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Route 24 townhouse project back on the table

Sussex P&Z recommends approval of Burton's Pond Phase 2
May 22, 2017

Story Location:
Sloan Road
Millsboro, DE
United States

A development that was on the books and approved a decade ago is a step closer to moving forward.

Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission voted unanimously May 11 to recommend approval of a conditional-use that would pave the way for 100 townhouses along Route 24 near Long Neck.

Sussex County Council will have the final say on the conditional-use application.

The nearly 31-acre parcel where the townhouses would be built is zoned medium-density-residential, MR-1, and the proposed density of the development – 3.23 units per acre – is within MR-1 limits. The proposed development also falls within the county's environmentally sensitive development overlay zone, but no wetlands or wellhead protection areas are found on the parcel, commissioners said.

Commissioners recommended approval with several conditions, including limiting the project to 100 units, building an entrance on Sloan Road and realigning Sloan Road with the Route 24-Hollymount Road intersection in the first phase of work.

“The project is consistent with existing residential development in the area,” said Commissioner R. Keller Hopkins as he read from a prepared motion to recommend approval.

The proposed development would have 19 acres of preserved open space, which commissioners said is more open space than would be saved with a grid-style subdivision in MR-1 zoning.

The developer also must work with the local school district to establish a school bus stop within the community, participate in the Burton’s Pond Communities Homeowners Association and comply with all other state and local regulations. Construction activities and deliveries will be limited to 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays.

During the commission’s April 7 public hearing, project engineers said a 30-foot vegetated buffer is planned for the perimeter of the property bordering the Pinewater Woods and Brandywood communities, while a 20-foot vegetated buffer will be added along Route 24 and Sloan Road.

In January, the commission approved a major subdivision for the same developer, Burton’s Pond LLC, across Route 24. That project calls for 265 single-family lots on 159 acres of agricultural-residential, AR-1, land at the intersection of Route 24 and Hollymount Road.

County council will have a public hearing on the application at 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 13, in the county administration building, 2 The Circle, Georgetown. If approved, the developer must submit a revised preliminary site plan for Burton's Pond Phase 2, and a final site plan would be subject to planning and zoning review and approval.

To read the full motion, click on the attachment “Motion to recommend approval of Burton's Pond.”

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