REHOBOTH BEACH, Del.) - The Rehoboth Beach pool controversy is getting hotter as we move closer to summer. The city is proposing a new amendment that could keep renters high and dry. And now some want the mayor to get out of the pool debate all together.
Pools are sparking controversy in Rehoboth Beach and Rehoboth Beach Mayor Sam Cooper could be in the middle of it.
"I'm not going there," Mayor Sam Cooper said.
He was talking about a newly proposed ordinance that would ban rental property owners from operating their pools and it's making plenty of residents hot.
"I think it's crazy," said Lori Bloxom, who owns a rental property in Rehoboth with her husband John.
"It's a huge thing to come down and have a pool," said Wilmington native, Andrew Constantine. "I think it's a lot of fun. I think if you're looking for a house with a pool and you're paying for it, then you should be able to use it."
The proposed ordinance would require pool owners to have a pool license or rental license -- but not both.
That means rental home pools would have to be covered and locked.
Some residents say not only do they have a problem with the ordinance, but they believe Rehoboth Mayor Sam Cooper should recuse himself from the decision making process because he owns several properties.
John Bloxom, who has a rental property with a pool, says it's going to cost him, but not mayor cooper.
"It will substantially affect the market place in Rehoboth Beach in a way that directly effects mayor cooper," he said.
He says a provision in the Delaware Code makes Cooper's involvement illegal because he owns several rental properties.
"Public officials cannot vote on matters where they're self-interested," said Bloxom.
WRDE confirmed, Cooper owns at least four rental properties without pools on Newcastle Street.
The mayor wasn't in his office Wednesday, so we went to his home to get his side. He didn't have much to say about recusing himself, but he assured the proposed ordinance, "Is about legitimate concerns brought to us by many concerned citizens.
The city council is set to vote on the ordinance is June 19th.
