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Dewey Grotto Pizza approval up for vote Sept. 16

Planners also recommend rezoning application for adjacent former parking lot
September 14, 2022

Story Location:
1509 Coastal Highway
Dewey Beach, DE 19971
United States

With the recommendation of the planning and zoning commission secured, a new Grotto Pizza in Dewey Beach is set for possible approval at the Friday, Sept. 16 commissioners meeting.

Grotto Pizza attorney Stephen Spence said there will be no outside service at the proposed restaurant, which is planned to have 2,147 square feet of patron space and operate daily from 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Some windows will open up garage-door style, and others will roll back to provide an open-air look, he said; these will be closed by 11 p.m. 

The new restaurant will be code-compliant and there will not be a take-out window, Spence said; patrons will enter the restaurant to pick up to-go orders. Conditions applied include directing interior speakers internally, and the outside of the property will be cleaned twice a day.

Town commissioners had voted unanimously Aug. 19 to refer to the planning and zoning commission the conditional-use permit and application; commissioners will vote on the application Sept. 16.

On Aug. 19, Spence said Grotto Pizza hopes to open the restaurant in the spring of 2023 and that the current restaurant would be demolished.

Gosnear rezoning

Planners also recommended approval of a related application to rezone 106 Read Ave., the former Grotto parking lot that was purchased by Jeffrey and Lily Gosnear, from business to residential.

Assistant Town Manager Jim Dedes said he sent information on the rezoning request, which would also require an amendment of the comprehensive plan map, to the Preliminary Land Use Service. PLUS recommended approving the request at an Aug. 24 hearing, Dedes said.

Town hall, which neighbors the property, is in support as well, Dedes said. Businesses that do not front the highway are typically not successful, he said. 

A proposed ordinance to rezone the tax map parcel from business to residential and to amend the comprehensive map accordingly is also set for a possible vote Sept. 16.

 

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