Coastal Point • RUSLANA LAMBERT An attendee at April 16’s Easter sunrise service on the beach in Bethany Beach returns as the sun rises. The Sunday service was hosted by Ocean View church of Christ.

Coastal Point viewpoint 2006.04.21

IRSD facing second lawsuit over prayer case
New information emerged this week on the legal woes of the Indian River School Board. Not only is the board now facing another lawsuit, but an enforced silencein the original case regarding religious issues in the district was lifted, revealing some of the terms of a proposed settlement that the board rejected in late February.

New Giant lives up to its 'Super' name
When the Giant superstore opened on Atlantic Avenue in Millville yesterday, it was not just new to Millville residents. Millville’s Super Giant – based on its sister company’s super Stop and Shop stores – opened as a prototype for all new Giant stores in the Virginia, Delaware, Maryland and Washington, D.C, region – the only states in which the company operates.

New Wachovia bank branch to open in Millville
For months, and maybe years, local Wachovia Bank-faithful customers have trekked – sometimes through dreadful summer traffic – to do their banking. But those customers don’t have to make the trek anymore.

Scene set for South Bethany election
There will be an election in South Bethany this year. Council seat and mayoral action has been quiet in neighboring Bethany Beach and Fenwick Island, with no elections there during the last election period, as no new candidates filed for the contested seats. Instead, incumbents retained their previously-won posts.

Gas prices rise again
Surely most people have noticed. Gas prices are on the rise again. But – as of now – the rises have been worse than last year’s spike in prices or have at least come earlier than expected.

Car collides with four-wheeler on Omar Rd
A verbal altercation between two Clarksville-area teenagers on a four-wheeler and two Clarksville-area farmers fed up with crop damage turned into a physical altercation on April 13, as 77-year-old Merrill Gray’s car collided with an ATV driven by 14-year-old Chris Barnes, near the Beth’el Tabernacle Church of God, on Omar Road.

Local church takes action against hunger
Human nature seems to be such that should all civilization pass away, give us but food, clothes and shelter and we immediately turn back to help those who have them not. And even in this affluent area, there are people who don’t always know where or when they’ll be able to take their next meal.

The Agenda

Schmidt joins Millville's Halpern team of optometrists
Anyone in the Millville area who needs some options for help with eye problems is in luck. There is a new optometrist at Halpern Eye Associates on Atlantic Avenue in Millville.

Southeastern Delaware artists support local students
Southeastern Delaware Artists Studio Tour (SEDAST) members provided local art teachers a significant boost on April 11, with a check presentation at the Indian River High School.

Indian River students organize benefit
On Monday, music will resonate through the Indian River High School Auditorium and students will walk a runway, modeling clothes donated by area businesses. A few Indian River students organized the half-fashion-show, half-concert fundraising event to benefit the Delaware Foundation Reaching Citizens with Cognitive Disabilities, the organization which sponsors the annual Blue-Gold All-Star football game.

Tour offers natural entertainment for bicyclists
The weather has begun to warm, the birds to return in full force and the humans to emerge from winter’s hibernation within four walls. What better time for a nice, long bike ride through the splendor of the area’s natural wonders?

Sussex hosts regional avian flu summit
Avian influenza. While media outlets are paying it a great deal of attention of late, the regular, seasonal flu is actually a far more serious problem. Seasonal, or common, flu claims 36,000 lives – every year – in this country alone, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Center for Disease Control (CDC) Web site.

County preps for comp plan update
Think of them as Big Plans That Cover Everything. Via the state’s “Quality of Life Act of 1988,” comprehensive plans (comp plans) guide local land use and coordinate infrastructure development. They cover everything from economics to environment.

Fancy dancing on tap in Bethany Beach
A bit of local culture will come to Bethany Beach Town Hall this week, with the final event in the series of cultural events presented by the town’s Cultural and Historical Affairs Committee (CHAC), set for Wednesday, April 26, at 7 p.m.

Architechure guildelines developing in Bethany
Work is under way on Bethany Beach’s proposed new architectural guidelines for its commercial district. The Architectural Guideline Development Committee for C-1 and C-2 Zoning Districts (AGDC) met April 13 – the first gathering of the group since they met with architect Jeff Schoellkopf in March, in anticipation of the town hiring him to consult on the project.

