Marasco details bite-size democracy plan for City of Lewes

During her recent campaign for mayor, Amy Marasco promised to launch an initiative aimed at getting more citizens involved in local government. She called it bite-size democracy.

The plan she unveiled at the June 9 Lewes Mayor and City Council meeting creates that involvement and adds additional responsibilities for council members, city staff and a new committee on resiliency.

Marasco said the goal is to get more engagement by creating less burden.

“What we were hearing is, ‘I love Lewes, I’d love to volunteer, but I don’t have time for that committee. I don’t have enough time for that commitment,’” she said.

Marasco said she is creating partner liaisons with council. Each council member will be a resource to the community, a person that organizations can reach out to, according to Marasco.

Assignments are as follows: 

• Deputy Mayor Khalil Saliba – Major organizations, like the University of Delaware, Beebe Healthcare, the Lewes Fire Department and others

• Tim Ritzert – HOAs and neighborhoods

• Joe Elder – Cape Henlopen School District

• Trina Brown-Hicks – Nonprofits.

Marasco said she is also forming council initiatives, which she described as ad hoc projects that take three to six months to complete.

Each project will have a citizen lead and council sponsors.

Projects include: 

• Saliba and Elder – Parking

• Former Councilman Dennis Reardon – City code. Marasco said this project will take longer to finish

• Ritzert and citizen representative Marylinda Maddi – Dark skies lighting

• Brown-Hicks and citizen representative Sally Boswell – Blockhouse Pond

• Marasco and Planning Commissioner Kevin Keane – Communications

• Brown-Hicks – City lead for Lewes 250 celebration.

Marasco said City Manager Ellen Lorraine McCabe will create some of the initiatives. 

Marasco said Lewes Planning Commission Vice Chair Rich Innes and Saliba will be tasked with looking at the scope and mission of a new resiliency committee.

“We have a resiliency fund and we have environmental issues that are not always under the planning commission,” Marasco said.

She said Innes and Saliba will recruit people to serve on that panel, which will report directly to council.

Marasco has also enlisted City Clerk Ashley Akgoren and City Solicitor Alex Burns to review the Freedom of Information Act and Roberts’ Rules of Order, which are the guidelines organizations follow for conducting meetings.

“My goal here is commonsense, streamline, but follow the rules,” Marasco said.

She said they will train members of all city committees on proper government procedures.

“This sounds like a lot of government. No, it’s little, bite-size pieces. This is Round 1 of bite-size democracy. I hope people will see that it’s not so intimidating to be on council or a committee,” Marasco said.

Saliba, who has been outspoken about the increasing workload for members of city council, said he thinks the new initiative is manageable.

“We already have a full plate, that’s true, but we’re in agreement that if it’s too much, we’ll work it out,” he said.