Senator Townsend and Cohorts Say No "Naturehood" for Ogletown

Governor Ruth Ann Minner at Newark's Community Day, 2004

By Angela Connolly | Livable Delaware was the signature initiative of Governor Ruth Ann Minner’s first term. It was a sustainable land-use agenda that promoted thoughtful growth. She stated that "We need to pursue a strategy that will keep sprawl in check, reduce traffic congestion, strengthen our towns and cities, and protect our huge investment in roads, schools and other infrastructure. I propose to call it “Livable Delaware.”

This Democrat initiative SHOULD have been honored and followed. But in the years since its inception, "Livable Delaware" has become a farce and a joke for many Delawareans, particularly in New Castle County. We continue to watch helplessly as Democratic leadership casts Environmental stewardship aside. Advocates and Environmentalists watched helplessly as, with the stroke of a pen, HB-190 was signed into law. This bill was created by Democratic Legislators Townsend and Osienski, and was signed into law by current Gov John Carney. It lifts the Coastal Zone protections put into place by former Governor Russell Peterson (R) in 1971. Destruction of natural lands (not channeled to redevelopment) continues unabated under Democrat's leadership. Residents near new housing construction are seeing an unprecedented number of dead wildlife, killed by cars as they flee the destruction of their habitat homes. It is even more offensive when these new developments are sold to NCC Council as walkable/bikeable, because a few asphalt pathways are included, and thus it will "reduce car trips".

Perhaps most tragic is when a handful of people, in this case the Legislators, recklessly decide a future course dictated by profiteering, that will negatively impact generations to come. Senator Bryan Townsend, Rep Ed Osienski, Councilwoman Lisa Diller, and, later in the game, County Exec Matt Meyer are prime examples. These four alone are directly responsible for selling out a major carbon-sequestering natural habitat area in Ogletown, 180 acres of forests, fields and wetlands that was filled with wildlife -- some of which is endangered. They decided through their failure to save this land for a pittance -- the last of its kind for an entire region -- that the people of Ogletown-S. Newark and the larger surrounding area were not worthy of a "Naturehood" of their own. These residents didn't deserve a place to build community, to engage in healthy activities, and to enjoy stunning views of Iron Hill -- things that only a Regional Park at this location could have offered. No. Instead, by their own admission, they kept the development secret for the first two years they learned of it, lying, and bungling every opportunity that was presented to them since -- up to and including the time when the Developers themselves were willing to sit down, listen to and consider a deal that could have saved the land.

This billboard "Every Neighborhood has a Naturehood" spent months posted up on Marrows Road in Newark, adjacent to Kimberton. It was recently replaced, and it should be given our legislator's utter lack of concern for land conservation.

So, the next time you hear Democrats like Senator Townsend, Representative Osienski, Councilwoman Lisa Diller, and County Exec Matt Meyer talking about how bad Trump and the Republicans are on Environmental issues, don't believe them. Remember it is THEY -- Democrats -- who are responsible for the loss of this open space, critical habitat and regional park opportunity, along with so many others like it that are being obliterated as we speak.

Car-nage: HB-185 and Delaware's Bike-Ped Dead

Too bad Senator Townsend doesn't have his priorities straight when it comes to safety at the human scale. Delaware consistently leads the nation in walk-bike injuries and fatalities, but the Senator (District 11 and gunning for higher) doesn't care. Instead, he fights for, and passes HB-185, a bill to facilitate even greater speed and more driver aggression and reckless behavior.

Delaware is once again poised for a dismally high position -- if not taking the nation's top spot for walking fatalities again this year. Ditto for bicycling - in a runaway - but we will cover that in a future article. Here, in no particular order, we will examine what we believe are the top 5 reasons for why this is so and will likely never change under Delaware's thoroughly corrupted Democrat party leadership:

Even with a flashing beacon, motorists still have
the right of way to continue, at speed, through
DelDOT's crosswalks without penalty.

1) Motor vehicle right of way through crosswalks and intersections. Delaware gives motor vehicles priority and right of way through mid-block crosswalks and radial turns, and puts the onus on pedestrians to create his or her own opportunity to cross. This doesn't change even with DelDOT's flashing beacons installed at a few of them; peds are still sidelined, and must make the first move -- hoping cars will stop. In no way is this progressive or conducive to pedestrian safety, and is completely backwards in approach.

