Sussex County adopts Comprehensive Plan Update

Georgetown, Del., June 24, 2008: Sussex County will further protect agriculture, better define what qualifies as open space, encourage more affordable housing and entice developers to build projects within developing areas that are more environmentally friendly. Those are just some of the many goals laid out in Sussex County’s newly adopted Comprehensive Plan Update.

After more than 18 months of accepting public and State input, and writing and revising several drafts, Sussex County Council on Tuesday, June 24, 2008, approved the 2007 Comprehensive Plan Update, a State-mandated document that serves as the County’s vision for future development and land use into the next decade.

“Today we reach a milestone in this very complicated, but nonetheless important, process,” County Administrator David B. Baker said. “Sussex County has taken a major step forward in planning for its future by approving this comprehensive plan. We believe it reflects the overall community’s desires and will promote orderly and appropriate growth in our developing areas.”

In January 2007, Sussex County began the process of updating the previous comprehensive plan, adopted in 2002. Since then, numerous public meetings were held and input taken to craft the document approved by County Council today.

Delaware law mandates that all counties and municipalities have a comprehensive plan in place to guide their future. Such plans define, among other things, growth zones, land-use policies and how development should progress, potential transportation improvements, historic preservation and economic development efforts.

During the past 10 months, the draft document moved through the Delaware Preliminary Land Use Service review process for comments from State agencies. County planners, staff and consultant Urban Research & Development Corp. worked with the State to incorporate various recommended revisions into the document as part of that process.

The document was subject to two public hearings in April, and has since been recommended for approval, with some minor modifications, by the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission.

Among the many highlights in the document, the 2007 Comprehensive Plan Update calls for Sussex County to:

  • Encourage the County’s future growth to occur in defined developing areas. Tools to achieve this include:
    • A transfer of development rights (TDR) program;
    • Providing incentives in the way of expedited review and bonus densities for qualified projects in growth zones. Such projects include those that are:
      • ENERGY STAR certified;
      • LEED certified;
      • ‘Super Green’ certified;
    • Sub-area planning, which will require the County, in partnership with various local and State agencies, to evaluate existing and needed infrastructure in highly localized areas.
  • Further protect open space and strengthen agriculture by:
    • Creating a new agri-business zone, which would limit residential development and add more agriculture uses by right;
    • Expanding the County’s density bonus program, allowing landowners and developers to pay set dollar amounts for additional land-use densities. In exchange, the money would be used to buy open space;
    • Continuing the purchase of development rights easements and open space.
  • Implement added environmental protections, such as:
    • Providing incentives for projects with larger, vegetated buffers around waterways and wetlands;
    • A wellhead protection ordinance to ensure safe public drinking water;
    • Clarifying the County’s forested buffer ordinance;
    • Allowing green storm water management techniques not currently permitted.
  • Encourage affordable housing by expanding the County’s Moderately Priced Housing Unit program to include rentals;
  • Promote traditional neighborhood designs;
  • Establish clear definitions for open space and superior design within developments.

While the document has now been adopted, the process is far from complete. Sussex County government in the next 18 months will draft and consider approximately two dozen ordinances necessary to implement the concepts and ideas outlined in the comprehensive plan.

County Council President Finley B. Jones Jr. said he was pleased the County has adopted the plan and can now focus on the task ahead. He also thanked the hundreds of residents, property owners and others who participated in the process by speaking at public hearings and writing letters and e-mails.

“It’s encouraging to see so many people concerned about Sussex County and its future,” President Jones said. “I truly believe that Sussex County today – and in the years to come – will be all that much better because of the valuable opinions and perspective we received through this process.”

The 2007 Comprehensive Plan Update is available on the County’s Web site, at sussexcountyde.gov/comprehensive-plan.

###