Sussex officials press state on draft 2025 spending-strategies map, cite data gaps and forward-looking concerns

County planning staff presented the draft 2025 State Spending Strategies maps to the Sussex County Council on Oct. 7 and recommended that council review the data layers that underlie the map before it is finalized. Planning presenter Mister Whitehouse told the council the maps are "a data driven exercise" and that scores and investment levels are assigned by a numerical formula: "If you are greater than 7 in your score, you get level 1."

The presentation and a sustained council discussion focused on several technical issues: whether some environmental layers duplicate others and therefore "double or triple counting" protected features; whether the maps appropriately credit recent or in-progress infrastructure such as new hospitals; and the maps' apparent emphasis on current conditions rather than "forward-looking" changes the county says affect where state investment should go. "This seems to be necessarily backward looking, not forward looking," one councilmember said while urging the county to press for the inclusion of facilities under construction.

Staff described specific data changes they had already secured: the state planning office expanded the radius around public libraries from one mile to three miles, and it added the Bayhealth 24-hour emergency facility on the north side of Route 9. The planning presenter said the Millsboro emergency medical facility under construction was not yet included in the dataset because it is not open. Council members said omitting such near-term facilities could misdirect state investment dollars: "When you stop and think about the pace of growth here...our proper share should have been closer to 40 or 45 percent," a councilmember said, arguing Sussex County may merit a larger share of state spending.

Council and staff also flagged the way the maps treat private utilities: the presenter said the state's analytics currently account for public water and sewer but not private water and sewer systems, and that private systems are driving much of level-4 growth in parts of the county. Staff said they have asked the state planning office to pursue additional data exchanges with private providers.

Staff urged council to submit technical comments by the public comment deadline, Oct. 10, and recommended the council consider targeted requests to remove duplicated environmental scoring where appropriate. Councilmembers said they would provide further direction to staff as they review the appendix and the online story map tools the state has provided.