WILMINGTON — With the clock ticking on his last year in office, Governor John Carney has formally declared he has eyes set on a new act for his political career — Mayor of Wilmington.

The governor legally filed for the mayoral race on Monday morning, shortly after he appeared on DETV for a sit-down interview. He has long been exploring the idea, forming a campaign committee for the endeavor last November.

Carney had $107,900.59 in his campaign account between November and December 2023.

“We’ve driven new job creation in Wilmington, invested more than ever in affordable housing, expanded the Port of Wilmington, and built the first new public school in 50 years. As Mayor, I would stick to those priorities and focus on the future of our city,” Carney said in a press announcement late Monday morning.

Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki announced last fall that he would not seek a third term in office come November, citing a desire to spend time with his family. That leaves the ballot for Delaware’s largest city set with former city treasurer Velda Jones-Potter thus far.

While not a surprise, Carney’s announcement for the mayoral race confirms a historic run in Delaware politics. If elected, he will be the first governor to move to Wilmington’s mayor. Many governors have gone on to be congressmen, senators or federal appointees if they stayed in public service.

Carney served as Delaware’s representative between 2011 and 2017. Other notable stops on his resume include Secretary of Finance, Deputy Chief of Staff for then-Governor Tom Carper and Lt. Governor to Gov. Ruth Ann Minner.

Carney said he was not considering a run for the Senate. When he talked with the Delaware Business Times in the past, he indicated his next move had to work for his family. The governor has lived in the city for 40 years with his wife Tracey Quillen Carney.

Looking to the future, Carney said he wants to ensure Wilmington’s strength not only as a financial hub but also as a cultural center where families want to raise their children. In the last four years, he’s aimed to improve education, notably through the Wilmington Learning Collaborative, a network of courses across the city that improve outcomes through students as well as educator retention rates.

As governor during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, Carney was also tasked with allocating a strong portion of the state’s American Rescue Plan Act $925 million funds. He’s allocated $117 million for affordable housing projects throughout the state.

“I will work with state officials, school districts, and community leaders to improve public education in city schools. I will prioritize expanding affordable housing in Wilmington. I will invest in small and minority-owned businesses across the city,” Carney added.  “And as we’ve done at the state level, I will protect taxpayer dollars and make sure the city has a strong, sustainable financial position. I’m running for mayor because I love our city – and I believe Wilmington needs an experienced leader to move us forward.”

While the governor embarks on a mayoral campaign, he still has lingering day-to-day business in Dover as the legislative session is still in session.

Carney has already signaled he’s not looking to quietly end his last year in the governor’s mansion. He’s opened negotiations with the U.S. Wind to bring transmission lines to the Indian River Substation in Dagsboro in exchange for possible credits and millions in community causes. Carney has also thrown his support recently behind legislation that would create a framework for Delaware to participate more actively in the offshore wind farm market, be it building a wind farm or partnering with a neighboring state in a power purchase agreement. 

Carney has also supported the controversial House Bill 350 which would set up a statewide board focused on evaluating financials for the six major hospital systems in Delaware to ensure that costs fell within the state’s health care spending benchmark. He has repeatedly shared his concerns about the rising health care costs in the state budget; this year’s budget included $200 million to address health care inflation.

Carney will host a campaign kick-off event Monday evening at Delaware Technical Community College in Wilmington. 

Violations and comments on food-safety inspections conducted last week by the Delaware County Health Department of establishments with liquor licenses, which contained  16 with violations in 23 visits, meaning seven clean bills of health, likely most in a week:

Pat’s Pizzeria, 2900 Township Line Road, Drexel Hill:

• Hand washing sink blocked by rice pot.

Buena Onda, 226 N. Radnor Chester Road, Wayne:

• Bulk food storage container and margaritas mix bottles are not labeled.

• In-Use scoop is stored with handle touching flour.

Estia Taverna, 222 N. Radnor Chester Road, Radnor:

• Food storage containers are not labeled.

La Porta Ristorante, 1192 N. Middletown Road, Media:

• Cutting boards are severely scratched and pitted, which prevents proper cleaning and sanitizing to prevent pathogenic microorganism transmission.

