On June 9th, Mayor Purzycki responded to our community’s calls to maintain the Rodney Reservoir as a green space saying, “I have heard you and your neighbors loud and clear.”
He stated that he no longer sees residential development at the site as feasible. He is seeking a plan to provide for the safety of the site with minimal disruption to our community such that we "end up with usable greenspace."
We are excited about this turn of events! We want to ensure community involvement, so we’ve proposed a City-neighborhood working group to work together on improvements to the Rodney Reservoir greenspace.
Now, we just have to ask our state legislators to make sure the state Bond Bill money the City asked for can only be used to make the Rodney Reservoir safe for use as a greenspace. We ask EVERYONE to call their state legislators by June 23rd and ask them to write in the Bond Bill that the Rodney Reservoir funds are for greenspace improvements. Please see below for contacts and suggestions for your calls and be sure to log your calls and contacts here: https://forms.gle/s2XPE28sv9HU8QSz5
Who to call:
Sen. Elizabeth Lockman (SD 3)
elizabeth.lockman@delaware.gov
302-744-4168
Rep. Sherry Dorsey Walker (RD 3)
Sherry.DorseyWalker@delaware.gov
302-744-4351
Rep. Debra Heffernan
Chair, Capital Improvement Committee
Debra.Heffernan@delaware.gov
302-744-4351
Sen. Nicole Poore
Vice Chair, Capital Improvement Committee
Nicole.Poore@delaware.gov
302-744-4164
Ideas for your call:
“Hello, my name is [insert your name] and I am your constituent from [insert your address].
I am calling to ask [insert politician’s name] to support keeping the Rodney Reservoir safe, public, and green. The good news is that last week Mayor Purzycki let the community know he has heard us and agrees that the Rodney Reservoir should stay a public greenspace. He also told us he is no longer seeking to develop the site as housing. I am contacting [insert politician’s name] today to ask for your help in making sure the state’s Bond Bill funding for the Rodney Reservoir reflects this change. We would appreciate anything you can do to make sure the Bond Bill and any related contract language specifies that the Rodney Reservoir funds are designated for greenspace improvements, including addressing safety concerns."
Include your own words to express why this issue is important to you! For example:
I live in this neighborhood, and I love the Rodney Reservoir because:
I want to see it remain a greenspace because:
I think it’s important that the state’s funding for the Rodney Reservoir be restricted to greenspace improvements because:
Close by thanking the elected official, for example:
"Thank you for everything you do to positively impact our city and neighborhood."
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Together, we are making a difference! Let’s lock in the Mayor’s commitments. Call your state legislators today!
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