Regular meeting was called to order at 7:01 pm on January 10, 2013 by Mayor Ron Honsicker.

Council members in attendance were: Wendell Kinney, Bob McDevitt, and Shirley Pennington arrived late.

The pledge of allegiance was recited in unison.

Total number in attendance was a total of 13.

Voter Registration was available for anyone who hasn’t registered yet.

Kyle held an open discussion concerning the Channel Dredging. Kyle read a letter that was written to DNREC. There was a discussion on the floor concerning this issue. It seems as though they are still dragging their feet on the issue and we would really like to see some progress. David Russell who is a Captain of a Head Boat in Bowers discussed the he has also been in communications with DNREC and Fish and Wildlife. He read the letter and said that he will be continuing to make calls and go to see representatives in order to get this project completed. He will even be contacting the Governor. The Town has been involved in trying to get this project going for years. Kyle just wanted to make sure that this was on public record. Mr. Foley commented that because we are a small town we are not a priority on their list. He says that they are more concerned about other beach communities such as Rehoboth, Dewey, etc. There were comments from Ada Carter and others on the matter as well.
David Russell asked if a letter can be sent from the Town of Bowers on this matter. Mayor Ron said that if a letter is drafted he will sign it and send it as long as it is factual.

Reading of the minutes by Mayor Ron. Motion was made by Wendell and 2nd by Bob to accept the minutes as read. M/c.

Treasurer’s report was read by Mayor Ron. Motion was made by Bob and 2nd by Wendell to accept the treasurer’s report as read. M/c.

Committee Reports:

Parks and Rec – No Report.
Grants – Update on drainage was read.
Planning – No report
Budget- Charter says that we have to approve a budget in March. In the future the charter will be changed, which is a lengthy process.
Streets – Cleaning of the ditches around the parking lot was discussed. Wendell said that we are waiting on the survey before letters are sent out.
Code Enforcement – Three building permits and two demolition permits were issued. Bob is to look into the properties on Hubbard as they need to be cleaned up.
Pirate Festival – There will be a Cannon Ball which will be a costume party at the Fire House and a movie night for kids in the Town Hall, with a costume contest as well. Plans are moving forward. Meetings take place monthly before the regular meetings.

Old Business
Surveillance Cameras – Bob is waiting on a second estimate. He will check on that.
A question was asked if DSP would actually use footage and the Mayor said yes they would because they had used footage from his camera.
Graffiti Report – No problems since we posted for a reward.
Audit – Report was read from Bowers Fire Company that the audit was completed.
FEMA CAV – Will be in February.
Snow Plow – Wendell discussed some pricing that he had received. We need to get back with them to see what kind of priority they could give us.

New Business:

University of DE – Survey being conducted about the revitalization of the Bowers waterfront which ties into the DE Bayshore initiative. Clark Evans will be conducting interviews with people within the Town of Bowers. Make sure to mention the Channel Dredging if you are interviewed. This will start sometime in February and it will be a random cross section. There was a discussion on the floor concerning this matter.

Speed Limit Signs – They are in and DelDOT is ready to install them. They are Solar Speed Limit Signs. There will be one coming in and one going out. Mayor Ron will meet with a Rep to decide the location of the signs. They may be in by the end of the month.

Bowers Fire Company – April 8th to the 13th will be the celebration of their 75th anniversary. For more information you can go to their website or contact Shirley.

DE Homeowners handbook for natural emergencies is available. We will be getting copies for those that are interested.

Open Discussion:

Read a letter from DelDOT requesting permission to use email as a means of notification to do work within the town.
There was a motion made by Mayor Ron, 2nd by Bob to go with email notification to Wendell who is in charge of streets.

We were asked to post the minutes from our meetings on our website so that those that didn’t attend the meeting can read the minutes. Shirley will send them to Ron who will make sure they are posted on the website.

There being no further business a motion was made by Shirley, 2nd by Wendell to adjourn the meeting @ 8:15 pm.

Respectfully Submitted,
Shirley A. Pennington
Secretary for the
Town of Bowers Beach