DOVER — The Delaware Department of Justice has filed suit against the developer of The Villages of Noble’s Pond, an 879-lot “55-plus” community in Kent County, for numerous alleged violations of the Consumer Fraud Act, the Deceptive Trade Practices Act and other state laws protecting consumers against unlawful and predatory behavior.

Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced the filing of the civil complaint in the Court of Chancery, which charges the developer, Regal Builders, LLC, its president, Harry Miller, and related entities with making misleading and deceptive statements in its advertising to prospective homebuyers, and failing to provide disclosures required to prospective home purchasers under Delaware law.

According to the complaint, Regal Builders requires home buyers to agree to deed restrictions that contain confusing and unintelligible provisions, misrepresent and omit material facts, and include impermissible terms and conditions, all in violation of Delaware law.

The complaint also alleges that the developer violated Delaware law by forcing residents to buy telecommunications and propane services through companies owned by the developer, often at a substantial markup.

The DOJ also alleged that Regal Builders falsely portrays the community’s clubhouse as a community amenity, when, in fact, the clubhouse is privately owned and residents cannot participate in its management.

“My office initiated its investigation after receiving dozens of complaints from homeowners, many of them seniors, who did not receive what had been advertised to them when they were purchasing their homes,” Attorney General Jennings said.

“When a developer engages in such wide scale conduct to take advantage of homebuyers, that is the time for legal action by our department on behalf of consumers.

“The purchase of a home is often the most consequential financial decision one can make; Delawareans should be able to choose their future residence without fear that a developer is misleading them about the community in which they will live.”

The State asked the Court of Chancery to halt Regal Builders’ deceptive advertising and sale practices, compel the company to provide all statutorily-mandated disclosure to prospective homebuyers, and remove confusing and unlawful provisions from the community’s deed restrictions.

The complaint also requested that homeowners be allowed to have meaningful choices in utility service providers, that the developer be prohibited from collecting certain clubhouse fees so long as the clubhouse remains privately owned, and that the Court award restitution and civil penalties.

In addition to Regal Builders and Harry D. Miller III, the complaint names Galaxy Networks, LLC, County Propane of Delmarva, LLC, and a variety of other entities Miller owns, manages, or controls, as defendants.

This matter is being handled for Attorney General Jennings’ Consumer Protection Unit by Deputy Attorneys General David Weinstein and Michael Clarke, Special Investigator Robert E. Schreiber, Jr., and Paralegal Angela L. Williams.

Common Interest Community Ombudsman Christopher J. Curtin also provided substantial assistance

Residents, workers and travelers are encountering a wave of roundabout detours and alternate route options to simultaneous bridge closures in western Sussex County.

State Rep. Tim Dukes of the 40th District experiences it first-hand.
“From my house this morning, six miles from my house, I have five waterways that are closed down,” Rep. Dukes said Wednesday.

Three major spans – the Central Avenue bridge in Laurel, the Market Street bridge over the Nanticoke River linking Seaford and Blades and the bridge in Bethel – are currently closed and will remain closed well into the summer, according to Delaware’s Department of Transportation.

Also closed: Trussum Pond bridge, which is on target to reopen soon, and the Woodland Ferry, which offers vehicle/pedestrian transportation across the Nanticoke River linking Laurel/Bethel and Seaford/Blades. The ferry is out of commission indefinitely.
Closures impact travel, businesses and emergency response time.

“I mean it’s pretty obvious, it slows our response,” said Laurel Fire Department spokesman Mike Lowe. “There isn’t much more I can add to it than that.”

On June 21, DelDOT announced that Laurel’s historic Central Avenue bridge that spans Broad Creek on the major north-south artery (Alternate 13A) through town will remain closed several additional months, well beyond its scheduled late June completion target date.

The bridge will remain closed until later this summer as a result of the ongoing rehabilitation project.

“We share the community’s frustration that this project has taken much longer than anticipated,” said Secretary of Transportation Jennifer Cohan.

“It is often easier and faster to build a new bridge than rehabilitate an old one, as it is a more complex project where more work can be required than initially planned. We have seen that happen here as the work on this historic structure has encountered numerous issues that has slowed progress and prevented the contractor, Eastern Highway Specialists, from meeting the latest expected completion date of June 28, 2019.”

Several Laurel businesses are feeling direct impact, says Laurel Mayor John Shwed, noting the location of A & K Enterprises, Shore Stop convenience store and Pizza King restaurant to the Central Avenue Bridge.
Rep. Dukes, who met recently with the head engineer of the company, DelDOT and town officials. “It has been a fiasco,” he said. “I just expressed my frustration when you have a business like A & K (Enterprises) Tackle, Pizza King and Shore Stop. I won’t quote them on how much money they are down. But it is astronomical. I don’t know how they are even staying in business.”

“It has a tremendous impact on all businesses in a small town like that,” said Mayor Shwed. “It also creates a problem for the fire company.”
To respond to calls north of Broad Creek, the Laurel Fire Department utilizes the Delaware Avenue bridge, which includes several very sharp turns – at 4th Street and Delaware Avenue.

“The fire company has some larger trucks and for them they have to work their way around the intersection where the library is and go over the Delaware Avenue Bridge when they have to go north. It slows them down a little bit on their way to try to react to an emergency,” said Mayor Shwed. “It has a significant impact.”

Because the completion date for the Central Avenue Bridge project will not be met, DelDOT will begin to assess a penalty to the contractor in the amount of $1,060 each day until the bridge reopens.
The bridge, which was last rehabilitated in 1992, closed on May 15, 2018. Work was originally projected to be completed in January 2019.

However, the project was delayed by three months due to a restriction on any work occurring in the water during sturgeon migration and additional time needed to complete the pier foundation in the river to support the nearly 100 year-old bridge structure.

The Central Avenue bridge, one of the last two surviving Scherzer rolling lift bridges in the state. is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing resource to the Laurel Historic District. Remaining work includes final painting of the steel bridge structure, pouring the concrete road deck and completing the pedestrian pathway, and paving the approaches to the bridge. DelDOT will continue to keep the community updated as this work is completed, and a definitive reopening date is determined.

“The thing everybody needs to understand that the timeline is really in the hands of the state government. The state Department of Transportation Bridge Division is the one that does all these bridge upgrades, repairs and replacement,” Mayor Shwed said. “Local jurisdictions really don’t have a lot of control over that. We just hope that the state with the companies that they have contracted will have some good luck here in the next couple of weeks and maybe speed up the final work.”

“After Friday, there will be a fine assessed of $1,060 per day that the contractor is not done,” said Rep. Dukes. “DelDOT is going to work with the town to hopefully repave some roads for some of the damage done to the roads because of people having to detour the Central Avenue Bridge, with all the wear and tear. DelDOT is willing to kind of help with that with the fines being assessed. There is no excuse for it. You can blame the sturgeon; you blame this and that. And it is an old bridge. They would have to sometimes stop and order parts and have them made out of Pennsylvania because the bridge 100 years old. Still, there is no reason that bridge should be closed down for a year and half.”

“There is no excuse for it. It’s poor management,” said Rep. Dukes. “On the other hand, I am thankful that the state is investing into western Sussex.”
Recently, DelDOT announced the bridge over the Nanticoke River linking Seaford and Blades will be closed from June 17 until Aug. 24, pending weather, along with Bethel Road between 1st Street and South Shell Bridge Road for maintenance and repairs to the bridge over Broad Creek. The Bethel closure is scheduled from June 17 through Aug. 25, weather permitting.

Rep. Dukes said the contractor for the Bethel and Seaford/Blades bridge projects, Mumford Miller, was the contractor for the Phillips Landing project.
“The fortunate thing about the Bethel bridge and the Blades bridge is it is the same contractor who did Phillips Landing,” said Rep. Dukes. “They did a tremendous job. So that’s a good thing.”

Rep. Dukes noted that Eastern Highway Specialists is also the contractor for the Trussum Pond bridge work, which needed spillway repair due to damage caused during a storm two Septembers ago.

“The spillway had to be repaired. So, they had to close the bridge,” Rep. Dukes said. “The latest is the work is completed at Trussum Pond. It was supposed to open this week, actually a couple weeks ago. The deadline was this week. They have a wooden guardrail that has been ordered from Ohio.

