News Briefs 12/10/21

Drive-thru pantry set Dec. 13 in Georgetown

The Food Bank of Delaware will host a drive-thru mobile pantry at 11 a.m., Monday, Dec. 13, at Crossroad Community Church, 20684 State Forest Road, Georgetown.

Participants should make sure their trunks or back seats are cleared out so volunteers can load food.

To help speed up the check-in process, preregistration is requested; go to dec13sussexcounty.eventbrite.com. On-site registration will also be available. Service will be first-come, first-served. Assistance is limited to one per household.

Congresswoman to join AARP Town Hall

U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester will join AARP Delaware State Director Lucretia Young to host a Telephone Town Hall at 7 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 16. Listeners can hear from the congresswoman on a range of issues including recent legislation, caregiving, prescription drug prices and more. Delawareans can listen on AARP Delaware’s Facebook page, facebook.com/AARPDE.

Lewes Mayor and City Council meets Dec. 13

Lewes Mayor and City Council will meet at 6:30 p.m., Monday, Dec. 13, at city hall and via Zoom. The group will present a recognition to the Cape Henlopen High School JROTC for their participation in the National Junior Leadership Academic Bowl. They will set a public hearing for various code changes, including an ordinance to amend definitions of substantial damage and substantial improvement. Other items include authorization for basement improvements for the police station, discussion of a proposal for a Lewes police study, a proposal for Tony Pratt to work with the city’s mitigation planning team regarding beach erosion issues, and discussion about the need to establish designated truck routes. City council will also consider a request from Family Promise for use of ARPA funds, possible action on a traffic signal agreement for the Olde Town at White’s Pond development on Freeman Highway and consideration of a maintenance agreement for the Lewes-to-Georgetown Trail spur between the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal and Freeman Highway. The full agenda with links to associated documents and to attend the meeting virtually can be found at lewes.civicweb.net.

Milton historic group to meet Dec. 14

Milton Historic Preservation Commission will meet at 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 14, in Milton library to hear one case and elect a slate of officers.

In new business, the committee will hear a request from John Paul Lacap to replace a garage door with windows and add wood shutters at a home located at 404 Chestnut St.

The commission will also elect a chair, vice chair and secretary.

Milton council to meet Dec. 15

Milton Town Council will meet at 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 15, at Milton library, for a workshop on the town’s construction manual.

Town staff, engineers with Pennoni Associates and the town engineer will also take part in the meeting.

A copy of the manual can be found on the town website, milton.delaware.gov.

Redistricting maps ready by Dec. 14

At the Dec. 7 Sussex County Council meeting, county attorney J. Everett Moore informed council that the public comment period on councilmanic redistricting ended Dec. 1. He said he would have maps prepared for the Tuesday, Dec. 14 meeting for council and public review. Several maps were offered by the public, including one from the League of Women Voters that received many favorable comments, the attorney said.

Moore said an ordinance to adopt the map would be presented to council for introduction in early January, and a public hearing will be scheduled in early February.

Based on the 2020 census results for Delaware, Sussex County’s population increased more than 20 percent between 2010 and 2020, from 197,145 residents to 237,378 residents. Each of the newly drawn council districts will encompass an average of 47,475 residents. Each district must be within 5 percent of that average, containing no fewer than 45,101 residents and no more than 49,849.

Caroling on The Circle slated for Dec. 13

Caroling on the Circle has been rescheduled to 6:30 p.m., Monday, Dec. 13, on The Circle in downtown Georgetown. People attending the free event are encouraged to bring items to support Sussex County government’s annual food drive.

Lockhaven appeal on Sussex agenda

Sussex County Council will meet at 9 a.m., Tuesday, Dec. 14, in the county administration building, 2 The Circle, Georgetown, to hear an appeal of the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission's decision to deny the Lockhaven subdivision, a 25-lot project on 126 acres along Round Pole Bridge Road near Milton.

Also on the agenda are a presentation on county council redistricting and a presentation from Sussex Sports Center Foundation. There will also be a public hearing on a proposed amendment to the county’s future land-use map for a 247-acre parcel east of Route 1 across from the Cave Neck Road intersection north of Lewes from a low-density area to a coastal area designation.

Special meeting set Dec. 14 in Rehoboth

Rehoboth Beach commissioners have scheduled a special meeting for 2:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 14. The agenda calls for a discussion related to logistics of put utilities underground within Wilmington and Baltimore avenue areas.

The meeting will be conducted virtually, with an anchor location of Rehoboth Beach City Hall, 229 Rehoboth Ave. People wishing to speak, who are not in-person, must preregister by emailing City Secretary Ann Womack, awomack@cityofrehoboth.com, at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. A full agenda and meeting materials are accessible at cityofrehoboth.civicweb.net. For more information, call 302-227-6181.

