Size and Density:
Sussex County is the largest county east of the Mississippi River with 938 square miles! Sussex has almost the exact same size as the other two counties of Delaware combined; yet we have only about 15% of the state population with our 120,000 people. That relates to only 128 people per square mile, compared to almost 1100 people per square mile in our northern county, New Castle.

Financial and Economic Vitality:
Southern Delaware is uniquely a haven for the self employed. The economic vitality of Sussex County, especially eastern Sussex County, is primarily that of self employment in addition to jobs in education, law enforcement, lodging, health care, Real Esta

Climate:
Our climate for one thing is the best in the region. The United States Department of Agriculture has a map that shows the temperature zones for plants (and people). This map http://www.growit.com/ZONES/ shows Delaware in the same climate band as mid-Texas, northern Georgia, and the Carolinas. Delaware is by far the northern most place for this climate. Southern Delaware, although not delineated on this map is shown as one zone more southerly in the more detailed maps you get for planting flowers and vegetables as shown in gardening texts.

Sussex County Delaware has a winter climate and temperature that equals the Carolinas, Georgia and northern Florida. It has a summer climate and temperature that is more like New York and Massachusetts. The reason for this is the tempering effects of the large bodies of water that surround Sussex County have more local effect on keeping us cool in Summer and Warm in winter than the land does. The closer you get to the water the more this is true. The Eastern Sussex area is almost identical to Boston temperatures in the summer and Tampa temperatures in the winter.

Driving and Commuting Distance:
In Sussex County we feel we are far enough from everything and close enough to all that's important. While we enjoy and idyllic rural and resort lifestyle here, we are a couple of hours to the cities. When I lived in L.A. most of us drove two or more hours each way to work. Southern Californians spend 4 to 8 hours a day in their cars - no wonder the car culture is so strong there. In two hours we can be past Wilmington to Philadelphia and beyond; past Baltimore and into Washington D.C. and beyond and to the south we can reach Norfolk in just over two hours. The slowest part of each of these trips is the first 45 minutes which are on our picturesque Colonial roads, but then we hit the open roads and the miles click on by. We are about 90 minutes to any of four International Airports - take your pick: Dulles, Reagan, Baltimore Washington or Philadelphia. We have air commuter service 45 minutes away in Salisbury or Newcastle. Charter service is available in Georgetown right here in the middle of Sussex County.

Telecommuting and Teleworking:
Sussex County, especially just west of the beach areas is a rapidly growing area for telecommuting. The ultra-high-speed cable access to the Internet is available anywhere that Comcast Cable television service is. This cable modem service is about 10-30 times faster than dial-up service and makes all the difference if you are on line all day like Kate and I are. Although the cable modem costs about $50 a month, you can split it and without a drop in speed have two or three people in your home on the same hookup - that makes it very cost effective. I specialize in helping those who do, or want, to telecommute or as they say in Europe and the Federal Government, to telework. We have helped numerous people move in and work from home. The various government agencies are now pressing more and more people to telework at least a few days a week. If you go to the various federal web sites most if not all of them have criteria and jobs for teleworkers - check it out. And don't forget your favorite jobs anywhere - you may be able to work here and have a job in any other place on earth or at least any other place in America.

Crime:
Our crime, what there is of it, is mostly out of state speeders on the highways. Some of our visitors are of the opinion (right or wrong) that our major source of state income in Delaware is fines from speeding tickets. That is the primary function of our police on a daily basis. We are certainly not crime free but we are safer than most places. In fact of our serious crimes, most are DUI, Driving Under the Influence and still our statistics are that of a very peaceful and laid back rural area.

Size and Density:
Sussex County is the largest county east of the Mississippi River with 938 square miles! Sussex has almost the exact same size as the other two counties of Delaware combined; yet we have only about 15% of the state population with our 120,000 people. That relates to only 128 people per square mile, compared to almost 1100 people per square mile in our northern county, New Castle.