Whether it was ordered wrong or sent wrong … they are waiting for a new piece to come in. Once they get that guardrail in then everything is done and the bridge will be open.”

The Seaford/Blades and Bethel bridge projects were both scheduled during the summer to not conflict with buses during the school year.
“It becomes a tremendous cost to school district. That is why it is being done in the summer,” Rep. Dukes said.

“So, the good part of it is, the state is finally investing in the infrastructure of western Sussex. The bad part of it is, there are three waterways that are still closed when they closed two more. It is poor timing,” said Rep. Dukes. “And I’ve got to be honest. A part of me, I feel a little bad for DelDOT because they get the brunt of this. You know when they are dealing with a contractor, there is only so much they can do. They (DelDOT) fully acknowledge and have been extremely apologetic of what is taking place. I think we are all on the same page that we want to make sure that incidents like this never, ever happen again.”

Rep. Dukes plans to take the issue up with Delaware’s General Assembly.
“Here is the problem we have: The way that our state bidding is set up – and I’m going to look into this over the offseason to see if there is any way this can be changed – but DelDOT basically has to take the lowest bid. The lowest bid doesn’t always mean you’re the best,” said Rep. Dukes. “We are going to take a look at that. We are going to talk to some of the people in DelDOT and see if we can address some of those issues in the offseason and maybe run legislation in September.”

“I just want to say to constituents, we are sorry. But our bridges and our waterways are going to be safer, if you will give us just a few more weeks,” said Rep. Dukes.

Meanwhile, the Woodland Ferry issue surfaced this spring when it was brought back from Baltimore following five-year maintenance and U.S. Coast Guard inspection.

“When it was brought back and put in service, they went to fire it up and they found out there was saltwater in the block,” Rep. Dukes said. “That has created a wave of litigation with DelDOT and the contractor for who is responsible.”

On a more positive note, Mayor Shwed points to the new Burger King restaurant under construction near the intersection of US 9 and US 13.

“There are other things that would be very positive for Laurel. Right now, things are a little bit on the upswing,” said Mayor Shwed.

MILFORD — The Delaware Hospice center in Milford was filled with giggles and shrieks of joy Thursday as Camp New Hope participants splashed in kiddie pools and tossed water balloons at each other.

The camp, designed to help grieving children process some of the toughest emotions life can throw their way, saw around 30 children this year in Milford. Another camp was held upstate before the Milford-based session occurred.

“It really is like a large support group with kids their age and they don’t feel alone anymore,” Director Liz Scheer said.

Throughout the week, the campers spend time enjoying fun activities while doing the hard work of learning how to process their grief after losing someone close to them.

“I’m also a child that was in bereavement. My dad died when I was 10. There’s definitely a certain passion I have for these kids,” Ms. Scheer said.

Her own experiences helped direct her to a life of social work and counseling, hoping to guide other kids through the process of pain and healing.

“I hope that they come, have fun, smile and take away added coping skills to their toolbelt, and know that their feelings are all normal and okay,” she added.

Assistant Director Ashley Bonnoni is at camp this year for similar reasons.
“I was interested in the ministry of how it helps the kids. The previous director was my New Hope counselor when I was dealing with my father having epilepsy. It helped with knowing how to cope with the emotions because he wasn’t physically gone, but he wasn’t the same dad, either,” she said.

This is Ms. Bonnoni’s fourth year at the day camp and hopes the campers can learn to work through their situations like she was able to years ago.
“My hope for the kids is that they’ll learn how to process grief better and find a new hope when they come to camp,” she said.

The smiles on the campers’ faces Thursday during the camp’s water day suggested a new hope, indeed.
Despite what they were going through, the children were enjoying the sun and felt free to be themselves at camp.

“At camp, I realized a lot of my good qualities and skills. So, I’m leaving with a lot of confidence. It takes the pressure off of me,” 15-year-old Lonna Macklin said.
“It’s about not judging each other and being helpful when we need it the most. I had hoped I would get something out of it when I got here. I think I did.”

Fellow camper, 15-year-old Lily Yates, said she was nervous when she arrived on Monday, but has had fun during her first week of camp in Milford.
“We made crafts, made a drum out of a bucket and duct tape, spray painted memory boxes and did Zumba. Later, we’re going to break pots and put them back together,” she explained. “I was really close to my dad [who passed away late last year]. It was really hard. I was mad at him. But this taught me that it’s okay to want to continue living my life how it was. It makes me feel better knowing I’m not alone.”

Marketing Communications Coordinator Jennifer Saienni added, “What happens a lot of times is that the kid is grieving at the same time the adult is grieving. Adults can process their emotions but can’t as easily help the kids through theirs. New Hope gives them the words they need. It’s education for the child, as well as the adult.”

Camp New Hope is offered annually to children ages 6-17 free of charge thanks to the hard work of Delaware Hospice’s development team, according to Ms. Scheer.

GEORGETOWN — Sussex County is applying some financial fertilizer to help keep more southern Delaware farms growing.

County officials at the Tuesday county council meeting announced Sussex will again join the latest round of easement purchases through the Delaware Agricultural Lands Preservation Program, a state-led initiative to protect working farms and keep agriculture viable amid a changing economic and cultural landscape.

Statewide the Delaware Agricultural Lands Preservation Foundation trumpeted the largest ever round of easement purchases — 111 farms with a total of 9,382 acres.

This brings the grand total of acres under the program in the state to about 134,000. In this round of easement selections, there were six farms in New Castle County, 39 in Kent County and 66 in Sussex County preserved.

Delaware officials announced the latest round results Monday at T.S. Smith & Sons farm property in Bridgeville. T.S. Smith & Sons is among the farms in the preservation statewide program.

Sussex County will contribute $1 million as its share in the nearly $2.1 million price tag to protect eight farms and more than 725 acres in Sussex.
F

In addition to the county’s contribution, which comes from county reserves, the program will utilize funding from the state and federal governments to make the easement purchases.

Property owners will retain ownership of their lands but will forgo any rights to subdivide and develop the parcels in the future.

This is the second consecutive year that Sussex County has participated in Delaware’s farmland preservation program, and follows other joint efforts dating back to 2003. Since then, the County has contributed more than $3 million to protect more than 3,500 acres in Sussex.

Sussex County Council President Michael H. Vincent said the county is following through on commitments made in the budget, as well as the recently state-certified comprehensive plan.

“The county believes protecting our No. 1 industry is critical to ensuring Sussex County’s continued economic vitality and enhanced quality of life,” Mr. Vincent said. “We are proud to sow the seeds of preservation today, so future generations can reap the rewards tomorrow.”

Delaware’s statewide program made its first round of easement purchases in 1996, and has since preserved 21 percent of New Castle County farmland, 38 percent of Kent County farmland and 18 percent of Sussex County farmland.

“We are very grateful to Gov. Carney and the General Assembly for placing high priority on Agland Preservation in Delaware” said Kent County Administrator Mike Petit de Mange.

“Kent County is very pleased to partner with the State and our farming community once again to permanently preserve an additional 1,107 acres of working farmlands in Central Delaware.”

SOUTH BETHANY – South Bethany Police on Saturday confirmed a deceased woman found floating in a canal on Friday is Linda Lee Bravo, the 70-year-old Bethany Beach woman reported missing since June 13.

South Bethany Police  Chief Jason Lovins said the Delaware Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the victim recovered from the canal was identified as Linda Lee Bravo, and her death has been ruled as an accidental drowning.

According to Chief Lovins, at about 5:45 p.m., Friday, June 28, a human body was reported to be floating in the canal in the area of Bayshore Drive in the town limits of South Bethany.

South Bethany Police were assisted by the Bethany Beach Police, Ocean View Police, Delaware State Police and the Bethany Fire and Rescue units on the recovery of the body from the canal.

The victim was pronounced deceased at the scene and transported to the Medical Examiner’s Office in Wilmington.

Saturday morning around 7 a.m. South Bethany Police with assistance from the Bethany Police and Delaware State Police SCUBA/Dive unit continued the search in the area where the deceased victim was located. During this search, state police SCUBA divers located a white Mercedes Benz.

Authorities were able to confirm the recovered vehicle belongs to Linda Lee Bravo.

