Milton Town Council has set a public hearing for 6:30 p.m., Monday, June 1, on whether to annex 5 acres at the corner of Harbeson and Shingle Point roads.

The annexation, brought by Scarlet Oaks Holdings LLC, would be part of a series of developments along Shingle Point Road up to Harbeson Road. The property is planned for a commercial venture that would be adjacent to the planned Scarlet Oaks residential development and would connect to both Scarlet Oaks and its neighboring developments, Carey Farm and Four Winds.

In addition to setting the public hearing at its May 4 meeting, council unanimously accepted an advisory report from the planning and zoning commission in which the commission recommended moving forward with the annexation. 

The planned commercial venture would include a proposed mixed-use building with a restaurant, a greenhouse market, a beer garden, a pond and gazebo, and an outdoor area that could be used as an amphitheater or farmers market. Scarlet Oaks Holdings LLC has proposed a C-1 commercial zoning designation for the property. 

Meanwhile, Scarlet Oaks is moving forward with the proposed 163-unit residential portion of the development. The planning and zoning commission held its first meeting on the preliminary site plan for the property and elected to table discussion and leave the record open to allow council to weigh in.

The proposed Scarlet Oaks development would comprise single-family attached and detached homes, and also have a clubhouse and recreation area with walking paths through the community, which would be zoned R-1 residential with a large-parcel development overlay.

During the discussion May 4, Eric Wahl, engineer for Scarlet Oaks, said the development would have 28-foot-wide streets with continuous sidewalks throughout. He said the goal of the street plan is for short internal trips and walkability. Wahl said there would be 624 trees in the development with 7 acres of tree canopy coverage.

For council, the two main concerns were traffic flow and trees. 

Councilman Robert Gray questioned whether additional traffic studies would be needed as the development is anticipated to add 1,000 more daily car trips on Shingle Point Road, doubling the current amount. 

Councilman Perry Higgs raised concerns about the crosswalk that would connect the development across Harbeson Road to Mariner Middle School. Wahl said the plan is to have flashing warning lights at those crosswalks similar to ones in Lewes on Savannah Road at the trail near Lewes Brewing Company. 

Councilman Scotty Edler said he’d like to see a plan that doesn’t take out 50% of the trees on the site. Wahl said while the trees are important, the wooded areas at the Scarlet Oaks property contain a lot of invasive species. 

Edler said, “Not to be like 'back in my day,' but I remember a time when all these back roads were covered in forests. Now, they’re all covered in developments. At a certain point, there’s going to be a tipping point. I’m not saying we don’t build housing developments and shopping centers, and I agree, not all forests are created equal, but at the same time, we really have to take under consideration that mature trees are much better for the environment than planting a tree straight from the nursery.”

The Scarlet Oaks residential component is to be built on a 50-acre parcel that was annexed into Milton in December 2023 and was affirmed by referendum in February 2024.