Milford Police Department

The Milford Police are asking the public’s help with any information on an Attempted Robbery that occurred on 5/17/12 at approx. 0630 am in the 200 block of North St. Investigation revealed that the victim was outside of his residence when he was approached by two black males. One of the black males pulled out a handgun and demanded money from the victim. When the victim was unable to provide them with any money the two fled on foot without obtaining anything. The victim was not injured.

One black male is described as being 6’00, 160-170 lbs with short hair and dark complexion wearing tan pants. The other black male is described as being 5’07, 140 lbs with a dark complexion wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and was the one armed with the handgun. Both subjects appeared to be in their late teens to early 20’s. They may have also been in the company of a light skinned female that was not directly involved in the attempted robbery but was seen with them near the area. Anyone with information is asked to contact Det. Kathy Getek or Det. Dwight Young at the Milford Police Department at 302-422-8081 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333 or www.tipsubmit.com.

The Bayhealth Milford Memorial Auxiliary will sponsor the 55th Annual Milford Memorial Hospital Fair on Saturday, May 19 from 10 am to 4pm on the grounds of the Milford Middle School.

The entire family will be able to enjoy a Civil War re-enactment, the 4th Annual Tricycle Race, children’s games, stock car track, strolling entertainer, rides and inflatables, a petting zoo, great food, crafts, and vendors’ booths, as well as a full schedule of entertainment throughout the day that includes the Milford’s Got Talent Show. There will be also be a special tent offering free health screenings and the Planetree Carnival showcasing Bayhealth’s Planetree model of patient-centered care.

“The main goal for the fair is to raise money for Milford Memorial and people know that when they attend the Hospital Fair that all of the money is going to help their community hospital,” stated Bayhealth Public Relations Specialist Kim Wilkins. “It is always such a great event with so much community involvement.”

Each year, the Milford Memorial Hospital Auxiliary sponsors the Fair to raise money to fund vital programs and purchase lifesaving equipment for Milford Memorial Hospital. Net proceeds from last year’s Fair were used to purchase a new dialysis machine for the Dialysis Department.

The hospital fair was started in1958 by Mrs. Raymond (Edith) Masten and Mrs. Leslie (Mardy) Dobson in the small field located in the area behind (north side) the hospital that faced along Clarke Ave. It was a very localized fundraising effort to purchase some special equipment for the hospital that was not available in the normal budget. The original location is now the site of the latest entrance wing of the hospital and the medical-arts offices that were later donated by the estate of Wilson S. Vinyard in 1973.

The kick-off to the 55th Annual Milford Memorial Hospital Fair will be a pulled pork or chicken dinner plus flower and book sales on Friday evening May 18 from 5:30 pm to 7pm.  Tickets can be purchased by contacting George Caccamise at (302) 422-6815.
The Hospital Fair Raffle give participants the chance to choose from three great prizes: A two night stay for two at the Atlantic Sands Hotel in Rehoboth, dinner for two at Back Porch Cafe, and massages for two at Bad Hair Day; an original 11 x 14 framed photo “Villa Cimbrone in Ravello, Italy” from photographer Bob Connelly and dinner for two at Bonz Restaurant; or dinner for two from five local restaurants – Abbott’s Grill, Bethany Blues, The Buttery, Georgia House and Restaurant 55.  Raffle tickets will be $2 each or six tickets for $10 and may be purchased in the Reflections Gift Shop at Milford Memorial, Retail Shop at Kent General, EcoChic Boutique and Dolce in downtown Milford or by calling (302) 233-8448. The winning tickets will be drawn at the end of the Fair.

Continuing in the tradition of raising money to fund vital programs and purchase lifesaving equipment for Bayhealth Milford Memorial, the Milford Memorial Hospital Auxiliary will donate this year’s net proceeds to be used to purchase equipment for the surgical units. For questions about the fair please call Kim Wilkins at (302) 430-5719.

Fernando Guajardo, owner of Best Cleaners and Clothes 2 You, has relocated his downtown wet cleaners business to The Plaza at Milford shopping center, opening the doors of the new location at 664 N. Dupont Boulevard. A native from Milford, graduating Milford Senior High School in 1991, Fernando has opened four wet cleaner facilities in Southern Delaware . What separates his facilities across the state is not only his focus on customer service but also the eco-friendly cleaning method all of his stores use to clean clothing, carpets, draperies and upholstery.

