Small Town News

League of Women Voters keeping an eye on Sussex

---

Land-use forums direct result of meeting attendance

For the past year, members of the League of Women Voters of Sussex County have been keeping a watchful eye at Sussex County Council and Planning and Zoning Commission meetings.

They've also been taking notes, which have been compiled into a report that was presented March 16, to county council.

"The league is interested in open government, so we set a goal last February to attend as many meetings as possible," said Carole Somers, chairwoman of the observers' corps.

The report covers four areas: courtesy and respect toward the public and other officials; communication with the public; environment and energy conservation; and First Amendment issues.

Council President Vance Phillips, R-Laurel, said there was no plan to discuss the league's suggestions and observations.

The league recommends more transparency in government proceedings, and it asks county officials to provide more detail on the agenda, including the specific location and purpose of proposed projects and copies of agendas at all meetings.

"It became evident only after a few months that a lot of time and concern in this county concerns land use and development," said Somers.

She said for league members who attended several meetings, it was possible to follow the status of applications and issues, but for newcomers it was a challenge.

A series of six land-use forums over the past six months was a direct result of input from club members who were attending county meetings who were seeking more information on land-use procedures and issues.

Other suggestions include:

Establishing reasonable time limits for presentations by applicants and opponents. There are no current time limits, although the commission chairman and county council president have the power to limit presentations and repetitive comments.

Opening meetings with a nonsectarian prayer or a moment of silence. Council currently opens meetings with the Lord's Prayer.

Develop and update a map showing all developed land, land approved for development, and land that has been approved for development but action has been deferred with tracking of expired approvals.

Placing zoning and development applications online.

Developing enforceable ordinances for windmill safety. The only regulation in place relating to wind turbines is they must be placed on at least 5 acres of land, or property owners must get a variance from the board of adjustment.

Somers commended county council for providing time at the end of each meeting for citizen participation and for posting council's agendas online and making them available at each meeting.

"But overall, there is very little information available at meetings about zoning decisions, and sometimes it's hard to tell what the issues are," she said.

She said members were positively impressed with the amount of time and care planning and zoning commission members take when they decide an application.

Summers said the observers' corps might extend its reach and start attending county board of adjustment meetings.





© 2010 Cape Gazette Lewes, Delaware. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

More from Cape Gazette