I have always believed a developer should not be on the Lewes Historic Preservation and Architectural Review Commission. It seems common sense would dictate that a career in tearing down would be mutually exclusive to preserving. Also, with all due respect for the other rankling commissioners, this commissioner’s emotional dissent and recitation of his family history appear to be the primary reason for HPARC’S denial of the net reel’s current location. Now, as a builder, Randy Burton is just finding fault with the restriction on height because of what he wants to do. Sadly, all those previous petitioners remodeling or building before him who lived on a slight incline within flat Delaware had to follow the height rules, including myself. Mr. Burton, I want to build an addition over my grandfathered boundaries. Please, can you work on a house with that restriction?
Another thorn in my side is that I believe I am correct when a builder can declare an area open space and, therefore, not be bound by the setback rules. Just walk by Mariner’s Retreat. I do know that twice the power to the neighboring Friendship Baptist Church was cut during the summer and the air conditioning failed during service. Like an airport, the church was there first.
Can you call this variance self-dealing? However, the outrage should be as palpable for an insider tailoring the rules to fix his problems, as was the net reel attacked for supposedly not following the rules. I think this is an example where HPARC does not function as an independent committee but more like a fiefdom.
Finally, I am glad that HPARC is finally looking at demolitions, an opinion I voiced earlier. In the interim, we have probably lost two historic houses that were located in the old African American neighborhood. I do not know if the houses’ interiors warranted saving, but certainly those houses deserved a second look before accelerating the gentrification.
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