Adequate facilities ordinance begs discussion
Sussex County Councilwoman Joan Deaver recently discussed the need for an adequate public infrastructure ordinance to be part of sensible development in Sussex County. The discussion of such an ordinance for our county - the largest and most liberally zoned county on all of the sprawling Delmarva Peninsula - is long overdue.
More than 35 years ago, an agent for the Sussex County Conservation District noted that using rural solutions for an urbanizing area was a losing game. With the vast majority of Sussex zoned to allow - by right - two residential units per acre, and with the attraction of our low taxes, beaches, shopping, parks and natural areas, steady development over the next few decades isn’t just a possibility, it’s a certainty.
The sooner we start thinking about urban solutions for our urbanizing county in the short term, the better off we will be in the long run. Starting a serious discussion about an adequate public facilities ordinance - its potential upsides and downsides - would be a step toward using urban solutions.
Our neighboring county to the north, Kent, has had such an ordinance in place for several years. Sussex County’s new planner, Janelle Cornwell, previously worked as a planner in Kent. With her direct experience, she certainly could help frame and lead a discussion in Sussex.
Our county government has done a good job over the past few decades in providing regional wastewater systems that have helped improve the water quality in our rivers and bays. In that case, the county is providing adequate infrastructure.
The county, however, has no say over our highways and roads which, without question, are already inadequate for the rapid growth in population and accompanying vehicles. Delaware’s Department of Transportation holds responsibility for our roads but doesn’t have the resources to keep up with the rapid development in Sussex.
Many point to the disconnect between Sussex County’s land-use policies and DelDOT’s transportation responsibilities as a core problem in this unbalanced equation. An adequate public facilities ordinance could hold the key to bridging that disconnect.
Landowners would not lose their right to use their land as it is zoned, but requiring developers to demonstrate adequate roads and highways for the extra burden their projects would bring could create the vital political pressure to secure the funds necessary to allow DelDOT to keep up.
