Deep Valley Farm plan retains link to agricultural heritage

It took five years, but plans for Deep Valley Farm, a 185-unit housing development on 88 acres on both sides of Beaver Dam Road near Lewes, finally reached the public hearing stage.

Work on the project started in 2004, and state planners have reviewed it three times.

On June 25, county planning and zoning commissioners deferred action on the applicant’s subdivision request. No one from the public spoke during the public hearing.

Heidi Balliet, attorney representing developer Cedar Creek Properties LLC (Paul G. Carey) said the landowners, William D. Graves and Frances Graves Trust, have kept the land in the family since 1943.

The original name of the farm was Deep Valley Farm. She said the development would contain single-family homes at two units to an acre.

“There will also be ag features as a link to the past in the new community,” she said.

Mark Davidson, engineer with Design Consultants Group LLC in Milton, said those ag features would include strategically placed silos, extensive landscaping and a clubhouse designed to look like a barn.

Planned as the focal point is a boulevard linking both sides of the development, as well as providing a link between Beaver Dam Road and Route 9. Davidson said the boulevard would contain two traffic circles and meander around two stormwater retention ponds as traffic calming measures.

“We want to keep this from being a major traffic thoroughfare. We know the public is going to us it, but this is a private road,” Davidson said.

Davidson said 147 houses would be located on 68 acres on the north side of Beaver Dam Road and 38 houses would be located on another 20 acres on the south side of the road.

Deep Valley Farm would contain nearly five miles of sidewalks and another two miles of walking trails, as well as nearly two miles of bike/pedestrian trails along Route 9 and Beaver Dam Road.

He said the latest in green technology would be utilized for stormwater management in the community.

“The theme will be to keep it natural with lots of landscaping,” he said.

The development would hook into the county sewer system, and Tidewater Utilities would provide water.

Although not much time was spent discussing it, there are major plans in the design stages for the roads in the area of the development.

Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) wants to change traffic patterns and relocate Route 9 to a new four-lane Route 9, which is currently Beaver Dam Road.