Bellefonte has proposed annexing two adjacent subdivisions.

Bellefonte wants to annex a bit, which upsets some folks

Ken MammarellaGovernment, Headlines

  NOTE: An earlier version of this story incorrectly attributed Brian Franklin’s quote to another person. Bellefonte, a town of 1,200 in northeastern New Castle County, wants to simplify its borders by annexing two neighboring subdivisions, but the idea is anything but simple. First, the concept – suggested by some homeowners in the areas that could be annexed – has …

The Maggie S. Myers, out of the water -- at last. (courtesy of Ada Puzo)

Maggie S. Myers re-floated; historic boat needs your help

Ken MammarellaCulture, Headlines

“It’s a sad day in Bowers,” Bowers Beach mayor Ada Puzzo wrote in an email the other day. “Our Maggie sunk last night. She’s sitting on the bottom of the creek right now. I cried like a baby when I saw her there.” She was referring to the Maggie S. Myers, the world’s oldest surviving oyster schooner. “It’s hard to …

pexels monstera 7114593

Veolia surprises customers with credit in water bills

Ken MammarellaBusiness, Headlines

A mega-deal among two large French companies that operate a lot of local water systems has resulted in a one-time credit for Delaware customers and a bunch of other commitments. Veolia’s merger with Suez had to go through various regulatory agencies, including the Delaware Public Service Commission, which approved the credit in November and ordered Veolia to include it in …

scam by phone (Pexels photo by Mikhail Nilof)

It’s a scam: You’re not getting calls with real deals

Ken MammarellaBusiness, Headlines

A few days ago, a Delawarean received “what seemed like very legit promotional call from (supposedly) XFINITY offering me $35 off my monthly internet/cable/phone bill for the next 2 years,” Patricia Seramone wrote on nextdoor. “They had my account number, and other pertinent information.” What they didn’t have is her faith. Seramone correctly realized, before she forked over payment information, …

Development 1

New Castle County urged to increase, expand impact fees

Ken MammarellaGovernment, Headlines

New Castle County on Monday was given a draft plan by consultants to expand — and increase — the impact fees charged for development. The county adopted such fees in 1999 to “finance new or expanded infrastructure and service needs for development.” And they have not changed much since. The county’s consultants recommended adding fees to encourage low-income housing and …

Orange Street between Seventh and Eighth streets with upcoming transit improvements, including a new bus shelter. (DelDOT)

Contract awarded to improve bus service in Wilmington

Ken MammarellaGovernment, Headlines

The Delaware Department of Transportation has accepted a $2.3 million bid to improve the bus system on four streets in downtown Wilmington. The Wilmington Transit Corridors Improvement project aims to reconfigure Orange Street (between Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and 10th Street) and also improve transit on King (between MLK and 10th) and Eighth and Ninth streets (between Adams and …

USPS truck with mail (Trinity Nguyễn photo from Unsplash)

No mail today? You aren’t alone. Here’s why

Ken MammarellaGovernment, Headlines

Delawareans venting about not getting any mail on some days are finding plenty of sympathy and shared frustration on social media. “Mail carrier? Where d’ya go?” Wilmington resident Jeremy Beck wrote on Nextdoor, in a post that generated about 150 comments. “Is there only two days a week we get mail service? Last time we got it was last week. …

Ed Emmi in the Milburn Stone production of "Sister Act." (Courtesy of Ed Emma)

‘Sister Act’ offers Del. actor chance to repeat fun role

Ken MammarellaCulture, Headlines

For the first time in singing and acting in more than 300 productions, Ed Emmi is creating the same role at almost the same time for two different theaters. He’s playing Monsignor O’Hara in “Sister Act” in a production at the Milburn Stone Theatre in North East, Maryland, running Dec. 2-11. Tickets are on sale now. And he will play …

Joe Daigle at work in the Nutcracker on Stage” episode of “Holiday Baking Championship: Gingerbread Showdown.: (Courtesy of Food Network)

Del. man vies for $10,000 on Food Network gingerbread show

Ken MammarellaCulture, Headlines

Joe Daigle is a definite newcomer to gingerbread displays, but somehow – maybe those posts on Facebook or Instagram? – he got an invitation from the Food Network to appear on a bakeoff show. His “Nutcracker on Stage” episode of “Holiday Baking Championship: Gingerbread Showdown” debuts at 10 p.m. Monday and is scheduled to air five more times in December. …

Turkey, of course, stars in the Bowers Beach Thanksgiving meal. (Claudio Schwarz photo from Unsplash)

Bowers Beach unites to offer watermen’s Thanksgiving dinner

Ken MammarellaHeadlines, Culture

  Bowers Beach is uniting this year to ensure the continuation of a decades-long tradition of home-cooked holiday meals for the watermen who work out of the Kent County town of 250. “Miss Jean’s spirit is willing, but her body just isn’t up to it this Thanksgiving,” Mayor Ada Puzzo wrote in an email seeking culinary assistance for Jean Friend …