Lewes Dairy property owner seeks rezoning

The former home of Lewes Dairy may soon be the site of new homes. 

Applicant RJL Associates of Round Hill, Va., is seeking to rezone the 2.73-acre Pilottown Road parcel from industrial to R-2, low-density residential. The request received unanimous support from the Lewes Planning Commission at its April 21 meeting and will soon go before mayor and city council. 

According to county records, the property was sold for $3.5 million on April 2. 

Janelle Cornwell, the city’s planning and development officer, estimates the applicant could create fewer than a dozen single-family residential lots with the minimum lot size of 10,000 square feet. No plans were submitted with the rezoning application. The property is surrounded by several different zonings, including community facilities for the University of Delaware, a cemetery, open space along the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal, and neighboring R-2 parcels. 

Lewes Dairy merged with Hy-Point Dairy of Wilmington in 2013. In 2017, Millsboro Town Council approved a new distribution facility for the dairy’s downstate operations and active use of the Lewes building ceased shortly after. 

Planning Commission Chairman Drew McKay applauded the applicant for choosing an appropriate zoning for the site.

“This is an excellent change,” he said. “I think this is a good use and will be a well-deserved addition to the city for which there is demand in that area for residential property.”