More Delawareans are in the Workforce Since July

Delaware’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was lower in August to 8.9% – down from 10.5% in July. The national unemployment rate was at 8.4% in August – down from 10.2% in July. However a year ago, the unemployment rate in Delaware was at 3.9%. In Delaware, there were 5100 more people employed last month than…

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Revised Fall Sports Plan Approved by Del. Board of Ed.

Fall sports play on in Delaware. The Delaware State Board of Education met for hours before voting 4-3 in favor of a proposal approved last week by the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association to start practice and competition for fall sports. Earlier, both boards had voted to delay fall sports until the winter months. Practice will…

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Lewes K-9 “Blue” Fondly Remembered

Lewes K9 Blue

Lewes K-9 Blue has died after seven years of service to the Police Department. Blue’s partner on the force was Patrolman First Class Tyrone Woodyard. Police Chief Thomas Spell says Blue arrested dozens of criminals over the years, sniffed out illegal drugs and detected thousands of dollars in suspected drug money. Blue also attended many…

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Sussex Co. Property Taxes Come Due Sept. 30th

Property taxes in Sussex County must be paid by the end of the month. Property owners received their tax bills for the 2021 fiscal year last month. Funds collected go into the budget, generating an estimated $166.3-million in revenue to pay for various county functions. Also, bills include taxes that are set by local school…

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Del. Introduces Recovery Referral Portal

Delawareans in search of information and resources about substance use disorder or mental health treatment can find it through a new online platform. The Delaware Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health worked with a national technology company to develop the online Behavioral Health Referral Portal. Features include a self-assessment tool, a searchable database of…

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Volunteers Needed For Mobile Food Pantries

Photo courtesy of the Food Bank of Delaware

In its continuing response to help Delawareans impacted financially by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Food Bank of Delaware is hosting three, mass drive-through mobile pantries. Also, the Food Bank says it is “urgently” in need of volunteers to assist with packaging and loading food, setting up and breaking down the two downstate mobile food pantries.…

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COVID-19 Church Restrictions Cause New Concern

Legal representatives for The Committee to Save Christmas take issue with the latest modifications in Governor John Carney’s COVID-19 State of Emergency. The group calls it a ‘reopening of the war on churches.’ Provisions in the Executive Order earlier this month reinstitute a requirement that a pastor, speaker or singer wear a mask when facing…

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Councilman Burton Declines To Run As Write-In

The path is clear for Mark Schaeffer to join Sussex County Council in January, representing District 3. Councilman I.G. Burton confirmed Thursday to WGMD that he would not run as a write-in candidate. A petition at change.org had encouraged him to do so. Burton lost to Schaeffer by fewer than four dozen votes in Tuesday’s…

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Sussex Tech Incorporates Flexibility Into Remote Learning

Sussex Tech students and instructors Zoom into a new academic year. Students in a variety of subjects are starting to learn remotely. However, teachers also have the flexibility to bring small groups of students in later this month for the sort of hands-on instruction and practice that’s important to Sussex Tech students’ success. District leaders…

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Worcester Co. Extends Tobacco Prevention Grant Program

The Worcester County Health Department is seeking grant proposals from programs involved with community tobacco cessation and enforcement efforts. Projects could include public awareness, outreach, education, recruitment and referral projects as well as other health related activities. Grant money comes from Cigarette Restitution Funds. The deadline to apply for a mini-grant has been extended until…

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Thursday is First Day of School for IRSD

Thursday is the first day of school for all Indian River School District students – under both the hybrid and remote learning models. Students will receive their class schedules from their schools and should have already received their group assignments through the district’s automated notification system. Only Pre-K through 1st grade will begin attending school…

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Garbage Truck Catches Fire On Coastal Highway

A garbage truck caught fire on Coastal Highway south of Dewey Beach Tuesday morning (photo: Chuck Snyder)

A load of garbage caught fire on a trash truck on southbound Coastal Highway south of Dewey Beach Tuesday morning. According to the Rehoboth Beach Volunteer Fire Company, crews responded at about 8:30 a.m. on Coastal Highway near Conquest Road. They discovered that the driver had dropped the load of garbage onto the highway and…

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There’s Now an App – the Covid Alert DE App!

Governor John Carney, the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS), and the Delaware Department of Technology and Information (DTI) on Tuesday launched COVID Alert DE – a mobile app available in the App Store or Google Play that will help Delaware fight community spread of COVID-19.  The free mobile app – available to anyone 18 or older who lives,…

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GOP Lawmaker Receives Democratic Ballot

A Delaware lawmaker says his own experience shows why he has concerns about Delaware’s new mail-in voting system. State Representative Bryan Shupe, Republican of Milford, says he’s been a GOP registered voter for the last 15 years, but registered as a Democrat when he first became eligible to vote at age 18. Shupe posted a…

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In Memoriam: Dan Kramer, Government Watchdog

Elected officials who encountered him will not soon forget him. Dan Kramer, a government watchdog who spoke up frequently at meetings of Sussex County Council, has died. His wife told the Delaware State News Kramer had been hospitalized since early August, and died after a short illness. “My name is Dan Kramer. Here we go…

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Salisbury Imposes New Limits On Crowd Sizes

salisbury-logo

Salisbury is taking steps to reduce the spread of coronavirus, as the positivity rate for COVID-19 in Wicomico County has reached seven-percent. Effective Wednesday at 5:00 p.m., indoor gatherings within Salisbury city limits are capped at 15 people, and outdoor gatherings will be limited to 50 people. This restriction covers parties, cookouts, and social gatherings…

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Resources Rolled Out for Application Process for Delaware Nonprofit Support Fund

On September 9, in conjunction with Governor John Carney, County Executive Matt Meyer, the collaborative partnerships of DANA, the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement, the Delaware Community Foundation, Philanthropy Delaware, and United Way of Delaware, a substantive grant program exclusively for nonprofits was announced. $25 Million has been set aside for nonprofits through two grants as part of the…

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Sussex Co. Bond Rating Reaches ‘AAA’

Sussex County has earned a ‘AAA’ Bond Rating from S. and P. Global Ratings on Wall Street. The upgrade from “AA+” also mirrors a move made by Moody’s Investor Services just over a year ago. Moody’s also maintained its “AAA” rating this past week. S-and-P says its upgrade reflects Sussex County’s diversifying and growing economy…

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UPDATED: First Cats from Camden Rescue Ready for Adoption

UPDATED – 9/13/20 – The first group of kitties starts going up for adoption tomorrow. Georgetown will have cats from this case available at 11am opening, West Chester and Dover by 1pm. New Castle will have some on Tuesday, and all campuses will have more added through the week. If you’ve been considering adopting, now’s…

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