A potpourri of miscellaneous news SCRIBBLED IN A REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK

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CONTRACT UP FOR A VOTE: Brandywine Board of Education will vote on Sept. 9 to ratify amendments to the employment contract with the Brandywine Education Association, its teachers' union, covering what district spokesperson Wendy Lapham described as "economic issues and ... a limited number of other issues." She did not specify what those other issues are and declined a Delaforum request for information about terms of the agreement.. "The modified contract itself will not be available until after it has been ratified by the board and signed by both parties," she said. She said the union ratified the amendments on Aug. 27. They modify a three-year pact that was approved at the start of the 2001-02 academic year.

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If modern medicine is responsible for such great advances to prolong life, why do doctors insist on being paid before you leave their offices?

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DelDOT STUDYING REFLECTORS: There are several locations at which various types of in-ground highway reflectors are being tested, but Delaware Department of Transportation spokesman Michael Williams said recent mild winters with very little snow have not allowed for gathering conclusive data about their durability. Delawareans, he said, have become accustomed to down-to-the-pavement snow plowing. "As long as we run the plow blades flat to pavement it will always be a conflict," he said. The reflectors, which define highway lanes have been used for several years in other jurisdictions, and significantly increase visibility at night and during inclement weather other than snowstorms.

In response to another safety-related inquiry from Delaforum, Mike Angelo, an assistant director in the transportation solutions division, said DelDOT prefers the steel guardrails it uses to flexible mesh highway barriers. A recent article posted in the Pulse section related that South Carolina officials credit use of the latter on its Interstate highways with saving 100 lives. Angelo said that the rope barrier, similar to arrester barriers on aircraft carriers, looses its tension and effectiveness after it has been hit. Steel, on the other hand, continues to perform well after impact, he said. Its effectiveness also is not dependent on height of the barrier and offers less stringent requirements for proper installation.

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HOW DO THEY DO THAT?: The Arden Club kept its streak alive by once again bested Jupiter Pluvius. Its 95th annual fair was held on Aug. 31 in an oasis of brilliant sunshine in the midst of a rainy holiday weekend. Not until late afternoon did threatening clouds appear and drizzle did not begin until 6:02 p.m., two minutes after the official close of the all-day event. As far as anyone now involved knows, the end-of-summer event has only had to defer to its rain date once -- in the early 1970s.  ":It probably rained some other times before that, but we're not sure," spokesman Aaron Hamburger said. "We all agree, though, that we certainly lucked out this time."

What's more, he said, this year's crowd, estimated at 8,200 people came close to the 1999 record of 8,700 and early tabulations showed the likelihood that proceeds, which benefit year-around club activities, set a new record. Most of the crafts and antiques exhibitors reported brisk sales and food vendors began running short by the end of the day, he added. "We drank more beer this year than ever," he said. The fair, however, ended on a poignant note. The usual Sunday morning cleanup was completed, in the rain, by noon. Then many of the volunteers attended a community memorial service for Dan Conner, who grew up in Arden and moved back nine years ago during his 21-year battle with cancer. He died on Aug. 22 at age 43.

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MONORAIL STUDY: Consultants studying the feasibility of an automated guideway transit system in northern New Castle County will focus on a route between Glasgow and the Blue Ball area in southern Brandywine Hundred by way of Bear, the Christiana Mall and hospital complex, the airport and downtown Wilmington. Randy Richardson, of Lea & Elliott, said that route provides the best combination of population and employer locations. Representative David Ennis, who has been advocating a route linking Fox Point with the Fairplay commuter station at Delaware Park, said he agrees with the choice as as a basic starting point.

Comparing existing and planned systems in North America, Alan Brick-Turin told a Wilmington Area Planning Council steering committee meeting on Aug. 28 that capital costs range between $52 million a mile in Vancouver, B.C. -- which has the only system comparable in length to what is being studied here -- to $111 million a mile in Jacksonville, Fla. By way of comparison, Delaware Department of Transportation has pegged the cost of building the Route 1 freeway at between $38 million and $40 million. Rider surveys have found that a large percentage of those who use light-rail or 'people mover' systems had seldom used mass transit before, he said.

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The attorney general's office has ruled that the Joint School Boards of New Castle County is a public body and ordered it to open its meetings to the public.

