[{"_1":2,"_110":-5,"_111":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,86,98],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6194943,"mediaKeyId","3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5","parentId",3862993,"title","Wilmington committee backs resolution asking state to allow 2 a.m. last call for city venues","audioSeconds",648,"startMs",1522000,"endMs",2170000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5&start=1522&end=2170","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5/thumbnail_1522000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6194943/Wilmington-City/New-Castle-County/Delaware/Wilmington-committee-backs-resolution-asking-state-to-allow-2-am-last-call-for-city-venues","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6194943-e36fbf2b957ffd48a6a650decf32a6b7/orig.mp4?Expires=1771196027&Signature=fT0tmOqDmKBZQdQY5E5ZjEn7pzYPkNxmJPrJ7PEOuXOTUD9tM~zyi2xBOrvtH-QPv0I0XKVv6RPTqnT6pZk21hF9-8~R3BOqKbnr2EWaCXp60dn1JoBcFGAmolhbP73llab7T7oEF3PUMPi~Bxe2X0nISbS0F0zjzMr8xbtU76FmOgMcrD9JcSYHxMisq3NSNB~-1cBlQemyrMCoJOM9E0YdNo1rdbiAax-l9MFhCSFVuwTG50KJ7kNtZ3PftQ-HFcnXS-9QIHj6SMoNWYnW0qCVfxyyeu99qbc7iWX4iWkJtYZnmhY-PXwxEBp1QVsQZDHunJhQBRP5C~x6s~OCjg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Wilmington City","date","2025-06-05T00:00:00Z","article","Council member Owens presented a resolution to the intergovernmental committee on June 4 urging the Delaware General Assembly to amend Title 4 of the Delaware Code so the City of Wilmington could extend on‑premises alcohol last call from 1 a.m. to 2 a.m.

Council member Owens said the measure is intended to help Wilmington “compete” for leisure spending, retain and recruit young professionals and help small businesses. “This is more this is about more than just nightlife. It's about making Wilmington, a city that competes, a city that attracts people,” Owens said. He pointed to other cities such as Atlanta, Nashville and Pittsburgh that have extended last call and reported safety or economic benefits.

Council members on the committee expressed support and asked about next steps. Council member Xanthia Oliver said she would cosponsor the resolution and described conversations with county businesses and state legislators. Committee members noted that the General Assembly session ends June 30 and discussed using city lobby resources to pursue the change next year if needed.

Public commenters urged a geographically targeted approach. Benito Edward Blake suggested limiting any extension to core commercial corridors such as Market Street or the shipyard so enforcement and policing could be concentrated; he argued a statewide change would draw objections from areas that do not want later hours. Owens clarified the resolution seeks authority specifically for the City of Wilmington and said certain licensed establishments (for example, those with residential units above them) would not be affected because different license conditions and noise rules apply.

The committee did not adopt the resolution at the intergovernmental meeting; the item was placed on the full city council agenda for consideration at the next council meeting (committee discussion indicated it would be on the city council agenda the following day). Council members asked staff to continue early conversations with state legislators and with a prospective city lobbyist to advance the request to Dover.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Wilmington Intergovernmental Committee Meeting | 6/4/2025","oneSentenceSummary","Council member Owens told the Wilmington intergovernmental committee on June 4 he is asking the Delaware General Assembly to allow the City of Wilmington to extend on‑premises last call for alcoholic beverages from 1 a.m. to 2 a.m.","taxTitle","Wilmington City, New Castle County, Delaware","taxId",12638,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":42,"_43":78,"_45":79,"_47":80,"_49":81,"_51":82,"_53":83,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":84,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":85,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6194948,"Downtown Visions says BID is privately funded; ambassadors trained not to enforce panhandling ban",360000,1008000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5&start=360&end=1008","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5/thumbnail_360000.jpg","/articles/6194948/Wilmington-City/New-Castle-County/Delaware/Downtown-Visions-says-BID-is-privately-funded-ambassadors-trained-not-to-enforce-panhandling-ban","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6194948-220bdef525a523ff24a297060c26f391/orig.mp4?Expires=1771196027&Signature=Gku~qmxTQMRB-idXwKBENTC-~tdA9cbcR6vUzRIlDXNPsVOTJsA4-NhwO9735uaLfBU9BC0AOct93Z0GYLdAoqT25LQp5a2upYIMc3dpj-6wIvvjN-le~2Jq3qBCwpBQKym7DB2EQbkgzarErJbYCIt0eVpo6g0bARKMXqLq-~YPVsWhIsU~pjAOBit6PXNYlyS0AqWC7ndJK72oyQf0ug9ZV~~D8EqH5Sj-kVujUXZl8fJvOK3gYfdjuYN70CdmKks5JSbRTZQWSijZrJN-S5NshZGHw2B~qMBFJuhd74J2fKzYrYuFy8m2EiQB7uiDmhczwR032734bRJHV2dhtQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Downtown Visions executive director Michael Majidi told the Wilmington City intergovernmental committee on June 4 that Downtown Visions manages the Downtown Business Improvement District and that the district’s regular funding comes from assessments on downtown property owners, not city general‑fund dollars.

