OPPOSE opening of Creek Road north of Newark to motor vehicle traffic

The Honorable Shawn Garvin
Secretary, DNREC (Dover?)
(physical mailing address unknown)

Greetings, Mr Garvin,

It has come to our attention that a petition is circulating to, among other things, shore up and re-open Creek Rd north of Newark to vehicular traffic on a limited basis.

In response, and in opposition to this petition:

• We oppose the re-opening of the road into the White Clay Creek. We feel that any and all vehicular traffic will have a detrimental impact on the existing infrastructure, and the nearby wildlife.
• As cyclists and walkers/hikers, as well as concerned environmentalists, we will support any decision by DNREC to designate Creek Road and/or Thompson Station Road as permanent trails, excluding any and all vehicular traffic.
• We absolutely oppose re-opening, and any vehicular use of the dirt section of Creek Road between Wedgewood Rd and Hopkins Rd. This area should remain closed to any and all traffic that is not human powered, either by bicycle or walking/hiking.

Let this be for the record that, as hikers and bicyclists who endorse minimal use of motor vehicles, we vehemently oppose any notion at all of vehicular traffic through the White Clay Creek Watershed and Valley. We additionally object to spending multiple millions -- possibly $6M or more dollars -- to complete such a project. Not only will this serve a very small minority of users on a limited basis, it further cements the fact that portions of Newark are shown favoritism, while other nearby areas suffer disenfranchisement. The road will also be subject to continued erosion and will eventually suffer the same fate it is currently undergoing -- falling into the river. What remains is doing just fine now, with its remaining ROW serving the purpose of a walking and biking trail. If provisions must be made for the elderly and/or disabled, the State should consider EV rentals (i.e. tractor, golf cart, or other) as the only option.

As you may well know, the entire region SE of Newark lost their last and only hope -- forever -- of a regional park on the site of the former Our Lady of Grace property as a result of blatant Govt corruption on the part of NCC AND the State of DE -- including DNREC, who could have done so much more to protect this living, carbon-sequestering, natural environment. Those forested and wetlands areas, as well as the open space, had been home to many species of birds and wildlife, some of them endangered. Even if not endangered, some species will suffer lessened population as they lose precious habitat areas. In the current environment we face, with the ever-rising threat of over development, loss of biodiversity, and climate change, every species of wildlife is worthy of our consideration and protection.

We chronicled and have presented factual evidence where this land should have been saved from development on our page, and we invite anyone to dispute anything found in our history of what occurred over the 2013-2018 time frame. But given what this region is suffering right now, and the regional park facility forever denied to it (traded instead for lost home values and zero recreational opportunities within walking/biking distance), we cannot endorse any of these efforts and will move to fight in opposition to them if necessary.

It is noteworthy to say that the corrupt legislators and govt officials that allowed this horrible travesty in Ogletown are in no way represented by the results of the mid-term election results. Low budget/little known opposition, Low voter turnout, gerrymandering, and national political scare tactics virtually assured their re-election. The system allows for disenfranchisement of certain neighborhoods, and we have seen firsthand how Legislators favor those living in the more affluent sections of their Districts.

In closing, WE will not forget what they have done to us, nor will most in the region surrounding the Orphanage Property-Rt.4 corridor. And we will continue to object to disenfranchisement and wasteful spending of Government monies where we see fit.

Respectfully yours,

Angela Connolly
Pedestrian, Bicycling, and Land Conservation Advocate
My3dogs1975@comcast.net
(302) 545-2797

Frank Warnock
Pedestrian, Bicycling, and Land Conservation Advocate
frank@1stbikes.org
(302) 420-2198


CC: Senator Jack Walsh, Rep. David Bentz, Jim Ireland (Trailspinners), Arabella Bianco, Charles Salkin (DNREC), Leslie Reese, David Bartoo (DNREC), Charles Salkin (DNREC), Matthew Chesser (DNREC), Mary Clare Matsumoto (WCBC), David McCorquodale (Green Party, DE), Rep. John Kowalko, Rep. Paul Baumbach, Linda Stapleford, Senator David Sokola, Bernard August (Green Party, DE), Tyler Capana (Preservation DE), J.W. Haupt (White Clay Bicycle Club), Wilson, Xerxes (WNJ).