I am a resident of the county’s Fourth District, and participated in the fight over the proposed construction of the 7-Eleven and associated service station at the corner of Rte. 24 and Angola Rd. I of course am not eligible to vote in the Third District, and therefore when Patti Drago failed to convince I.G. Burton, one of the strong supporters of the county’s comprehensive plan, to run as a write-in candidate, I was disappointed, but resigned to Mark Schaeffer’s ascendence to the council, and hoped for the best.
Then Ms. Drago stepped up to announce she would run as a write-in candidate. Up to that point, I knew little of either candidate, but I was intrigued now that Schaeffer had an opponent. I then looked up their respective histories as best I could, and while Schaeffer has a distinct advantage in his longevity in the county and state, as well as his mayorship and several other state councils, Drago also has an impressive resume with regard to running large, complex organizations, and has a record of working with community organizations in her capacity as a CEO and president of insurance organizations, as well as a citizen. So, whom to write on behalf of, since the council members will decide the large issues of county governance and the crucial decisions facing us concerning the direction the county takes with regard to the crisis facing housing and business development?
I have to say the deciding factor in supporting Drago’s challenge to Schaeffer was the latter’s July interview with the Gazette, in which he stated he is running “to preserve Sussex County landowners’ rights,” which to me is by this point simply a code phrase for the consumption of the western part of the county, that the farmers will continue to be able to sell off the land they profess to love to developers with not much oversight, and the continued rubber-stamping of hodge-podge development by the Planning and Zoning Commission. Schaeffer’s employment as a Realtor also makes me frankly nervous, given that in the past council and P&Z members have had close ties to the developers and realty agencies, who work hand-in-glove to see that any restraints on development die quietly behind the proverbial barn.
Finally, Schaeffer not only will be constrained by his party from doing the right thing in certain instances, he states he intends to keep taxes “low,” i.e. at the original 1974 assessment level. This means that retirees and those with second homes in Sussex County will be stuck with an increase in transfer taxes, since the money to correct the deliberate neglect and mistakes of the past will have to come from somewhere, and it won’t come from state coffers, no matter who controls the state house. It should be remembered that all members of the council decide the future of the county.
I therefore support Drago’s challenge, and hope for the best.
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