Plan Fell Short of Zoning Standards
THE NEWS JOURNAL • AUGUST 1, 2009
Dewey Beach—The Dewey Beach Board of Adjustment acted properly when it denied a building permit for 62 town houses at the Ruddertowne complex off Rehoboth Bay, a Sussex County Superior Court judge has ruled.Superior Court Judge Bradley’s Decision Issued July 30, 2009 »
Dewey Beach Enterprises Inc., owners of the 2.36 acre property, had sought to have the board ruling overturned.
But Superior Court Judge E. Scott Bradley on Thursday found that town officials — based on a recommendation by former town attorney John Brady — acted properly when they rejected the permit. The town, Bradley wrote, requires 3,600 square feet of lot area for every residential dwelling unit in a resort business district. The Ruddertowne site is zoned Resort Business and at 2.6 acres, that would work out to an allowance of about 28 residential units on the site.
The developers had proposed 62 second- and third-floor homes, a basement-level parking garage and a commercial area, that included the Ruddertowne building and the Lighthouse restaurant, decks and more parking, on the first floor.
Bradley rejected claims by the developer that only the municipal building inspector could issue or reject the permit — saying that the issue was moot because the site plan didn’t comply with the Dewey Beach Zoning Code.
Two other lawsuits are pending over the Ruddertowne property: one in Chancery Court that challenges the adoption by town officials of a new zoning code and a second suit, filed in mid-July in U.S. District Court, which alleged that town officials delayed, stalled and obstructed the developers as they attempted to move ahead with their redevelopment plans for the Ruddertowne property.