It’s time for a change for voters in Milton, Harbeson, Lewes, and the surrounding area. For those of us in state House District 20 and state Senate District 6, our current representative (Steve Smyk) and senator (Ernie Lopez) have had more than enough time in office to address longtime problems related to water quality, traffic, telecommunications, affordable housing, and other issues in this area. Not only have they not addressed or made progress in correcting these problems, these problems have gotten worse.
Specifically, voters and residents in House District 20 and Senate District 6, ask yourselves the following questions since Smyk and Lopez came into office almost six years ago: (1) Are water quality and drinking water contamination problems better? Answer - no. (2) Have traffic problems improved, roads been widened, and congestion diminished? Answer - no. (3) Has your cellphone service improved, broadband internet service gotten better, or costs gone down? Answer - no. (4) Is housing more affordable and more available for the average worker? Answer - no. (5) Are there more future-oriented, high-paying jobs with benefits and promotion potential to keep young people in the area? Answer - no. I could go on, but you get the picture.
I say six years is more than enough time for Smyk and Lopez to have done something to address these problems. These problems are not new; they’ve been around for a long time: DNREC isn’t doing its job to protect people from contaminated water and hold polluters like Allen Harim more accountable. DelDOT keeps asking questions and doing studies, but it hasn’t widened roads or straightened out major intersections. How many more traffic studies need to be done? We all experience dropped cell calls and have slow internet service all over this area; Verizon, Comcast, and other cellphone and internet service providers have not been forced to improve service. Without these issues being fixed, companies with good-paying jobs not going to come here, and young people and others with technical skills who want to stay can’t. These two guys have not been up to the task, and haven’t gotten the job done.
It’s time for a change! John “Jack” Bucchioni is running to replace Steve Smyk in House District 20 and David Baker is running to replace Ernie Lopez in Senate District 6. Both of them will use their their lifelong experiences - Jack’s business expertise and Dave’s government administration background - to bring new, workable ideas to address these problems. Jack and Dave have been actively walking their districts to personally tell us about their backgrounds; they have been actively listening to and talking with voters and residents about our problems and frustrations; and they have reached out to a range of knowledgeable people and organizations to figure out and come up with workable solutions.
In fact, many of you have probably talked with Jack and Dave, and their supporters have knocked on hundreds and hundreds of doors, and both of them have been to dozens of community meetings, especially regarding water pollution problems. Steve Smyk and Ernie Lopez have never knocked on my door or been to any community meetings about water pollution problems. Water pollution problems - like the other problems - are not Republican problems or Democrat problems; they are our problems. Maybe Smyk and Lopez are nice guys, but they haven’t gotten the job done. Jack and Dave are nice guys too who will get the job done. So I urge all voters - Democrats, Independents, Republicans - to vote for Jack Bucchioni for representative in House District 20 and for Dave Baker for senator in state Senate District 6. It’s time for a change!
Keith Steck
Milton
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