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As Dewey Beach heads closer to a decision on the future of Ruddertowne, the potential developer says he never imagined so much controversy would arise over his proposal for the parcel.
Town council is expected to vote at a Friday, July 13 meeting on whether to hold a referendum on plans to ease height restrictions for a proposed condominium /hotel complex. It’s also expected to vote on whether plans should go forward on changing the zoning on the Ruddertowne parcel to a new resort-business-district category.
After a series of contentious public hearings in Dewey, Tom Harvey, owner of Harvey, Hanna and Associates, and attorney Shawn Tucker said they want to dispel rumors about the project and answer questions not addressed during the hearings.
Harvey says he wants to help the town, and he’s been vacationing in Dewey since he was 5 years old. He doesn’t have to build his proposed 68-foot hotel complex, he said, but he is interested in meeting a market that is underserved in Dewey. “I love Dewey,” he said.
“I wish people would back down on the emotion and take a dispassionate look at what this project can do for Dewey Beach and where Dewey Beach is headed in the next 50 years,” he said. Harvey said he’s in for the long haul in town, and he has no intention of flipping the project.
“The whole idea is to provide attractions for families, a market we think is underserved,” Harvey said. Tucker said the complex, which could include condos, shops, restaurants and the existing Light House and Crabbers Cove, would give people a reason to seek out Dewey Beach as a year-round conference center. “People go to Rehoboth for entertainment and to eat and they clog up the roads with traffic. There’s no reason Dewey shouldn’t be getting that business,” he said.
Tucker said he is shocked and amazed that Dewey isn’t welcoming the project because he says the developers are following the comprehensive plan to the letter. “People are attacking us for following the plan and that’s silly. It’s almost counterintuitive to not embrace and encourage a family-driven project not dependent on alcohol and bars,” he said.
As for alleged bribes, pay-offs and fronts, Harvey said he is saddened and angered by rumors. “There has been zero unethical dealings in this project,” he said. For 30 years, he has worked on redevelopment projects in Delaware and done it the right way. “The sum of my experience is that the short road is the long road because if you do things right, and you’re ethical you won’t have to correct mistakes later,” he said.
Jim Baeurle, previously a partner of Highway One LLP, has joined Harvey Hanna and Associates and sold his shares of Highway One, Harvey said. Baeurle will work with the developers on the Ruddertowne project and future developments. “It proves we’re not a front because he wouldn’t leave that partnership if we were working for them,” he said. Harvey said he has known Baeurle and his brother for many years and looks forward to working with him closely on redevelopment projects. “I like him, and he’s one of the most straightforward, honest and hardworking guys I’ve ever met,” he said.
Bauerle said he’s been with Highway One for 18 years and with the Bottle and Cork for 26.
“For the first time last night my wife and I went to the Bottle and Cork and had to buy a ticket and pay for a beer. It was extremely emotional, but as the project continues I realize Tom Harvey’s vision for Dewey is a better one than what Highway One is set to do,” Bauerle said.
The company is launching a website that will provide what Tucker calls accurate, unemotional information at www.saveruddertowne.com.
While a number of residents oppose the 68-foot height and the massive bulk of the proposed complex, Harvey says his condos-run-like-hotels will capitalize on Dewey’s natural beauty – and it’s why the building has to be tall. “I would argue our product is totally different from the others on the market. The view is the draw,” he said. Harvey said he went up to the proposed 68-foot level for the condos while planning the proposal. “It’s just absolutely beautiful and that’s the draw. If I wanted to make this unsuccessful, I would make it 35 feet and give them what they already have,” he said. Harvey said at the height of the top-floor condos, he could see a breathtaking view of the bay and ocean and could see the curvature of the earth on the horizon. That separates his development from others, and makes it feasible to build despite a cool real estate market and condos that already sit empty and for sale in Dewey, he said. Harvey also said he needs to sell those rooms to pay for the town’s wish list, which he has included in the development, such as a parking garage, a bayside boardwalk, public boat slips and public restrooms.
“Is there any room for compromise with this building? Probably so. But it’s not a threat that we’ll take something away if we can’t go tall,” he said.
Tucker said if Dewey allows the building to breech current height restrictions, it does not pave the way for other tall developments.
Delaware state law passed in 1935 says any town can create a different standard in a different zone. Planners included the 80,000-square-foot parcel as a future Resort Business District One in the comprehensive plan.
The state law says the town has the right to stagger zoning codes based on the comprehensive plan and desired commercial activity, “There are 2 ? blocks in town eligible for this. That’s 2 percent of the town,” he said. Tucker said there is no way tall buildings could go on the beach because it is a residential zone.
Some residents have asked for the proposal to go to referendum because they want their say on breeching the 35-foot height restriction.
Harvey and his associates do not want to see the proposal go to referendum. “There have already been five public hearings in the busiest time of the year when people can attend. Why would a developer come in and spend tens of millions of dollars if it all hangs on a referendum?” Tucker asked.
Harvey said it’s a bad precedent for a town to set to require a referendum for a new development. “It’s a bad practice, because it’s never happened in the state and you’ve got a set of rules in place and a code and elected officials and an appointed planning and zoning board,” he said.
Tucker said sending the proposal to referendum would make the zoning process political.
“That’s why you have a comp plan, is to take the politics out of rezoning. It’s supposed to based on sound planning principles,” he said.
The Citizens to Preserve Dewey have started a petition requesting the commissioners to stall a vote until a Sept. 15 referendum shows what residents want. Commissioner Dale Cooke said, “Even though it might not be popular, you can’t run a town by referendum on day-to-day operations.” He said an issue that would change the town’s charter should go to a vote, but a new development should not.
If the proposal goes to referendum, residents may vote based on opinions on the image of the building, their emotions on keeping traditions or the idea of waiving the existing laws, Cooke said.
Some residents say the development would not fit in with the architectural design of Dewey, but Harvey says part of the reason for the architectural style is to make it safer in case of hurricanes. “We used standards that are now used in Florida and would be ideal in an emergency,” he said.
Commissioners will vote on the project at 6 p.m., Friday, June 13, at the Lifesaving Station on Dagsworthy Avenue.
Contact Molly Albertson at mollyalbertson@gmail.com
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