Residential end of Cultured Pearl building rezoned commercial
Rehoboth Beach commissioners unanimously approved a request to rezone to commercial the residential-zoned portion of the Cultured Pearl property that faces Sussex Street during a meeting Dec. 19.
The building is located on a triangular lot downtown, where Lake Avenue and Fourth Street meet on the north side of Rehoboth Avenue. The north end of the building has an address of 60 Sussex St. For decades, Dennard and Charlotte Quillen owned and operated Quillen’s Hardware in the building. In 2006, the city rezoned Sussex Street from commercial to residential. The hardware store moved in early 2008, and the Cultured Pearl took over soon after.
Attorney Vince Robertson represented the family during a public hearing conducted before the vote. A memorandum of understanding between the Quillen family and the city was executed when Sussex Street was rezoned from commercial to residential, said Robertson.
This request is a minor corrective action, said Robertson, adding the rezoning would effectively extinguish the need for the MOU.
Robertson said the rezoning wouldn’t be precedent-setting for other Sussex Street properties. This property was commercial before the street was rezoned, and it continues to be, he said.
“Nobody else on the street has that claim to make,” said Robertson.
As part of his presentation, Robertson included a lease agreement between the Quillens and Cultured Pearl restaurant owner Susan Wood that goes until 2043. There are no plans to change anything with the Cultured Pearl, he said.
Denny Quillen, the son of Dennard and Charlotte, who now co-owns the property with his brother Chris, spoke briefly. He said they were seeking to clean things up and make the property more manageable.
“We have no intention or interest in changing usage of the property,” said Quillen. “We’ve had a long and enjoyable working relationship with Susan Wood and the Cultured Pearl team, and we feel that under her management, that business has been a real asset to the community.”
Commissioner approval was the end of a multi-step process. The planning commission recommended rezoning this past summer, and the request also got a favorable recommendation from the Office of State Planning Coordination because it requires a change to the city’s future land-use map.
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.
