Bethany Beach council appoints two committee members and approves $50,000 match for Bethany West stormwater study

Council considered three action items: two appointments and a housekeeping vote to authorize a local match for a stormwater planning grant.

The council appointed Matt Kirks to the Board of Adjustment after the chair of that board, Mike Loftess, reported he had interviewed Kirks and recommended the appointment. Kirks was described in the meeting as a town resident and a geomatics land surveyor who serves on the stormwater and flooding committee. Councilmember Mickey Henman moved the appointment; the motion was seconded and approved on voice vote.

The council then appointed Donna Niller to the Audit Committee. Mayor and other council members noted Niller is a certified public accountant with experience in corporate accounting, financial statements and audits and maintains a longtime seasonal residence in Bethany Beach. Audit Committee chair Frank Meyers supported the appointment; the motion to appoint passed on voice vote.

Finally, Town Manager Cliff Gravier explained the council had applied for and received a $50,000 matching grant from the state (referred to in the meeting as a Denre grant) for the Bethany West flooding/drainage study and that the town needs an open purchase order to meet the $50,000 match so auditors can process the grant. "Once we meet our $50,000 match we will then be forwarding the remainder on to the state," Gravier said. A motion and second were made and the council approved the $50,000 match on voice vote; Gravier told the council the project has been billed about $15,000 to date against the $100,000 study budget.

All three actions were approved by voice vote; the meeting record did not include individual roll‑call tallies.