The voters of Sussex County are reasonable people.
Reasonable people believe planned infrastructure has an official starting point, a completion date that matches area projects and definitive funding. Reasonable people believe their representatives should evaluate decisions based on current conditions, not plans made 10 years ago.
Last county council election, reasonable people opted for change. They saw the infrastructure in the county was not up to the pace of development and did not believe the incumbent council members were making reasonable decisions.
Fast forward to today. Three new council members and the two remaining incumbents have to make their first major development decisions – Belle Mead, Atlantic Fields and Cool Spring Crossing. A vote on precedent-setting zone changes for these three massive projects will likely take place in the upcoming weeks.
Will the new council members hold to what they said on the campaign trail? Will the two incumbents see what happened in the last election as a sign they need to start looking at things differently?
Thus far at public hearings for these immense developments, Councilman Steve McCarron has been rather quiet, seemingly frustrated with why the state is not providing more funding for infrastructure. Councilwoman Jane Gruenebaum has consistently questioned the developers on infrastructure plans, and has called for a pause on future development. Meanwhile, Councilman Matt Lloyd, who called for a moratorium on development when he first came into office, has proceeded to make a point of stating the developers’ talking points back to them for the record as if it’s the gospel, before the public even has a chance to comment.
The two incumbents, Vice President John Rieley and President Doug Hudson, have an election coming up in November. Rieley seems to have recognized where the public stands on these projects, asking probing questions of the developers about infrastructure issues. Hudson has been eerily quiet.
Is Lloyd a wolf in sheep’s clothing? Has Rieley really seen the light? Is Hudson running for re-election?
The rules around zoning changes are not black and white. If they were, we wouldn’t need a county council and could just check boxes with planning & zoning, saving us money and elections.
Elections are expensive, and those wanting to see these projects approved have deep pockets, but reasonable people see the flaws. Reasonable people vote.
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