Letter to the Editor: Thank you to Vincent, Rieley for votes against hotel

I wanted to convey my thanks to Sussex County Councilmen Michael Vincent and John Rieley for the courage and principles that allowed them to recently vote against the proposed hotel and restaurant on Del. 54.

I have been critical in the past of what I have heard and observed at meetings of the County Council (and the Planning & Zoning Commission). The general perception is these governing bodies are approving nearly every request submitted by developers on a seemingly assembly-line basis. I have submitted past letters offering my perspectives of the flawed rationale that, if the request comports to local laws and ordinances, the request must be approved.

Yet, Messrs. Vincent and Rieley demonstrated something I think many homeowners have sought for years: the use of common sense and independent/rational thinking, buttressed by community feedback, when weighing the merits of a developer request. And when a request does not make sense — irrespective of whether it “checks the boxes” of local requirements — one’s conscience needs to help shape the right decision. This is exactly what Messrs. Vincent and Rieley did. I was particularly impressed with the articulate rationale offered by Mr. Rieley in justifying his vote against the request.

And as elated as I was to hear the reasons for the vote against the request, I was absolutely dumbstruck by the reasons offered by Mark Schaffer and Cindy Green on why they voted yes. Mr. Schaffer used the same hackneyed responses of compliance to ordinances and how the request was consistent with the “comprehensive plan.” And incredibly, he said the hotel/restaurant proposal would help ease the already choking traffic congestion on 54. Are you kidding me!? As for Ms. Green, she gave absolutely no basis for her decision — none. It was almost as if Mr. Schaffer and Ms. Green existed in an alternative universe than colleagues Messrs. Rieley and Vincent.

Let’s hope what we all saw at the Oct.12 County Council meeting is the start of some new and fresh thinking among Planning & Zoning and County Council members. Let’s apply the “prudent man” rule in assessing the merits of a request: Challenge the status quo, start thinking about whether the current laws and ordinances need to be reevaluated and use simple common sense … good things tend to happen.

David Chun

Selbyville