Sen. Carper discusses air quality at IR power plant
U.S. Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) visited Sussex County on April 19, using the Indian River Power Plant (on the Indian River, between Millsboro and Dagsboro) as a backdrop for a discussion on clean-air regulations targeting the electric generating sector.

Brush up on your Shakespeare--Part II
I spent a couple of hours this week watching splotches of red paint dry on a white bed sheet I had bought from Goodwill for a buck-99. The paint was a glossy enamel, and I intended it to simulate blood on a Roman toga which would serve as Caesar’s shroud.

South Bethany adopts $3.3 million budget
South Bethany Town Council members adopted the town’s budget for the 2007 fiscal year at their April 13 meeting (held a day earlier than usual, due to the Good Friday holiday). The $3.325 million budget – on both the revenue and expenditure sides – was settled at the council’s final budget meeting earlier this month and saw no changes before its adoption.

New digs, truck, for BBVFC
Local firefighters risk their lives on a regular basis, and stay ready to drop whatever they’re doing, to help protect the lives and property of residents and visitors alike. And they do it for no pay.

County engineers outline Dagsboro sewer capacity
Dagsboro residents and elected officials heard from a whole squad of technical folk at a special meeting on April 10 — four representatives from Sussex County’s engineering department and three from county-affiliated engineering firm Stearns & Wheler.

County Council focus on C-1 zoning
It’s understandable that county planners have taken the better part of a year to hammer the Commercial-Residential (CR-1) ordinance into its current shape. It’s a complex ordinance, and Sussex County Council members have disagreed on many of the original points, and added a few of their own along the way.

Millville approves unfamiliarly large budget
Expenses and revenues generated through development looming in the town of Millville more than quadrupled the town’s budget in one year. After approving some $65,000 in the 2006 fiscal-year budget last year, town council voted unanimously on April 11 to pass a 2007 fiscal-year budget that balances at $273,375 and will take effect on May 1.

Phillips preaches about racial equality
Lanier Phillips marched in Selma, Ala., alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1963. He worked as a technical specialist on lighting projects with Jacques Cousteau.

Steakhouse still on for Millville
Signs for the “Rick’s 26” steakhouse may have disappeared from the roadside near the imminent Millville Town Center retail complex, but according to local restaurateur Jerry Richard, a newly renamed “Steakhouse 26” is still on track for a late May or early June opening.

If you build it, they will come
The Indian River Lady Indians softball team wanted to play ball during the Easter break last year, so they loaded up the bus and headed to southern Maryland for a tournament at Calvert High School. They won all three games – including a 2-0 win over Calvert and Division I pitching prospect Meghan Elliott, which started talk among coaches in the region.

Lady Indians: Perfection on the field and in the classroom
The Lady Indians softball team has upped the ante once again. They’ve beaten the defending state champion Sussex Central Golden Knights 2-0 on their way to a perfect 10-0 record, and the excellence displayed on the field has transferred into the classroom.

Little League Opening day set for Saturday
Nearly 1,500 Sussex Countians will converge on Roxanna’s Pyle Center just after day-break on Saturday, April 22, for Sussex County’s Little League Opening Day.

Dean excels as Indian's leadoff hitter
A good leadoff hitter does all of the following: get on base, swing at good pitches and run the bases well. Typically, a leadoff hitter bats in that position at the beginning of the game unless the inning ends on the ninth batter. But the good ones maintain their focus throughout the game and at every plate appearance.

Warner announces plans for his future
Indian River standout pitcher Colin Warner has always wanted to play college baseball. Ever since he was knee-high to a waterbug, Colin has had this particular dream. But now it’s become reality. Next season, Warner is taking his pitching talent to Division III Wesley College.

YMCA hosts drug-education program
Almost everyone has seen the results of drug abuse or addiction, according to Suzanne Whittaker. Sometimes it’s a family member who abuses alcohol. Or maybe it’s a friend who is addicted to marijuana.

Ocean View resident finishes Boston Marathon
It was a moment John Turssline won’t soon forget. On Monday, the Ocean View resident lined up next to 10,000 people on the streets of Boston to compete, running in the first heat of the Boston Marathon. More than 20,000 ran in the 110th annual event, with more than 97 percent finishing.