Nalu expansion will worsen noise problem

Having owned property in Dewey for 52-plus years, our involvement in Dewey Beach affairs has varied over the years. But recently we have been doing a pretty good job of remaining in the background on some of the actions taken by the town government, most of which we agree with. However, we have to break our silence after reading the article in the May 31 Cape Gazette about the proposed expansion of the Nalu restaurant/bar. In the article, it mentioned there was only one neighbor who has complained about the noise level emanating from Nalu. Perhaps ourselves and all the other neighbors (owners and vacationers) on the street who constantly verbally complain about the noise should make their feelings more publicly known. We believe it is a sign of the times: People are afraid of publicly voicing their complaints for fear of some form of retaliation or retribution. A quick survey of the people departing their vacation at the Surf Shanty motel will tell a very different story.

You can certainly add our names to the list of neighbors who are perturbed by the intrusion into our peace and tranquility by the excessive noise from Nalu. No longer can you sit on your own screened-in porch/deck and talk without having to listen to somebody else’s choice of music. I am not going to list the negative impacts this has on the surrounding neighbors and businesses, because we are sure you have heard them already. But I believe an absolute required essential step in this decision-making process is an unannounced stroll up and down the streets of Van Dyke and Dickinson by all of the decision-makers at 10 p.m. on a Friday or Saturday night. If after this stroll everybody still thinks they wouldn’t mind spending an extended family vacation in the area, then so be it. The point is that there is already existing excessive noise, and this expansion proposal will just exacerbate the problem. One of the arguments will be the the noise source will be enclosed. An enclosed noise source has no impact when the floor-to-ceiling sliding doors remain open. From the drawing, it appears that with the sliding doors open, this expansion will be nothing more than an addition to the already existing outdoor patio, but half will now be just covered.

After this unannounced tour, my guess is that all the decision-makers will retreat back to their respective ivy towers and say something like the owners/vacationers should not have purchased/rented a location so near the noise source, but when you think about it, the noise source moved into the space, not vice versa.

We are looking forward to see if the new administration is on the side of creating and maintaining a family-like environment or following the steps of previous administrations to create a Cancun spring break or a Woodstock-wanna-be-like environment.