Majidi said the assessment “covers 95% of our budget” and that the district is “privately funded, on the property owners in Downtown Wilmington.” He described the BID’s staffing and operations: the organization is authorized for 53 employees, 46 of whom are ambassadors who work downtown seven days a week; ambassadors start at $16 an hour and the organization’s average pay is $18 an hour.

The presentation outlined BID boundaries, governance and exemptions. Majidi said the BID was created by state law and a city ordinance and that “government buildings and churches are exempt and nonprofits pay half and any residential property that has 4 units or less does not pay the assessment.” He added that the BID’s board has slots defined in city code, including five city positions, and that the current board chair is Wilmington attorney Adam Landis.

Committee members questioned Downtown Visions about how ambassadors interact with people who are unhoused. Council member Shanae Darby asked, “what is your protocol in response when dealing with the unhoused population downtown? I have been getting a lot of complaints in regards to how ambassadors respond to those situations and to people who are unhoused, downtown.” Majidi replied that after a consent decree between the attorney general’s office and the Wilmington Police Department, “we do not tell people they can't panhandle. We, we do not tell people they can't loiter, unless they're on private property. And we have a complaint from the property owner prior to that.” He added, “We have no arrest power. We have none of that, but we would warn people if they didn't stop that we would call the police. But that all stopped last fall when the decree came down from the attorney General's office and chief Campos.”

Darby asked how a resident or council member should report allegations about ambassadors. Majidi asked that they contact him directly: “Please contact me. We're, we're small enough that that I wanna be involved in those kind of, you know, allegations.” The committee also noted there is a small contract under which the city pays Downtown Visions to remove graffiti (Majidi said it was less than $10,000 last fiscal year), but that roughly 95% of the BID budget is assessment revenue from property owners.

Public commenters raised related concerns about street-level enforcement, trash and loud music. One resident said she had noticed fewer people on downtown benches than before and thanked staff for work downtown; another urged clearer city enforcement of littering and noise laws, and was advised to contact the resident’s district council member or submit a 311 request for city services.

The committee did not take any formal action on the presentation; members thanked Majidi and invited follow‑up and contact information for complaints.

