Jeremiah's Beach Party suit against Dewey dismissed

A lawsuit filed by Jeremiah’s Beach Party owner Jason Fruchtman against Dewey Beach that was nearing the five-year mark has been dismissed.

In accordance with the agreement of the parties the matter is hereby dismissed, wrote Marcia M. Waldron, a Third Circuit Court of Appeals clerk, in an order issued Aug. 20.

Fruchtman said in an email Aug. 27 that it feels great to have the issue resolved, adding, he can now concentrate on making Jeremiah’s, and the town, better every day.

“I never set out to get anything,” he said. “Time will tell if town codes are equally enforced. I'm confident they will be.”

Diane Hanson, Dewey Beach mayor, echoed Fruchtman's sentiment. She said she had been involved from the very beginning, and she's relieved the issue was finally resolved.

"We've gone through at least four town managers during this thing," she said.

The business, and its can’t-miss display covering the first level of a three-story, bright yellow building, is on the bayside corner of Dagsworthy Avenue and Route 1.

Fruchtman filed the suit in December 2010 after town officials amended the building code in 2008 in an effort to limit seasonal merchandise displays on commercial buildings.

The amendment said displays can be no taller than 12 feet or higher than the first floor of a building, and that the displays may cover no more than 30 percent of the outside frontage of the building on Route 1 or 500 square feet, whichever is less.

Fruchtman argued the ordinance was too vague and that his store was unfairly targeted because of concerns voiced by other store owners. He argued that his free speech rights were being violated.

When a U.S. District Court judge ruled against him in July 2014, Fruchtman appealed to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia.

The town has not enforced the ordinance in years because of the lawsuit but took action toward resolving the issue in the spring. After the planning commission gave its blessing, town council voted 4-1 in favor of two significant changes to the ordinance in June.

The first change maintains the 12-foot height limit on displays, but no longer regulates how displays are attached to the building.

Jeremiah’s benefits because many displays are hung from rope strung around the base of a railing on the second floor of the building. Originally the rope was considered part of the display.

A second change allows businesses on corner lots to have displays on two sides. Under the original ordinance, and despite having two street-facing sides because of its location, the town tried to limit Jeremiah’s display to the Route 1 side.

Hanson said moving forward, the challenge will be to now enforce the sign ordinance. She said she would like to meet with the business community to make sure everyone is on the same page.