Rehoboth Beach
Rehoboth’s anti-climactic election raises concerns over process
Incumbent Chrzanowski criticizes delay in candidate’s filing
It was an anti-climactic election in Rehoboth Beach, Del., last month, when only two candidates emerged for two city commissioner seats.
Edward Chrzanowski ran unopposed for re-election and Francis “Bunky” Markert was named to fill the open commissioner seat being vacated by incumbent Susan Gay. While the uncontested races meant no official election was held in the beachside city this year, the proceedings were not devoid of controversy. In a conversation with the Blade, Chrzanowski voiced concerns with this year’s election proceedings.
At the beginning of the day on June 6 — the deadline to file for the election — Chrzanowski was the only candidate to formally enter the race for commissioner, motivated by his desire to see through ongoing infrastructure development plans, he said. At the time, Gay, the other incumbent commissioner whose term ended this year, had made no official statement regarding her candidacy, and no other candidates had filed for election.
But by the end of the day, Markert — who ran unsuccessfully for the position in 2014 — was nominated for election in a petition submitted by Jan Konesey, a circulator. The next day, Gay announced she would not seek reelection due to family health concerns. “I am not leaving Rehoboth Beach,” Gay said in the June 7 statement, but “I have decided not to seek re-election.”
With only two candidates in the running, Chrzanowski and Markert were exempt from participating in an official election. Chrzanowski, who is gay, noted he was “very glad” that he would not “have to campaign,” but criticized his colleague’s behavior surrounding registration for the election. In a conversation with the Blade, he alleged that Gay deliberately waited to announce whether she would seek reelection, which meant prospective opponents were unaware of the vacancy and therefore less likely to enter the race. He also suggested that Gay encouraged “one of her friends” — Markert — to file his candidacy in her place, without opposition.
“I’m very disappointed with what my colleague who decided not to run for reelection (did),” Chrzanowski said. “I announced my candidacy pretty early on to allow the public to absorb that. If someone wanted to run against me, I’d obviously give them the chance to do that.”
The idea of his colleagues “playing behind the scenes” left him feeling “disappointed,” he added. “Given the person that is running, or now will walk in as a commissioner, I would have much preferred there be an election and that person be challenged.”
But Gay and Markert both deny that they coordinated their decisions regarding the election.
Gay said she had initially planned to seek reelection, but a “change of plans” caused by family health circumstances made her feel she could not faithfully carry out the position for another consecutive term. “It was actually very last minute,” she said. “In fact, I had an (election) petition all set to go.”
“I realized that I could not devote the time that I needed” to the position, Gay explained. “I take the work very seriously. I wanted to be able to devote my full attention to it, and I just cannot right now.”
“It was a very, very, very difficult decision,” she added.
Markert said he presumed someone else would run in the election, so an uncontested race did not influence his candidacy.
In 2014, Markert was appointed to the city’s planning commission. He said his experience both as a resident of Rehoboth Beach and as a volunteer in local government led him to want to serve the city further by guiding its development as a commissioner, moving Rehoboth Beach forward while also preserving its unique character and qualities.
Gay said that waiting to the end of the allotted window to announce candidacy in the commissioner election was not unusual in city politics. In previous years, candidates often submitted their petitions on the very last day allowed, she explained.
“There’s a tradition here, and Ed should know this because he did it himself,” Gay said. “I went and ran three years ago. There were two candidates that announced in advance, and then the last four — Ed was one of them — turned in their petitions” on the latest day possible.
In an email to the Blade, Rehoboth Beach communications specialist Lynne Coan confirmed that in the 2019 election, when Chrzanowski and Gay were most recently elected, they both filed their petitions less than an hour before the deadline.
Gay added she was traveling when Markert’s petition was submitted, and was therefore not immediately aware he was an official candidate.
“Every year, we never know until the last minute who (the candidates are) going to be,” she said. “I don’t think anybody’s decision to run should be dependent on anybody else, and it certainly wasn’t for me. If people want to run they should step up.”
Regardless of the circumstances that brought them to their positions, Chrzanowski and Markert received approval from the city’s Board of Elections and are slated to serve as city commissioners. Reflecting on this year’s proceedings, each expressed mixed feelings about the lack of a formal election.
