1890s Rehoboth Boardwalk ‘icon’ set to be demolished

With another half-dozen permits issued over the course of the past few months, the steady demolition of older homes in favor of new construction continues in Rehoboth Beach.

Most notably, the city issued a notice Dec. 17 for a three-story, single-family dwelling and an accessory structure at 1 Stockley St. According to online listings, this house was sold Nov. 8 for $6 million. The 3,400-square-foot home is described as “an icon along the southern end of the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk.” The cedar-sided, cedar-shingle house dates back to the 1890s, has five bedrooms, five full baths, one half bath and “charming details throughout every square inch.”

Not including the property above, the city has issued notices for homes all in parts of the city since the end of August.

The city issued a notice Aug. 29 for a one-story, single-family dwelling at 53 Sussex St. According to online listings, this house sold for $1.115 million in October 2021.

The city issued a notice Nov. 13 for a one-story, single-family dwelling and an accessory structure at 1013 Scarborough Ave. According to online listings, this house sold about a year ago for $1 million.

The city issued a notice Nov. 19 for a two-story, single-family dwelling at 87 Henlopen Ave. This house is being demolished so the lot can be split into two.  The lot is currently 150 feet by 91 feet and will be partitioned into two equal-sized lots of 75 feet by 91 feet. The planning commission conducted a preliminary hearing on the proposed partitioning in November and scheduled a public hearing for Friday, Jan. 24.

The city issued a notice Nov. 21 for a one-story, single-family dwelling and an accessory structure at 203 Bayard Ave. This property is for sale and being advertised as new construction.

The city issued a notice Dec. 31 for a two-story, single-family dwelling and an accessory structure at 200 Hickman St. According to online listings, this house was sold Nov. 21 for $1.9 million. It’s basically pitched as having good rental income potential because it’s in a quiet part of town that’s close to the beach and downtown.

In the end, 2024 did not go down as one of the busiest years on record for demolitions in Rehoboth Beach, but when all was said and done, there were 19 notices issued by the city, which is fewer than last year’s 20, but more than the 16 issued in 2022.

Since April 2012, the city has issued 306 demolition notices. The most notices issued in one year by the city was 34 in 2019.

DEMOLITION PERMITS ISSUED IN REHOBOTH BEACH SINCE APRIL 2012

Permits issued annually since April 2012:

• 2012: 14
• 2013: 15
• 2014: 23
• 2015: 23
• 2016: 30
• 2017: 30
• 2018: 27
• 2019: 34
• 2020: 32
• 2021: 23
• 2022: 16
• 2023: 20
• 2024: 19

Permits issued by month since April 2012:

• January – 24
• February – 20
• March – 38
• April – 13
• May – 6
• June – 3
• July – 11
• August – 65
• September – 39
• October – 39
• November – 29
• December – 19