Lewes council approves Overfall Preserve development
Lewes Mayor and City Council unanimously approved the preliminary site plan for the Overfall Preserve development, while accepting the applicant’s proffer to pay for a Delaware Department of Transportation traffic study to address safety concerns.
The vote came during a public workshop and special meeting held April 24.
Overfall Preserve will be a 90-townhome community at 1147 Savannah Road, on what was formerly known as the Warrington property.
The development will share an entrance with the neighboring Dutchman’s Harvest workforce housing community.
Council is counting on the DelDOT study, called a traffic operational analysis, to address concerns raised by the Lewes Planning Commission.
One concern is how traffic will get in and out of Overfall Preserve from Savannah Road.
The LPC raised the possibility of adding dedicated left- and right-turn lanes to the access road.
The study might also look at future connectivity between Savannah Road and Kings Highway.
Right now, the only way drivers will be able to get between the two main thoroughfares will be to cut through the Dutchman’s Harvest and Lodge at Historic Lewes parking lots.
The LPC had raised concerns over traffic driving though parking lots used by families and senior citizens.
Preston Schell, developer of both of those properties, has agreed to allow the the cut-through.
The Historic Lewes Byway Committee and others have favored a new road to directly connect Savannah Road and Kings Highway.
The applicant said they will abide by any DelDOT requirements that come from the study.
Council’s approval included most of the 25 conditions attached to the site plan by the Lewes Planning Commission.
The site plan was revised to eliminate a stub road that would have been built at the property line of the adjacent Plummer property.
The Plummer family has made it clear that they will never sell their land, nor allow any connector road through their property to connect to Kings Highway.
The location of the stub road will not be paved, nor will sidewalks be built. It is expected to remain as turf.
Council deleted the LPC condition that called for a sign at the end of the stub road stating that there might be future street interconnectivity.
After the vote, George Plummer said he was satisfied with council’s action.
Carol Garner, current owner of the Warrington property, also said she was happy with the outcome.
The mayor and four council members all praised the developer for listening to the LPC and the community.
“I’m hopeful in the end that everyone will feel like they had a voice. The proffer of a TOA is not something you would typically get from an applicant like that. I think the applicant has operated in very good faith over the last few months,” said Deputy Mayor Khalil Saliba.
The final site plan is subject to review and approval by city planning staff.
Bill Shull has been covering Lewes for the Cape Gazette since 2023. He comes to the world of print journalism after 40 years in TV news. Bill has worked in his hometown of Philadelphia, as well as Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He came to Lewes in 2014 to help launch WRDE-TV. Bill served as WRDE’s news director for more than eight years, working in Lewes and Milton. He is a 1986 graduate of Penn State University. Bill is an avid aviation and wildlife photographer, and a big Penn State football, Phillies and PGA Tour golf fan. Bill, his wife Jill and their rescue cat, Lucky, live in Rehoboth Beach.