For Chrzanowski, who previously won a contested race for city commissioner, avoiding the “divisiveness” of a local election was advantageous. But he added that there was something lost without formal proceedings, which offer the public an opportunity to challenge candidate platforms and even enter the race should they feel their views are unrepresented.
For Markert, running uncontested removed significant monetary and time constraints. Still, a formal election would have helped him connect with the local community, and their support would have granted “ a certain level of legitimacy” to his representing them in city government.
“I would prefer to be up there, elected … (but) I’m a qualified candidate,” he explained. “In three years time, if I was to run again, and I plan to run again, maybe I’ll be able to be elected.”
According to Coan, the Board of Elections will meet on July 12 to finalize the 2022 election. Chrzanowski and Markert will begin their terms on Sept. 16.
Rehoboth Beach
Rehoboth’s Blue Moon is for sale but owners aim to keep it in gay-friendly hands
$4.5 million listing includes real estate; business sold separately
Gay gasps could be heard around the DMV earlier this week when a real estate listing for Rehoboth Beach’s iconic Blue Moon bar and restaurant hit social media.
Take a breath. The Moon is for sale but the longtime owners are not in a hurry and are committed to preserving its legacy as a gay-friendly space.
“We had no idea the interest this would create,” Tim Ragan, one of the owners, told the Blade this week. “I guess I was a little naive about that.”
Ragan explained that he and longtime partner Randy Haney are separating the real estate from the business. The two buildings associated with the sale are listed by Carrie Lingo at 35 Baltimore Ave., and include an apartment, the front restaurant (6,600 square feet with three floors and a basement), and a secondary building (roughly 1,800 square feet on two floors). They are listed for $4.5 million.
The bar and restaurant business is being sold separately; the price has not been publicly disclosed.
But Ragan, who has owned the Moon for 20 years, told the Blade nothing is imminent and that the Moon remains open through the holidays and is scheduled to reopen for the 2026 season on Feb. 10. He has already scheduled some 2026 entertainment.
“It’s time to look for the next people who can continue the history of the Moon and cultivate the next chapter,” Ragan said, noting that he turns 70 next year. “We’re not panicked; we separated the building from the business. Some buyers can’t afford both.”
He said there have been many inquiries and they’ve considered some offers but nothing is firm yet.
Given the Moon’s pioneering role in queering Rehoboth Beach since its debut 44 years ago in 1981, many LGBTQ visitors and residents are concerned about losing such an iconic queer space to redevelopment or chain ownership.
“That’s the No. 1 consideration,” Ragan said, “preserving a commitment to the gay community and honoring its history. The legacy needs to continue.” He added that they are not inclined to sell to one of the local restaurant chains.
You can view the real estate listing here.
Rehoboth Beach
Clear Space Theatre to remain in Rehoboth Beach
New arts center to be built on city-owned land
Clear Space Theatre Company and the City of Rehoboth Beach have agreed to create a public-private partnership to redevelop city-owned land into a new performing arts center, the theater announced Friday.
The CSTC board of directors formally accepted the letter of intent from the city on Oct. 23, wrapping up an 18-month process for site selection for its new performing arts center.
With the agreement, Clear Space commits to remaining in Rehoboth Beach, where it has been based since 2010.
Based on the terms of the letter of intent, Clear Space will enter into a land lease of 11 Christian St. after the Cape Henlopen Senior Center relocates to its next home outside the city limits on Hebron Road, according to the announcement. The senior center has been a tenant on city land for 45 years, but was gifted land to expand its operations and will move after the completion of a capital campaign. At that time, Clear Space will begin a lease of up to 50 years. The land, which has been valued at $7.2 million, will be made available to Clear Space for $1 per year.
The new performing arts center will include a proscenium mainstage, a flexible seating black box, a rehearsal studio, expanded lobby, concessions, and backstage facilities, and gallery space, according to the announcement. Parking will be provided on site
“On behalf of the Board of Commissioners, I am thrilled that Clear Space has selected our offer and plans on staying in the City of Rehoboth Beach,” Mayor Stan Mills said in a statement. “Clear Space has always enriched Rehoboth Beach culturally, socially, creatively, and economically. It is a top-notch performing arts center that is near and dear to our residents, visitors, and business owners. We believe it’s a win-win, and we look forward to many more years of our partnership with Clear Space.”