The committee’s discussion combined organizational details about the BID (funding, boundaries, governance, employee pay and benefits) with operational questions about ambassador conduct and limits of authority after the consent decree. Members sought a clear reporting path for complaints and emphasized that ambassadors have no arrest powers and that enforcement of loitering and panhandling changed after the attorney general’s action.","Downtown Visions executive director Michael Majidi told the Wilmington intergovernmental committee on June 4 that the Downtown Business Improvement District is funded primarily by property‑owner assessments and that its street ambassadors no longer enforce panhandling or loitering rules following a consent decree.",{"_33":87,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":88,"_41":89,"_43":90,"_45":91,"_47":92,"_49":93,"_51":94,"_53":95,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":96,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":97,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6194934,"Resident urges Wilmington to plan for scooters as micro‑mobility grows, cites safety and economic opportunity",3062,3215000,6277000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5&start=3215&end=6277","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5/thumbnail_3215000.jpg","/articles/6194934/Wilmington-City/New-Castle-County/Delaware/Resident-urges-Wilmington-to-plan-for-scooters-as-micromobility-grows-cites-safety-and-economic-opportunity","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6194934-4cea5005c2ff8b93194858b7a3921a21/orig.mp4?Expires=1771196027&Signature=J-HOHDJoaCceRlYkXVNc9JlPTsL3edzR7VgcqBgCfpIuGx8RIN0LgUlMxJHWwZLAJhkHNdRl866tfDYW1tWrQNATT5AGp4O~mP4AXm0ZBp1KCmC4R4YamvY5seG0F0coBscKUqPGy27tsXGfQ67Ij1adhXF7soK7AQhCjmCSnFoGl9JjpwMKN7vcH2PN3VgwjReu6fvAkp~HuEVpfw7FMg-mmKcg0mAJqa~ZQhv9a1tBnsO412TIJRwTelBrINqGuttJH6-z8e3BGDcDsdVj3iYcZl0qA8hBmqWRe4Ea4Gc70ZTM4qcl-QHUcxOz1tLpAbPCEtamh3lfihXkB4kSbw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Resident Jason Hoover told the intergovernmental committee on June 4 that privately owned micro‑mobility devices (electric scooters owned by individuals) are becoming a significant mode of transportation in Wilmington and that the city should plan infrastructure accordingly.

Hoover said many households in Wilmington lack private cars and that scooters provide affordable, practical transportation: “At about $250, scooters provide reliable, fast, and efficient transportation, and no expensive insurance is required.” He argued scooters increase access to jobs and services for people who do not own cars and described a personal example of a friend who retained employment after receiving a donated scooter.

Hoover noted a legal barrier: he quoted Delaware’s treatment of motorized scooters under Title 21 and cited specific provisions (as read at the meeting) saying they “shall not be operated upon public highways, streets, sidewalks, or right aways located within the state.” He said the practical result is that riders must choose between dangerous, uneven sidewalks and busy roadways shared with cars, buses and trucks.

As a planning vision, Hoover proposed reallocating underused road space — for example trimming four traffic lanes to two on certain corridors — to create a combined pedestrian and scooter path and stimulate adjacent redevelopment. He used reimagined images of Twelfth Street to illustrate how pedestrian and micro‑mobility infrastructure could encourage storefronts, housing conversion and economic activity.

Committee members thanked Hoover for raising the subject and suggested bringing the issue into broader resilience and comp‑plan conversations. Hoover encouraged the city to take education and modest infrastructure steps now to reduce crashes and improve access.

The committee did not take formal action on the presentation; members asked staff to consider integrating micro‑mobility into future planning and outreach.","A Wilmington resident urged the intergovernmental committee to design sidewalks, greenways and lanes to accommodate privately owned scooters, argued Delaware law treats motorized scooters as motor vehicles under Title 21 and warned riders face unsafe choices. He proposed reallocating vehicle lanes to create pedestrian/scooter greenways to spur",{"_33":99,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":100,"_41":101,"_43":102,"_45":103,"_47":104,"_49":105,"_51":106,"_53":107,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":108,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":109,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6194938,"Public Works updates committee on Resilient Wilmington plan, Southbridge wetland park and Lower Brandywine flood study",3377,2047000,5424000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5&start=2047&end=5424","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3862993-6efc4eb5ba200b7d0e3bf6887083d1e5/thumbnail_2047000.jpg","/articles/6194938/Wilmington-City/New-Castle-County/Delaware/Public-Works-updates-committee-on-Resilient-Wilmington-plan-Southbridge-wetland-park-and-Lower-Brandywine-flood-study","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6194938-023482385678920face68597752a638f/orig.mp4?Expires=1771196027&Signature=dZ5qOQ6lDgKfWnLuvQEev-uUaWxEI0~qKwjuHdRcU-2RLRaNslXgOEmsL03KyiyuO6hO308OG23L-kUKXr2RkuMbmlL9MRqyDoJHq2SqRYAf7I4Z2LTwlu1LE9HGRMo32HZTbScSIo6zs6iI2OXk9A~6KullaGXPFHYmL1NCsuKYKcjot7Yuq6rHGWv1k8IuI4EpptxvJBtq-reqdXUMHG7-5GnS~p1GoCwLxu54zYP1t-wcABBimFXx00n7tfuw18ZkJyYwiEnABWlQm4~~H27CXWXvH3SFszhMC4Awj0Rg~iF0QQKRbBV1mpAnBRGE3pi9~aT8scvLzi8t0~czAA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Lisonbee Quimby and Brian Lennon of the City of Wilmington Department of Public Works briefed the intergovernmental committee on June 4 about Resilient Wilmington, the city’s multi‑department climate resilience plan, completed projects and planned studies.