The South Bethany Police Department is conducting a death investigation with the assistance of the Delaware State Police CRU, Troop 4 detectives and Bethany Beach Police, Chief Lovins said.

The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee says he expects special counsel Robert Mueller to have “a profound impact” when he testifies before Congress on July 17, even though Mueller has said he won’t provide any new information.

Mueller’s unusual back-to-back testimony in front of the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees is likely to be the most highly anticipated congressional hearing in years, particularly given Mueller’s resolute silence throughout his two-year investigation into Russian contacts with President Donald Trump’s campaign . Democrats negotiated for more than two months to obtain the testimony, hoping to re-focus public attention on the special counsel’s 448-page report that they believe most Americans have not read.

• Yeah, this testimony will only highlight every single reason why Trump is to be re-elected. Liberals have no counter to anything Trump has done and plans to do. The economy alone, won him the election. It’s over. — Willy Beal

•It’s amazing how they hate the president since day one. Time to clean house. — Mark Joseph

• Kinda like conservatives did for Obama — Christopher Joyce

• Oh no I gave Obama a chance, I thought a young man is what we need in there. But then when he started siding with all the criminals and terrorists that was it for me.— Stephen Terrance Herd

• Same here. I thought Obama would be another JFK. He turned out to be no more than the activist-in-chief. — Mark Pugh

• After Mueller said that this last statement was his final one, Democrats are still trying to milk him. Pathetic. — Ryan Fenimore

• Democrats wasting more money. Do your job your were elected to do. — Kent Reynolds

• You’d think after $30 million and two years of investigation the report says everything he needed to say, but as usual the Democrats don’t read anything. Remember when Nancy Pelosi said about Obamacare, “We’ll pass it. then find out what’s in it.
Totally pathetic. MAGA 2020 — Robert Wright

• What he said is that the DOJ doesn’t have the power to indict a sitting president. That is to be left to Congress, who wants to hear his testimony unredacted. Not sure what the Trumpsters missed about his last statement. — Eddie Curley

• They don’t have the stones to go for impeachment, so this is the best they have. There is a certain type of Democratic voter that would be more than happy for his party to drag this on indefinitely, and do nothing else. And I hope they do, because the longer this charade lasts, the more independents will take a dim view of this nonsense. — Matt Bucher

•Personally, I absolutely think he should be made to testify, particularly given the cryptic and unorthodox nature of the conclusions contained in the report. — John Daliani

• So much hate for Democrats doing their job while the Republican majority Senate tells the American people they will not agree with impeachment, no matter what evidence is put before them. I remember when Republicans cried about Clinton lying about a consenting encounter in the Oval Office but now they raise molesters and sexual assaulters to the highest levels of office without batting an eye.

Pelosi has the strategy all wrong, She thinks tarnishing Trump’s name is all Dems need when in reality she needs to move forward with impeachment anyway to put Republicans on the record that they are not the party of law, family values, the future, or the Constitution like they claim to be. — Craig Walter

• I have one big question for Republicans: What has Trump done for the U.S.? Economy and unemployment was doing great in 2014, 2015, 2016. What has Trump done for you? — R Tamer Peel

• Big question: How much more do we, the taxpayer, have to pay Mueller this time? So much waste. — Ellen Jarrell Hamilton

• Mueller is on record as saying he won’t provide any new information that isn’t already in the report. If he does, then he is a verifiable liar and the new information is suspect.

This is just a public spectacle for each Democrat to get their little introductory speech/opinion on the record. It would be nice if they would concentrate instead on things that make a difference to the average American. — Jim Price

This is your public forum. We welcome your opinions, which can be emailed to newsroom@newszap.com or posted online under the stories at www.DelawareStateNews.net.

Seems as if I’ve been a writer all my life. Most of it has been technical jargon from a military base and the other parts are on outdoor topics that I’ve a bit of experience in. In that time, I learned that the only way to produce a good science fiction offering was to preface it with historical and scientific facts.

Once that was done, then the subject matter was twisted to tell the tale you intended and to convince the reader that there was a significant chance the entire premise was plausible.

A recent letter by Mr. Jack Hoban (“Saddle up for the next election”) played that hand to the hilt. He spent half of his two-column tome squeezing in history and then managed to subvert it into a screed about our president.

As an old guy, I’ve lived through more presidents that most. I started with Truman to give you some idea, but in all that time, I have never seen the total lack of humanity being exhibited today by the rank and file Democrats. There is never anything positive said about the president and just as common is the use of innuendos and parroted phrases from the DNC. Forget getting proof of such statements.

As for his accomplishments, in the face of the most ridiculous claims that he inherited it, he’s actually made America great again, some pundit or politician is going to find disfavor.

First we hear that he was a warmonger and dealing with North Korea would get us into a nuclear conflagration. When that fell flat, they now accuse him of being milquetoast in responding to Iran’s shooting down an unmanned drone. Are Democrats incapable, unwilling, or just too ignorant to see the obvious hypocrisy?

Mr. Hoban’s talking points are simply silly at best. Perspective makes the world of difference. He did make one point that I must agree with. He chose President Eisenhower’s warning that if America failed it would come within.

Mr. Hoban carefully ignores that Eisenhower made these remarks in 1956 immediately after Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev remarked in the UN, “We will take America without firing a shot … we will bury you! We can’t expect the American people to jump from capitalism to communism, but we can assist their elected leaders in giving them small doses of socialism, until they awaken one day to find that they have communism. We do not have to invade the United States; we will destroy you from within.”

Sadly, the advent of those remarks came to fruition when a child, raised by Communist grandparents and mentored by an avowed Communist anarchist became president in 2009. Surrounding himself with radical “progressives,” Barack Obama subverted our democratic republic with abandon and openly stated that he didn’t need Congress as he had a pen and a phone. He appointed “czars” over Cabinet positions to preclude congressional control and began to dismantle the mantra that America had spent over 230 years building.

He doubled the national debt of all other presidents combined and weaponized the major positions inside the sanctity of the White House. He nationalized major corporations with taxpayer money and created golden parachutes when they filed for bankruptcy. He spied on American citizens and even the media with impunity and he lied openly to an adoring media who had been integrated with communist ideals by the academia of this nation.

Yet through it all, conservatives held their tongues. They had faith in the system our Founding Fathers had designed and in 2016, got their retribution in spades. Sadly they also unleashed the mongrel who’d mauled our lifestyles for the past eight years.

At no time in my lifetime (and from history, I gather in no time since the republic was formed) has one duly elected p;resident been more vilified by the radical leftists in this country than Donald Trump has been. Nothing is sacred to these people and in pure communist fashion stolen from Joseph Goebbels learned that by telling lies often enough, gullible and uneducated people will soon believe it to be factual without questions.

Yet through it all, American conservatives kept the high moral ground and maintained a respect for the office even though the person serving it was an aberration to us.

I would like to provide a quote more relevant to Mr. Hoban. It was spoken by a Ronald Reagan, a president who liberals hated but respected. He said, “It isn’t so much that liberals are ignorant. It’s just that they know so many things that aren’t so.”

The United States is now under attack from the radical left and of the 20-plus candidates vying for the office of president, each and every one of them is promoting the Communist byline of open borders, increased taxes, reduced military and “a chicken in every pot and a car in every garage ” (Herbert Hoover before leading America into the Great Depression).

Beware of the charlatans trying to convince you that our current president seeks to dictate how we live and look closely to see who’s actually campaigning to do just that.

George Roof is resident of Magnolia.

SMYRNA — Javi Marroquin promised a high-intensity hour but the workout stretched to 70 minutes.

There was so much to accomplish — including several essential water breaks and quick rests — inside the CrossFit Killshot owner’s gymnasium Thursday morning.

Several law enforcement vehicles arrived at 8:30 a.m. sharp, loaded with officers and 14 kids attending this summer’s two-week Dover Police Department Youth Academy.

Mr. Marroquin welcomed the visitors with a smile and quick introduction, then stretched them out and then led a quick jog down Artisan Drive in Smyrna.

The first step was designed to spike up heart rates and then lower them as the multi-faceted workout commenced, complete with standard situps and squats, along with rowing exercises, runs, pedaling stationary bikes and snatch lifts.

