Mayor & Council

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC WILL BE PERMITTED TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS MEETING by teleconference by calling 312-626-6799 and entering Meeting ID number: 838 7792 6139 Passcode: 361083 or by visiting Join Zoom Meeting at: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83877926139?pwd=Hrf0SEY43RzBzDP1B50MTOPjUqebMX.1 Council Meeting Council Chamber, Smyrna Town Hall 27 S. Market Street Plaza, Smyrna, Delaware July 7, 2025 – 7:00 PM Agenda 1. 7:00 PM – Call to order Council Chambers was not on video and muted when the meeting started. 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Roll Call Conducted at 6:58 PM. Present during the roll call were Mayor Gott, Councilman Johnson, Councilman Olson, Councilman Pope, and Vice Mayor Dr. Upshur. Not present during roll call were Councilman Drew and Councilman Miles. Councilman Miles joined the meeting during the motioning of item #5. 4. Additions/deletions to the published agenda Council Secretary, Councilman Pope asked if there were any additions or deletions. There were none. Mayor Gott stated that the agenda stood as it was. No motions were made. 5. Consent agenda a. Council meeting minutes of 6/16/2025 b. Executive Session minutes of 6/16/2025 Vice Mayor Dr. Upshur motioned to approve the consent agenda. Councilman Johnson seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion passed. 6. Non-agenda items a. Mayor and Council Members  Mayor Gott – thanked everyone for being at the meeting. Thanked and talked about the July 4th event. Talked about the DEMEC dinner invitation Council members should have received. Vice Mayor Dr. Upshur – talked about Juneteenth and thanked the staff, participants, and local officials who were there. She talked about Just Served and read a letter that was sent to Mayor Gott; Smyrna is being recognized as a Just Serve City, a testament to volunteerism and community engagement. She then read a proclamation as a response to Just Serve’s recognition. She thanked Mr. Beanie, (an attendee), for a gift. She thanked Mayor Gott for her continued efforts to have them come together for events. Council Secretary, Councilman Pope – thanked staff for their amazing job for July 4th. Congratulated Torrie James for becoming Town Manager and Captain Donner for becoming interim Town Manager and their amazing job. He talked about Harvest Outreach People Project, which is a non-profit that does fruit and vegetable giveaways on a monthly basis. The announcement has been circulating in the e-newsletter, Town Tidbits. Council Treasurer, Councilman Johnson – thanked staff and mentioned that June was a busy month. He saw the electric crew at 6 AM on a Saturday morning working across from McDonalds to restore power. Councilman Miles – he spoke about July 4th. Councilman Olson – did not have anything to discuss. b. Police Chief Cpt. Donner – talked about his manager’s report which included a formal news release about a serious case they handled, warrants, and such. He talked about July 4th and how Public Works staff were accommodating for police needs. There was one incident, but the schools were cleared out within 40 minutes of the ending of the fireworks. He followed up with their continued hiring process for both dispatch and officers. c. Town Manager Torrie James – talked about the 2026 budget meetings and hoping to have it drafted for Council by November. He talked about the 2023 audit and that the State was a little bit behind. He brought up House Bill 62, regarding utility shut offs and some of the minor changes that the Town will need to adopt to keep within State law. He brought up the notification system and the continuation of sending out messages via email, text, and calls. Mayor Gott – talked about the transition Torrie James had in the Police Dept. and now fully as Town Manager. She also talked about the Police Dept. being fortunate to have Cpt. Donner. She then asked Danielle if a picture with all of them could be added to the next agenda. 