River Oaks development questions interconnection requirement
The developer of the River Oaks subdivision in Harbeson is asking Sussex County whether it has to create interconnections with neighboring developments that were included in the approved plans.
The county planning & zoning commission heard an explanation of the situation from Lauren Cecchine, a county planner, at its Jan. 21 meeting.
“Prior to making a director’s determination, the department requests that the commission discuss whether interconnectivity is a requirement, as it is reflected on the latest approved record plan, which would constitute the legally enforceable document of record,” Ceccine said.
“This discussion will provide the department with further clarity and help guide the determination regarding the application of interconnectivity provisions for future approved subdivisions,” she added.
Jamie Whitehouse, director of the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Department, said after the developer requested a determination from the P&Z commission, it asked for a delay to present information to his department.
Whitehouse said Jan. 23 that interconnectivity must be constructed in accordance with approved plans for the development, which is at the southwest corner of Hollymount and Phillips Branch roads.
“When a subdivision is approved with interconnectivity, it is the county’s expectation that the interconnectivity is constructed,” he said.
The River Oaks site has been cleared, but as of Jan. 23, no construction of houses had begun. Large construction equipment was on the property.
Plans for the 85 single-family homes were approved in June 2007. The plans included connection to the adjacent Riverwood subdivision to the south by a 50-foot-wide private road known as Sea Spray Court, Cecchine said. The first house in Riverwood is under construction.
Submitted engineering plans for River Oaks do not show the pavement extending to the property line, Ceccine said. The latest available aerial imagery from March 2025 shows the interconnectivity does not exist, she said. Riverwood’s plans also show the interconnectivity is planned, Ceccine said.
Commissioner G. Scott Collins said if the interconnectivity was approved, it should be completed.
County subdivision regulations require interconnectivity between developments unless it is not feasible or the commission concludes it is “unnecessary for the coordination of development between the subdivision and such adjacent tracts.”
“If a developer fails to implement a project in accordance with the approved details, the county also has the ability to halt the issuance of building permits until matters are corrected,” Whitehouse said in a Jan. 23 email.
There have been instances when the county has held up development, Whitehouse said.
“For example, if recreational facilities are required to be implemented by the time the development reaches 60% of the total residential building permits for the development, but construction of the amenities is delayed due to weather/supply delays, there have been cases where the issuance of building permits is halted until the recreational facilities are completed,” he said.
The P&Z commission delayed until a future meeting a decision on the developer’s request for a determination concerning interconnection.
Kevin Conlon came to the Cape Gazette with nearly 40 years of newspaper experience since graduating from St. Bonaventure University in New York with a bachelor's degree in mass communication. He reports on Sussex County government and other assignments as needed.
His career spans working as a reporter and editor at daily newspapers in upstate New York, including The Daily Gazette in Schenectady. He comes to the Cape Gazette from the Cortland Standard, where he was an editor for more than 25 years, and in recent years also contributed as a columnist and opinion page writer. He and his staff won regional and state writing awards.
Conlon was relocating to Lewes when he came across an advertisement for a reporter job at the Cape Gazette, and the decision to pursue it paid off. His new position gives him an opportunity to stay in a career that he loves, covering local news for an independently owned newspaper.
Conlon is the father of seven children and grandfather to two young boys. In his spare time, he trains for and competes in triathlons and other races. Now settling into the Cape Region, he is searching out hilly trails and roads with wide shoulders. He is a fan of St. Bonaventure sports, especially rugby and basketball, as well as following the Mets, Steelers and Celtics.