Rehoboth board, planners to meet

Rehoboth Beach has scheduled a special meeting between the board of commissioners and the planning commission for 10 a.m., Wednesday, Dec. 15. The agenda calls for discussion of the 2020 Comprehensive Development Plan. A draft version of the plan is available in the comprehensive development plan folder via the document center link at the top of the city’s civicweb portal.

The meeting will be conducted virtually, with an anchor location of Rehoboth Beach City Hall, 229 Rehoboth Ave. People wishing to speak but not attending in person must preregister by emailing City Secretary Ann Womack, awomack@cityofrehoboth.com, at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. A full agenda and meeting materials are accessible at cityofrehoboth.civicweb.net. For more information, call 302-227-6181.

Rehoboth seeks stormwater utility task force members

Rehoboth Beach is forming a Stormwater Utility Task Force to make recommendations regarding the establishment of a fee assessment structure for a comprehensive stormwater management program. The city may consider establishing a stormwater utility fund to provide dedicated funding for stormwater-related programs and projects.

The task force will be composed of five to seven stakeholders, including commercial and residential property owners, small business owners, and representatives of nonprofit organizations. Applications are available on the city’s website, cityofrehoboth.com, and should be submitted by Friday, Jan. 7, to awomack@cityofrehobothbeach.com. Task force members will be appointed by the mayor with confirmation by commissioners.

The Stormwater Utility Task Force is expected to begin meeting in February and will likely sunset by July 2022. All task force meetings will be open to the public.

Sussex council awards nonprofit grants

Sussex County Council presented the following councilmanic grants at its Dec. 7 meeting: $1,500 to Ocean Waves Quilt Guild in Lewes for an art/quilt show and community outreach expenses and $1,000 to Police Unity Tour, Chapter X, to support the cycling tour’s operation, logistics, provisions and accommodations.

No ruling on record of Clear Space, Rehoboth dispute

Representatives from Clear Space Theatre Company and Rehoboth Beach were in court Dec. 8 arguing what constitutes the record for the ongoing litigation. After the hearing, Wesley Paulson, Clear Space executive director, said the judge did not make a ruling and no time frame was determined for when the ruling would come.

Clear Space is challenging the city’s second reversal of the planning commission’s site-plan approval for its proposed Rehoboth Avenue theater. Clear Space attorney Shawn Tucker said the city’s definition of the record is wrong because it doesn’t include the site plans submitted by Clear Space, the full docket of the case, or the planning commission’s or Clear Space’s responses that were submitted in advance of a June hearing.

In response, Max Walton, the attorney representing the city, said the scope of the appeal is narrow, and an exploration of a complicated administrative record is simply not permitted on certiorari review.

Town of Ellendale to use ARPA funds to expand service

A request by Town of Ellendale officials to expand the Washington Street water main loop was approved Nov. 16 by Sussex County Council. Sussex County has water and sewer districts in the town along Route 16, east of Route 113.

County engineer Hans Medlarz said the town has allocated $193,845 in American Rescue Plan Act funds for a 2,400-foot expansion. Construction on the long-awaited water system started in early 2021, and Medlarz said 100 water connections have been activated, which is about half of the total properties that will be hooked into the system.

Getting a water system in the small town has been a long process, including two failed referendums when town residents rejected the proposed district. In 2018, voters approved a smaller district than originally proposed, and the water district was established by council in October 2018. In January 2021, council approved an agreement with Artesian Water Company to provide source water, with shared operation and maintenance.

Peninsula to add more single-family lots

At its Dec. 7 meeting, Sussex County Council approved a rezoning application to allow developers of The Peninsula to amend its current site plan to reduce multifamily units and increase single-family home lots in the 778-acre development at the end of Bay Road in Long Neck.

At the Nov. 30 council meeting, Zac Crouch of Davis Bowen and Friedel, representing developer OA-BP Marina Bay-Lakeside LLC, said the overall number of units in the subdivision would not change from 1,394, but the number of single-family lots would increase from 388 to 417 and the number of multifamily unit condominiums would decrease from 378 to 295. He said the request is being made because of current market conditions and the demand for single-family homes. On Nov. 18, Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of the application.

In July 2019, the overall total number of units was reduced from 1,404 to 1,394.

Millsboro Fire Co. will have new substation

The Millsboro Fire Company has been given a green light to add a new substation at the town’s western border. At its Nov. 30 meeting, Sussex County Council approved a conditional use to allow the project to proceed on a 1.5-acre parcel at 30134 Millsboro Highway, the intersection of Route 24 and Mumford Road. Fire officials said they will retrofit the existing buildings on the site. About half of the company's members live west of Route 113, and traffic on weekends and in the summer can delay their response to the station in downtown Millsboro, said Rachel Bleshman, an attorney representing the company.