7. Old business, including discussion and possible action on the following items:  a. Commerce Street TAP Streetscape Project Final Report Jeremy Rothwell, Town Planner, presented and explained what the TAP Streetscape Project was about. The Town applied for the Transportation Alternatives Program, (TAP), grant back in 2022 for streetscaping along Commerce St. Set up through the Federal Highway Transportation bill and DelDOT administers the program on behalf of the State. This is a 3-tiered program: concept, design, and construction. The Town is currently at the concept stage, which is 100% funded by DelDOT. He talked about TAP being used for portions of S. Main St and the Opera House parking lot. Kelly Valencik, Wallace-Montgomery, introduced herself. She is a consultant and is helping with this project. She talked about the public workshops that have been held and the traffic counts done. Darren O’Neill, Wallace-Montgomery, introduced himself. He is also a consultant and summarized what has been talked about. He talked about the timeline of the current project and the next steps. Nicole Wiley talked about the findings from the public workshop meetings and the ideas on the short and long term implementation pieces. Some Commerce St. public workshop mentions were location of parking, walking safer at night, and safer crosswalks. She talked about what could happen in the next 1-5 years: general maintenance, crosswalk and curb paintings, etc. Some longer term items are bulb-out pedestrian crossings, elimination of overhead utilities, planting of trees, (no berries), etc. Darren explained what a bulb-out pedestrian crossing is and how it is more ADA accessible. He wrapped up by discussing what could happen in the short term; maintenance, more trash cans, and what the Town wants to really handle next. Jeremy talked expanded on the short term and long term process. He talked about the vehicular stops for Citizen Hose Fire Company and the process that’s going through; final stages with DelDOT and should be seen at the end of the year. He continued with the stages of this project; S. Main St. being the most recent. That project replaced old pipes and underground infrastructure, redone sidewalks, curbing, streetlamps, and so forth. N. Main St. will be handled similarly. Councilman Pope asked two questions. The target area seems to be up near Smyrna-Clayton Blvd. Jeremy said this plan covered everything from E-Commerce St, by Willis’ all the way to the intersection of Smyrna-Clayton Blvd; about seven blocks. $1-1.7 million is not covering seven blocks. However, the concept plan does. Councilman Pope asked about putting utilities underground and if that would be a town decision. Jeremy said it would be and talked about it. Mayor Gott asked if they have to choose one over the other; like Main St. vs. Commerce St. Jeremy said no. When this was applied for in 2022, S. Main St. was just finishing and the design phase for N. Main St. was in the works. They hope to apply for construction funding for N. Main St.  Darren talked about the different ways the project could go. Some places they’ve done the plants and then recent the TAP grant which made them have to hold off on the projects to make sure all requirements were followed. Mayor Gott asked about the timeline and said it seems like a long time; a five to seven years fruition, especially when other projects are going on. Jeremy and Darren explained the TAP process and the different phases that can occurring during that time. Councilman Johnson said that as passed Chief of the Fire House, don’t place trees on the westbound lane. They have issues with cars coming and the fire apparatuses. Jeremy said that those trees are not street trees. Councilman Miles followed up on the fire trucks and asked about the extension of the curbs. Jeremy talked about rolled curbs vs. raised curbs. Mayor Gott followed up, asking if the fire department would have a say in this project. Jeremy said yes. Darren talked about the continuation of public workshops if this project moved forward. Mayor Gott asked about parking. Jeremy said it’ll have minimal impact. The extending of the curb will allow someone to see a car coming down the street. 8. New business, including discussion and possible action on the following items: a. Appointment of Hadassah Pierre-Louis, Smyrna High School, to the Planning Commission as a non-voting student member * 9. Presentation and public comments (3 minutes) Pia Robinson – she congratulated Torrie James and Cpt. Donner. She mentioned that she lives in Hickory Hollow and wanted to let Cpt. Donner know that the police are seen and she appreciates it. 10. Adjournment Councilman Johnson motioned to adjourn. Vice Mayor Dr. Upshur seconded. All were in favor. The meeting adjourned at 7:48 PM. Posted 6/30/2025 at 4:30 PM (#1) Posted 7/3/2025 at 4:00 PM (#2) * item removed due to schedule conflict NOTE: This agenda, as listed, may not be considered in sequence. This agenda is subject to change to include additional items, including Executive Sessions, and/or deletion of items, including Executive Sessions that arise at time of meeting.