Henlopen Bluff back in Lewes council’s court

Lewes Mayor and City Council will take another shot at approving a preliminary site plan for the proposed Henlopen Bluff major subdivision after hearing comments at public hearing June 3.

The hearing focused on a whittled-down list, just two of the original 39 conditions, that the Lewes Planning Commission had attached and one waiver request.

It was council’s second public hearing on the proposed development. The first, held in January, considered with all 39 conditions and two waiver requests.

A month later, mayor and city council remanded 25 of those conditions and both waivers back to planners. It added two recommendations of its own for the commission to consider: a crosswalk on Gills Neck Road to proposed open space along the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal and sidewalk connectivity from the community into downtown.

The planning commission then made its recommendations on those 25, deleting several it felt were no longer needed.

The most controversial condition at the June 3 hearing was the proposed vehicular connection between Henlopen Bluff and neighboring Showfield. The commission recommended a city right-of-way road and sidewalks to the property boundary adjacent to Battlemixer Drive for a future vehicular connection.

As they have at previous hearings, many Showfield residents attended the June 3 meeting to voice opposition to the vehicular connection. The Showfield homeowners association supports a bike and pedestrian path that links the communities, but it has said it will withdraw that support if a vehicular connection is approved.

Kim Mason, a member of the Showfield HOA board, read a letter from attorney Bob Valihura. The letter outlined the environmental and community benefits of the bike and pedestrian path, while restating the group’s opposition to a cut-through for cars.

“The developer does not own the land outside of Henlopen Bluff and the proposed road cannot be extended onto the lands of Showfield. Inclusion of a stub road would truly be a road to nowhere,” the letter said.

Supporters of the connection have named it the road to the future. The developer said it would pay for the bike and pedestrian path connection.

Mayor and city council also heard another appeal from the developer to grant a waiver request to reduce a proposed 50-foot corridor buffer on Gills Neck Road to 25 feet. The commission recommended the waiver be denied. 

David Hutt, attorney for Henlopen Bluff developer Showfield LLC, said not granting the waiver would be a hardship to the developer and the city.

Hutt said the developer would dedicate an additional 15 feet to the Gills Neck Road right of way, meaning there would be 40 feet from the road to the backs of lots, only 10 feet short of the 50-foot buffer.

“The applicant's goal within the proposed 25-foot corridor buffer is to leave the existing fence and Leyland Cypress trees where they are and add a shared-use path in this area for a safe location for pedestrians and bicyclists along Gills Neck Road,” Hutt said in an email.

The third item considered at the hearing was the proposed 18 boat slips on the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal across Gills Neck Road from Henlopen Bluff, and how they would be used by Henlopen Bluff property owners.

The planning commission is recommending mayor and city council consider the word premises to include the driveways on lots 51 through 59. 

Hutt said that would allow parking requirements to be fulfilled by the driveways of the proposed lots that would have access to the slips.

The city would require 36 parking spaces, two per slip. DNREC would require one per slip.

Hutt said the developer wants a minimal number of spaces, from zero to possibly five, for loading and unloading on the canal side of Gills Neck Road. 

There was a discussion of the need for bicycle and pedestrian connectivity between Henlopen Bluff and downtown. There is a gap with no sidewalk on Gills Neck Road from what would be the north end of the proposed community to Savannah Road.

The planning commission recommended mayor and city council consider an interconnectivity study and all traffic-calming options to provide safe pedestrian and bicycle access to the center of town.

At previous meetings, the city said a sidewalk in that area would be a challenge because of the width of Gills Neck Road and because it would encroach on private property. But supporters said this is the time to find a solution in the name of safety.

“You need to commit to putting that sidewalk in,” said Commissioner Kevin Keane. “It might be a difficult project to do, but it’s the right thing to do. Connect that development.”

Mayor and city council will likely consider the Henlopen Bluff site plan at its meeting Monday, July 8.