Acting on a Freedom of Information Act complaint filed by Delaforum in January, 2001, Michael Tupman, deputy attorney general, declared that Deborah Rodenhouser, administrative assistant in the Christina School District, was wrong when she denied access to information concerning what Wilmington Mayor James Baker and Theodore Blunt, City Council president, had to say about the city's then pending position on compliance with the Neighborhood Schools Act. Although that point has long since been rendered moot, Tupman ordered participating school boards to post notices in advance of future meetings and keep records about what transpires at them.

The Joint School Boards is an ad-hoc organization of school board members and administrators from all districts in New Castle County which meets for breakfast once a month. Rodenhouser maintained that it was not required to do so in public view, but Tupman ruled that Ddlaforum was correct on all six points raised in objection to that. Specifically, he wrote, the meetings involve public officials engaged in the public's business and doing so at public expense. At one point in his 14-page opinion, dated Aug. 19, he refers to a general practice of school officials meeting with state legislators to discuss issues issues and pending legislation of interest to them and indicated that that cannot be done legally behind closed doors.

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COPING WITH GROWTH: Wilmington Area Planning Council recommends that the Centreville area seek some form of official recognition as an "unique area" in order to manage future growth. Unless modified, the current county zoning process will, at best, result in development of about half the 4,588 acres of open space around the Kennett Pike village, according to a recently released final report of a study by land-use and transportation consultants. That would add between 1,200 and 1,800 "dwelling units" to the 1,000 now in the 14-square-mile area between Greenville and the Pennsylvania state line. The report largely reflects much of the sentiment Centrevillans expressed during information-gathering sessions last year.

New Castle County "decision makers" should be pressed to establish definite borders for Centreville itself and enact 'defined-village' ordinances regulating development. One approach would be to permit trading commitments to preserve open space in the countryside in return for more concentrated development within the village. Otherwise, the report warns, it will "change in a way which diminishes its historic character." Like other unincorporated areas, Centreville "is faced with the complex challenge of trying to balance the charm of the past with the forces of modern development and transportation," the report declares. It goes on to say, however, that "the costs and complexities of incorporation currently outweigh the benefits."

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A concerted effort is being made to collect past-due fees for use of Brandywine School District facilities, facilities director Jeff Edmison told the school board.

He said $2,500 has come in during the past 10 days and he believes about $5,000 is en route. Unpaid from the fiscal year ended June 30 was $21,682 out of total charges of $108,013. In addition, $3,800 is owed from previous years with about $1,400 representing possible overcharges. With a new state law giving districts greater say over what to charge outside groups using their buildings, Brandywine is preparing a revision of its policy and fee schedule, which Edmison said will go before the board for approval in September. Meanwhile, he rejected the idea of using a collection agency to go after the unpaid bills. That, he said, would not "necessarily generate a whole lot of good will [toward] the district."

In another matter at its Aug. 22 meeting, the board was told that district schools during the past year saw declines in the number of serious disciplinary offenses and suspensions, and an increase in average attendance, reversing the trends of previous years. However, there continued to be an increase in the number of expulsions. That data was presented on charts in a printed annual report, which seemed to show about 3,600 suspensions, down from 4,400; 120 serious offenses, down from 175; and attendance averaging 93.9%, up from 93.4%. There were 21 expulsions, up from 19. For the first time schools have set specific goals for the coming year, which superintendent Bruce Harter said will be measured in next year's report.

The board approved the previously reported use of modular classrooms at Concord High while building renovations are made after school hours.

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REDEVELOPMENT INCENTIVE: A group convened by County Councilman Robert Weiner is seeking state legislation that would authorize county government to sell tax-free bonds to jump start economic redevelopment in selected areas and to finance related infrastructure improvements to support it. A bill which would enable Wilmington and other municipalities to do that was passed late in the session by the House of Representatives. Joseph DiPinto, its sponsor, said Senate action is possible during a special session expected in late September or October. Robert Valihura said he would introduce the county measure when the General Assembly returns for its regular session in January.

Delaware is one of only two states that do not use what is known as tax-increment financing, according to David Wilk, a consultant for Wilmington Renaissance Corp. It is so called because proceeds from an additional tax on the increased value of a property so aided would be used to retire the bond debt. That is similar to industrial revenue financing, which was popular in the 1980s. Bond proceeds could be used to acquire the land and give or sell it cheaply to a developer as an incentive for redevelopment. Wilmington Renaissance, which is developing the Ships Tavern district in the city, sought the legislation. Weiner said it would be a boon for Claymont and other unincorporated areas looking for redevelopment projects.