My wife and I are writing to express our opposition to the Love Creek RV resort rezoning. We are year-round residents of The Retreat at Love Creek and have been avid campers and RVers for many years. We have made friendships and memories in RV campgrounds that will last us a lifetime. We are not against RVs and RV parks, we just believe that the one proposed along Love Creek would be in the wrong place.
The comprehensive plan has zoned this parcel GR Residential, and we believe that the zoning is correct for the area. This site is surrounded by residential areas that are currently built, and many that are approved and not yet built. This would be the first RV park in the area built in a residential area. Traditionally RV parks are located in rural or sparsely populated areas. This is how area RV parks like Holly Lakes, Big Oak, and Sea Air started out, with fields and forest surrounding their locations over 40 years ago. Subdivisions then grew up around them. We agree with the current zoning.
Although the developers’ proposal claimed there is a lack of available RV sites in the area, we gathered our own information from the web, brochures, site visits and interviews with representatives of 18 RV parks in a 20-mile radius. Our best estimate is that there are over 5,000 available RV sites with more than half available. We asked if the campgrounds had available spaces, and only one park indicated that they were full, Smith’s Landing. All the others have plenty of space.
There is a direct correlation between the parks that fill up first and their location near deep water marinas for launching boats and water sports. The Love Creek site does not have this amenity, and it is questionable that even a kayak could be launched from a dock there on a regular basis. There would be a greater need for this park to be built where a marina could be added. It was also noted during our survey that almost all of the campgrounds have their location right off a main road. The Love Creek resort would be the only one to require long distances on local roads.
So we ask you to reject Lingo Asset Management’s zoning and land-use changes for an RV campground that will be located within a few miles of two other campgrounds that have plenty of available spaces, and on a sensitive area creek which cannot support a marina or deep water access. Your decisions today will be with us forever and leaves an opening for more of the same at the Love Creek site in the future. The costs are going to be high for Sussex County and the burden of taxes will be laid at our feet. I ask you to vote against amending the rezoning and against conditional use of land for the Love Creek RV Resort and Campground.
Dennis and Mary Fisher
Lewes
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