“We are grateful to Mayor Mills for first proposing that Clear Space consider the site at 11 Christian Street back in March 2024,” said Clear Space Managing Director Joe Gfaller.“Without his encouragement, the site might not have been explored as one of the nine in our 2024 market study. As our analysis winnowed down our preferred sites, the City of Rehoboth Beach’s staff and elected officials were consistently excellent partners, negotiating fairly and transparently in the interest of the citizens, business owners, and visitors of Rehoboth Beach.”
The total cost for the new performing arts center is approximately $40 million, according to the announcement, with a national RFP process for the project’s architect coming soon along with community forums for residents and audiences to follow in 2026.
The development ends years of contentious debate about the location of the new theater complex. In 2021, The Rehoboth Beach Board of Commissioners voted for the second time to overturn a decision by the city’s Planning Commission to approve plans by Clear Space to build a larger theater and adjacent rehearsal theater in a new downtown location.
Supporters of the project expressed outrage at the time over the Board of Commissioners’ 4 to 3 vote to reject the Planning Commission’s approval and deny the Clear Space application to build its proposed new theaters on Rehoboth Avenue, which serves as the city’s main commercial boulevard. The controversy led to speculation that Clear Space could relocate outside of Rehoboth to Route 1 or even to nearby Lewes, Del.
Rehoboth Beach
CAMP Rehoboth announces retirement of executive director
Kim Leisey to leave job at end of January 2026 as ‘true champion’
CAMP Rehoboth, the LGBTQ community services center serving Rehoboth Beach and areas across Delaware, has announced that Kim Leisey, who has served as its executive director since July 2023, will step down to retire at the end of January 2026.
“The Board of Directors has expressed deep gratitude for Leisey’s leadership and confirmed that she will continue to work with the Board and incoming leadership to ensure a smooth and seamless transition,” the organization says in a Sept. 17 statement.
Leisey, who holds a Ph.D. in Human Development, served for 30 years in the field of student affairs and facilities management at the University of Maryland Baltimore County before beginning work as CAMP Rehoboth executive director. Her position immediately prior to starting at CAMP Rehoboth was Senior Associate Vice President for Student Affairs at the university.
At the time of its decision to hire Leisey as executive director, CAMP Rehoboth noted that she had been a resident of nearby Lewes, Del., since 2020 and a Rehoboth Beach visitor since the early 1990s.
The board hired Leisey shortly after CAMP Rehoboth’s previous executive director, David Mariner, resigned to start a new Delaware LGBTQ advocacy group called Sussex Pride.
The board noted the change in leadership came at a time when the COVID pandemic presented challenges to the organization’s operations and during an organizational transition period to reassess and expand its programs that began prior to the pandemic.
CAMP Rehoboth Board President Leslie Ledogar said in the statement announcing Leisey’s retirement that at the time it hired her in 2023 it was confident her 30 years of experience in her prior career as a University of Maryland official would make her the right person to advance CAMP Rehoboth’s mission.
“Thanks to Kim’s steady leadership, her commitment to our mission, and the fact that she truly is a ‘champion for all things that help humans to thrive during their lifespan,’ she leaves CAMP Rehoboth well positioned to emerge from a time of uncertainty to one of strength, with the capacity we need to serve our community for decades to come,” Ledogar said in the statement.
“It’s been a privilege of a lifetime to serve in this role,” Leisey said in the statement. “Together we built something I am proud of, including strengthening a high-performing leadership team, deepening a culture rooted in integrity and excellence, and delivering strong, continuous financial performance,” she stated.
The statement says a search committee, to be chaired by Board President Ledogar, will be formed in the coming weeks to begin the search for a new executive director.
Holiday week brings setbacks for Trump-Vance trans agenda
Your guide to D.C.’s queer New Year’s Eve parties
Long-awaited ‘Pillion’ surpasses the sexy buzz
Trump’s ‘American people derangement syndrome’
Reasons to be optimistic about 2026
Reasons to be optimistic about 2026
Long-awaited ‘Pillion’ surpasses the sexy buzz
Protecting the trans community is not optional for elected allies and candidates
Trump’s ‘American people derangement syndrome’
