I was one of the listeners to the Sussex County Council-Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission workshop regarding provisions in county code that regulate residential development. I came away with two conclusions: 1. County code governing development needs extensive revision; and 2. The reworking of code provisions will take a long time. Unfortunately, more development applications will be submitted and approved while these discussions are underway.
In a letter to the Cape Gazette from Eul Lee published Sept. 21, she noted that P&Z commissioners have made a practice of not stating reasons for approving applications that include acreage designated by the state as Investment Level 4, which is an area where state agencies won’t invest resources to support development.
State law requires county officials to provide reasons in writing for approving residential development in Level 4 areas. Since this is the law, P&Z’s disclosure of its reasoning doesn’t require any discussion. P&Z just needs to comply with the law.
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