The fast-paced activity came as music blared and a clock above counted down time to complete the sessions.

Near the end, 26-year-old Mr. Marroquin advised the kids that “You all are finding a niche, whether it’s CrossFit or any other physical fitness activity.

“If it’s anything you’re passionate about stick with it.”

Youth Academy Coordinator Cpl. James Piazza said he’s tried to improve the academy program each year, and thanks to Mr. Marroquin, the 2019 program enhanced it from the year before. It was quite a day for the kids, who experienced a graduation ceremony at Elizabeth W. Murphey School later in the day.

Police instructors sought to introduce the kids ages 11 to 14 to a different kind of exercise approach to cap the academy. Mr. Marroquin’s six-year active United States Air Force stint fit the bill.

“Javi’s overall demeanor works for this. He runs a military-style CrossFit program that incorporates principles of everything we want our kids to strive for — to be a leader, to step up and separate yourself from everyone else, to do the right thing when no one else is looking, not to be comfortable with ordinary but work to become extraordinary,” Cpl. Piazza said.

“Javi shares many of the core principles that police have. He’s not rigid and strict and presents himself as an ordinary person and kids can relate to that.”

Dorelle Ngadeu, 14, described the program as “intense but fun at the same time. (Mr. Marroquin) is very motivating, very encouraging and seems like a really nice guy.”

Ethan Sapp, 11, said the workout was “pretty fun, makes you breathe a lot and makes you stronger.”

Mr. Marroquin — father of sons ages 5 and 7 months old — returned the compliment, saying he was impressed by the youth’s “camaraderie, their unity, their politeness. This is their graduation day. They’ve been together for 10 days. I’m trying to get them to crack a smile, they made it.”

An Allentown, Pennsylvania native, Mr. Marroquin never blinked when approached by Dover PD Patrolman First Class Anthony Smith to host a CrossFit introduction to the youths.

“He’s a family man himself who always wants to help out kids in the community,” said Pfc. Smith, who coordinates the Police Athletic League and has partnered with Mr. Marroquin before.

“He specially created a program for them that’s fun and energetic.”

The CrossFit gymnasium opened in January after Mr. Marroquin — who had a 2015 season role on MTV’s “Teen Mom 2” reality series — transplanted himself in the area following an assignment to Dover Air Force Base.

“This is what I’m passionate about,” Mr. Marroquin said. “Being active and fit is so important these days and personally I’m always trying to get better at something each day.”

Smyrna-Clayton topped Dover, 7-1, on Friday night to reach the winners’ bracket finals in the Senior League baseball District I Tournament.

With rain postponing Saturday’s games, Smyrna-Clayton won’t play again until Monday, when it takes on Felton-Harrington. That contest will be played at Camden-Wyoming at 8:30 p.m.

In Friday’s victory, Derek Davis went 3-for-4 and also pitched a scoreless bottom of the seventh inning to close out the win for Smyrna-Clayton. Winning pitcher Shawn Mannering allowed only one run in six innings and added a hit.

Dwayne Ratcliffe and Casey Murray had two hits apiece, Connor Bartlett doubled while Zach Lewis and Kyle McVey also contributed hits.
Dover, which faces M.O.T. today at 8:30 p.m., got a triple from Robbie Landfried.

Deak Deakins Tournament

M.O.T.-Red 6, Smyrna-Clayton-White 2: M.O.T. took its opener in the Deak Deakins tourney at Harrington on Saturday.

Cameron Branton and Colton Murray had two hits apiece for M.O.T. with Carter Foley adding a triple.

Lawson Okoski had a two-run double in the fourth for Smyrna-Clayton.

M.O.T.-Blue 16, Smyrna-Clayton-Red 0: M.O.T.-Blue posted the shutout to reach the tourney semifinals.

The Middletown squad was led by Frank Zukolski (3-for-3, triple, double, 2 RBI, 2 runs), Dominic Rose (2-for-2, 3B, 4 RBI, 2 runs), Bobby Carroll (2-for-2, 1 RBI, 2 runs) and Aiden Markowitz 2-2, double, 1 RBI, 1 run).

Smyrna-Clayton got hits from Aiden Conrad and Landon Metnech.

Walt Bowers Tournament

Camden-Wyoming 13, M.O.T.-Red 0: Camden-Wyoming won its opener in the Walt Bowers tourney on Saturday.

C-W will take on M.O.T.-Blue today at 3 p.m. at Marydel-Hartly.

Nate Gatti (triple, 2 runs) struck out six in three scoreless innings for Camden-Wyoming, which was also paced by Dennis Wilson (3 hits, homerun, 3 RBI, 3 runs) and Parker White (2 hits, 3 runs). White struck out three in the one inning he pitched.

For M.O.T.-Red, Anthony Ciaffi, William Lawson and James Landon combined for seven strikeouts. Ciaffi, Jake Scholato and Lucas Hall all had hits.

American Legion

Post-10 6, Nanticoke Post-6 3: The Generals downed the Patriots in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday.

Softball

Lynn Deakins Tournament

M.O.T. 23, Camden-Wyoming 21: The Middletown-area squad won its opener in the Lynn Deakins tour-ney on Friday night.

M.O.T. will take on Felton-Harrington today at 7 p.m. at Harrington.

SMYRNA — Darryl “Debo” Williams wasn’t going to let an injury derail his dreams of playing college football.

And as far as injuries go, this one was serious.

Yet here Williams is, fully healthy and with double-digit Division I scholarship offers on the table.

The rising senior linebacker at Smyrna High has been offered by several FBS programs, a host of FCS programs and has been receiving interest from some Power-Five schools during the summer recruiting period. All this despite a knee injury on Oct. 19, 2018 which cost him the remainder of his junior season.

“That was tough for me because it was really the first major injury I had,” Williams said. “It showed me how quickly the game can be taken away from you.”

Williams, who is listed at 6-foot-2 and 227 pounds on recruiting sites. has been busy this summer with visits to Duke, Wake Forest, Connecticut, Old Dominion and Villanova. He has more visits with Albany and Richmond on his schedule.

So far, he has received scholarship offers from Kent State, Old Dominion, Coastal Carolina, Austin Peay, Elon, Stony Brook, Richmond, Albany, Villanova, Sacred Heart, Monmouth, Morgan State and Delaware State.

Smyrna coach Mike Judy said he wouldn’t be surprised if Williams’ number of offers was closer to 20 by the end of the summer.

“I think there’s more to come,” Judy said. “Luckily the offers that he has are great schools and they will be great fits from a football perspective, and nothing is more thrilling as a coach to know that your guys are going to be taken care of. I’m happy where he is, but there’s more out there. He won’t have a shortage of options, that’s for sure.”

Williams said he tried to find a silver lining in the injury which came during Smyrna’s sixth contest of the season against Dover.

He used it to focus on the mental part of the game. He acted as a coach for the Eagles on the sidelines, which he said helped him become a better leader.

Judy noticed a different version of Williams ever since that game in October. That leadership has carried over into Smyrna’s workouts this summer.

“I’m sure getting hurt was a struggle for him mentally.” Judy said. “But he did a really good job of just being there for us. Being injured, you go through a range of emotions and it can get you down, but he refused to do that. He showed up every day and wanted to motivate and coach people. I definitely saw a change in his leadership after the injury.”

Williams played as a freshman as Smyrna won the 2017 Division state title and had an even bigger role as a sophomore during Smyrna’s third-consecutive state championship season.

He was the starting middle linebacker and broke the school record for tackles with 128. He was hoping to top that record as a junior before the injury but still led the Eagles in tackles with 68 in just six games.

Williams tried to emulate some of the veteran Eagles who helped him as an underclassmen when he was sidelined with his injury.

“It showed me how to be a vocal leader,” Williams said. “When I first came in we had guys like Will Knight, Hunter Moyer and Diron Accoo, all those older guys that I looked up to. They were the leaders, I would just play my game and lead by example. But sitting out, showed me I needed to take on a vocal role.”

And Williams attacked his rehab with the same intensity.

“I feel like I’m even stronger,” Williams said. “On the field, I feel like I’m explosive.”

Williams said he always wanted to play football in college, but it wasn’t until eighth grade when he grew into his body that he knew it was going to be his primary goal.

