25 homes in Lewes have new addresses, none have moved

Up until a few weeks ago, the homes along Cape Henlopen Drive were numbered consecutively, beginning at 6. According to residents, the addresses had been like this for at least 80 years. While straying from the traditional odd/even rotation, the arrangement made sense because there were not many homes built on the other side of Cape Henlopen Drive. The road started out as every other did, alternating odd/even on either side of the street, but ended bay side addresses of Cape Henlopen Drive at 5.

Then came Debraak Preserve, a cluster of nine homes, four of which had Cape Henlopen Drive addresses and five with Debraak Preserve addresses. Two of the Cape Henlopen addresses were duplicates with an A following the number, and there is not a road called Debraak Preserve. The homes were approved around 2007 and built shortly thereafter, which is when, according to City Manager Ann Marie Townshend, the confusion began. Townshend said that in talks with Chief of Police Thomas Spell, there were concerns about the location of the peculiar addresses because a road called Debraak Preserve does not exist. Following conversations with Sussex County’s 911 and Emergency Operations Center, Townshend believed the best thing to do was to correct the addresses to accurately reflect the street each property is actually on. She also admits the process could’ve been handled better.

“I fully acknowledge that we erred in how we implemented the address changes. I take responsibility for that, and I am committed to working through the issues with residents,” she said. “To that end, I have made multiple visits to the [U.S. Postal Service] annex at the Rehoboth Mall to address issues with mail. We have installed ‘old address/new address’ signs on all properties. I have reached out to Comcast, FedEx, UPS and the Cape Henlopen School District to make sure the transition goes as smoothly as possible for services with these service providers.” 

Residents were notified of the changes through a certified letter dated Aug. 15. Maureen and Leo Eschbach were told that their 20 Cape Henlopen Drive was now 28 Cape Henlopen Drive, effective immediately. Maureen said she reached out to Mayor Andrew Williams and other council members to ask about the changes, but she was told they were unaware. With children in Cape Henlopen School District, accounts linked to the address, and business packages being sent to their home, the Eschbachs were confused and felt dismissed. 

“It’s surprising to me at least to find out that the city [manager] was able to do all this without alerting us or even letting town council know what was happening,” Maureen said.

Townshend said she has made efforts to reconcile the situation with the postal service and Comcast to avoid delays and service interruptions; however, Leo said Comcast cannot change the service address to a non-serviceable address. Customers are able to update the billing information to the new address, but not service. Townshend was also told by USPS that miscommunication on deliveries could occur as a result of drivers adjusting to new addresses – some who are new to the area themselves. The Eschbachs said for one package in particular, they had to pay for shipping three separate times because it was sent to be signed for at 28 Cape Henlopen Drive, which is their new address, but the old address of a vacation rental. Townshend said about seven of the 25 homes have full-time residents.

According to Maureen, one of the earliest signs of trouble was on the first day of school, when the school bus drove past their children and a neighbor’s child. The Eschbachs say they informed Cape Henlopen School District of the address change, but due in large part to the stringent residency requirements the school system has, the Eshbachs were told they needed to produce a bill to verify their new address. The Lewes Board of Public Works reportedly told the Eschbachs they need to wait until the middle of the month to receive their bill, which is still within the alleged grace period, but a few bus trips away from arriving in the mail.

What’s unique about the Eschbachs’ situation is that Maureen is the owner of Aquamarine. Hoping to avoid further confusion, she began having her business packages sent to their old 20 Cape Henlopen Drive address. Specializing in women’s clothing, shoes and accessories, the Eschbachs said they have packages coming in from around the world, already en route and labeled with the 20 Cape Henlopen Drive address. In order to avoid missing packages, the couple has begun asking their neighbors if they have received deliveries or mail intended for the Eschbachs. 

Maureen wishes the city would have communicated better with residents.

“I think that they could maybe have had a meeting about it … they could have solved it a different way. You could have a workshop about it with different ideas,” Maureen said.

Leo said he feels he and Maureen did exactly what they were supposed to do when they were informed of the decision. While they were confused, both understood they couldn’t change it and needed to contact their financial services, utility companies, DMV and other entities. Leo said the most difficult part of the process has been proving that they have a change of address without physically moving.

“When you go to explain this, usually, you can take a picture and say, here's the old house and here's the new house. [Now] you show them, this is the old house and it's the same house; my insurance companies are confused,” Leo said.

The city installed signs indicating new addresses and old addresses two weeks after the address change letters were sent out. Townshend said she is working with service and delivery providers to rectify the immediate situation and has apologized for the inconvenience. Meanwhile, the Eschbachs are waiting to officially transfer their Comcast service address and their Cape Henlopen School District address, and worry there could be further confusion before all necessary parties apply their correct address.