News Briefs 01/24/20

Milton BoA meeting cancelled
Milton Board of Adjustment has cancelled its Tuesday, Jan. 28 meeting due to a lack of agenda items. The board’s next scheduled meeting is Tuesday, Feb. 25.

Lewes drawbridge to close Jan. 30-Feb 13
The Delaware Department of Transportation announced that it will close the Lewes drawbridge on Savannah Road from Thursday, Jan. 30 to Thursday, Feb. 13, for bridge repairs. Detour signage will be posted for motorists, and a shuttle will be available for pedestrians. 

The pick-up/drop-off locations will be at the Fishermans’s Wharf parking area at the corner of Anglers Road and Savannah Road, and the 1812 Memorial Park parking lot. Departure times from Anglers Road will be on the full and half hour. Departure times from 1812 Memorial Park will be 15 minutes and 45 minutes of each hour. The shuttle will be a 15-passenger van and ADA compliant. 

Dewey code and charter committee to meet Jan. 25
The Dewey Beach Code and Charter Review ad hoc committee will meet at 10 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 25, at the Lifesaving Station, 1 Dagsworthy Ave. Members will select a vice chair and secretary, discuss goals and objectives, and areas in which the code is contradictory, ambiguous or out-of-date. Action items will be assigned for the next meeting.

Dewey investment committee to meet Jan. 25
The Dewey Beach Investment Committee will meet at 3 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 25, at the Lifesaving Station, 1 Dagsworthy Ave. Members will possibly vote on a revised investment policy and hear a portfolio review by Brown Advisory.

Dewey commissioners to meet Jan. 25
Dewey Beach commissioners will meet at 12 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 25. Commissioners will discuss the status of the police consultant work on the policy manual and strategic plan proposal, and review the December 2019 financial reports. The budget and finance committee will provide an update from its Jan. 10 meeting, and commissioners will continue discussion on the definition of “closing time.”

Pickleball on Lewes parks agenda Jan. 27
Lewes Parks and Recreation Commission will meet at 7 p.m., Monday, Jan. 27, at city hall. The group will discuss the possible reconfiguring of the Canalfront Park tennis courts. The current proposal removes one of two tennis courts and replaces it with four pickleball courts. The remaining tennis court would also be lined for pickleball. The commission will also consider a request to place the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal railroad swing bridge in Great Marsh Park or at Blockhouse Pond in George H.P. Smith Park. For more information, call city hall at 302-645-7777.

Rehoboth’s Lake Ave. project meeting Jan. 27
Rehoboth Beach has scheduled a public workshop related to Phase II of improvements to the Lake Avenue streetscape. The workshop is scheduled for 10 a.m., Monday, Jan. 27, in the commissioners room of city hall, 229 Rehoboth Ave. The purpose of the presentation is to provide an opportunity for the public to review and discuss the plans for the proposed improvements and provide input. The project includes enhancements along Olive and Maryland avenues, including the triangular grass island in the middle of the two roads, from Third Street to Second Street. The project also includes Second Street, from Olive Avenue to Rehoboth Avenue.

Construction is scheduled to begin in fall 2020. For more information, go to www.cityofrehoboth.civicweb.net/Portal, or contact the communications department at 302-227-6181 Ext. 522 or communications@cityofrehoboth.com.

VA services in Sussex topic of meeting Jan. 27
The Sussex County Advisory Committee on Aging & Adults with Physical Disabilities will host a presentation on services available to veterans and their families at 10 a.m., Monday, Jan. 27, at the Sussex County administrative offices west complex, 22215 N. DuPont Blvd., Georgetown.

Mark Taylor and Valerie Camarillo, outreach specialists for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, will explain VA healthcare services available in Sussex County and throughout Delaware, as well as talk about an expanded Kent County VA clinic scheduled to open later this year. For more information, go to www.sussexcountyde.gov/boards-committees.

Rehoboth shade tree commission to meet Jan. 27
The Rehoboth Beach Parks and Shade Tree Commission has scheduled a meeting for 2 p.m., Monday, Jan. 27, in the commissioners room of city hall, 229 Rehoboth Ave. The agenda calls for an appeal hearing from the property owners of 46 Kent St. related to a fee in lieu of mitigation as opposed to a tree planting of 10 inches of caliper. For more information call 302-227-6181. A full agenda can be found at town hall or online at www.cityofrehoboth.civicweb.net.

38th District Republicans to meet Jan. 27
The 38th District Republican Club meeting will be held Monday, Jan. 27, at 6:30 p.m., at South Coastal Library, 43 Kent Ave., Bethany Beach. In preparation for the upcoming 2020 election season, the 38th DRCP is offering the opportunity for a hands-on experience with the new 2020 voting machines. 

Wayne Osborne, senior application support specialist, Department of Elections Sussex Office, will be demonstrating all aspects of the new machines which include an electronic touch screen, printed ballot before vote is cast, a more secure voting method and user friendly for those with disabilities. 

