Jane Gruenebaum, County Council Member District 3
Like many coastal residents, I believe enough is enough. The current status quo serves the interests of a few. As a Sussex County Council member, I will bring balance to the table, and I will work to change those ordinances that ignore concerns about the environment and infrastructure.
View the Sussex County Council Calendar
Upcoming Events
Upcoming JAVA with Jane
June TBD
9:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Lewes Public Library (medium meeting room)
Upcoming Interviews on Radio Rehoboth
(radiorehoboth.com)
June 3, 2026
8:30 a.m.
June 17, 2026
8:30 a.m.
What’s Happening:
I had a lot of fun celebrating National Train Day with the Lewes community. I got to drive a golden spike into the rail to commemorate the day in 1869 that the transcontinental railroad tracks were joined from east to west in Promontory Utah.
As Lewes Mayor Amy Marasco pointed out, many people may not know the significant role the steam locomotive played in Lewes’ history. Trains exported the town’s farming products while bringing tourists in to visit, building a foundation for the tourism economy that fuels Lewes today.
On Kentucky Derby day, I joined the Southern Delaware Therapeutic Riding to celebrate their great work. The riding center helps improve the physical and emotional wellbeing of children and adults living with disabilities through equine assisted services. It is a joy to see the ways in which these huge gentle creatures can help people’s lives. It was a great joy to give the horses a little pet on the nose.
Council has been very busy. We had a full-day budget workshop during which Council discussed the budget proposal presented by our Finance Director, Gina Jennings. Gina gave an excellent presentation on the budget and expense and revenue trends. As usual, it is a conservative budget with no tax increases. I did note that I thought the libraries should receive the increase they requested but that was not included in the budget.
I am writing this before Tuesday’s public hearings on four Ordinances. Each of these grew out of the work of the Land Use Reform Taskforce and each strives to address some critical issues – including changes to better incentivize investments in the County’s rental program; restrictions to minimize sprawl; new regulations to better protect open space; and new regulations to provide better protections for environmentally sensitive areas and promote interconnectivity. Another ordinance focused on protecting our forests will have a hearing in a few weeks.
