Fins in Rehoboth set to expand
Fins Fish House and Raw Bar in Rehoboth Beach is set for a large-scale renovation after it was unanimously granted a variance by the city’s board of adjustment.
A remodel of the 243 Rehoboth Ave. restaurant’s interior will include increased seating, a new kitchen, a new elevator, enlarged bathrooms, converting an upstairs apartment to an office and storage.
Fins owner Jeff Hamer said the renovation could take place this winter, closing the restaurant for three months. The restaurant has six months to submit building plans, and Hamer said if plans come together quickly, the renovations could start this year.
At the board’s Aug. 22 meeting, Hamer said the renovations would push Fins’ size to 6,969 square feet. Fins needed the variance because as a legally nonconforming restaurant - it was originally Sir Guy’s, built in 1990 prior to the current zoning code - substantial floor-plan changes require bringing the building up to code.
Hamer said the elevator and bathroom upgrades will make the restaurant more handicap-accessible, and will update a building that has become outdated. He said the changes will shrink the overall bar area while increasing the number of restaurant seats. Overall, Hamer said, the number of seats would increase from 114 to 187; the first-floor seating would expand from 26 to 43.
Hamer said Fins could not install handicapped-friendly features or new storage or kitchen space without completely tearing up the building.
Board member Linda Kauffman said while she liked the restaurant’s commitment to complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act, she had reservations due to the expansion of the number of seats and because an ordinance changing the size limitations of restaurants is under consideration by the city commissioners.
Hamer said the expansion of seating was necessary in order to pay for the renovations. The board decided it could live with the additional seats because the total seated dining area would be 2,900 square feet, in line with what the city commissioners have discussed as potential new size limits.
