Lewes considers transit service Tuesday, February 8, 2022

It will cost a little bit more to park in Lewes this summer, as mayor and city council approved a 50-cent increase to the hourly rates to park downtown and at the beaches.

The increase to $1.50 per hour downtown and $2.50 per hour at the beach was built into the fiscal year 2023 budget approved by council March 21.

Paid parking is in effect from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. from May 1 to Oct. 14.

The price hike is expected to generate $287,000 more in revenue for the city. Meter rates were last raised at the beach in 2017 and in the downtown area in 2014.

Deputy Mayor Andrew Williams asked that council revisit the parking discussion when the city nears its budgeted amount for the year. If the city does not need the money that exceeds budget, he said the city should consider turning the meters off for late-season relief.

Lewes’ fiscal year 2023 budget comes in at just under $14 million, which includes $2 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds that have not yet been allocated. The fiscal year 2022 budget was adopted at $9.57 million and later amended up to $11.13 million.

In addition to meter increases, the 2023 budget has changed the way residential building permit fees are calculated. Beginning April 1, a permit for new homes and renovations will be 1.5 percent of the actual construction cost. The change is expected to generate $210,000 in additional revenue.

“Where we’re looking to put rate increases is reflective of the growth of the community,” Williams said. “Growth comes at a cost. It won’t be a tax this time, but it might be in the future. Right now, we’re looking to target where we’ve seen the growth coming at us.”

The city last raised property taxes in 2010.

The city adopted a new pay matrix for all non-union employees, which brings the minimum hourly wage for employees to $16. A 5 percent raise for employees was factored into where each employee falls in the matrix.

“Growth has a cost, but so does scarcity,” said Councilman Khalil Saliba, noting every industry in the country is suffering from a worker shortage. “We wanted to make sure [our employees] felt valued in this very, very tight labor market.”

Council is still negotiating a new contract with the city’s police department. The budget will be amended once an agreement is reached.

Built into the budget is the implementation of a new transit system called Lewes Line. The estimated cost of the pilot program is $157,000, which will pay for eight drivers, uniforms, vehicle maintenance, vehicle prep, insurance and fuel. The plan is to run two buses on a prescribed route with nine stops daily from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., from the week before Memorial Day through Sept. 30. 

Some major projects on tap for the upcoming fiscal year include improvements to Railroad Avenue ($615,000), street renovation to Fourth Street and Marina Drive ($100,000), lighting at both beach parking lots ($300,000), renovations to the police department ($100,000), Canalfront Park tennis court improvements ($83,000), Otis Smith Park parking lot improvements ($132,000), Schley Avenue parking lot improvements ($121,000), continuation of a wayfinding signage project ($157,000) and Canalfront Park improvements ($490,000).

Council has also committed to purchasing three additional police cars as part of a plan to implement a take-home car program. It will take about 32 weeks for the vehicles to be delivered.

In total, the fiscal year 2023 budget includes the purchase of five police vehicles – two ordered last year and three more this year – at a cost of $65,000 per car. One of these five vehicles would replace an older vehicle, while the others are additions to the fleet.

The budget anticipates using $62,000 of reserve money to balance the books; however, Mayor Ted Becker noted the city has ended the last two fiscal years with a surplus in excess of $400,000.

After the budget was adopted, Rodney Avenue resident Rick Spitzborg asked council about funds that will be used as part of the settlement agreement with the Fisher’s Cove developer Burke and Rutecki LLC.

The agreement, which council voted unanimously to approve March 2, says the city will purchase a lot in the development for $500,000, contribute $40,000 toward the cost of a construction entrance and possibly pay $60,000 toward an access easement.

“The details regarding the effect of the agreement as it’s going to apply to the budget have not really been provided to the taxpayers of Lewes,” Spitzborg said. “It’s a significant amount of money, and there is broad interest in this subject. While I applaud [mayor and city council’s] intent to get public comment on the budget, [it] will not have benefited from an informed public comment until that additional information is provided to everyone.”

City Solicitor Glenn Mandalas said there’s an insurance component to the settlement, and he expects a portion of the cost to be covered. He said much of the remaining funds would likely come out of the city’s $600,000 legal line item.

“With an operation the size of the City of Lewes, we can’t anticipate everything that’s going to happen; we can’t always anticipate what litigation is going to happen,” he said.

City Manager Ann Marie Townshend said a date for settlement on the city’s lot within the development is still unknown. She said it may depend on how quickly lots sell. She noted some of the funds for Fisher’s Cove-related expenses could also come from capital accounts.

The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.