Judy said when Williams arrived at Smyrna, he thought he had another Division I player on his hands.

“Debo was given a lot of gifts from an instincts and drive standpoint,” Judy said. “He’s got a lot of intangibles that say a lot about his upbringing. He wants to work hard. He doesn’t need to be told to work hard. That’s an old school guy that a lot of coaches can relate to.”

Another thing about Williams, Judy says, is he’s always evolving. He’s a different football player now than he was even a year ago.

Williams said he understands his role more as the middle linebacker and has simplified the game on the defensive side of the ball.

“I think where I went wrong last year is I was worried about making all the tackles” Williams said. “So I kind of only had individual goals thinking about it. Now I know my only goal for senior year is that state championship.”

“He was trying to make every play,” Judy agreed. “Now he’s a football player. He tries to fit into the scheme. He knows now you can make a good play on defense without making a tackle.”

Williams has been named to the All-State First Team at linebacker each of the last two seasons.

“He is physically advanced for his age, strong, fast and very, very powerful,” Judy said. “He had all the tools coming in and was understanding of the process to take the next step. He knows it’s about grades and relationships with teammates and coaches. When you talk to him on these recruiting visits, the coaches are blown away. They say talking to him is like taking to an adult.”

Williams said he would like to have his mind made up on a school before his senior season begins. But he won’t announce it until after the year is over, likely at Early Signing Day in December.

Right now, he’s focused on finding where he fits best for the next four years, and not just on the football field.

“The main thing is if it has good education,” Williams said. “I want to go to school for communications so I’m looking at that. I just want to make sure I love the school.”

And while the recruiting process can be hectic at times, Williams said he’s making the most of the situation.

“I just take it all as positivity,” Williams said. “It’s a blessing really, to be able to do this and to have all these opportunities. It can be overwhelming because it is a lot, but I don’t think about it like that, I know it’s a blessing so I always keep a positive mindset.”

LEWES — Beebe Healthcare’s board of directors has announced a search committee and partnership with a national executive search firm to appoint its next president/chief executive officer.

Witt/Kieffer, based in Bethesda, Maryland, will assist the search committee comprised of Beebe Healthcare board members in this selection.
“While the role of the Board will be to ultimately appoint a Chief Executive Officer, the search committee will have a significant role in the review and assessment of applicants, as well as helping shape the candidate criteria and the type of CEO we will seek,” said David Herbert, chairman of Beebe Healthcare board of directors.

“With the help of Witt/Kieffer, the search committee will find candidates who can continue advancing Beebe Healthcare into the Next Generation of Care, focusing on innovation, maintaining our roots in the community, and strengthening the delivery of safe, high-quality patient care across Sussex County.”

In late March, Beebe Healthcare’s board announced the departure of CEO/president Jeffrey Fried, effective March 26.
The board appointed Rick Schaffner as interim CEO. Mr. Schaffner has served as Beebe’s executive vice president and chief operating officer for seven years.

Search committee members include David Herbert, chairman, committee chair; Paul T. Cowan, Jr., D.O.; Frank Czerwinski; R. Christian Hudson; Janet B. McCarty; Terry A. Megee; Michael A. Meoli and Paul C. Peet, M.D.
A timeline has not been established, but it is expected that the search firm will be identifying and assessing candidates through this summer with meetings with candidates taking place in the early fall. The board is targeting a selection this fall.

Witt/Kieffer is the nation’s leading search firm serving hospitals and health systems in pursuit of CEOs and other senior leaders. Within the past five years, the company has conducted approximately 200 CEO searches for hospitals and health systems – and over 1,600 during the firm’s 50-year history.

Beebe Healthcare has three campuses: the Margaret H. Rollins Lewes Campus, which houses the medical center; the Rehoboth Beach Health Campus; and coming in 2020 the South Coastal Health Campus.
Beebe also offers walk-in care, lab, imaging and physical rehabilitation services at several locations throughout Sussex County, in addition to a home care program and an adult activities center.

MILLSBORO — Indian River School District is analyzing possible annexation of one, possibly two district-owned properties into the town limits of Millsboro.

Discussion on a district request for annexation of its East Millsboro Elementary School property on Iron Branch Road has been in the works, and at IRSD’s June 24 board of the education the Ingram Pond property entered the picture.

While the school board took no action at its June meeting, the annexation issue is expected to be on July’s meeting agenda. Still to be answered are questions regarding costs, legal fees and impact fees.

No hurry
“There is no exceptional hurry to do this,” said IRSD Mark Steele. “Let’s make sure we get all of our questions answered.”
School district officials have been in contact with the town in preliminary discussion.
“We have not yet received anything formal from the district relative to the possibility of annexation,” Millsboro Town Manager Sheldon Hudson said Wednesday.

While not annexed, East Millsboro Elementary is currently served by town water and sewer at the lower in-town rate, Mr. Steele said.
Ingram Pond is located off Godwin School Road on the western edge of Millsboro, not far from Planta-tion Lakes, a rapidly growing residential community. Ingram Pond is home to the district’s Outdoor Ed-ucation Center and is being mentioned as a possible future site for a new school.

Board discussion on June 24 initially focused on the annexation request for East Millsboro Elementary, but school board vice president Rodney Layfield suggested talks include the Ingram Pond site.
“If we are looking at something at Ingram’s Pond, would be wise to wait and hold the discussion and see if there is some kind of collective bargaining we can do with Ingram’s Pond and East Millsboro at the same time?” Mr. Layfield said. “If we build it while it is out of town and then annex it in, it might be wiser for us moneywise. Or, would it be cheaper to annex the property and build with it already in the town?”

Mr. Steele said the Ingram Pond property is right across the road from the town limits and “could be annexed at a future date, should the town expand over in that direction or if we should want to use that property for a building someday.”

“Which we probably will because there is a lot of growth across from Ingram Pond,” said school board member Dr. Donald Hattier.
In addition to the annexation fee of $500 that Mr. Steele would likely be waived, there would be an estimated $3,000 to $10,000 in legal costs associated with East Millsboro Elementary property annexa-tion.

“Can we find out from the town, as aggressive as Millsboro is annexing land, and they are, what happens if we pay the legal fees and then a year from now, they end up annexing all the property around it anyway?” said board member James Fritz.

Additional information
District officials plan to gather additional information for board consideration.
“If we would consider doing both properties, for example, what would that constitute doing both? What sort of impact fees would be facing in the future should we decide to build at the Ingram Pond site?” said Mr. Steele.

Besides water and sewer, annexation benefits would include the possibility of an SRO (School Re-source Officer) for the school as well as enhanced emergency response, according to Mr. Steele.
Mr. Steele said his understanding is policy is for police responding to a call outside town limits, they must first be dispatched. If the school was in town limits, town police would respond automatically.

“One potential advantage could be the fact that right now the Millsboro Police Department’s policy is to respond when dispatched by Suss Com,” said Mr. Hudson. “So, obviously if you had the school in town limits, it gives the department a little bit more flexibility in terms of response as opposed to hav-ing to wait for that dispatching order from Suss Com.”

However, Mr. Layfield, a captain with Delaware State Police, and fellow board member W. Scott Col-lins, police chief in the town of Selbyville, both concurred that in true emergency situations police re-spond immediately without having to wait to be formally dispatched.
Jurisdictional boundaries
“If there is an emergency or need for law enforcement officers those jurisdictional boundaries don’t exist,” said Mr. Layfield. “But if it is something small, routine, then yes, the police agency of jurisdiction would respond.”

“The Millsboro Police Department does an exceptional job,” Mr. Layfield added.
Unofficially, Millsboro’s population is around 7,000, spurred by several residential developments, in-cluding Plantation Lakes, which has surpassed the 1,000 building permit mark since the beginning of the development. As the U.S. Census ratio of 2.9 persons per unit, that equates to approximately 2,900 persons.

“I think the fact that the town has actively recruited families, working professionals, we are actively trying to do our part to ensure that all demographic groups are moving here,” said Mr. Hudson. “I think that will mean probably more kids than in the average town in the area, certainly compared to the beach towns. So, I would expect that they (school district) will continue to see enrollment grow in large part to growth in Millsboro.”

