Why does Seaford reject growth? (Milford, Georgetown: real estate, condos, crime)

[BILL BUCK]

I am an implant into Delaware. I moved here from a town out of Northeastern Maryland 4 years ago. Since I have been here in Seaford I have seen some small growth, but I wish the people who control the government in Seaford would get serious and go out and bring in a good food market, a Targets or K-Mart, Movies,doctors. A good mall would be even better. It seems that the government officials are happy being a small ghost town. They really have little vision.

[toobusytoday]

The lack of shopping is often what keeps people away and keeps the price of housing low. If you want more shopping then you maybe should have moved to a place that had it there already.

[rdlr]

I think Seaford has been mis-characterized here. I never thought of Seaford as a place "rejecting growth". Nor, do I think they have a lack of places to shop, or low priced housing.

Seaford is at the forefront in economic development. Here is a link for the City of Seaford. Click "economic development" to see that video, and all the other video links to get a broad picture of the City and what they have to offer. Granted, it's not an urban area, and they don't pretend to be.

For Videos of Seaford, click here, then scroll down and on the left, click Economic Development, Real Estate and Relocation, Quality of Life, and other links.
City of Seaford, Delaware - Virtual Tours (http://www.seafordde.com/tour.cfm - broken link)

[CaroleM]

The Seaford Museum has a Holiday Train Exhibit thru 1/16 which looks very interesting. Nice link to Seaford rdlr.

[BILL BUCK]

Hey
I have seen the link and reviewed it many times. I still feel as I do about Seaford. The old shopping center down town will soon be an eye sore. What is the local government doing to correct the loss? Look, I am not talking Baltimore City growth or Rehorboth type growth, I am just asking why we can not have a decent food Market and some other store like Target.

There is no growth that offers jobs and opportunity to our young people here in Seaford. Plus a movie in our town would be good for all. Bring in new business, it would help with taxes as well.

Seaford is a nice area or I would not have moved here 4 years ago. I did not move here and dry up when I retired. I am still employed and invest in the local economy and pay taxes. I simply believe we can do better than we have. It seems that most who I talk to are happy to stay the little town below the Radar.You have to have control growth or you soon will die.

I moved from a small town where the local government did not address the need to grow and the town dwindle away to nothing while other towns near by grew to meet the needs of it's people.[/font][/font]

Don't be afraid of growth.

[stewarthaas]

Thank god they dont want growth. Atleast they maintain there town's true culture. The town I am from in CT didn't reject growth and with all the big box stores from Walgreens to Walmart coming in has led to many more sub divisions and housing, condos, ect and the roads can't handle nearly any of it. Plus its a historic sea town and thats all being taken away, especially with the business being taken away from all the original mom and pop shops.

I am afraid of growth and I am considering moving away from it for that reason, it gets out of hand. Once you bring one, ya bring em all.

[longnecker]

Seaford took a big economic hit a few years ago when DuPont closed the nylon plant. That was the biggest employer in the whole area . Downtown died when they moved the post office to the outskirts of town. Have you ever been to the great athletic fields they have over behind/near the police station? Seaford Parks and Rec Dept really offers a lot.
There is a Walmart and Food Lion,a modern hospital with plenty of accompaning medical and dental offices.
Why don't YOU contact Target and tell them what a great spot it would be for them?

[BILL BUCK]

Recently, I have talked with Danny Short and it looks as if the planners are looking to grow in away that offers good opportunity to everyone. Anyone who favors to keep a community locked up in the 50's will cause the community to turn into a ghost town. Look,"You build communities by basically stimulating local people to actually believe that this is their town and that they can actually do something with it and it's about getting that type of buy-in, it's about getting that type of commitment and belief and that, I think, is the greatest challenge here in the Seaford area," None of us would want our town to die because it does not have the tax revenues to support it’s needs. Nor do we as individuals want to be taxed to keep our town alive beyond normal taxation. No! “we do not just want to grow to grow. Every growth plan needs commitments, good ideas and proper planning.” To bring in businesses that are clean and offer good jobs and benefits to our community is not a bad dream or idea.

I believe it would be nice to be able to shop right here in Seaford or go to a theater event, or to have a good selection of food stores. Wal-Mart's and Food Lion is ok, but I prefer Giants or a store of it’ s equal. How about a store such as Best Buy or some other store which would be good for our community and give jobs to our residents. Industry that is clean to our community and offers good jobs and benefits will keep our young people in the area and this strengthens the economical foundation of our town and community.

I understand those who do not relish the idea of high traffic,crowds and crime. I understand full well this type of community living outside a big city. My point is this, you can grow and have a wonderful community to live without forsaking the community and it’s people. Crime is nothing new in this area. We read about it everyday. Traffic,crime and crowds can be controlled. Growth and be controlled. But to never want to grow is the assurance you town will disappear in time.

[Pine to Vine]

I'm hoping the latest census results will spur the politicos and business leaders of Seaford to action. Seaford, indeed all of western Sussex with the exception of Delmar, pretty much stood still in population growth while Georgetown, Milford, Millsboro etc. had excellent growth. In some ways, the area should feel good because it did at least hold its own in the face of what happened with DuPont followed by Koch's significant downsizing. But let's say you're looking to bring in a store or cinema which offers jobs and services to a local community. Would you choose an area that is growing at 10 - 20% or one that is sitting still?

That said, it's time to get on the ball. The recent announcement by Purdue to move 100 or so good paying jobs there is good news. But when I walk around the town, it saddens me. The central core - between Market and the tracks bounded by Stein Highway to the river is decaying. The once proud school system seems to sink lower each year in state rankings. The pool no longer opens for the summer. And I agree, the old shopping center is an eyesore. For these reasons, I can tell you if I was taking one of the Purdue jobs, I'd probably work in Seaford but commute from somewhere else.

[RehobothBeachDela_where]

Originally Posted by longnecker

Why don't YOU contact Target and tell them what a great spot it would be for them?

If they have a WalMart already that should be enough, nobody wants to compete with WalMart anyway, it can't be done!