Best Cleaners and the other 3 locations host the only eco-friendly clothes cleaning business in the state of Delaware. Unlike the traditional method of dry cleaning that uses harmful chemicals, Best Cleaners offers wet cleaning services in all of their locations. Wet cleaning uses water and non-toxic, biodegradable detergents to clean sensitive fabrics such as wool, silk, linen or rayon. The cleaning process uses computer controlled washers and dryers, and occasionally hand-washing, to wash and dry garments before finishing with ironing or steam pressing.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), wet cleaning is the safest alternative to dry cleaning as it does not use hazardous chemicals, generate hazardous waste or create air pollution. It also reduces the potential for water and soil contamination.
“The by-product of traditional cleaners are hazardous and have been recognized as carcinogenic by the EPA,” commented owner Fernando Guajardo. “We provide a better, safer product from start to finish.”

Best Cleaners has seen many of their downtown customers relocate to The Plaza at Milford shopping center with them. Blythe Eggleston, a committed customer and advocate of the eco-friendly wet cleaning system, is excited to see the expansion of Fernando’s Milford location.

“When I found out they were moving I just had to move along with them,” commented Ms. Eggleston. “They do a great job and I use them whether I am home in Milford on vacation down in Rehoboth Beach.”

Fernando’s commitment to professionalism and customer service has allowed the Milford native to continue his success in his industry. With four locations in Milford, Bethany, Rehoboth Beach and Millsboro, he looks forward to providing his wet cleaning services wherever they are needed.

Best Cleaners offers full wet cleaning services, alterations, an on-site tailor in Milford, shoe repair, tuxedo rentals, carpet cleaning and house cleaning services. Located in the Plaza at Milford shopping center at 664 N. Dupont Boulevard, Best Cleaners is open Monday through Friday 8am-6pm and Saturday 9am-4pm. For more information about Best Cleaners and their eco-friendly wet cleaning system visit www.clothes2you.com or call them directly at 302-424-2250.

Signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday to reduce electric rates in nine municipalities including Milford. Source: Office of Governor Jack Markell

On Wednesday, May 9 Gov. Jack Markell joined Patrick McCullar, President and CEO of the Delaware Municipal Electric Corporation (DEMEC), and the Mayors or town officials of Milford, Newark, New Castle, Middletown, Clayton, Smyrna, Dover, Lewes and Seaford to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that highlighted their “shared commitment toward making municipal energy rates more competitive in order to spur job creation, while preserving the core functions and services provided to residents and businesses in the municipal service territories.”

Under the Memorandum of Understanding, the nine DEMEC municipalities, including Milford, agreed to lower retail electric rates by at least 10% in the next three years, beginning in 2012. Each city also agreed to authorize an “economic development rate” for the purpose of attracting new businesses and creating jobs within the DEMEC municipalities.

Each municipality has also agreed to cap the amounts of revenue transfer from their electrical utility to their general fund budget for the next five years at the Fiscal Year 2012 rate.  Under the Memorandum of Understanding, as long as the DEMEC municipalities abide by the MOU, the Governor has agreed to oppose any legislation that would allow third-party supply in the municipal electric territories.

According to Milford City Manager Richard Carmean, the signing of the MOU means stability for the City of Milford and the other DEMEC municipalities. The stability of knowing that customers will purchase electric from the City of Milford will allow the City to continue its efforts to decrease electric rates and encourage economic development.

“We already take action on all of the areas that the Memorandum of Understanding touches on,” stated Carmean. “Our transfer rates from our electric utility to the general fund have been frozen for over twelve years, we have been able to cut rates for commercial users by more than ten percent and we have developed economic incentive rates to encourage expansion of existing businesses and new businesses.”

The debate on utility rates in the city of Milford has been a contentious subject matter for years and came to a head on April 18 when Dave Stevenson, of Caesar Rodney Institute, promoted the idea to move the City’s electric under the Delaware Electric Coop (DEC) during an Economic Development Advisory Panel’s (EDAP) meeting.

At that meeting City of Milford officials voiced their reluctance to give up their autonomy of supplying electric to City of Milford customers to a third-party supplier. The stability promised under the Memorandum of Understanding by Governor Markell gives city officials a guarantee that their customer base will continue to purchase electric from the DEMEC municipalities by ruling out a take over from third-party suppliers. City Manager Richard Carmean sees this as a move to encourage economic expansion across the entire state of Delaware and a tool that may allow the City of Milford greater purchasing power for electric in the future.