The way it should be. With a little enforcement.
Mass sees far greater compliance using this simple
sign than DE will ever see using beacons.

2) An antiquated traffic code for pedestrians. There are numerous discrepancies and problems that a complete overhaul of Delaware's vehicle code is LONG overdue. The language is so antiquated that it even includes a holiday as impacting where and how to enforce it, including "soliciting contributions shall not apply on the Saturday immediately prior to Father's Day". Advocates volunteered many hours of time and did an overhaul, presenting it in legislative bill form to Delaware's Pedestrian Council. Ultimately, the State's defacto walking advocacy org, Bike Delaware, infiltrated the Ped Council and quashed the effort.

Crosswalks through highway-speed kill zones.

3) Wide lanes, slip lanes, and unregulated radial turns that induce high speed and discourage defensive driving, even in known pedestrian hot spots. Instead of traditional crossroads, most of Delaware's suburban thoroughfares consist of radial turns to keep motor vehicles moving as quickly as possible through intersections. This seriously compromises pedestrian safety, since the beginning and end of the crosswalk is unregulated and never signalized. As they are induced to maintain speed, motorists seldom yield, and usually just barrel on through even when pedestrians are present. This is not at all conducive to pedestrian safety, and not only adds to the danger, it discourage walking in the first place.

Non-drivers will often create "goat paths", as

the State and its Counties will not seek out and

try and include these important connections
with area rehab & reconstruction projects.

4) Very few pathway facilities that make safe connections between existing communities, commerce, and civil services. Lack of connectivity in development codes, and an ignorance of livability concerns throughout most of Delaware's planning history have all but sealed the fate of its suburban dwellers. Bike Delaware at one time made mention that connectivity is their mission, which includes piecing together what few streets do connect to try and create low stress networks. But for the vast majority of disconnected and unincorporated suburbs, they have yet to demonstrate how interconnecting pathways can be added without violating private property rights and/or invoking imminent domain -- never mind the exorbitant costs involved. In the end, those walking and biking are inevitably forced out onto arterial roads and their high speed intersections to reach most destinations.

5) Very little police presence and law enforcement to begin with. It is no secret that the police in Delaware -- in particular State and County -- are either stretched way too thin or even working without a contract. In what's become a culture of "anything goes", progressive reforms that include, e.g. stronger crosswalk signage with actual fines posted will remain out of the question. Unless a rare sting, the police are never around to actually enforce it, except perhaps in court after an injury or fatality. It is not uncommon at all for residents in unincorporated areas to go weeks or months without seeing a squad car in their region. When everyone knows that they can stretch, bend or break even the most basic laws of civility and predictability, higher crash counts inevitably follow. While the actions of the pedestrian (or bicyclist) is always cited as contributing or not, a gross lack of defensive driving due to paltry driver education, no redundant education, and virtually no law enforcement is a far greater problem overall.

Summary: Though certainly not alone in this, Delaware's built environment is a microcosm of the death and carnage now accepted as "normal" in the U.S. -- normal by placing motor vehicle traffic at human scale. Earlier govt planners, engineers and architects foisted this upon us by trashing livability in favor of "Stroads" that incorporate driveways, streets, parking lots, etc as directly connected to highways. Post WW2 design should have included frontage, service, and ring roads, and other treatments that allow highways to stay just that: relatively uninterrupted carriage ways between larger destinations with ample walking-biking cross-through (tunnel under) opportunities. Now dangerous by design, the State and its Counties (along with their Advisers and Advocates) are unable or unwilling to provide the needed tools and coping strategies.

View the proposed updated Delaware Vehicle Code for Pedestrians in pdf format, that was quashed by Bike Delaware after its presentation to Senator Dave Sokola, with no further discussion. It was crafted by using the best of language from progressive States, e.g. Washington, Oregon, Mass, etc where motorist's respect for non-motorized road users is visibly higher than in Delaware, and the statistics are there to back it.

View the 2018 pedestrian fatality statistics for the whole of the U.S. Delaware took a "rest" from the top 5 in 2018, but is set to return in 2019.

