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Letter of Opposition to MPZ for Environment/Open Space Selloff
Letter of Opposition to MPZ for Environment/Open Space Selloff
10/18/2023 - Open Letter to the Sussex Council
It is the morning after the public hearing. Some residents speaking of the inadequacy of the 10% open space requirement woke me up like a brick hitting my head.
I realized how the proposed MPZ would end up being a licensed mass-scale dumping of our environmental assets and the concept of superior design - squarely against the Purpose and Intent of the MPZ ordinance.
Since only 10% (20 acres) are set aside as open space, which may include stormwater ponds and the strip between the street and sidewalk, the 200-acre parcel will end up with little actual 'open space.'
The SCRP (Sussex County Rental Program) with 12 units/acre requires 50% of the gross area to be open space.
A cluster subdivision requires 30% open space. Subdivision developers often claim to have more than 50% of open space, but they do not look even close to 50% because of how they calculate open space.
The clipping is of Raley Farm, where 163 acres of the 359-acre parcel are open space - 45%. That includes the 150-ft easement for Delmarva Power bisecting the subdivision.
Help me, I cannot picture 10% open space for the entire 200+ acres of MPZ parcels.
As Judy Rose pointed out, the stormwater ponds are almost non-existent. The visual example shown by Robertson doesn't have 10% open space, but more like 30% +. We need a visual presentation of the actual 10% open space diagram.
I am appalled by the scale of the invasion we are under. I appreciate my fellow residents of Sussex County for diligently seeking answers and speaking up.
Please re-consider the whole concept of MPZ and get back to the drawing board, keeping the Purpose and Intent in the core of the ordinance.
Again, thank you for undertaking the enormous work and challenges of governing and keeping this beautiful county.
And, of course, thank you for leaving the written comments for 10 business days.
Respectfully,
Eul Lee
Comparison:
Even in this diagram from 2021 presentation by P&Z, the Open Space looks much more than 10% required by the MPZ ordinance proposed.
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