The Rehoboth Beach Board of Adjustment unanimously approved a variance that allows the Greene Turtle restaurant to exceed the 5,000-square-foot limitation on restaurants serving alcohol.
The Greene Turtle plans to move into the second floor of the old Sunview Motel at the corner of the Boardwalk and Wilmington Avenue, which has been vacant for several years.
The restaurant is expected to cover more than 7,600 square feet, with interior dining space, an outdoor balcony and two staircases leading from the first floor.
The dining area alone is 5,880 square feet.
Chris Widdowson of Becker Morgan Group said plans call for green initiatives such as solar power and environmentally conscious finishes.
Widdowson said the restaurant would also use window walls that open to provide a better view of the ocean and Boardwalk.
Two entrances are planned on the Boardwalk and on Wilmington Avenue.
Co-owner Robert Frankis said the Greene Turtle would be a family-friendly restaurant. Frankis, who owns Playland arcade with three other partners, said the Greene Turtle would tie in with Playland under a different name to make it a family experience.
He did not say what the name would be or elaborate on any future plans. Frankis said he expected the Greene Turtle to be active in the community.
The proposed Greene Turtle is a franchise location, as opposed to the one in Villages at Five Points, which is a corporately owned entity.
Widdowson said, “It’s actually a very complicated project to take an existing building like this and to be able to put a functioning kitchen in there, the elevator, the lobbies, the two means of egress and all the while maintaining views to the ocean, to the North Boardwalk.
“It’s by no means an easy project.”
Board member Willis Sargent said, “I would be very, very comfortable with their doing this. I think it’s an exciting use of a wonderful piece of property right along the Boardwalk.”
Sargent cited other examples of the board granting variances for restaurants of more than 5,000 square feet, such as Nicola Pizza and The Cultured Pearl. Chairman Thomas Evans said all three of these restaurants stood on their own merits as unique circumstances.
Board member Clif Hilderley said the code limiting the size of commercial properties is arbitrary, confusing, inconsistent and “dumb and stupid.” He said what Greene Turtle was asking for was reasonable under the circumstances.
Board member Paul Flexer said, “This section of the code handicaps anyone that wants to build on the second floor.”
The next step in making the Greene Turtle in Rehoboth a reality is to get a permit of compliance from the city commissioners.
A permit hearing has been scheduled for the next regular commissioners’ meeting, Monday, Dec. 15.
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