“The City is committed to not raising electric rates to any level of customer,” commented Carmean. “This memorandum allows municipalities to be the captains of their own ships by ensuring stability for DEMEC municipalities.”

By Matt Short

The Delaware Dept. of Transportation (DelDOT) is in the planning stages of rehabilitating the Washington Street Bridge in downtown Milford. Located between Park Place Restaurant and the offices of Downtwn Milford Inc. and the Greater Milford Chamber of Commerce, the bridge will cause some major changes in downtown traffic patterns.

The Washington Street Bridge was constructed in May of 1933. Due to congestion, the City of Milford petitioned the United States War Department for permission to construct a second bridge across the Mispillion River. The bridge was constructed by Capt. Herman D. Johnson, taking 90 days to complete the project. The bridge was opened in January 1934 for a total cost of $9,773.

The structure is a multi-girder steel bridge, which consists of a series of parallel steel beams designed to support a road deck and resist the weight of traveling vehicles. In 2009, a routine inspection by (DelDOT), determined the bridge to be structurally deficient.

“Over the course of time, the existing beams have experienced corrosion as well as some section loss,” said Mark Mallamo, City of Milford Engineer. “Although the bridge is safe to carry traffic, the beams have reached a point in which the structure must be replaced.”

Construction is scheduled to begin on June 1 and will take about 75 days to complete. Funding for the complete reconstruction will be provided by the Federal Government and by City sources. DelDot is preparing to replace the concrete deck and the steel beam with new ones. In addition, there will be a reconstruction of the roadway and a riprap will be set in place in order to prevent scour or streambed erosion.

Detours will be set in place during the construction. Motorists approaching from the south will have to make a left turn onto S.E. Front St. followed by a right turn onto Walnut St. and then a left turn onto N.E. Front St. During the project, local access will be maintained if needed, on both sides of the bridge for residents use.

“We’re going to maintain access to the businesses in the area,” stated Mallamo.

Due to the number of residents and the length of the detour, a pedestrian detour has been proposed during the construction. Pedestrians will have to use the sidewalks on S.E. Front St, and then make a left onto Walnut St, followed by a right turn onto Park Ave. Construction is expected to be completed by Aug. 14. For more information on the rehabilitation of the Washington Street Bridge visit www.deldot.gov

from left: Zeke Gutshall, Rachel Gutshall, and State Rep. Jack Peterman.

A chance encounter led to Rachel Gutshall of Milford signing M-O-T-H-E-R (A Word that Means the World to Me) to a packed House of Representatives’ chamber recently (5/9). State Rep. Jack Peterman, R-Milford, said he heard Mrs. Gutshall sing at a function he attended and invited her to perform for his colleagues to mark the upcoming Mother’s Day holiday. Mrs. Gutshall is an elementary school teacher at Milford Christian School.

Mr. Husbands/Mrs. Pikus' AP Government and Politics Class

The Advanced Placement (AP) students at Milford Senior High School have been preparing for the AP exams since their junior year and are currently taking those tests this week to determine whether those courses will count towards college credits next year as they attend colleges across the country. Sacrifices by both teachers and students over the past several years have resulted in record breaking results in Milford as they received a 71% pass rate on the AP Government and Politics exam and a 79% pass rate on the U.S. History exam last year, exceeding averages for both statewide and national exam pass rates.

Milford Senior High School offers AP Government and Politics, English Literature, English Composition, Chemistry, Physics, Statistics and Calculus. The Advanced Placement courses are set at a higher standard than regular eleventh and twelfth grade classes and prepare students for college and life after graduation.

“The kids who take these AP courses have a better transition to college,” commented teacher Gretchen Pikus. “They are held to a higher quality standard for their work.” Mrs. Pikus took over the AP Government and Politics class from Mr. Husbands after he was promoted to administration. Mr. Husbands has worked diligently to prepare these students for the exams over the past several years.

Advanced Placement students are able to take up to 3 classes as a Junior and 5 classes as a Senior. For their reward of receiving college credits for passing the AP exams, students in these classes give up many hours each day and some times other commitments such as social freedom and playing sports.

“You have a lot to get through but not a lot of time to do it in,” commented Senior Rose McFassel. “I spend three to four additional hours each night on my AP studies but I do it because that is what I expect from myself.”

The pervasive characteristics that seem to be present among the AP students at Milford High are the drive to learn and the ability to hold themselves accountable for the level of work they put into the program. Just as college students are challenged to take responsibility for their studies, these students are learning accountability at an early age.

