Safety Alert for Town Residents!
This week, one of our residents came home to discover an unknown male subject sleeping inside their house in their sunroom. The police were called but, since entry was made with no damage, the subject was released with only a warning for trespassing.
While this is not a common event in our Town, residents should pay particular attention to locking doors, windows, car doors, and outside structure entrances to prevent illegal entry or vandalism.
If you see any activity that looks suspicious, call 911 or contact Troop 3. Thank you.
To Residents of Main Street, Walnut Street, Thorn Street, and Jado Terrace……..Survey!
To residents of Main Street, Walnut Street, Thorn Street, and Jado Terrace:
By now you may have received a 1-page survey from SERCAP Inc in Frankford DE. They are acting on behalf of the Town of Magnolia and we would appreciate you responding to them. NOTE: None of the information you provide will be seen by Town officials, Town staff, or anyone else except for the staff of SERCAP. The Town will receive back only numbers and statistics.
Quick background: The Town is convinced that Federal and State agencies are using incorrect median household income (MHI) data when judging our eligibility for grant funding and forgiven-loan funding to use on upgrades to our water system (e.g. North Main Street water mains, a new water tower, etc.). Current figures that are being utilized would suggest that all of us live in $500,000 homes. Our position is that the incorrect data of Fed/State adds in all homes in the entire 19962 zip code, which of course skews our income average much higher due to the many surrounding high-dollar housing developments. This higher figure then subjects us to traditional long-term (20-year) loan rates, which our Town budget cannot absorb alone without imposing outrageous water rate increases on residents.
Our water tower will be 100 years old in 2028. We need your information. Without it, we cannot make our case that grants and forgiven loans are the most affordable funding source for us.
Please do not listen to the rumor mill. If you want correct answers, please contact Mayor James Frazier directly at jrfcrm4@gmail.com or 302-943-0934 (leave message), Vice Mayor Scott Fowler, or any other Town Council member as listed on our website – magnolia.delaware.gov. Thank you.
Town Announces Management Changes
Effective May 1, 2025, Laura Connor will be assuming the position of Town Clerk, replacing Diane Cahall, who held the position for 44 years. Laura has a great deal of experience in business and local government, having served as Town Clerk in the Town of Wyoming for a number of years. Welcome Laura, and a huge debt of gratitude to Diane for her decades of faithful service.
The direct contact number for Laura and the Town will be the same as before: 302-335-5891. However, the primary email address for the Town will now be townofmagnoliade@gmail.com.
Also, the Town’s Water Department welcomed a new employee last fall – Donald Woikoski. He replaced the late Ralph Satterfield, who passed away earlier this year. Welcome to Donald as well.
Thank you.
Spotted Lanternfly Resources Available
If you notice Spotted Lanternfly activity on your property, you may find the following two links helpful. They are also available on our Links page:
Credit Cards Now Accepted for Taxes and Water
If you haven’t noticed on your recent water bills, the Town of Magnolia can now accept credit cards for payment of Town taxes and quarterly water payments. See the link on your billing notice and submit your payment securely online. No more mailings or drop-offs to Town Hall needed anymore. Of course, you can still submit payments by check as usual if you prefer. If you have questions, please submit them via our online contact form at magnolia.delaware.gov.
7/1/2021
Residents who pay Town taxes by credit card may also edit the amount being paid to receive the usual 5% early payment discount. Once you are on the bill pay page, refer to the invoice to see how much you will owe after the 5% discount is applied. Then, click in the field that shows the non-discounted price. You can then enter the after-discount payment you are making. Enter your credit card information and submit. The program will show you as still having an unpaid balance of the 5%, but the Town will void that off on our end.
This ability does not apply to the quarterly water bills since there is no discount offered with them.
Thank you.
Town of Magnolia Traffic Study Released
The Town of Magnolia is pleased to announce the completion of its Magnolia Traffic Study. The majority of the funding for the project was provided by the Dover/Kent County MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization) with the remainder provided by the Town.
The study was produced by the consulting firm Whitman, Requardt and Associates of Wilmington and led by consultants Adrienne Eiss and Jeff Reigner.
The consultants kicked off the project by interviewing Mayor James Frazier (for general background on traffic issues, related information contained in our 2019 Town Comprehensive Plan and residents’ sentiments about traffic), and Councilman Buck Dougherty, who focused his responses on how traffic issues have impacted his fire crews at the Magnolia Volunteer Fire Company in his role as former Fire Chief and present member of their Board of Directors.
WRA then spent many hours researching and compiling available traffic data on Magnolia and the surrounding area (e.g. crash statistics, traffic volume, DelDOT assessments and plans, characteristics of the roadways, etc.) and performing their own onsite observations of the Town’s layout, possible improvements, and current traffic trends.
The draft report was reviewed by Council members and the final report was approved by Council at its regular monthly meeting (conducted virtually) on June 8, 2020. The report provides a number of action items and discussion topics to reference in the months ahead – some immediate and others requiring additional work and/or funding.
Town Council extends its thanks to the Dover/Kent County MPO and Whitman, Requardt and Associates for their contributions to this report. Council also extends an invitation to all Town of Magnolia residents, as well as residents of neighboring communities, to review the document and forward any comments to Magnolia Town Council at PO Box 233, Magnolia, DE 19962 or to Mayor James Frazier via email at jrfcrm4@gmail.com.
Magnolia Traffic Study Report_FINAL
Magnolia Joins National Flood Insurance Program
The Town received notice from FEMA that, effective April 5, 2018, its application to join the National Flood Insurance Program was approved. This means that town residents who desire to purchase flood insurance may do so through insurance agents or brokers licensed to do business in the State of Delaware.
Per FEMA documentation, the Town of Magnolia is not located in a flood plain, but residents wishing to purchase the insurance may still do so. There is a 30-day waiting period after your date of purchase for the policy to become effective.
Additional information, such as our notification letter and the FEMA Policy Issuance can be found under the Town’s website dropdown link entitled National Flood Insurance Program.