Sports
Fun
Stanley Cup comes to town
Cottage Tour takes the spotlight
Page 67
Page 43
JULY 21, 2023
THE LOCAL VOICE OF YOUR COMMUNITY.
Volume 20, Issue 29
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Fenwick candidates make case to voters By Kerin Magill Staff Reporter Eight candidates for four seats on the Fenwick Island Town Council told a packed room why they should vote for them in this year’s candidate forum sponsored by the town’s homeowner’s association. The forum, sponsored each year by FISH (Fenwick Island Society of
Homeowners) clocked in at just under an hour under moderator Janet Dudley Eshbach’s watch. As has been the case in the past few elections in Fenwick Island, the candidates have aligned themselves in blocks, doubling or, in this case, quadrupling up on campaign literature. The three incumbents who are running — Janice Bortner, Natalie Magdeburger and Jaqueline Napolitano — are
running on a platform focused on what they feel they have accomplished during their initial two-year terms. Challenger Kurt Zanelotti has thrown his hat into the ring in support of the incumbents. Meanwhile, the other four challengers — Gary Burch, Kristy Clark, Bernie Merritt and Jim Simpson — are seeking to unseat the incumbents and are running as a group. Merritt and Simpson are familiar to many in Fen-
wick Island, as Merritt is a former council member, and Simpson is a frequent critic of the current council, particularly through his former Facebook page, Fenwick D Towne. During the FISH forum, the eight candidates gave brief introductions, followed by a question-and-answer period with questions collected from the standSee FORUM page 2
South Bethany police being kept busy By Mike Smith Staff Reporter Beach replenishment in South Bethany may have had the unintended consequence of bringing more beachgoers and partiers to the quiet residential town, officials reported this week. Police Chief Jason Lovins noted an uptick in arrests for DUI, being drunk in public and vagrancy over the past several months as South Bethany’s beaches are groomed and nourished ahead of some of its neighbors — creating an inviting space to party. “It is just common sense that the young folks would come our way,” said Lovins on Monday, May 17, following up on discussions at a recent town council meeting. “At Bethany Beach over the weekend, people are packed-in like sardines around the Army Corps equipment,” he said of the neighboring town’s recently started replenishment work. “There is really nowhere else for young people to go.” The topic came up when the chief See TOWN page 3
Coastal Point • Kerin Magill
About two dozen people lined the parking lot at Fenwick Island Town Hall on Saturday, July 15, to protest the planned construction of wind turbines off the Delaware coast. The protest, which lasted about 15 minutes, was organized by the Town’s Environmental Committee.
Solar tax credit charge adds up to loss for Warren’s Station By Mike Smith Staff Reporter Jeff Mumford cashed in his life insurance policy to finance $100,000 in solar panels because of the benefit he thought the large roof on his restaurant could offer to the community, the elec-
trical power grid and the business’ potential solar-energy tax credits. Eventually, with federal Department of Energy incentives for solar installation, Mumford received about $50,000 back from the government. He realized he had a long timeline to earn those credits and that, in good
time, the solar array installation and the income generated from “selling” power back to the grid would pay off. “Delmarva Power originally said any credits I accumulated without using them for our restaurant were going back to the grid, so I am supposed to get credit,” said Mumford.
However, the Warren’s Station restaurateur received a letter from Delmarva Power recently that restates the terms of the deal. New legislation, SB 298, has taken the solar-savings tax credit, for the pubSee CREDITS page 4