All attendees will have the opportunity to view, ask questions and experience a hands-on simulation of voting procedure. The public is invited; free admission. Rep. Ron Gray and Sen. Gerald Hocker will also report on current Legislature activity. Yearly dues are $20. Further information may be obtained by emailing info@38thdrcp.com.

DMHOA to meet Jan. 27 in Angola
The Delaware Manufactured Home Owners Association is the only nonprofit organization and legislative advocate representing the interests of home owners living in manufactured housing on leased land throughout the entire state of Delaware. The next meeting will be held 6:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 27, at Angola Beach and Estates Clubhouse, 22971 Suburban Blvd., Lewes.  Admission is free and open to anyone living in manufactured housing on leased land.  For more information go to www.dmhoa.org or call 302-945-2122.

Wildlife and Freshwater Fish Council to meet Jan. 28
Delaware’s Advisory Council on Wildlife and Freshwater Fish will meet at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 28, in the DNREC Auditorium, 89 Kings Highway, Dover. For more information, including the meeting agenda, go to the Delaware Public Meeting Calendar at https://publicmeetings.delaware.gov/Meeting/65286. For more information call the DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife’s Wildlife Section at 302-739-9912. For more information on Delaware fisheries, call the DNREC Division of Fish & Wildlife’s Fisheries Section at 302-739-9914.

MOU on Jan. 28 Sussex council agenda
Sussex County Council will meet at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 28, in the county administration building, 2 The Circle, Georgetown. Included on the agenda is a 10:30 a.m. public hearing on a proposed updated memorandum of understanding between Sussex County and Delaware Department of Transportation on land-use applications. At 1:30 p.m., a public hearing is scheduled on a conditional-use application filed by OA-Rehoboth LLC for a 224-unit apartment complex on a 19-acre parcel off Route 24 behind Rehoboth Mall. See a complete agenda at www.sussexcountyde.gov. Meetings are broadcast live on the county website.

Delaware Bay shellfish grounds for lease
The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Division of Fish & Wildlife announced Jan. 12 that shellfish grounds located in Delaware Bay are available for lease. The grounds are south of the East Line and north of the Murderkill River. This notice does not pertain to shellfish aquaculture leasing in Delaware’s Inland Bays.

Upon request, Fish and Wildlife will provide a detailed description of the specific shellfish grounds currently under lease. Any person wishing to lease areas within the defined boundaries of the shellfish growing area, not already under lease, shall make an application to DNREC prior to Sunday, March 15, on a form provided by Fish and Wildlife.

In the event that more than one application is received for the same grounds, the grounds will be leased by competitive sealed bid and above the base fee for the first year. For more information, contact Stewart Michels at 302-739-9914 or DNREC Headquarters, 89 Kings Hwy., Dover.

Sussex P&Z takes action on projects
At its Jan. 9 meeting, Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission granted final site-plan approval to Ocean Meadows, a 133-single-family-lot cluster subdivision on the west of Beaver Dam Road near Lewes.
The commission granted preliminary site-plan approval to Ocean Park, a three-building, 45,000-square-foot office complex at the corner of Plantation Road and Cedar Grove Road between Lewes and Rehoboth Beach.
A final site plan can be reviewed once all county and state agency approvals have been received by the planning and zoning office.

LWV offers alternative voting program Jan. 31
The League of Women Voters of Delaware will present an informational program, Alternative Voting Methodologies, Friday, Jan. 31, from 2 to 4 p.m., at the Lewes Public Library. While simple plurality or “first past the post” voting is most common in the United States, most countries in the world vote differently.

Advocates of reform contend that plurality voting discourages sincere voting and, compared to other methods, is less effective in electing candidates who are most representative of the people. Minneapolis, Maine and New York City have already switched to the ranked-choice method.

The league’s Alternative Voting Methodologies Study Team will explain simple plurality voting, standard run-off elections, instant-runoff ranked-choice voting, range or “score” voting, and multi-member districting. Challenging common assumptions, audience participation in ballot demonstration exercises will give attendees the opportunity to experience how it feels to vote in different ways as well as to see how the outcome differs depending on the voting method used.

To register for the program go to www.eventbrite.com/e/alternative-votingelection-systems-presentation-sus... or go to www.sussexlwv.org for more information.

IR to host referendum meeting for seniors Jan. 29
The Indian River School District will host a meeting for senior citizens to explain its upcoming referendum and highlight tax assistance programs at 9 a.m., Wednesday, Jan. 29, at Sussex Central High School. District officials will present information on the referendum, and explain state and county property tax relief programs available to senior citizens. Attendees will be able to ask questions.

The major capital improvement referendum, set for Thursday, Feb. 13, seeks funding to build a new Sussex Central High School on district-owned property north of Millsboro. For information, call 302-436-1079 or go to www.irsd.net/referendum.

Wolfe Runne connecting to sewer
General obligation bonds totaling $1.7 million will be issued to allow Sussex County to provide central-sewer connection to the Wolfe Runne community along Gills Neck Road just outside Lewes city limits. Residents are currently served by on-site systems. Sussex County engineer Hans Medlarz said engineering of the system for 80 homes is underway. Residents will be responsible for all connection fees.