Home Care In Ocean View, DE

After hearing comments from those who want marijuana to be sold in Ocean View — including a resident who suggested banning it was an act of ignorance — the Ocean View Town Council this week not only banned sales, but also the cultivation, manufacturing and testing of marijuana within town limits.

At the Tuesday, Oct. 10, meeting, the council also stopped related retail stores and smoking lounges from opening in any zoning districts in town, voting unanimously to amend the code relating to regulations as set out in Chapter 140, Land Use & Development.

Before the vote, during the public comments portion of the meeting, Ocean View resident Brian Warnock told council members he hoped they hadn’t already made up their minds about how they were going to vote and tried to assure them if they allowed marijuana to be sold, “It’s not going to ruin the town or bring a bad element here.”

“At least half of the people who buy it will be senior citizens. If you don’t allow it, you are costing jobs and causing people to go to Maryland to buy it. It just makes sense. If you allow this — the sale of marijuana here — people aren’t going to be in the parking lot smoking joints. People aren’t going to be driving home stoned … so I don’t understand why,” he said of the pending ban.

Councilman Stephen Cobb asked Warnock why he thinks towns in lower Sussex County “are doing what we are considering.”

“Why do you think that is?” Cobb asked.

Warnock replied, “I don’t know. Ignorance. You tell me why. What is so bad about it? It is legal in the state of Delaware. I think they have their head in the sand. They aren’t paying attention. I don’t think they’ve gone to Ocean City to see what a dispensary looks like. It’s old-fashioned. I don’t know why they are so against it.”

Warnock returned to the podium a few minutes later and told the council if residents were so opposed, flocks of them would have filled town hall, chanting and calling for its ban.

But Mayor John Reddington said that, although he didn’t see “other people in here saying anything negative about marijuana, as members of the town council, we have all heard from people — store owners, private citizens, HOA communities — asking us not to allow marijuana.”

Before the meeting, Reddington told the Coastal Point that opponents “don’t want it in their town.”

“A lot of people have misconstrued this to say all marijuana is being banned, but medical marijuana will still be allowed to be sold. As for recreational marijuana, the people we have heard from don’t want to smell it. They think that it introduces the wrong element of people. Others have talked about it being a gateway drug, and it is still considered a gateway drug.

“I believe it probably does have some medicinal use. I’ve heard that from a lot of people. It’s like any natural plant that they find many uses for. But I think there are still a lot of unknowns. Maybe some people get relief from that, but that’s the dangerous thing — you don’t know when you buy something on the street if it’s natural or if it’s safe,” the mayor said.

Also speaking in favor of allowing marijuana in Ocean View was Alexandra Miller — who, like Warnock, had spoken to the council previously, including at their September meeting.

This week, she greeted town leaders with, “Listen, guys — I was here the last two times. I was really angry the last two times, but I don’t have the energy to get as worked up as I did the last two times, because it really took a toll on my physical health.”

“We shouldn’t even be here right now. There shouldn’t be a discussion to even ban it. We should be talking about planning for it. … Imagine if you guys were accepting tax revenue from cannabis,” she said, calling a vote to ban it discriminatory and saying Ocean View promotes alcohol use.

“It shouldn’t be easier for someone to get a cigar or booze than to get a plant,” she said.

At the September council meeting, Miller had noted that the Town had allowed wine to be sold at John West Park, near the park’s playground. But Reddington told the Coastal Point it was a one-time event, and that he and other volunteers were required to take a class and be certified before they could make sales.

Before the meeting, Miller sent an e-mail to the council and copied it to Coastal Point.

She wrote, in part, “I live with a chronic illness called endometriosis. It causes painful, debilitating menstrual cramps, abdominal pain, GI distress, nausea, sciatica, back pain, fatigue and pain with intercourse. I also have PTSD. I use cannabis to treat both of these conditions, and it has truly saved my life many times over when pharmaceuticals harmed me and caused seizures and many other issues.

“Citizens of Ocean View and Sussex County at large deserve more options for pain relief and anxiety than harmful and deadly pharmaceuticals, like opioids and benzodiazepines.

“I have my Delaware medical cannabis card, but the prices of medicine are still exorbitant and there are only two shops, all the way in Rehoboth. When I am doubled over in pain or having a day when I am feeling depressed, I cannot make this journey. Many Delaware medical patients actually make an even further journey to Ocean City to purchase on the retail side, because even with tax, it works out to be a little cheaper than Delaware medical shops. This is ludicrous. … We should be making it easier, not harder, for people to access this safe and legal alternative, and be welcoming the tax revenue and new business industry with open arms,” Miller wrote.

Jean Duffy — a registered nurse from Milton — spoke, saying therapeutic benefits of cannabis have been proven, and that it is cigarettes and alcohol, not cannabis, that are dangerous.