• A sign or poster that notifies food employees to wash their hands is not provided at all handwashing sinks used by food employees.

• Ice machine is not clean to sight and touch.

• Date marking is not on all open food.

• Food is not marked with a use-by date.

• Food storage containers are not labeled.

Pietro’s, 236 N. Radnor Chester Road, Radnor:

• An employee beverage is uncovered cup in the food preparation area.

• Squid is thawing at room temperature in the prep sink.

• Food storage containers are not labeled.

• In-use utensils scoop is stored with the handle in the ice at the bar ice tray.

• Cardboard being utilized as a floor liner near the prep table area is not removable or easily cleanable.

Cristoforo Colombo Lodge 109, 8503 Lansdowne Ave., Upper Darby:

• Food on Refrigerator is not marked with a use-by date.

• Food-Contact surface at ice machine is no longer smooth and easily cleanable.

La Locanda Ristorante, 4989 West Chester Pike, Edgmont:

• Food storage containers are not labeled.

Rey Azteca Mexican Restaurant, 4755 West Chester Pike, Newtown Square:

• Date marking is not on all open food.

• Food is not marked with a use-by date.

• Disposable paper towels not provided at the hand washing sink

Brick & Brew, 26 W. State St., Media:

• Exterior door allows access for pests.

• Can opener can no longer be cleaned and sanitized and/or is damaged beyond repair.

• Soil residue present on air vents in the refrigeration units.

Charlotte’s Restaurant, 3207 West Chester Pike, Newtown Square:

• Food employee washed hands in the food prep sink.

• Food employee improperly washed hands.

• Food employee was thawing food at hand washing sink.

• A sign or poster that notifies food employees to wash their hands is not provided at all handwashing sinks used by food employees.

• Disposable paper towels not provided at the hand washing sink.

• Observed molluscan shellfish without shellstock tag.

• Owner could not show an invoice for molluscan shellfish, therefore shellfish is not from an approved source.

• Food establishment is not maintaining an approved record keeping system for shellstock tags.

• Container of shellstock located in (reach in/walk in cooler) without proper shellstock tag identification.

• Raw eggs stored above pots of ready to eat food items in walk-in cooler.

• Date marking is not on all food items.

• Working container of cleaner not properly labeled.

• Medication found on counter in kitchen area.

• Employees personal items (shoes & clothing) found in food storage area of facility.

• Observed frozen food items thawing at room temperature in handwash sink area of kitchen.

• Molluscan Shellfish have been removed from their original container.

• Observed bulk food storage containers (sugar, flour, breadcrumbs etc.) are not labeled.

• Linens are in direct contact with food in the reach in refrigerator.

• In-use wiping cloths are not stored properly.

• In-Use Utensils are stored incorrectly wedged between prep tables.

New Chester Deli, 60 W. Ninth St., Chester:

• Base coving was not found on the floor and wall junctures.

• Floors, Walls and Ceilings in the throughout facility were found in a state of disrepair, or not to be smooth and easily cleanable.

The Happy Inn, 11 Main St., Darby:

• Chicken wings 45.9F in Bain Marie on cook line. Time/Temperature Control for Safety Food is not maintained at 41°, or less.

• Comment: Send invoice/ work order from licensed repair company.

UNO Chicago Grill, 3910 West Chester Pike, Newtown Square:

• Date marking is not on all food items.

• Food storage containers are not labeled. Identify food storage containers with common name of the food.

• Observed an old fly trap in the food prep area.

• Soil residue present on the floor of both walk-in coolers and walk-in freezer.

• The unisex restroom lacks a covered receptacle for disposal of feminine hygiene products.

• Multiple light fixtures in the hood system are out and need to be replaced.

• Make-up air / Exhaust vents in the food prep area were found with accumulation of dust and rust on them.

Chadds Ford Tavern, 1400 Baltimore Pike, Chadds Ford:

• Food storage containers are not labeled. Identify food storage containers with common name of the food.

• Date marking is not on all open food.

• PIC did not demonstrate knowledge of licensing requirements.

