ANNUAL MEETING TO BE HELD AT NEW LOCATION

ON SATURDAY, MAY 4, 2024; 9:30AM

Solutions Property Management has rented space at the Ocean View Church of Christ at 55 West Ave, Ocean View for our upcoming meeting. This is essentially across the street from Ocean View Presbyterian which we have used for many years, but has a far larger parking lot. Click HERE for further information.

The primary purpose for this meeting is for the community to approve the Board-recommended Annual Assessment, which is proposed to be set at $3200 per developed residential property; this includes contributions of $550 to the Capital Account, and $400 to the Beach Account.

Sussex County Assessment Notices

Sussex County hired contractors in the past few years to update their records of improvements placed on various properties. A community member alerts us that they just received their new assessment notice, but it had significant errors (number of rooms wrong, square footage about 50% higher than actual, incorrect heating system). Property owners should check their notices when they arrive.

SPRING 2024 LANDSCAPING SURVEY

On March 31, 2024, MBA emailed a Landscaping Survey to the Primary Property Owner for each property. Click HERE for further information.

2024-25 TRASH SCHEDULE

Click HERE for a copy of the 2024-25 Trash and Recycling pickup schedule. This schedule includes Yard Waste pickup every other Wednesday through October. Yard Waste for this pickup must be properly prepared: either put such waste in paper bags or tied with cotton string into bundles no more than 4’ long.

The separate Annual Bulk Household Waste pickup will be held on Saturday, May 11; see the reverse side of THIS FLYER for details on what may or may not be put out for this pickup.

The Bulk Yard Waste pickup will be held the week of May 13; you may put out piles of brush or branches of any length, but no more than 6” in diameter.

Please wait until 2 weeks before the pickup to put out your bulk debris; any earlier and your debris will interfere with MBA contractors trying to get our community property ready for the season.

2024 Happy Hours

The MBA Social Committee is planning several events for the upcoming year. Community members have volunteered to host Happy Hours most months this summer. If you are interested in hosting such an event in July, please contact Social Chair Kate Mounteer via “social@middlesexbeach.org”.

65 Summers of Middlesex

Also being planned is a celebration of the upcoming 65 Summers of Middlesex. Modeled in some fashion after the wildly successful 2009 celebration of 50 Summers of Middlesex and the 2014 celebration of 55 Summers of Middlesex held on our beach, the summer will wrap up with a celebration over Labor Day weekend. Stay tuned for further information on this and potential 65 summers swag.

Updates on Drainage

Internal Drainage update:

MBA contracted with Harry Caswell to blow debris out of all our driveway culverts and other underground piping. They worked from Monday, March 11 thru Friday, March 22. Significant standing water at the west ends of most ditches prevent the last stretches from being jetted at this time, but these areas will be addressed later this year.

External Drainage update:

DNREC has completed the second survey of the ditching and drainage areas along Kent Ave. They are awaiting the data from that survey to determine the best way to drain the most water out into the Assawoman Bay. Paul and Margie joined a round-table group of representatives from South Bethany, Bayside Tennis Club, Sea Colony, and MBA for an informal conversation about drainage, water, and how our communities are impacted.

South Bethany is working on plans to mitigate the flooding that occurs in Cat Hill. (MBA’s ditches along Evergreen, Addy and Bridge, in addition to the ditches adjacent the Tennis Club including one parallel to MBA’s Pine Path, also drain through Cat Hill.) This water is supposed to drain into the Assawoman Canal through the marsh which is owned by Sea Colony. Sea Colony says there was a ditch that provided this drainage and remnants of it can still be seen, but over the years this ditch has filled in with debris and no longer works the way it is supposed to. Sea Colony has tried several times to get permits to clear it out without success.

Bayside Tennis is very aware there is no outlet for their ditch water and the ditch is filled with debris. About 7 years ago, DNREC used prisoners to clear it out, but don’t think they’ll get support for doing that now. They can see where the outlet is supposed to be, but it isn’t there.

Paul and Margie told them about the work MBA has been doing with Tyler Brown at DNREC the past three or four years; and about the ditch project in MBA begun two years ago which continues this year with cleaning the ditches and clearing culverts of debris.

Currently there is a dredging project actively cleaning the Assawoman Canal adjacent Bahamas Beach Cottages and Sea Colony. There is a new kayak launching park being planned by the State Parks in the same area across the canal from Sea Colony’s kayak launching area. Everyone at the table was hopeful that this project would speed along the work to fix the drainage from Kent Ave.

Everyone also agreed that we should continue to meet and share information. There was discussion of including Bahamas Beach Cottages, but it was agreed that their needs are a little different and it is premature to bring them in now. (MBA’s Errett, Bayberry and Short Roads drain into the ditches along the west/north side of Kent Ave towards Bahamas Beach Cottages.)

DelDoT Lane closures

Official DelDoT announcement: Muddy Neck Road and Double Bridges Road Paving & Rehab Ocean View – The Delaware Department of Transportation announces there will be lane closures on Muddy Neck Road from Garfield Parkway to Atlantic Ave and Double Bridges Road from Bayard Road to Muddy Neck Road until May 1st. Pedestrian connections will be completed first, followed milling and paving operations. Motorists are reminded to slow down in work zones and to expect minor delays while in the area. For more information, visit DelDOT’s website at www.deldot.gov.

Webmaster’s interpretation: Muddy Neck Road technically does not actually reach Garfield Parkway (DE-26 in Bethany) or Atlantic Ave (DE-26 in Ocean View). The portion in/adjacent to Bethany-including just west of Middlesex Beach-is known as Kent Ave; the portion in Ocean View is known as West Ave. The only information I can find on the DelDoT website only mentions the Double Bridges Road portion of the project, and shows wide sidewalks (or “multi-use trails”) along this stretch.

Community Fencing

MBA engaged Eastern Shore Porch and Patio to replace sections of the Coastal Highway fencing, in addition to the decaying section at the west end of Bridge Rd. Click HERE for details on the project, and a discussion of future fence and gate work.

Dune Grass Planting

Dune Grass PlantingEmployees of Mike Jandzen’s Aquatic Marine filling in bare spots on our dunes with Cape American Dune Grass in early February, 2024.Dune Grass Planting

2023-24 BOARD MEETING SCHEDULE

MBA Board meetings are usually held in the meeting room of the Bethany West Community Center, 602 Poplar Court, Bethany Beach, at 9:30 AM on the third Saturday of each month.

In general, the Board will meet in person or via a hybrid meeting. The community may participate via ZOOM. Click HERE for further information.

For further information regarding MBA meetings or events, please contact the Board of Directors.

MBA Organizational Chart | MBA Terms and Conditions of Website Use

Some outside links of interest