Sussex County Council grapples with decisions
During a discussion Dec. 9 with state officials, Sussex County Council members said they struggle with making decisions based on ambiguous positions on proposed development projects.
Councilwoman Jane Gruenebaum and Council Vice President John Rieley lamented that when council asks state agencies and others their opinions about the viability of a project, it typically does not get a firm conclusion.
“I want to be told, ‘No,’ or I want to be told, ‘Not until,’” said Gruenebaum.
“It's more than that,” Rieley said. “I've always said, if one of the fire departments stepped up and said, ‘We can't handle that,’ it would be an easy no for me. I would say, ‘I can't support approving that application.’ DelDOT's typical response in the PLUS reports is, ‘We believe with adequate infrastructure improvements we can support the project.’”
Lack of clear advice that a project would cause insurmountable problems leaves council in a precarious situation, council members said.
“It puts us in the position where if all of the agencies are saying they can support it, the fire department says they can support it and the school systems either saying yes or they are agnostic on it, what logical basis would there be to deny something?” Rieley said.
“It really makes it difficult,” he added. “People question, they say the council rubber stamps everything. We're acting on the advice that we're receiving from people who do this for a living.”
There have been growing concerns raised by some groups affected by development.
As classrooms have reached capacity, Cape Henlopen School District last year began urging the county to deny approval of large housing subdivisions until the county adopts an impact fee to fund school expansion projects.
The Lewes Fire Department warned council that it was strongly considering eliminating its ambulance service unless the county provides additional funding.
Council is considering enacting fees on new home construction to fund schools and fire departments.
“We’re relying on each other,” said Nikko Brady, a representative of Gov. Matt Meyer, at the Dec. 9 meeting. “We're relying on you to do your part and make the land-use decisions. You’re relying on us on the infrastructure side and the investment side. To have clarity about what those responsibilities are.”
Brady said the state and county need to come to agreement on those responsibilities, how decisions are made and how that interconnects.
“It's very difficult as a decision-maker to know what the right thing is to do,” Rieley said. “I don't want to lose the opportunity for additional jobs and economic growth and services and conveniences. But I don't want to create a nightmare either.”
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.