Shere-E-Punjab Indian Restaurant, 210 W. State St., Media:

• A sign or poster that notifies food employees to wash their hands is not provided at all handwashing sinks used by food employees.

• Date marking is not on all food items.

• A thermometer is not provided in the all refrigeration units.

• Smoothie mix stored in milk containers.

• Food stored in an unapproved location on the floor in the walk in refrigeration units.

• The unisex restroom lacks a covered receptacle for disposal of feminine hygiene products.

Texas Roadhouse, 1051 Baltimore Pike, Glen Mills:

• Baked potatoes not marked with a use-by date.

• Food is not protected from contamination in walk in refrigerator.

• Eggs stored below fresh vegetables.

• Date of 4/21/2024 marked on Au Jus exceeds the time limit.

• Date of 4/20/2024 marked on marinara sauce exceeds the time limit.

• All open food is not marked with a use-by date.

A la carte

Most of the violations are handled on the spot — usually by moving or discarding any food in question and cleaning what was found to be dirty — and a few require follow-up visits.

Delaware County presents the inspections with no further comment than above.

The inspections this week were 18 routine and five follow-ups. However, it was also the fourth time in a month Pat’s Pizzeria has been listed, and second time in a month that UNO has been listed.

There were also five businesses with repeat violations, including UNO.

Clean bills of health this week (no violations):

• Artillery Brewing Co., 4221 Ferne Blvd., Drexel Hill.

• Paddy Rooney’s Pub, 449 West Chester Pike, Havertown.

• Hilldale Kitchen, 190 S. MacDade Blvd., Darby Town Center, Darby.

• The Manoa Tavern, 8 N. Manoa Road, Havertown.

• Callahan’s Tavern, 7403 West Chester Pike, Upper Darby.

• Trophy Tavern, 4214 Woodland Ave., Drexel Hill.

• Jamey’s House of Music, 32 S. Lansdowne Ave., Lansdowne.

The Daily Times corrects only overtly improper spelling, capitalization, abbreviation and punctuation from the reports.

There are many more inspections performed by the county than those listed above. Those inspections are in food-serving locations that do not have liquor licenses.

Tinicum Township reports through the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture website. There were no inspections for the week.

Tinicum is the only one of the seven Delaware County townships that doesn’t rely on the county health department for inspections that reports through the state.

Governmental entities are not obligated to report the results of food-safety inspections to the public.

Here are the previous inspections in Delaware County.

New Castle County releases a draft sustainability plan outlining continuing efforts and short and long-term goals for the county.

The county is seeking feedback on the plan until the end of May and will hold in-person and virtual public meetings over the next few weeks.

The plan looks at affordable and sustainable housing development, open space, recreation and waste management, along with green energy like electric vehicle infrastructure and solar farm feasibility, climate resilience, protection of natural resources, and environmental justice.

County Executive Matt Meyer says this plan is similar to the state’s Climate Action Plan with a county-specific focus.

“The goal is obviously to complement those plans and in some cases supplement them. In some cases there are goals and programs in there that we think can be expanded on and will be expanded on in the county hopefully long into the future.”

Meyer says that work is led by the county’s Land Use Department, which he says on a smaller scale can often do more than state or federal governments can.

Land Use General Manager Charuni Patibanda highlights infill development as one major goal.

“There are all kinds of parcels along Kirkwood Highway that have buildings already on them, so redevelopment or infill development is redoing those properties into projects that include mixed uses like housing and retail or office and retail or whatever it is the market is calling for,” Patibanda says.

The county’s new Sustainability Coordinator Kristie Arlotta will lead many of these efforts, including efforts to deal with one of the county’s most prevalent issues, air quality.

“Air pollution can be very localized as well and it’s so different,” Arlotta says. “Claymont might be very different than New Castle. So our goal is to increase the amount of air monitors we have and also think about how can we address those air quality issues.”

Historically, the county has received an “F” for air quality in the American Lung Association’s “State of the Air” report, but this year received its best ever rating, a “C,” which means there are still too many ozone action days.

Residents can review the plan and submit feedback online. The county’s next public information session is May 1 at the Route 9 Library.