DOVER — Maybe they were high powered firearms, maybe not.
Last weekend, Dover Police officers made split-second decisions with potentially grave consequences after an unknown type gun was triggered towards them several times.

A bicycle-riding 13-year-old male reportedly pulled a weapon and shot toward two law enforcement vehicles arriving at the Dover Mall for a disorderly conduct complaint on Saturday, June 22.
The teen and three other male juveniles (ages 12 to 14) from the Dover area fled on their bicycles before a chase and apprehension.

Only then were the weapons — tucked in the suspects’ waistbands — confirmed to be three BB guns, police said.
The potentially lethal threat was no less real until the kids were arrested.

As for the weapons, “They look like they could be a Ruger, Sig Sauer, and/or Smith & Wesson Sigma,” National Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors Association Executive Director Jason Wuestenberg said after viewing publicly posted photos of the confiscated BB guns.

Speaking for Dover Police, Master Cpl. Mark Hoffman said arriving patrol vehicles were within approximately 100 to 150 feet of the juveniles when struck by four to five BBs from a gun discharged nine to 10 times late in the afternoon.
“The only indication that the weapon that was fired was a BB gun, was the sound of the BBs hitting the car,” Cpl. Hoffman said.

“Even then, officers cannot solely rely on that as a guarantee that this weapon was a BB gun.”
The officers were nonetheless endangered by the BBs discharged.

“There is always the risk of injury with BB or pellet guns especially to the eye, which would likely be a career-ending injury for officers,” Mr. Wuestenberg said.
There’s no reading the mind of someone pointing a gun, International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors First Vice President Emanuel Kapelsohn said.

“An officer has to believe when (a gun) is pointed at him that the person intends to use it with potentially deadly force,” he said. “BB guns, air or pellet guns can kill you, blind or seriously injure you.”

In Dover’s recent high speed confrontation, there was almost no time to assess the situation for the two officers arriving in separate vehicles.
“These particular models of BB guns offer little to no features that they are not a real handgun, especially from a distance,” Cpl. Hoffman said. “When confronted with something like this, officers have a split second to react to a potentially life or death situation.

“Fortunately, we are talking about the arrest of four suspects and nothing more serious in this incident.”

Increased youthful threats
Generally speaking, police are faced with increased violent threats and criminal actions regarding teens and younger.
“I think we have a natural tendency to approach any situation with juveniles a little differently than others,” Cpl. Hoffman said.
“However, when dealing with juveniles who may be armed or are suspected of being involved in violent crime, you have to treat the situation accordingly. Our officers want to and should go home to their families at the end of every shift.”

Youth and adults alike don’t always grasp the gravity of what they’re carrying.
“It is more and more common to see adults and juveniles carrying and treating BB guns or other similar items as if they were real,” Cpl. Hoffman said.

After the confrontation, acting Dover Police Chief Maj. Tim Stump took the rare step of issuing a public statement saluting the officers for actions in the “high risk” setting.
“It’s times like these that shed light on the great importance of having a well trained department,” the statement read in part.
“What could have been a tragic ending turned out perfectly and I’m thankful for that. I am sure the officers are as well. The juveniles were apprehended and no one was injured. The officers actions were remarkable.”

Similar situations with more serious resolutions have quickly made national news. “We have seen countless incidents across the country where officers were forced to make difficult decisions involving Use of Force when confronted with BB guns similar to those used in this incident,” Cpl. Hoffman said. “Similar style BB guns are often used in other crimes as well.”

An online search shows multiple BB gun-police related incidents nationwide, involving youths and adults, fatal and non-fatal, shootings and disarmaments before weapons were discharged.
In March, an Oklahoma City Police officer shot a 14-year-old boy who allegedly didn’t heed an officer’s command to drop a BB gun while playing with friends in an abandoned home. According to published reports, the youth suffered hip and leg injuries and his attorney claimed afterwards that the officer failed to identify himself properly and used excessive deadly force.

Oklahoma City Police said they were initially called to the scene by a 911 caller reporting a break-in by four people, two with guns that weren’t confirmed to be real.

‘Good police work’
City mayor Robin R. Christiansen, who oversees Dover’s the police department, echoed the chief’s thoughts and said he’d author letters to enter into the officers personnel files.
“People always have bad letters in their files and these two young officers deserve good letters in theirs for good police work,” Mayor Christiansen said. “The officers were cool under fire and made a perfect decision. Those young folks should go to the police officers and thank them for allowing them to live out their lives.”

Added the mayor, “As a father and grandfather I was stunned, sickened and scared.
“People across the spectrum here and the nation should be extremely concerned that these young folks have no fear and do not understand the consequences of waving a BB gun, a pellet gun or whatever at police officers.

“We nearly had a tragic situation that would have left four families grieving for the loss of their children due to their senseless actions.”
According to Cpl. Hoffman, police were initially called to the scene by mall security “for a group of juveniles being refusing to leave and antagonizing security at the Food Court entrance of the mall.

“As officers arrived, it was reported to them that the suspect had ridden to the front side of the mall, near Dick’s Sporting Goods. The juveniles then fled from the officers with one shooting the BB gun at them.”
Mall security had earlier asked the youths to leave the property after they continued to loiter, according to Cpl. Hoffman.
“The suspects became belligerent with security and refused to leave the area,” he said.

Police were called to the scene at 4:23 p.m., arrived at the mall at 4:31 p.m. and made arrests at approximately 4:41 p.m.
According to authorities, the four kids fled southbound from the mall, traveling through nearby Dover Downs property. Two were apprehended in front of Michael’s Craft Store and two in front of TJ Maxx.

Delaware State University Police crossed U.S. 13 to the nearby mall as well. Several mall patrons and Firefly attendees were in the area at the time.
The alleged shooter was charged with two counts each of aggravated menacing and second-degree reckless endangering, along with criminal mischief, resisting arrest and second-degree conspiracy.

The other three juveniles were charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and second-degree conspiracy. All were released to their parents’ custody pending future court dates.
The trio of BB guns were confiscated as evidence.

DOVER — This time, they swear, will be different.

As lawmakers head into the capitol this afternoon for the final regularly scheduled day of the 2019 legislative session, there are seemingly realistic hopes the General Assembly will finish earlier than it has in each of the past four years.

June 30 is a marathon, with legislators gaveling in sometime in the afternoon or early evening and remaining in the building until July 1 — sometimes even until sunrise.

Because the Delaware Constitution restricts lawmakers from entering into a special session after June 30 “unless the session is recalled by the Governor or the mutual call of the presiding officers of both Houses,” it’s long been tradition for the General Assembly to remain until midnight strikes and June 30 turns to July 1. At that point, legislators enter into a special session, enabling them to return at any point over the next six months if need be.

The arrangement is designed to present a sticky situation that sets up a clash between the executive and legislative branches. While such an occurrence is believed to have never happened, staying late prevents the governor from blocking lawmakers from calling a special session in the event of, say, the legislature hoping to override a gubernatorial veto sometime between June 30 and the second Tuesday of January.

At any rate, optimism seems to be in the air heading into today. The budget was signed Tuesday, the earliest it’s been approved by the governor since 2003, and the Senate has already sent the capital bond bill to the House.

Because this is the first leg of the two-year 150th General Assembly, legislation not passed by the time lawmakers exit July 1 can be picked up again next year.

Technically, lawmakers could come in today, pass the bond and grant-in-aid measures and depart, although there’s no chance they will neglect many of the dozens of other proposals awaiting action.

Exactly what time lawmakers depart remains to be seen, although Senate President Pro Tempore David McBride, a New Castle Democrat, has pledged the Senate will leave at 1 a.m. regardless of whether everything is finished. Should the clock hit 1 with legislative business still before the chamber, Sen. McBride intends to stop discussion and have senators return the next day.

That artificial constraint puts a bit of pressure on lawmakers to finish up by 1, although House leadership was caught off guard by the January announcement and would prefer to conclude everything Monday.

Naturally, it remains to be seen if the Senate sticks to the pro tem’s promise if push comes to shove.

Legislators haven’t finished until around 5 a.m. — or later — each of the past four years, including 2017, which saw them fail to pass a budget by July 1. That year, the legislature entered into an extraordinary session and did not approve a spending plan until July 3.

