State may delay five-year planning document
A five-year plan setting state spending and program priorities scheduled for completion soon will likely be pushed back to the end of the year, in part due to Sussex County reevaluating its position on development, a state official announced May 1.
David Edgell, director of the Office of State Planning Coordination, explained the situation at a meeting of the county’s land-use reform working group.
Edgell said a cabinet committee working on state planning issues has its first meeting of the Meyer administration Friday, May 9.
“They will decide what the schedule is, but we do have approval from the governor to extend as far as the end of the year,” he said.
Edgell serves on the 10-member panel tasked with proposing what may be sweeping changes to Sussex County’s rules in response to growing concerns about the pace and location of housing development. That growth has burdened roads, schools, healthcare providers and the environment, and led to election victories in November for three council members calling for limits.
Work on the Strategies for State Policies and Spending was scheduled to be completed in July.
Edgell said more time is needed to bring cabinet members up to speed, educate the public about the process and align the strategies plan with the state climate action plan, which is also in the works, he said.
“It seems like something completely different than what we’re talking about here, but it turns out good land-use policy does have impacts on reducing emissions and protecting the environment," Edgell said.
The Strategies for State Policies and Spending is a comprehensive planning document, Edgell explained after the meeting.
“It’s not a land-use plan,” Edgell said. “It’s a strategy document and map series that guide the investments in infrastructure and services by all the state agencies. It is in coordination and conjunction with the local government comprehensive plans.”
The state looks at local comprehensive plans in creating its own plan for supporting growth and providing services, he said.
With most of the housing development in the state occurring in Sussex County, it is important to wait while the working group makes recommendations on change and council can consider those suggestions, Edgell said.
“We certainly support the work here, or we wouldn’t be here,” he said. “We’re very excited that this is happening.”
County Administrator Todd Lawson said after the May 1 meeting that he was glad to hear that the state could delay completion of the strategies document.
“There is a lot of activity taking place in Sussex through this working group, but also the vision of the new council to really take a hard look at the way our code and the comprehensive plan are being implemented,” Lawson said. “There seem to be some conflicts between the future land-use map and our comp plan and the state strategies. They’re not aligned, and we need to get them more closely aligned.”
Land-use decisions are made at the local level. With much of the growth in Sussex County occurring in rural areas where the state did not anticipate it, the county and state have been diverging as the largest housing boom in the state has continued in recent years.
“They agreed that there’s progress being made down here and they should probably either wait or work together to see what unfolds and how we can get the maps more closely aligned,” Lawson said. “It’s wonderful news.”
Kevin Conlon came to the Cape Gazette with nearly 40 years of newspaper experience since graduating from St. Bonaventure University in New York with a bachelor's degree in mass communication. He reports on Sussex County government and other assignments as needed.
His career spans working as a reporter and editor at daily newspapers in upstate New York, including The Daily Gazette in Schenectady. He comes to the Cape Gazette from the Cortland Standard, where he was an editor for more than 25 years, and in recent years also contributed as a columnist and opinion page writer. He and his staff won regional and state writing awards.
Conlon was relocating to Lewes when he came across an advertisement for a reporter job at the Cape Gazette, and the decision to pursue it paid off. His new position gives him an opportunity to stay in a career that he loves, covering local news for an independently owned newspaper.
Conlon is the father of seven children and grandfather to two young boys. In his spare time, he trains for and competes in triathlons and other races. Now settling into the Cape Region, he is searching out hilly trails and roads with wide shoulders. He is a fan of St. Bonaventure sports, especially rugby and basketball, as well as following the Mets, Steelers and Celtics.