The fourth speaker, a Millsboro woman who described herself as a wife, mother of three and retired elementary school teacher, said that after a car accident in 2009, she was in chronic pain. Prescription drugs caused her more harm than good, she said. In the fall of 2016, she was introduced to cannabis and found relief, she said.

“For the Town to go against the State is very counterproductive. Cannabis has harmed no one, except the prohibition of it,” she said.

OCEAN VIEW, Del. - Two people were displaced after a fire burned a home in the Country Village development.

According to the Millville Volunteer Fire Company, on Feb. 18 around 5 p.m., firefighters were dispatched to an automatic fire alarm on Sunrise Lane in the Country Village development.

As units were responding, authorities say the call was upgraded to a working structure fire with possible entrapment. Units arrived and found a fire coming from a one story ranch style home.

Firefighters brought the blaze under control within one hour. No injuries were reported in this incident. The Millville Volunteer Fire Company was assisted by the Bethany Beach, Roxana, Frankford, Dagsboro, Selbyville and Millsboro fire companies.

The fire is under investigation by the Delaware State Fire Marshal's office. Two people living in the home were displaced and are being helped by the Red Cross.

SALISBURY, MD — While Thanksgiving has come and gone, Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year, is here. People across the country flocked to stores in search of the best deals, and Delmarva was no exception.

At The Centre at Salisbury, customers filled the mall, eager to take advantage of the deals and get a head start on their holiday shopping. With discounts of 30%, 50% off, buy one-get-one free, plenty of shoppers came to snag items at lower prices.

Some shoppers, like Shelby Dechert, appreciated the crowded atmosphere, reminiscent of busier times at the mall.

"I feel like it’s giving an older vibe. I feel like the mall used to be a lot busier, but with online shopping and stuff you don’t see people in here as much. It’s kind of nostalgic, like older times," she said.

Even though the era of midnight madness may be in the rearview mirror, employees working on Black Friday reported that the crowds were still flowing in.

"Much bigger crowd, it started off there wasn’t many people in here, but now later in the day everyone's starting to get in here," noted an employee Mauriah Stanley

The sentiment among workers was clear: more customers mean a successful day.

"Come on out! Support! Spend money! It’s the holidays!" said employee Keisha Gattis

Black Friday kept the annual Thanksgiving weekend tradition alive in Salisbury.

More Delaware residents and businesses now get access to Fios, 5G Home Internet, and 5G Business Internet

NEW YORK, March 21, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Verizon is bringing more choice for home and business internet to customers in Delaware as it deploys high-speed broadband internet service across the state. Nearly 2,000 Delaware locations in Camden, Dover, Smyrna, Bridgeville and Ocean View will have access to high-speed internet as part of one of the biggest network upgrades in our history.

“Verizon is focused on delivering broadband internet service and the major economic benefits that it can provide,” said Doug Sullivan, Vice President of Wireline Network Operations-Mid-Atlantic North Region for Verizon. “From Fios to 5G Home, more people than ever across the First State have access to high-speed internet to fuel how they work, live and play.”

The project is being done with over $6 million in funding provided as part of the American Rescue Plan (ARP).

Additionally, Delaware residents get even more choices as Verizon is expanding its wireless home and business internet services, powered by 5G Ultra Wideband, in parts of Rehoboth and Dewey Beach.

Providing connectivity to all communities

In an effort to provide connectivity to families in need across the country, Verizon participates in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP)¹, a U.S. government program run by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to help low-income households pay for internet service. With ACP eligibility and the Verizon Forward Program², customers can get free home internet service – no hidden fees or annual contracts, and no equipment charges or data caps. You are eligible for ACP if you (or someone in your household) participate in certain government assistance programs. Learn more about the Verizon Forward Program by visiting www.verizon.com/home/free-verizon-internet/.

Transformative network performance with no data caps

Verizon’s 100% fiber network delivers award-winning Fios broadband service with no data caps. Customers who subscribe to Fios broadband service will have access to a wide range of plans that deliver at least 300 Mbps for both downloads and uploads starting at just $25 per month with AutoPay and select 5G mobile plans.³ Select Delaware locations will have access to Fios 2 Gig plans - the fastest speeds offered by Fios - starting at $94.99 per month with AutoPay and select 5G mobile plans.⁴

Special to Salisbury Daily Times

At last, plans for the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal had been finalized, and farther down the coast, the people of Ocean View were ecstatic.

On Dec. 11, 1903, the Milford Chronicle reported; “The importance of the canal cannot be overestimated. It will make, when completed, a continuous inland and safe waterway, from Rehoboth Bay to Cape Hatteras.

