Speakers to discuss county comp plan, land-use reform March 11
The Sussex Preservation Coalition will meet at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 11, at the Lewes Public Library, 111 Adams Ave., Lewes. The meeting will also be livestreamed on SussexPreservationCoalition.org.
Speakers will be Rich Borrasso, SPC director of land-use policy, and Sussex County Councilwoman Jane Gruenebaum.
Developers, home builders, engineers, farmers, conservationists, and environmentalists can agree that Sussex County needs comprehensive land-use reform. However, what changes are to be made and how the county implements them will be closely watched by everyone.
The first recommendation of the 2025 Land Use Reform Working Group stated that the county needed to revise its Future Land Use Map during the 2028 Comprehensive Plan update, using the State Strategies for Spending as a guide, among other factors, to determine where growth and preservation should occur. Working group members observed that development has expanded into State Investment Level 4 areas that lack planned infrastructure, creating many challenges.
Sussex County Council is starting to work now on the 2028 plan update and map that will guide the county for the next 10 years. It is also considering several working group recommendations that are deemed to be “low-hanging fruit.”
What does all this mean for the county in its short- and long-term future?
The public is invited to attend and learn more at the March 11 meeting, when Borrasso will present a comprehensive plan overview and outline the process to be followed in drafting the new plan. Gruenebaum will discuss which group recommendations the council is likely to address first. Both will explain how community members may stay up to date and engaged in the progress. There will be time for open discussion and questions.
Borrasso has been an SPC board member since 2022, with expertise in raising awareness and public engagement on critical issues pertaining to land use, infrastructure and natural resource preservation. He brings a wealth of strategic planning experience from 44 years in the consumer goods industry, holding executive management positions at several Fortune 500 companies. He participated in the 2018 Sussex County Comprehensive Plan process and in 2017 co-founded the Sussex Alliance for Responsible Growth, a nonpartisan group that works to inform, educate and engage Sussex County citizens regarding the critical importance of the plan’s development, adoption and implementation. He was a member of the 2020 Sussex County Wetlands Work Group contributing to the successful adoption of an updated wetlands buffer ordinance.
Gruenebaum serves as the Third District representative on Sussex County Council, representing Delaware Bay and Atlantic coast communities including the Broadkill Beach, Dewey Beach, Henlopen Acres, Lewes, Long Neck, Prime Hook Beach, Rehoboth Beach, and Slaughter Beach areas. She was the SPC’s founding president, dedicated to balancing the economic growth of Sussex County with the need to preserve the natural environment that protects and nurtures its residents. A graduate of Columbia University in New York City with a PhD in political science, Gruenebaum’s professional background includes university teaching, serving as a senior staffer at the Brookings Institution, and leadership of nonprofit organizations including the League of Women Voters national group and the Center for Policy Alternatives. Gruenebaum has been an active volunteer with several Sussex County organizations, including Humane Animal Partners in Rehoboth and the Cinema Art Theater in the Lewes area.
