town Council tabled the proposal in July, opting instead to allow the business community to come up with another way businesses could contribute more money to town operations.

Jimmy O’Conor, of Dewey Business Partnership, said at the Jan. 11 meeting the businesses are willing to contribute more, but they had not yet come up with a revenue proposal.

After the meeting, Jasinski said the town is in good financial shape, but he hopes the business community will bring proposals to council in the next few months.  “They still need to get back to us,” he said.

Jasinski is a graduate of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va. He has worked for IBM Corporation for 25 years and currently handles the Mid-Atlantic Region’s sales efforts for large companies, such as Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Geico.

Jasinski has never before held public office.

Former Commissioner Dale Cooke, Dewey Beach Civic League President Rob Marshall and civic league member Dave Davis also threw their hats in the ring for the appointment.  Commissioner Anna Legates made a motion to nominate Marshall for the post, but her motion was not seconded.

“You are all very qualified,” Mayor Diane Hanson said to the candidates.  She said she hoped they would each seek office in a future election.