Financial and Economic Vitality:
Southern Delaware is uniquely a haven for the self employed. The economic vitality of Sussex County, especially eastern Sussex County, is primarily that of self employment in addition to jobs in education, law enforcement, lodging, health care, Real Estat

Driving and Commuting Distance:
In Sussex County we feel we are far enough from everything and close enough to all that's important. While we enjoy and idyllic rural and resort lifestyle here, we are a couple of hours to the cities. When I lived in L.A. most of us drove two or more hours each way to work. Southern Californians spend 4 to 8 hours a day in their cars - no wonder the car culture is so strong there. In two hours we can be past Wilmington to Philadelphia and beyond; past Baltimore and into Washington D.C. and beyond and to the south we can reach Norfolk in just over two hours. The slowest part of each of these trips is the first 45 minutes which are on our picturesque Colonial roads, but then we hit the open roads and the miles click on by. We are about 90 minutes to any of four International Airports - take your pick: Dulles, Reagan, Baltimore Washington or Philadelphia. We have air commuter service 45 minutes away in Salisbury or Newcastle. Charter service is available in Georgetown right here in the middle of Sussex County.

Telecommuting and Teleworking:
Sussex County, especially just west of the beach areas is a rapidly growing area for telecommuting. The ultra-high-speed cable access to the Internet is available anywhere that Comcast Cable television service is. This cable modem service is about 10-30 times faster than dial-up service and makes all the difference if you are on line all day like Kate and I are. Although the cable modem costs about $50 a month, you can split it and without a drop in speed have two or three people in your home on the same hookup - that makes it very cost effective. I specialize in helping those who do, or want, to telecommute or as they say in Europe and the Federal Government, to telework. We have helped numerous people move in and work from home. The various government agencies are now pressing more and more people to telework at least a few days a week. If you go to the various federal web sites most if not all of them have criteria and jobs for teleworkers - check it out. And don't forget your favorite jobs anywhere - you may be able to work here and have a job in any other place on earth or at least any other place in America.

Crime:
Our crime, what there is of it, is mostly out of state speeders on the highways. Some of our visitors are of the opinion (right or wrong) that our major source of state income in Delaware is fines from speeding tickets. That is the primary function of our police on a daily basis. We are certainly not crime free but we are safer than most places. In fact of our serious crimes, most are DUI, Driving Under the Influence and still our statistics are that of a very peaceful and laid back rural area.

Size and Density:
Sussex County is the largest county east of the Mississippi River with 938 square miles! Sussex has almost the exact same size as the other two counties of Delaware combined; yet we have only about 15% of the state population with our 120,000 people. That relates to only 128 people per square mile, compared to almost 1100 people per square mile in our northern county, New Castle.

Financial and Economic Vitality:
Southern Delaware is uniquely a haven for the self employed. The economic vitality of Sussex County, especially eastern Sussex County, is primarily that of self employment in addition to jobs in education, law enforcement, lodging, health care, Real Esta

Telecommuting and Teleworking:
Sussex County, especially just west of the beach areas is a rapidly growing area for telecommuting. The ultra-high-speed cable access to the Internet is available anywhere that Comcast Cable television service is. This cable modem service is about 10-30 times faster than dial-up service and makes all the difference if you are on line all day like Kate and I are. Although the cable modem costs about $50 a month, you can split it and without a drop in speed have two or three people in your home on the same hookup - that makes it very cost effective. I specialize in helping those who do, or want, to telecommute or as they say in Europe and the Federal Government, to telework. We have helped numerous people move in and work from home. The various government agencies are now pressing more and more people to telework at least a few days a week. If you go to the various federal web sites most if not all of them have criteria and jobs for teleworkers - check it out. And don't forget your favorite jobs anywhere - you may be able to work here and have a job in any other place on earth or at least any other place in America.

Crime:
Our crime, what there is of it, is mostly out of state speeders on the highways. Some of our visitors are of the opinion (right or wrong) that our major source of state income in Delaware is fines from speeding tickets. That is the primary function of our police on a daily basis. We are certainly not crime free but we are safer than most places. In fact of our serious crimes, most are DUI, Driving Under the Influence and still our statistics are that of a very peaceful and laid back rural area.

Size and Density:
Sussex County is the largest county east of the Mississippi River with 938 square miles! Sussex has almost the exact same size as the other two counties of Delaware combined; yet we have only about 15% of the state population with our 120,000 people. That relates to only 128 people per square mile, compared to almost 1100 people per square mile in our northern county, New Castle.

