I feel as though I have been watching a split-screen documentary in the Cape Region for about three years now: The incessant and clamoring demands that county elected officials do more to stop rampant growth, and the lack of collaboration and problem-solving from our state legislators who seem to get a free pass as traffic clogs our roads.
Finally, after reading last week’s Cape Gazette, I felt others were starting to feel the same. From a letter to the editor that called for an end to finger pointing between state and county elected officials and an editorial that thoughtfully summed up the problem we are facing as state coffers seemed to have dried up in support of local projects that up to a few years ago, were flourishing and, while not solving our growing pains, were at least assisting with blocking and tackling.
From 2012-22, three new elementary schools were built in Cape Henlopen School District, and the state-of-the-art Sussex Consortium became the crown jewel in the county serving the needs of children with autism and special needs.
A new Lewes library was built and opened in 2015. A new Rehoboth fire station was opened along Route 1 and a new Lewes Fire Department station opened at Nassau. Beebe’s Abessinio Campus and Bayhealth’s Hudson Road facilities were all opened during this time, as was the newly constructed Beebe School of Nursing.
Engineering and funding for the Five Points realignment and Minos Conway interchanges, one completed and the other underway, were all budgeted and engineered after now-retired Sen. Ernie Lopez, a Republican and fiscal conservative, cast a deciding vote to increase taxes for transportation-related projects that came back to the beach. He took a beating from many of his fellow Republicans, but most now agree the investments were direly needed. Where are our state legislators now?
As much as I appreciate the photo-ops and the fictional references to George Bailey, we live in the real world and need legislators who will advocate and deliver more financial support to the fastest-growing region of our state.
The entire delegation in eastern Sussex is Democratic, as are the governor and majorities in both houses. Why can’t we get our fair share when we are the ones in the eye of the storm? I hope those reading this letter will join me in asking our local senator and representatives the next time we see them.
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to viewpoints@capegazette.com. All letters are considered at the discretion of the newsroom and published as space allows. Due to the large volume of submissions, we cannot acknowledge receipt of each submission. Letters must include a phone number and address for verification. Keep letters to 400 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content or length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Letters should focus on local issues, not national topics or personalities. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days regarding a particular topic. Authors may submit a second letter within that time period if it pertains to a different issue. Letters may not be critical of personalities or specific businesses. Criticism of public figures is permissible. Endorsement letters for political candidates are no longer accepted. Letters must be the author’s original work, and may not be generated by artificial intelligence tools. Templates, form letters and letters containing language similar to other submissions will not be published.