“I think we will be more prepared for college than our other classmates,” commented Kimber Walker. “If I do not turn in my assignments no one calls my parents, I simply receive a zero for the assignment.”

The desire for success is what drives these teenagers to put aside personal wants and focus on academic excellence. An avid athlete most of his life, Robert Volm gave up being a member of the track team this year to focus on his exams. With that cost, however, came reward as Robert Volm, found out this semester he was accepted to the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

“It is difficult to keep up with the challenging work; especially as a senior,” added Mr. Volm jokingly. “Although you have been accepted to college you must maintain that higher standard you set for yourself.”

As these students take the next step into their future they will be met with national and international competition in their diverse fields. They have made all the preparations and sacrifices necessary for success, now it will become time to put all that hard work into practice.

On Tuesday, May 18 residents of the Milford School District went to the polls and voted for two contested seat for the Milford School Board. The At-Large seat was a contested race between three candidates: Barry R. Fry, Regina Williams, and Gary Wolfe. The seat to represent Area “D” was a contested race between candidates Eugene H. Rust and Dean Johnson . At the end of the day Barry Fry and Eugene Rust came out the victors.

At-Large candidate Barry Fry won his election by a margin of 73.45% (570 out of a total of 776 votes) defeating opponents Regina Williams (159 votes) and incumbent Gary Wolfe (47 votes). Mr. Fry was an Agricultural Teacher at Milford Senior High School from  1971-2009 while also serving as F.F.A. Advisor and has over 38 years of experience with the Milford School District.

“I’m honored and very appreciative of all the help and support I had,” stated Mr. Fry. “There have been a large number of incumbents unseated across the state and I believe that indicates that people would like to see some change.”

During the campaign Mr. Fry articulated that he wants to take on the issues of Race to the Top requirements, State testing and funding in addition to finding a strong, outgoing Superintendent that can bring consistency, unity and pride to the Milford District.

“I will work on increasing community involvement and making sure we provide enough materials for teachers to do what they need to do,” commented Fry.

Area “D” candidate Eugene Rust defeated Dean Johnson by a margin of 63.74% (443 out of a total of 695 votes). Rust is a retired electrical technician with over 30 years of experience with the Milford School District.

“I honestly think the election showed that we need a change in the district,” stated Mr. Rust. “If you have ever worked in the district, which Mr. Fry and I both have, you take pride in the Milford School District. When you start to see it deteriorate, you want to fix it.”

During the campaign, Mr. Rust expressed his concern over the amount of administrative staff and teachers leaving the district and their reasons why.  During his new term, he pledges to find a solution for this and work to increase the level of community involvement and communication between the public and the district.

“The main thing is to stabilize the morale in the district,” commented Rust. “It seems that the community showed on Tuesday that they are dissatisfied with what is going on. I want to involve the community as much as possible.”

Rust and Fry will each serve 5-year terms on the Milford School Board and be sworn in on Monday, July 9 in the Board Room at the Milford Middle School at 7pm. For complete election results visit The Kent County Department of Election’s Official Tally Results at http://electionskc.delaware.gov/.

Morgan Golladay poses with her Best in Show winner, “The Partisan"

By April Abel

Mispillion Art League’s first juried art show is on display now through June 30. The show features watercolors, oil paintings, acrylics, mixed media art, handmade jewelry and sculpture.

Best in show award went to MAL member Morgan Golladay, for her painting, “The Partisan.” Jack Camarote took first place for his bird carving, and Bob Connelly’s photograph, “Parasols,” won the blue ribbon for two-dimensional artwork. Nick Serratore of Rehoboth Art League judged the show.

It has been a busy week for the arts in Sussex County. The Plein Air Coastal Delaware Competition wrapped up Saturday, with MAL member Rosemary Connelly earning an honorable mention for her painting of the Fisher-Martin House in Lewes.

Pearl Burbage, Fundraising chairperson for MAL, is offering a big thank-you to the local businesses and volunteers who helped make the recent Cinco de Mayo fundraiser successful and fun for all who attended. The event was held at the home of Rhoda Friedman, and guests were treated to gourmet food tastings from local businesses, carriage rides, and salsa dance lessons.

For more information about Mispillion Art League, visit them on the web at mispillionarts.org, or stop by the gallery Wednesday through Saturday from 10-6pm.

Bob Connelly with his photograph, “Parasols” a first-place winner in MAL’s Awakenings show