Quimby, who oversees environmental and sustainability programs for Public Works, said the Resilient Wilmington plan was developed with DNREC grant support beginning in 2018 and was released in June 2022. She said the plan assesses current and future risks — including rising temperatures and sea‑level rise — and recommends actions such as expanded green infrastructure, shoreline raising in low‑lying areas, and aligning the city’s work with the state climate goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 50% by 2030.

Brian Lennon, assistant water division director, described recent and in‑progress projects. He highlighted the Tina Betts Urban Arts Amphitheater, which integrates green infrastructure and stores about 20,000 gallons of stormwater from roughly four acres of off‑site drainage for up to a two‑inch rainfall event. He described the Southbridge Wilmington Wetland Park project, which redirects stormwater away from residential streets and basements into a restored wetland that doubles as public green space and reduces combined sewer overflows.

Lennon summarized the Lower Brandywine flood study begun after Hurricane Ida (which made landfall in the region on Sept. 2, 2021). He said the city obtained a grant from Delaware Emergency Management and FEMA to study the Lower Brandywine; the grant totaled $500,000 from DEMA with a $166,000 match from Public Works to model river flows and evaluate shoreline protection alternatives. The study’s outreach identified three solution categories: a shoreline flood wall (high cost; more obstructive), a mid‑landscape approach with living shoreline and buried berm to preserve river access, and an inland option that would protect further inland properties but leave some parcels vulnerable. Lennon said the project team and community favored the mid‑landscape solution in most places and that the city plans additional public meetings in late June to present results and pursue construction grants.

Quimby and Lennon noted that the scale of some protections is large: a study estimate showed that fully berming Southbridge to protect against major storm events could cost on the order of $3 billion — well beyond city funding — so the city is pursuing grant funding and incremental, multi‑benefit projects. They also reported progress such as procuring hybrid electric vehicles for public works, building outdoor classrooms at Cool Springs Park and Herman Holloway Park, and conducting an urban heat study with the University of Delaware.

Residents and neighborhood advocates — including organizers from Northeast Rising, Northeast CERT and community groups — urged the city to prioritize vulnerable neighborhoods such as Northeast Wilmington and to speed up implementation. Several residents recounted damage from Hurricane Ida, noted clogged or sediment‑filled drains in their neighborhoods and were advised to submit 311 service requests for clogged storm drains; staff also pointed to long‑running historical studies of flooding in Southbridge dating back decades. The presenters said project funding will likely require tens of millions of dollars for mitigation construction and encouraged community members to support outreach to state and federal funding partners; they noted the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) federal program had been canceled at the federal level and that replacement funding would be important.

Public Works said the Resilient Wilmington working group meets roughly quarterly and includes interdepartmental and occasional state and county participation. Staff asked council members to help with public engagement, and committee members urged the city to increase coordinated public outreach so residents have clear opportunities to review and influence design choices for projects in their neighborhoods.

The committee did not vote on actions; staff said they will continue public outreach and pursue grant funding for construction.","Public Works presented the Resilient Wilmington plan update, described completed and planned green infrastructure projects (Tina Betts Amphitheater stormwater capture, Southbridge Wilmington Wetland Park, Cool Springs outdoor classroom, Adam Street green infrastructure), reported grants from DNREC, FEMA and DEMA, and previewed a Lower Brandywine","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Wilmington committee backs resolution asking state to allow 2 a.m. last call for city venues

Downtown Visions says BID is privately funded; ambassadors trained not to enforce panhandling ban

Resident urges Wilmington to plan for scooters as micro‑mobility grows, cites safety and economic opportunity

Public Works updates committee on Resilient Wilmington plan, Southbridge wetland park and Lower Brandywine flood study