Financial and Economic Vitality:
Southern Delaware is uniquely a haven for the self employed. The economic vitality of Sussex County, especially eastern Sussex County, is primarily that of self employment in addition to jobs in education, law enforcement, lodging, health care, Real Esta

Crime:
Our crime, what there is of it, is mostly out of state speeders on the highways. Some of our visitors are of the opinion (right or wrong) that our major source of state income in Delaware is fines from speeding tickets. That is the primary function of our police on a daily basis. We are certainly not crime free but we are safer than most places. In fact of our serious crimes, most are DUI, Driving Under the Influence and still our statistics are that of a very peaceful and laid back rural area.

Size and Density:
Sussex County is the largest county east of the Mississippi River with 938 square miles! Sussex has almost the exact same size as the other two counties of Delaware combined; yet we have only about 15% of the state population with our 120,000 people. That relates to only 128 people per square mile, compared to almost 1100 people per square mile in our northern county, New Castle.

Financial and Economic Vitality:
Southern Delaware is uniquely a haven for the self employed. The economic vitality of Sussex County, especially eastern Sussex County, is primarily that of self employment in addition to jobs in education, law enforcement, lodging, health care, Real Esta

Size and Density:
Sussex County is the largest county east of the Mississippi River with 938 square miles! Sussex has almost the exact same size as the other two counties of Delaware combined; yet we have only about 15% of the state population with our 120,000 people. That relates to only 128 people per square mile, compared to almost 1100 people per square mile in our northern county, New Castle.

Financial and Economic Vitality:
Southern Delaware is uniquely a haven for the self employed. The economic vitality of Sussex County, especially eastern Sussex County, is primarily that of self employment in addition to jobs in education, law enforcement, lodging, health care, Real Estate of course, Real Estate law, residential and commercial building and construction, which is related, and retail management. Part of the reason for our overall economic health is that our owner operated businesses are so diverse. There are no huge corporations employing thousands of people in high paying jobs that can crash or affect our economy in any way. We also have a growing and vibrant arts community of fine artists, writers, and musicians who live here and gain income from a wide national and international area. As the teleworking era grows here this self-employed base will grow and diversify even more.

Cultural Values:
We have so many cultural events in the so called off-season that we are developing another season which some are calling the aesthetics season to complement the beach tourism season. The arts are a measure of the richness of our lives, our community and our economy. The arts are a multi-million dollar industry here when our aesthetics season visitors rent rooms, rent homes for the several day events, eat at our restaurants, shop at our hundreds of outlet stores and otherwise spend time and money in our various establishments. We have a couple of local pre-university schools which feature art and music education which studies show enhance problem solving and abstract thinking abilities of students in whatever field they may end up in; arts or not.

Many of us are working to further enhance the emphasis on the arts here. There are many ways we can individually work to increase our cultural assets. One business could support art in public places. An individual can contribute time, money, or expertise to cultural organizations. All these efforts will help stimulate an on-going cycle of learning, investment, and growth in our region. And, of course the most important thing we can do is attend and invite friends in from out of town to attend as many of these events and functions as possible.

Tourism:
For many decades, tourism has been the backbone of our local, eastern Sussex County economy. We are well known, in Rehoboth Beach, as The Nation's Summer Capital. Our other beaches are regionally favored above all others: Dewey Beach for the skim board surfing and parties; Bethany Beach for the bedroom community family oriented beachy place and Fenwick Island for the fine homes and fine beaches that are revered by those who relish home life without adjacent commercial activities. Of course Fenwick Island is very close to thousands of commercial enterprises in Ocean City Maryland.

Visitors bring money into our local economy, support local businesses, which provide jobs, and they pay for gas, rooms, home rentals and room sales taxes. We increasingly enjoy higher returns from our visitors thus maximizing on our investments. Bringing millions and millions of visitors to our Delaware Beach area affects not only our economy but also our transportation system, our water system and our natural environment. Studies show that different types of visitors have different impacts. For example, visitors who attend an arts event typically stay longer and spend more money.

Tourism is evolving. Our Bed and Breakfast establishments for instance are a major factor in bicycle tourism, bird watching and corporate and executive think-tank retreats. We are developing different types of visitors to our area while maintaining our lifestyle, economic vitality, and environmental quality. Emphasizing outdoor recreation, clean air, wide-open spaces and beautiful scenery, we can attract "eco-friendly" visitors. Camping, for instance, is a large and growing eco-tourism feature where thousands of our campsites host those who enjoy the area and often stay right at the camp most of the time. Canoeing and kayaking, sea ka