Moskowitz only Dewey official who listens

Moskowitz only Dewey official who listens

I wanted to share my experience, as a homeowner in Dewey Beach, with the Town of Dewey Beach and the mayors, commissioners and town managers over the last 10 years.  I own an end unit townhome on Bayard Avenue just inside the Dewey Beach town line with the Seabreeze neighborhood.  I have owned this home since January 2000.  Around spring 2012, I noticed that every time it rained hard, the wooded part of my townhome lot would flood and fill up with water.  The water would stay there for days or even weeks and create a breeding ground for mosquitos. 

When I tried to find out why the water would not drain away, I noticed that the drainage grate was clogged with mud.  At that time, I contacted the mayor who forwarded my concern to the town manager.  The town manager looked at the issue but never got back to me.  Every few years, when we had a lot of rain and the flooding was bad, I would call or send an email to the mayor or town manager, was told someone would look into it, but no one ever responded.  As soon as David Moskowitz was elected, I received an email from him, introducing himself as one of the new town commissioners. 

In this email, David asked everyone if they had any issues or questions with the town that needed attention.  I immediately responded with my flooding issue.  David forwarded my flooding issue to the mayor and town manager.  The town manager came out to look at the drainage grate, saw it was clogged and told me they would work on getting it cleared.  As time went by, I never heard back from the town manager, but every three months, David would email the mayor and town manager, copy me on the email and ask them if this issue had been resolved.  Despite the fact that this issue still hasn’t been fixed, David continues to email the mayor and the acting town manager every three months and asks them to please try to resolve my flooding issue.  After eight years of no action by the town, David has been the only one who has continued to try to hold the town accountable for issues like mine and others.  

In addition, David has continued to update me and other Dewey homeowners after severe storms and flooding that affect Dewey Beach from time to time.  One of the biggest complaints that I have had over the years about the town is that it never updates us on weather-related issues before, during or after they hit Dewey Beach.  In this day of email chains, websites and social media, why can’t those in charge of Dewey Beach update the homeowners to advise us of severe weather and flooding?  David starting sending emails out to me and other residents right after he was elected.  Prior to this, I would have to drive to Dewey Beach to check on my house after any storm or severe weather.  David has always updated residents by email, sent out pictures of flooding and offered to go by and check on individual houses. Many times, David has saved me from having to drive three hours to Dewey Beach to check on my house.  Most of Dewey’s homeowners do not live in town; how difficult would it be for the town to notify its residents after flooding and high winds or storms wreak havoc on the town?  In my 20 years as a homeowner, David has been the only one who has offered to do this. 

For these reasons, I am voting to re-elect David Moskowitz as town commissioner.