"The people along the route of the proposed canal are enthusiastic over the project. It will do much towards opening up that portion of the country. In addition to the advantages rendered to trade and commerce it will do much to aid in the draining of the lands adjacent to the canal. These lands at present are practically worthless.”

In 1833, a small cluster of two or three houses, an old log school house and a store operated by William S. Hall was awarded a post office, which was named appropriately enough, Hall’s Store.

Some years later, the Milford Chronicle reported in 1903 that, “Mr. William Hall, was the first postmaster to serve in this part of Baltimore Hundred, and it was he who gave the town the name of Ocean View.”

Three decades later, a history of the town published in the Milford Chronicle contended, “The small village was known as Hall’s Store, until after the war (Civil War). It was changed to Ocean View by Captain Henry Burton, who addressed his letters while being in a distant harbor, to Ocean View, care of Hall’s Store.”

Others claimed that the name originated because the Atlantic Ocean could be seen from the second floor of houses in the town. Another version of this story maintains that the name derived from the time that a boy climbed a tree and announced that he could see the ocean.

Still others maintained it was all a public relations ploy, and that the name was selected to entice vacationers to the town.

Whatever the origin of the name, Ocean View, the town’s residents lamented the lack of access to adequate transportation.

In 1903, the Milford Chronicle reported, “At the present day we have a very flourishing little town, but the one great drawback is the distance from railroad connections. Under present conditions we must drive 10 miles to reach the nearest railroad station, Dagsboro.

"In the summer a small steamboat plies between this town and Rehoboth and receives good patronage, but this thriving part of Delaware has no other means of travel to the business centers of the state.”

In the 19th century, communities such as Ocean View, that were not located on a railroad line, looked for an alternative form of transportation that would allow them to compete with towns served by trains.

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The people of Ocean View decided that a canal that linked Indian River and Assawoman bays would bring the town a significant portion of the coastal trade. The proposed canal was designed to accommodate the small boats and barges that served the settlements and landings scattered along the western shore of Rehoboth and Indian River bays.

In the 1890s, a workforce of immigrant laborers (many from Italy) was hired, and work was begun on the canal. Using mostly hand tools, the workers were able to dig the waterway within a remarkably short time.

After the canal was completed, it began to bring some new business to Ocean View, but it was not enough to create a major building boom.

Many believed that the Assawoman Canal needed to be connected to more distant towns, and in 1903, plans were announced to complete a canal network that would extend from Lewes to Cape Hatteras.

Unfortunately, before the canal network was finished, the first horseless carriages came rumbling across southern Delaware roads. Within a few short years, cars carrying vacationers and trucks carrying local produce rendered canals obsolete.

Principal sources:

Milford Chronicle, Dec. 11, 1903.

Milford Chronicle, Jan. 31, 1936.

Evening Journal, March 7, 1899.

Carter, Dick. The History of Sussex County. Rehoboth Beach: Community News Corporation, 1976, p. 45.

Severe storms brought the risk of flash flooding, strong winds to the Philadelphia region Friday morning. A tornado warning was even issued in Sussex county, Delaware.

The strong cold front is breaking the recent humidity in our area, but doing so at the cost of heavy rain, damaging winds and a flash flooding risk for the entire Philadelphia region.

A FIRST ALERT is in effect for our entire area until 8 a.m. Friday.

Timing

The storms raced in from the north and west before daybreak. Striking Berks County, the Lehigh Valley and the Pennsylvania suburbs first.

The worst of it was past Philadelphia and the suburbs by 5:30 a.m.

StormTracker 4

4:16 PM UTC

The worst of the storms was heading toward the Jersey Shore and Delaware Beaches just before 7 a.m.

That string of storms led to the tornado warning that was in effect through 7:45 a.m. Friday for parts of Sussex County, Delaware, including Ocean View, Bethany Beach and surrounding communities. The warning was issued due to a radar-indicated event.

"The storm which prompted the warning has weakened below severe limits, and no longer appears capable of producing a tornado," the National Weather Service said. "Therefore, the warning will be allowed to expire. However gusty winds are still possible with this thunderstorm."

Several severe thunderstorm warnings were issued in South Jersey and along the Jersey Shore during the morning

The worst of the storms should begin moving off-shore starting around 8 a.m.

After some lingering showers Friday morning and some sun shining through, a chance of scattered storms are possible on Friday afternoon. The greatest chance for those afternoon storms is in South Jersey, closer to the shore. However, other neighborhoods could still get some spotty showers.

After a stormy Friday, we’re in for a beautiful weekend with low humidity, temperatures in the mid 80s and plenty of sunshine. The gorgeous conditions will last through next week before more storms move in next Friday.

Follow the NBC10 First Alert Weather team and download the NBC10 app to get the latest weather updates for the Philadelphia region, Pennsylvania suburbs, South Jersey and Delaware.