Rehoboth board votes against sale of park land

Despite an offer of $540,000 for an area of land roughly the size of a tennis court, Rehoboth Beach commissioners unanimously voted against the sale of Lake Gerar park land near the dead-end stub of Virginia Avenue.

Earlier this year, city staff was approached by the property owner, who is looking to make their Virginia Avenue property a conforming 5,000-square-foot lot. Following an executive session during a meeting in July, commissioners set a public hearing for their Aug. 15 meeting.

The lot sits on the northwest corner of Virginia Avenue and North First Street. The backyard of the property runs along the lake. The property has three houses on it, identified as Units A, B and C, and they are considered legal nonconforming. Each house has a different owner, but the land is owned by an LLC called Waterside Properties.

City code requires lots to be at least 5,000 square feet. The additional 1,463 square feet of land would have allow the property to be subdivided into three lots that conform to city code  – Unit A would be 5,001 square feet, Unit B would be 5,005 square feet and Unit C is already at least 5,000 square feet – and then pave the way for redevelopment.

As part of the due diligence process, the city hired a consultant to conduct an appraisal of the land, which came back at $530,000. The $2,250 appraisal was covered by the homeowner.

City Arborist Mike Lilly also conducted an evaluation of the existing vegetation. His report came back saying there were a few trees on or near the property that would likely be affected by redevelopment, and that the hillside was full of Japanese knotweed and Virginia creeper that didn’t provide any ecological value.

House owner John Kaden and his attorney Veronica Faust made their pitch to commissioners. In addition to the money, which they said could be put toward other city infrastructure projects, Kaden said power lines connecting to his house would be put underground, eliminating an unsightly utility pole. Also, he said, he would install as many dry wells as the city would allow him to help alleviate flooding along the front and rear of the property.

Beyond the immediate structural benefits to the city, said Kaden, who has owned the house for decades, no one ever uses the land because it's overgrown with invasive plants.

The majority of public comment, via letters submitted and in person, was against the land sale. Those against ranged from nearby neighbors to people who said they did walk along that area of the lake, and they enjoyed the visual appeal of the vegetation.

Bitsy Cochran, who lives on Olive Avenue, said if the city sells one inch of park land, there will be others coming for more immediately. 

“Our park land is the only valuable thing in this town right now to me. We need to keep every square inch of park land for the people and for the town. We have enough building going on,” said Cochran.  

Mary Ellen Fry, a Munson Street resident, said the commissioners should vote in favor of the sale because she’s sympathetic to a fellow property owner who has been dealing with many of the same water management issues she’s dealt with over the years. There’s a homeowner who is trying to correct issues on their property, she said.

Ultimately, commissioners didn’t have any interest in selling the property.

Commissioner Edward Chrzanowski said if there was ever a case for selling a small section of park land, this specific request would fit. However, he said, it’s a slippery slope.