Our Towns

UPDATED Sunday, Oct. 28, 11:30 a.m.
Cancellations due to Hurricane Sandy include the following:

Both the Indian River School District and Sussex Technical School District have closed schools and offices on Monday, Oct. 29, and Tuesday, Oct. 31.

All University of Delaware classes are suspended Monday, Oct. 29, and officials were strongly encouraging students to go home.

Delaware Senate District 20 candidate Rick Eakle (D) on Friday asked his fellow Sussex County candidates in the Nov. 6 elections to put aside their political differences ahead of the anticipated arrival of Hurricane Sandy and gather to plan together ways they can help coastal residents weather the storm.

State and local emergency officials are urging residents of coastal Delaware to be alert and prepare as Hurricane Sandy tracks up the Atlantic in the coming days and poses a risk of potential severe weather, up to and including possibly making landfall in the immediate area.

Earlier this week, the Town of Ocean View, along with state officials, dedicated the town’s solar carport.
“Sunny days are more important than ever to Ocean View today,” said Ocean View Mayor Gordon Wood. “An old English proverb goes, ‘Make hay while the sun shines.’ Well, our hay with the new solar array is the about $50 a day we will earn from kilowatt hours produced on a sunny day.”

The Town of Ocean View held a special meeting this week at which they unanimously approved the total amount of funds budgeted for compensation adjustments for salaries of all employees, in accordance with the salary structure they had previously approved.

There is still no decision from the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission regarding the proposed Castaways Bethany LLC mixed-use project. At their Oct. 11 meeting, Commission Chairman Robert Wheatley did say that a recommendation to the county council would be forthcoming and added that it would “be fair to say we won’t come back until we are ready to act.” He explained that they have to make a recommendation within 45 days from Oct. 5, when the record closed.

Last week, Lord Baltimore Elementary students crowded into their gymnasium for the culmination of fire prevention week, with an awards ceremony for students.

On Tuesday, Oct. 23, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, along with the Town of Ocean View, will hold a private dedication of the Town’s solar carport.

The Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce held its annual Member Celebration and Awards Ceremony last week, and they honored Coastal Point publisher Susan Lyons with the Chamber’s prestigious Lighthouse Award.

The Ocean View Town Council voted 4-0 this week to approve and implement the compensation study — a 43-page document suggesting that the Town maintain a 14-grade pay structure — conducted by consultant Charles Hendricks.