I.
Police Report by Sam Mackert
- There will be 6 less
Seasonal Police Officers this year due to timing and completion of
training requirements. However 6 “Parking Enforcement Officers” were
hired to specifically enforce parking. They will be wearing Yellow Polo
shirts with Blue Caps so people can differentiate between a Police
Officer and a Parking Enforcement Officer.
II.
Proclamation by Mayor Tush declaring that May is
Melanoma Awareness Month
- In Recognition in memory
of Kent McCullough who recently passed away.
III.
Delaware Highway
Safety Presentation by Lisa Moore
- Checkpoint Strike force
that was established resulted in 61 DUI arrests
IV.
Unity for Beauty Day Announcement
- Organized by Diane Hanson
of the Dewey Beach Civic League
- $3,000 contribution from the town and $4,100
contributed by Local Business Owners, the Dewey Beach Civic League and
many Private Donations.
- The Event that was held on Saturday, May 12th was
an Extremely Huge Success so the Civic League would like to thank
everyone involved.
V.
Ordinance to continue Emergency Moratorium #566
- This Ordinance passed with
a 5-0 Vote and was needed to bridge the gap until the Comprehensive
Plan is Approved and Implemented.
VI.
Ruddertowne Architectural Committee
- Update provided by
Commissioner Eisenhauer
- The Ruddertowne Property between Dickinson and Van Dyke Street
was sold to Harvey Hanna and Associates of New Castle Delaware. This
sale includes the parking lot, Crabbers Cove, the shops at Ruddertowne,
the Lighthouse Bar and Restaurant and The Baycenter
- The Property on the other
side of the street where the Rusty Rudder is located was not part of
the sale and as Jim Baeurle of Highway One commented, will not be for
sale.
- The
terms of the agreement are not available but we do know that Harvey
Hanna Associates made a substantial down payment and they have until
the end of October to finalize their sale or the purchase does not go
through.
- There
is a Ruddertowne Architectural Committee meeting on Thursday, May 24th
at 6:00 at the Lifesaving station. Representatives of Harvey Hanna will
be in attendance. The public is invited.
- Harvey Hanna has not
submitted plans for the property yet and any discussion on what they
will be building needs to come through the Architectural Committee,
Planning and Zoning, and the Commissioners for approval.
- This is extremely exciting
news as it could possibly create the Town Center
that we have been looking for. Please keep checking the Civic League
website for new details as they become available.
VII. Discussion and Vote
on the ability for Town
Commissioners to communicate with the Town Solicitor.
- There are obviously costs
involved as the Town Solicitor charges for time and services.
- The Commissioners are
aware of the costs and will respect the Town’s Money.
- This passed by a 5-0 Vote
to allow Commissioners to communicate with the Town Solicitor.
VIII.
Discussion and Vote to amend Ordinance 553 on Maximum Noise Limits
- Last year was the 1st
year that there was a Noise Ordinance. There was only 1 complaint all
year and it was from a tourist staying across the street from the
Bottle and Cork.
- The Business Community did
nice work in soundproofing many of their establishments
- At the time of the
original ordinance, discussion revolved around what a “reasonable”
maximum limit would be. From the Data collected last year, the
amendment makes the maximum sound levels between 7 AM and 10 PM, 80 db.
- The maximum sound level
between 10 PM and 7 AM is 75 db.
- There will no penalties assessed this year and it
will be reviewed again in January 2008.
- As a point of reference,
the old standard was 65 db. The sound meter measured “standing traffic”
on the highway last year at 60 db.
IX.
Discussion and Vote on a Town Investment Policy
- The Town has $4.5 Million
that it invests.
- This
Money is needed for Short Term, 1 Year Operational Cash Flow. 3 to 5
Year Investments and Long Term, 5 to 10 year Investments.
- The Budget and Finance
Group is looking for discretion to invest in “Limited Risk” funds for
the “Long
Range”,
5 to 10 Year, Money.
- The argument is should the Town take small risks
with money that is not needed in the short term or should it look at
only conservative investments.
- The Town could possibly realize a 2 to 3 times the
return if it took this calculated approach.
- Mayor Tush recommended
that we run this by the State Treasurer’s office.
- This passed by a 5-0 Vote
to explore this option.
X. Discussion
and Vote on administrative procedures and
Ordinance Fee Schedule for new Business License Fees
- This passed by a 5-0 Vote
XI.
Discussion and Vote to send to Referendum for
Charter changes with respect to trustees its qualifications for Mayor
- This was brought up by
Commissioner Fitzgerald
- The discussion is should people who own their
property in trust be qualified to become Mayor of Dewey Beach.
- The Commissioners voted
5-0 to have this Charter change placed on a referendum for the people
to decide at the next election.
XII. Voter
Eligibility Discussion- As you may have heard,
there was a bill passed in Delaware that
places restrictions on Absentee Ballots that a majority of our property
owners utilize in order to vote in our local elections every September.
- Recently passed HB-410 is
requiring that a Special form be requested and Notarized before the
Absentee Ballot is even sent out. This is an important issue because
this new law is making it more difficult for a Remote Homeowner to
participate and Vote in our Elections.
- Commissioner Dale Cooke
passionately informed us that he had attended a meeting in Dover
with the House of Representatives and was promoting the passage of a
New Bill, HB-120. This bill would alleviate the restrictions and give
us back the voting system we have always used in Dewey Beach.
Commissioner Cooke explained that when HB-410 was passed, it did not
take into consideration Coastal Towns, such as ours, in which a
majority of its property owners are remote homeowners. He is promoting
that it is important to make it easier, not harder, for our population
to participate in the election process.
- The new bill, HB-120
corrects this restriction and unanimously passed the State House of
Representatives. This Bill is now pending State Senate approval and
should be in place for our September Elections. There is a chance that
it will not be though and Senator Blevins is trying to get it back on
the agenda for a vote before they go out of session. Please keep
checking our website for more on this issue.
- Commissioner Bob
Fitzgerald also attended this meeting and passionately clarified and
defended his position of insuring the validation of voters.
XIII. Committee
Appointments- There
were some new committee members appointed and they unanimously were
passed by a 5-0 Vote by our Commissioners.
- Planning and Zoning: Faith
Duncan
will replace Suzanne Ziegler
- Board of Ethics: Peggy Robinson, Annette Rowe, and
Bill Kloepfer
- Election
Committee: Bob Duncan, Shirley Gurtkowski
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