Those in Legislative Hall doubtless remember the saga that was 2018, when officials swore left and right they expected to finish shortly after midnight. Instead, a fight over minimum wage torpedoed the bond bill and left spectators wondering if a repeat of 2017 was inevitable.

Fortunately for all involved, Democrats and Republicans found consensus after hours of closed-door negotiations and sent the bond bill to Gov. John Carney just after 8:30 a.m.

Bleary-eyed lawmakers, aides, lobbyists, reporters and others then departed the building, with some fuming over what many saw as self-inflicted wounds.

Given that, insiders and observers could be forgiven for skepticism about when exactly the General Assembly finishes this year. As the saying goes, fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

Highlights
The 150th General Assembly opened in January with a startling amount of new blood. In total, 15 of the building’s 62 legislators were newly elected in 2018, and that doesn’t count two former state representatives who won Senate seats in November.

House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf, a Rehoboth Beach Democrat, praised the dynamic in the House while noting the session has — knock on wood — not been as bumpy or eventful as it was in 2018.

“It has been so much different than last year, it really has been,” he said last week. “We came into this thing worried about the 12 (new representatives) and the impact they would have, whether it be negative or positive and everything, but been pleasantly surprised with how they’ve interacted with the members that have been here a while. We’ve had members that have been here for a while taking the new people under their wing and mentoring them and teaching them the right way to do things.”

Of course, that isn’t to say 2019 has been devoid of anything notable. As longtime observers can attest, Legislative Hall is seldom dull for long.

Among the headliners from this session are bills raising the age to buy tobacco, revamping the criminal justice system, banning plastic bags, expanding health care access and placing greater restrictions around gun storage.

One of the biggest moves could turn out to be Gov. Carney’s “opportunity fund,” an allocation intended to benefit students in need of extra support and services.

The operating budget contains $20 million for students who hail from low-income areas or do not speak English as a native language, the first year of a three-year initiative the governor hopes will make a difference in the startling number of disadvantaged students who are not at grade level in math and English language arts.

According to a lawsuit filed against the state that cites standardized test scores, 75 percent of low-income students failed to meet state standards in math for the 2015-2016 school year, while 85 percent of English language learners fell short of the target in English.

Gov. Carney, a Democrat, cited as another key takeaway from this session the fact something was not included in the budget — specifically, about $78 million.

With revenues booming for the second consecutive year, lawmakers opted to heed the executive branch’s calls for fiscal sustainability, putting more money into the bond bill and holding millions in reserve instead of sending it all to the budget.

That $78 million joins the nearly $47 million legislators set aside last year in an unofficial account that can be used when expenditures surpass revenues, as is projected to happen in the next few years. By planning ahead, decision-makers are hopeful they can avoid tax hikes or cuts in state services in the near future.

“Well, clearly the most important thing is our budget, and I’m really pleased with the fact that the legislature followed the new approach, the new rules we set out that we think are a more responsible way of spending taxpayer money,” Gov. Carney, who served as Delaware’s secretary of finance from 1997 to 2000, said last week.

This year’s budget totals $4.51 billion once a $62 million supplement for one-time items is included. The spending plan marks an increase of 4.4 percent over the budget for the fiscal year ending today.

The bond bill is $863 million, the highest total in state history.

Lawmakers still have to craft the grant-in-aid measure, which allocates funding to hundreds of nonprofits.

The Joint Finance Committee is scheduled to meet today at 3 to finalize the bill, which is expected to total about $1 or $2 million more than the current $52 million allocation.

Among the most notable — certainly the most controversial — measures from this session are three bills that did not even come close to passing.

Legislation to prohibit a variety of semi-automatic firearms classified as “assault weapons,” criminalize magazines capable of holding more than 15 rounds and establish a permitting process to buy a gun failed to make it out of a Senate committee despite assurances from Senate Democratic leadership the bills would at least see a floor vote.

The decision by Sen. McBride and Majority Leader Nicole Poore, a New Castle Democrat, not to sign the bills out of committee revealed a division in the party as infighting spilled into public view.

Backers hope to try again next year, but their odds are slim, to say the least.

Some of the bills that were filed this year but have barely begun to make their way through the legislative process include measures to legalize marijuana, raise the minimum wage to $15, reinstate the death penalty, allow physician-assisted suicide and ban paper bags. A bill to prohibit plastic straws might be among the items introduced and debated next year, as well as legislation expanding voting access.

Overall, Gov. Carney said he believes the first leg of the 150th General Assembly has been a successful one.

“There were issue obviously where different sides disagreed, but I think we continued the tradition of trying to find ways to find the common ground and get things done for our state, so I think it’ll go down as a very productive session,” he said.

DOVER — Delaware is inching toward more fireworks freedom.
Legislatively it’s been a busy two years for pyrotechnics in the state.

Lawmakers decided last year, after nearly 65 years of a blanket prohibition on fireworks, to lift a portion of the restrictions.
In April 2018, a bill enabling the sale and use of non-explosive fireworks like sparklers or ground-based and hand-helds around the Fourth of July and New Years Eve was signed into law.

The well-received legislation rolled through both chambers of the General Assembly unopposed, but the state fire marshal’s office wasn’t enthusiastic about the new “risk.”

As a result, lawmakers built in a three-year clawback provision to quickly repeal it if “issues arose.”
“Sparklers and other items are dangerous to some of our most vulnerable populations such as children,” Assistant State Fire Marshal Michael Chionchio said at the time. “We believe that keeping them illegal and out of the hands of kids has helped us maintain a proven safety record here in Delaware.”

Punctuating their concerns, the fire marshal’s office noted that eleven fires resulted from consumer fireworks around last Fourth of July — nine occurring on the holiday. Also, three related arrests were made. Mr. Chionchio said the incidents constituted an uptick in fires compared to prior Fourth of July holidays.

Despite this, no injuries were reported and the estimated total cost of damage from the combined incidents was around $5,000.
Clearly undeterred, two new pieces of firework legislation cropped up in Legislative Hall recently — one ditches the original three-year sunset provision on the existing law and the other allows sale and use of non-explosive fireworks during Diwali.

Diwali is described as a 5-day festival of lights that’s celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains for which fireworks are an essential component. Though the date changes every year, the festival usually falls in October and November. This year, Diwali is on Oct. 27.

The bill was unopposed in both chambers and was signed into law earlier this month.

Removing sunset date
As of Saturday, the bill to remove the sunset date on fireworks had passed a House vote unopposed and was moving on to the senate. The bill’s primary sponsor, Rep. Michael Smith, R-Newark, said the reason for making the deregulation more permanent was “simple.”

“The intent was for people to be able to celebrate Fourth of July and New Years,” he said. “As you can tell by the bill, there are limitations and exceptions. Most importantly, this removes the sunset that was placed all together.
“The point is, people from Delaware were crossing state lines to purchase fireworks and Delaware should have a cut of those dollars since we border numerous states.”

Though the fire marshal’s office renewed its commitment to regulate and enforce based on how the laws were written, they’re still not thrilled. They recommend that residents not handle fireworks at all.
“The Delaware Office of the State Fire Marshal still asks the public to leave fireworks in the hands of professionals and attend a public licensed firework display near their community,” said Mr. Chionchio “The use of any type of firework, including sparklers, increases the danger of injury and/or fire.”

Making an impact
Lawmakers, residents and vendors seem fairly unanimous in their support of the deregulation.
Though sales data isn’t available at the state level, the American Pyrotechnics Association claims that consumer fireworks are a $1 billion per year industry in the United States.

Since last year, small seasonal firework stands at local grocery stores and Walmarts have become a common sight, but pop-up entrepreneurs are gaining traction as well. According to the city of Dover, active licenses for tent sales were issued for the North Dover Shopping Center, Sam’s Club, Dover Mall and Safeway this year.
For the Lasher family of Dover, who operate the tents in the Safeway and Sam’s Club parking lots, the deregulation has made a big difference. Contacted by a friend in Pennsylvania last year, Kathleen Lasher was convinced to give vendoring a try.

“My friend was the one that told me that it was made legal here last year and got me set up with TNT Fireworks,” she said. “They provide the inventory, training and everything and we just report how much we sell. We had great sales last Fourth of July and this year we expanded to a second location and brought on a few extra people to help.”