Read an article in Strong Towns comparing Streets, Roads, and "Stroads", and what we can do to eliminate the latter in favor of livable streets and communities.

Watch James Howard Kunstler on YouTube destroy the very notion of cars mixing in at human scale.

Townsend's Bond Committee Quashed Open Space Funding

Senator Towsend (and Rep Ed Osienski) are equally at fault for the loss of the Orphanage Property. Unlike other States, most of Delaware does not have local jurisdiction (charter), like a city, township or borough. Nor do we have the ability to draft and put up referendums on the ballot, i.e. open space funding via a minuscule sin tax as commonly seen in most other States. Save the Orphanage Property (STOP) Advocates poured their hearts and souls into 10-9 funding ($10M for farmland, $9M for open space preservation) and Open Space as a Democrat Party Plank, and both were soundly defeated.

Therefore, because of the lack of charters in most suburban areas of Delaware, our County and State Legislators are given a significantly elevated responsibility to act in the people's best interests, throughout the districts they serve. NOT, according to Townsend and his minion in the House -- Rep Edward Osienski. Both failed (and go on failing) their Ogleotwn-S. Newark constituents on issues of environment and quality of life.

Advocates knew from very early on that New Castle Councilwoman Lisa Diller was completely useless; a colossal failure who did virtually nothing for STOP. Exec Meyer arrived late on the scene with his election in 2016, and with no State Legislator oversight, simply threw away this one time-ever opportunity. But along with Diller, both Osienski and Townsend knew way back in 2013 that the property was under the threat of development, and did not act in the manner one would expect if you're trying to save it.

View Senator Townsend's position on the the State's Bond Bill Committee HERE. For 2017, Delaware ended up with an $87M budget surplus. Citing "budgetary constraints" instead, he faked leveraging $1.25M for what is easily the most disenfranchised region of his own District 11 -- Ogletown-S.Newark.  And he did this while consumed by his failed primary campaign (at 34 years of age) against Lisa Blunt Rochester for U.S. Congress.

Townsend Guts Coastal Zone Protections

Coastal Zone Act bill is a betrayal to Peterson’s intent
Note: With Democrats like Townsend, who needs Republicans? Bill signing HERE.

Originally posted in Delaware State News, May 21, 2017 | Rep. Ed Osienski and Sen. Bryan Townsend have introduced a bill (HB 190) that guts the Coastal Zone Act by re-industrializing some of Delaware’s most contaminated land and allowing new bulk product transfer operations where they never previously existed.

Established in 1971 under Republican Gov. Russell Peterson, the Coastal Zone Act has controlled the location, extent and type of industrial development in Delaware’s coastal areas to protect the natural environment for recreation and tourism. Manufacturing is allowed in the Coastal Zone (with a permit), but new heavy industrial development and bulk product transfer facilities were prohibited.

If passed, the bill would allow new heavy industry and bulk product transfer in targeted areas. Heavy industry, and its associated air and water pollution, is the most harmful and dangerous form of development. The areas that would be opened to new heavy industry including those near homes, schools and critical habitat zones.

The Coastal Zone Act prohibits bulk product transfer because of the pressure it places on the Coastal Zone. The language of the prohibition is eliminated by this bill and replaced with a new procedure that allows bulk product transfer operations where docks existed in 1971.

• “During an era when protecting clean water is a priority for Sen. Townsend, he places the integrity of the Delaware River and its tributaries at risk. He is essentially fouling the Delaware Estuary with this bill, thinking somehow that financial guarantees and offsets could mitigate the loss of critical habitat for birds and the ecosystem they rely on to survive.” — Mark Martell, Conservation Chair of Delaware Audubon Society

• “Russ Peterson warned us that once he died, lawmakers would start hacking away at the Coastal Zone Act. If he were alive today, would Sen. Townsend and Rep. Osienski be able to look him in the eye and argue their positions? It is only since Russ has passed that these legislators have decided to betray him.” — Matt DelPizzo, President of Delaware Audubon Society

• “HB 190 does not ‘modernize’ the Coastal Zone Act. Instead, it significantly weakens core protections in the Act in the unsubstantiated hope that backwards-looking options like heavy industry will somehow provide an economic boost to Delaware. [Full Article . . . ]

As expected, HB-190 was signed into law by Democrat Governor John Carney.