Cemetery to be moved for new Community Bank
At its Dec. 14 meeting, the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission approved a final site plan for a new Community Bank branch in Long Neck.
The plan includes a 3,200-square-foot bank, and 4,000-square-foot and 4,900-square-foot retail buildings on a 2.47-acre parcel at the intersection of Route 5 and Route 24.
The plan also includes the reinterment and relocation of several graves on the property by Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium in Lewes. In a letter to Alex Pires, chairman of the board of Community Bank, Vice President Andrew Parsell outlined the process, which is permitted by the State of Delaware.
He said the plots, known as the Lingo Cemetery, date back to the 1800s into the early 1900s and contain 10 visible headstones. He said there could be more unmarked graves, and some graves may contain more than one interment.
All of the remains will be transported and reburied at Woodlawn Cemetery in Millsboro. Once a final survey of the property is completed, he said, he will contact Community Bank officials with dates and times of the project.
Delaware Department of Transportation officials are recommending that access be provided between the property and either the adjacent Rite Aid or Silicato Road. In addition, a shared-use path must provide safe bicycle and pedestrian access to the property.
Rehoboth Senior Living
The commission also approved a revised preliminary site plan for Rehoboth Senior Living, a three-story, 155,058-square-foot facility with 144 units at the corner of Cedar Grove and Plantation roads near Lewes.
The project was underway when county staff noticed changes to the approved final site plan, which required a revised plan. Changes included the addition of 50 parking spaces, a change from one story to three stories and a reduction in the size of the building.
Because the parcel is included in the Henlopen Transportation Improvement District, the developer Plantation Partners LLC will be required to pay a fee for road work in the district.
Access to the parcel will be from Cedar Grove and Plantation roads with shared-use paths along the frontage of the property.
The final plan will be reviewed by the county planning & zoning staff upon receipt of all agency approvals.
