Coastal Point RUSLANA LAMBERT Shauna Jacobs shows off the smile that made her Indian River High School’s prom queen this year. The students held their prom on Saturday, May 6 at Rehoboth Country Club. See the photo gallery link for more photos.

Coastal Point viewpoint 2006.05.12

Bireley keeps board seat
Nearly 2,400 people voted in the election for the District 4 seat on the Indian River School Board, overshadowing turnout for the other local election and any other district election in history.

Family, contractors rally for common cause
Cancer can destroy. Cancer can unite. In some instances, it can do both.

Emotions run high in Fenwick Island on FAR
If those expressing their opinion on proposed floor-area ratio (FAR) controls on home size in Fenwick Island were nearly equally divided at the initial April hearing on the issue, the same could not be said of those attending the second hearing on FAR, May 6.

DelDOT update on Inlet Bridge design
Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) engineer Doug Robb reported a significant surge in the number of interested bidders for the significantly toned-down bridge portion of the Indian River Inlet Bridge project, at a May 9 construction advisory meeting.

Chamber unveils energy consultant
Delmarva Power commercial customers who join the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce electric cooperative could save anywhere from 8 to 25 percent on their current energy bills, officials said Monday.

Wilgus cleaners loses 67-year old location to fire
A business that has been in Selbyville for nearly 70 years was completely destroyed along with its contents in an early-morning fire on Saturday. According to a release from the State Fire Marshal’s Office, an employee from a nearby business reported the fire at about 4:30 a.m. on Saturday.

Fire, smoke destroy Greene Woodworks
Firefighters from 12 different companies rushed to quickly put out a fire on Substation Road last Thursday, May 4, but the damage was already done for one local business.

Fenwick officials concerned over revenue
It was a somewhat ominous conclusion to early budget talks in Fenwick Island on May 6, when Mayor Peter Frederick noted an accelerating trend in the town toward relying on non-recurring sources of income, including real estate transfer taxes and building permit fees.

Anglers hope 13th annual tourney means luck
Surf-fishermen from throughout the region will have a new focus this weekend, beyond the state’s proposed saltwater fishing license. They’ll be eyeing a potential $25,000 payoff for landing a Delaware state-record bluefish in the 13th Annual Spring Surf-Fishing Tournament sponsored by the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce.

Millville approves final schematics
On Tuesday, Millville town officials approved the last set of schematic plans for Millville by the Sea. Before this week, Commercial B — the downtown area of the 606-acre development — was the only phase of the master planned community that didn’t yet have schematic approval. That changed on Tuesday with a unanimous vote.

County councilman pushes for sign enforcement
It wasn’t on the agenda, but Sussex County Council Member George Cole came out strong for enforcement of the county’s sign laws, at the May 9 council meeting (under additional business).

Dagsboro planners weigh county zoning against CDP map
Dagsboro’s Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) worked to align two maps at the May 3 commission meeting. Discrepancies had stalled William Mills’ plans for commercial development north of Warrington Street, one month earlier.

Agenda

Griffith presents archaeological history
The 1998-2000 dig at the Bear Trap community in Ocean View was just another chapter in Delaware’s archaeological history but not the most recent. In 2004, a dredging project off of the coast of Lewes uncovered a spectacular find.

Cactus Cafe celebrates 15 years of service
To celebrate its 15-year anniversary in business, the Cactus Cafe is giving back to its customers by offering menu items at the price they were originally sold when the restaurant first opened its doors.

Students, teachers team to make a difference
For some people, it takes a lifetime to learn just how much a motivated group of people working together can accomplish. Others — well, they find out a little sooner in life.

Carper, Castle survey local beaches
Elected officials on the local and national level joined with representatives of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this week to celebrate the success of one beach project and to throw their collective weight behind another.

Mitchell seeks residential aggregation
After Perry Mitchell formed Consumers for Alternative Power, a local residential group looking to aggregate their electric usage to negotiate for a better price, he expected the word to travel quickly.

Obituaries
Medford Clyde Franklin Sr., 69
Catharine L. Conaway, 89
Stephen J. Vargo, 60
Charles C. Waters, 79

Opening night
Imagine starting a business with 14 other people. Imagine sitting down and trying to come to a consensus. That’s just what the partners in a Millville art gallery have to do when faced with any type of business decision.

Opening ceremony
None of the members of the Bear Trap Historical Committee grew up in the area. Most of them haven’t even worked much locally. They bought houses in the Bear Trap Dunes community to retire. But since moving there, they have shown a keen interest in the area, its people and its history.

Indians rolling as season winds down
Indian River varsity baseball head coach Howard Smack couldn’t have drawn it up any better, following a three-game slide to conference foes midway through the season. But his team has since won four of their past five games, including a 11-4 win over Polytech and a 6-2 win over Lake Forest.

Lady Indians take Southern title
Indian River’s softball team was too good to stay down following a disappointing 5-4 loss to Delmar in the bottom of the seventh inning on May 2 and they have since annihilated Polytech and Lake Forest by a combined score of 31-3 (10-0 and 21-3, respectively).

Lady Indians soccer maintains strong play
As summer approaches and the school year winds down, it isn’t uncommon for students to do the same. Thoughts of warm weather, sandy beaches or new freedoms on the horizon dance through their heads. But that can’t be said of the Indian River girls soccer team — or at least, if it could be, they’re not showing it.

IR tennis team steadies ship heading into Henlopen Conference tournament
The Indian River boys tennis team’s regular season ended like it started: with a .500 record (2-2 then to 6-6 now). They again had losses to Seaford and Smyrna but capped the season with their second win over Lake Forest in a 3-2 decision on May 4.

Indian River golf in the hunt for Southern crown
Two weeks and change ago, Indian River head golf coach Neal Beahan’s gave his players a “get down or lay down” speech, following the team’s worst performance of the year in a match against perennial conference champion contender Dover.