The Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission has closed the public record on the proposed Stillwater Harbor subdivision near Oak Orchard. But before they did, they received a detailed report from assistant county attorney Vince Robertson on an easement for the use of Draine Lane during a June 8 meeting.

Under a proposed condition, the Stillwater Harbor HOA, and Indian River Volunteer Fire Company and other first responders would be the only entities allowed to use the gated access. The fire company had requested an alternative access to the community in case of flooding on River Road, the main access road to the proposed subdivision. River Road is prone to flooding during extreme high tides and storms.

Draine Lane is a dirt road used by several residents as a connection to Chiefs Road.

The 50-foot easement, dating back to 1995, is for the benefit of property owners who live on the lane, but it does not include the Stillwater Harbor property, Robertson said.

The attorney said easements can be complicated as he explained the terms of the easement to commissioners.

He said the commission must determine several issues, including how frequently the emergency access would be used, who would use it and the question whether a change of use of the lane would be a necessity for the property owners.

Commissioners will have to determine whether a development such as Stillwater Harbor would be permitted to use the lane as a pass-through access.

“And would an expansion of use cause damage to other properties?” the attorney added.

During a May 11 public hearing, Draine Lane residents opposed the plan for an access road.

The commission will have 45 days to make a decision on the subdivision application.

Stillwater Harbor plans

The subdivision plan includes 123 single-family home lots on a 57-acre parcel on the north side of River Road near the Chiefs Road intersection. The property is in close proximity to Indian River Bay, separated by River Road and a line of houses with water access. The parcel is zoned GR, general residential, and MR, medium-density residential. The majority of the parcel is woodlands.

The plan includes a 100-foot buffer along two acres of tidal wetlands and a 30-foot buffer along three acres of nontidal wetlands along the western edge of the property. There would also be a 30-foot buffer along farmland adjacent to the property and a 20-foot buffer along residential areas.

All lots would be clustered toward the center of the property to preserve the wetland areas.

The property contains 54 acres of woods. In the plan, 42 acres of woods would be removed during construction, with 12 acres of woods being preserved. Ten acres of existing forest would be preserved, with nearly two acres of restored woodlands.

The plan includes 26 acres of interconnected open space, or 47% of the parcel's total acreage. Amenities would include a pool, bathhouse, sidewalks on both sides of interior streets and a wood-chip trail to a wooded area on the western edge of the parcel.

The development team said while flooding would still occur on River Road, Stillwater Harbor's proposed stormwater management would lessen the impact in the immediate area with four stormwater retention ponds, which would help regulate water runoff to the Chiefs Road area.