Like many, we moved here to retire. We are not opposed to development in general; however, the Atlantic Fields project belies all common sense. It is a wolf disguised as a sheep’s shopping mecca.
Before we moved here, we researched adjacent zoning. Parcels were all designated AR-1, agricultural-residential. We purposely did not purchase a home in a commercial area.
However, those zoning designations mean nothing if a developer decides they want a parcel of land. Why have areas zoned at all if five people who don’t live here can make changes without consideration of the 271,134 people who do live here?
Even if you ignore regulations, it belies common sense to place it here. The absolute apex of traffic congestion in Delaware is at the triangle of Route 1 to Route 9 to Route 24. Every day, very angry people try to navigate a worsening situation. The numbers of vehicle accidents and fatalities are increasing.
Delaware is seventh in the 50 states for road rage incidents – that’s higher than New York, which is 46th!
Do we want to add those statistics directly next to Love Creek Elementary and Beacon Middle schools? What about the lengthy bus rides of our students? The additional congestion will add time to their already-long ride.
The developer, Southside Investment Partners, builds projects in cities like Boston and Washington, D.C. It is not a shopping center; it is being designated a shopping district.
Our roads will be exponentially inundated with additional cars from Maryland and Virginia with people avoiding sales tax.
This will not only increase traffic, it will also create constant gridlock. This will impact all of Sussex County.
If you already consider skipping trips because of traffic, this project will make you consider every trip and change your quality of life. In addition, small, local businesses will suffer as a result.
Instead of putting this project where even future improved infrastructure cannot handle the coming effects, put this where people need jobs. Put this in a place that won’t make it impossible for first responders to get to an emergency. Put Atlantic Fields in a place where economic development is needed and residents will be enhanced rather than harmed by such a project.
The current location will most decidedly harm the residents of Sussex County.
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