Illegally dumped fill dirt removed from Silver Lake lot
Months after being told to do so by Sussex County, the property owner of a lot on Silver Lake near Rehoboth Beach is following through with removing the fill he dumped on the site without permission.
In early February, neighbors and members of Save Our Lakes Alliance3 brought the issue to the attention of the county after dozens of loads of dirt were dumped on the parcel. A short time later, the county issued a notice of violation to property owner Anthony Crivella for dumping an unknown amount of fill along the southwestern edge of the lake between Rehoboth Beach and Dewey Beach.
In late March, after not hearing from Crivella, Sussex County Planning & Zoning Director Jamie Whitehouse told Crivella that all of the fill must be removed, with the parcel being regraded and restored back to its original condition.
The property sat untouched until June 26, when those same neighbors noticed a Sussex County vehicle on site, monitoring an excavator as it began removing the fill, one bucket at a time.
Steve Rochette, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Philadelphia District spokesman, said the Corps’ regulatory enforcement team has been in touch with the property owner and the county. It’s the Army Corps’ understanding that the fill is being removed in coordination with the county, he said.
Sussex County spokesperson Chip Guy declined to comment on the issue because he said it’s an ongoing investigation.
The county appears to have taken legal action against Crivella, but again, Guy declined to comment on the case or to even disclose what actions have been taken.
Crivella said he feels like he’s being singled out because a study the county is asking for is typically only done for federal projects. He’s trying to come into compliance with the county’s request to remove the fill, he said in an email June 26.
Rick Hardy, SOLA3 treasurer, said he was unaware that anything was going to be happening at the site. He said he’s under the impression the county and the Army Corps are overseeing the fill removal process.
Chris Flood has been working for the Cape Gazette since early 2014. He currently covers Rehoboth Beach and Henlopen Acres, but has also covered Dewey Beach and the state government. He covers environmental stories, business stories and random stories on subjects he finds interesting, and he also writes a column called Choppin’ Wood that runs every other week. He’s a graduate of the University of Maine and the Landing School of Boat Building & Design.