For her part, Ms. Lasher is happy to see the state cozying up to the idea of fireworks. While she acknowledges that they can be dangerous if used improperly, she thinks the concern isn’t enough to ban them.
“We meet a lot of people here and most seem to have a good head on their shoulders,” she said. “Either way, they weren’t stopped from using them in previous years anyway. All the states around us sell them, so they’d just get them there.”

Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia all have restrictions similar to Delaware’s, but Pennsylvania — which allows most consumer fireworks, including aerials and explosives — is more liberal.

Getting some spark
Though she’s skeptical legislators will consider it at present, Ms. Lasher believes the fledgling firework industry in the state would really get some spark if all restrictions were lifted.

“Sales would be so much better if we could sell the stuff everyone is really looking for,” she said. “If I had a dollar for each person that comes up and says: ‘oh, you don’t sell the real fireworks?’ I’d be rich. Don’t get me wrong, this is a good thing, but in some ways it ends up being the same as before, because if customers really want the heavier fireworks, they’ll just go up to Pennsylvania to buy them.”

George Ward of Milton took this photo of a family of ducks on the edge of Wagamon’s Pond in Milton on June 5.

KSI presented 99 certificates to people with perfect attendance in April and May.  Alphabetically recognized are:  Rosa Acevedo, Miguel Acevedo-Torres, Dale Adams, Ben Adkins, Gary Allen, Jason Anthony, Samsun Anthony, James Ater, Dawan Atherley, Tevon Baines, Megan Behornar, Matthew Biscoe, Austin Bohenko, Michael Bolden, Betina Bonville, Tim Brokenbrough, Mellissa Bronson, Brandyn Bryant-Davis, George Bull, Robert Bullock, Arthur Bunting, Ann Burton, Natasha Burton, James Butler, Patrick Butler, John Cadle, Kyle Cahall, Briana Carter, Joshua Chaffinch, Craig Chandler, Patrick Clendaniel, Jeffrey Conk, Richie Cote, Brian Cummings, Laura Davis, Susan Dorow, Richard Downing, Mike Elliott, Amy Ellis, Lucas Fisher, June Fluharty, Steven Forshey, Melvin Freeman, Richard Fretz, Teresa Fullman, James Gerding, Francis Gibson, Mathew Given, Thomas Grecay, Anita Greenlee, Damien Gynegrowsky, Shannon Harris, Cami Houck, Deborah Hrupsa, Jesse Hunt, Keenan Johns, Inez Johnson, James Johnson, Todd Johnson, Julio Jordan, Rhonda Kelly, Chris Kerr, David King, Erika Klase, Thomas Kreller, Charise Little, Heather Mack, Noah Maddox-Bell, Catherine Marshall, Dale Mast, Jerome Matthews, Ogden McKinnon, Annie Momot, Franklin Morris, Silas Mow, Darlene Murray, Wanda Norwood, Colby Pardee, Trevon Pressley, Joseph Pryor, Catherine Schaeffer, Jean Schieferstein, Thomas Shaffer, Emily Sharp, Steve Shenk, Sally Skweres, Sheila Slade, Christopher Smith, James Snead, David Strail, Kim Sullivan, Chquwana Taylor, David Taylor, Jeff Townsend, Gilliean Walsh, Vaneisha Ward, Kyheen Weaver, Nikia Welch, Dylan Wilkerson and Ronnie Woodus.

KSI is a private, not for profit agency providing vocational training, employment, supported employment, community integration, transportation, day habilitation, life enrichment, and nutritional services to individuals with disabilities in Kent and Sussex Counties.  KSI is committed to making all reasonable accommodations, in order to ensure that our programs and services are as accessible as possible, to as many people as possible.  For more information about KSI, call Alicia Hollis at 302-422-4014 ext. 3015, or visit our website at www.ksiinc.org.  Like us on Facebook, www.facebook.com/ksiworks.

Bayhealth is proud to announce that Bayhealth Palliative Care Nurse Practitioner Suzette M. Flores, DNP, BWS, APRN, NP-C, has been named a recipient of the 2019 American Association of Nurse Practitioners® (AANP) Delaware State Award for Nurse Practitioner Advocate Excellence. This prestigious award recognizes the efforts of individuals who have made a significant contribution toward increasing awareness and recognition to the nurse practitioner role.

Flores is the Palliative Care nurse practitioner for the Bayhealth Hospital, Sussex Campus. In her role, she helps patients suffering from the pain and symptoms stemming from a serious illness. Palliative Care isn’t hospice, nor is it end-of-life care. Rather it’s a service that aims to help suppress a patient’s suffering and improve the quality of their life regardless of the stage of the illness.

Receiving an award for being a nurse practitioner advocate stems from Flores’ work to promote the role of nurse practitioners in Delaware. She helped expand the Delaware Coalition of Nurse Practitioners to southern Delaware. Flores also lobbied for Senate Bill 227, which deals with insurance plans and reimbursing primary care physicians, certified nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and other front-line practitioners.

“I’m so proud to help promote nurse practitioners and to help people understand what we bring to the table when caring for patients,” Flores said. She likens her role to that of a detective, stating nurse practitioners have to look at the whole patient and take their physical, spiritual, financial, and emotional needs into account when providing care. “We have to figure out what’s impacting the illness to truly put together a care plan that meets all of their needs. If we don’t understand everything causing an illness, the issue will continue to happen and the patient will remain ill.”

As a recipient of this award, Flores was honored at an awards ceremony and reception at the AANP 2019 National Conference in Indianapolis. The AANP is the largest national professional member organization for nurse practitioners.

Are you interested in becoming a nurse at Bayhealth? Visit Bayhealth.org/Nurses to learn more about nursing at Bayhealth.

MILFORD – Peg Reilly is taking over as president of Downtown Milford Inc. (DMI) in one of several leadership changes announced by the organization.

Ms. Reilly, who was formerly the vice president, will be serving a one-year term and will replace former president Sara Pletcher, who has been involved with DMI in different capacities for nine years. The change will be effective on Monday.

The existing board voted in the new officers at a special meeting on June 17. 

Don Vaughan will serve a two-year term as vice president of DMI while Shelley Moore will serve a two-year term as secretary, taking over the position previously held by Pat Sparks, who has been involved with the organization for eight years.

Sandra Gulledge will serve a two-year term as treasurer, taking over a position that has been held by Bob Starkey for the past eight years.

These officer positions at DMI, along with the many non-officer board positions, are all volunteer.

Board members will be Matt Babbitt, Jason Peel, Cat Perfetti, Lang Redden, Denise Rivera, Kelly Turner and Sher Valenzuela.

DMI volunteers are responsible for events like the Riverfront Farmer’s Market, the Pub Crawl, the Irish Music and Dance Concert, the Easter Plant Sale, the Bug & Bud Festival with the Parks & Recreation Team, Third Thursday Block Parties, the LadyBug Music Festival with Gable Music Ventures, the Holiday Stroll and the Santa House.

DMI is also involved in beautifying and organizing the downtown area with flowers, trees, art projects and signage. Yet another highly experienced group of volunteers work to recruit business and fill vacant storefronts. DMI strives to make historic downtown Milford a place people want to shop, eat, relax and have fun.

Formed Nov. 10, 1919, the American Legion Auxiliary (ALA) will mark its 100th anniversary this year. 

In recognition of the milestone, State Rep. Bryan Shupe and State Sen. Brian Pettyjohn sponsored Senate Concurrent Resolution 55 honoring the group’s work and lauding their contributions to the community.

The measure was unanimously passed by both legislative chambers yesterday (6/25).

The American Legion Auxiliary is purportedly the world’s largest women’s patriotic service organization.  Its mission includes enhancing the lives of veterans and their families, promoting patriotism, and supporting The American Legion.

Since 1942, the ALA has sponsored the Delaware Girls State Program, which trains high school girls for leadership roles as they learn about the fundamentals of the legislative process.

Nationally, the ALA’s members have donated 6.2 million hours of their time serving veterans and the military; presented more than $1.6 million in annual scholarships; and raised $4.4 million for veterans’ services through the distribution of handmade poppies.