Work on One Rehoboth Hotel set to resume after Sea Witch
The demolition of structures associated with the new One Rehoboth Hotel on Rehoboth Avenue in Rehoboth Beach is set to resume soon after the conclusion of the Sea Witch Festival this weekend.
The city has an agreement with the One Rehoboth team that it will not begin moving any safety fencing or commence exterior demolition activities until after Sea Witch, said Corey Shinko, director of the city’s planning, zoning and development department. However, he said, the city has allowed them to begin modest interior removal going through Baltimore Avenue prior to the festival, he said.
The new 60-room hotel will stretch the width of the block from Rehoboth Avenue to Baltimore Avenue and front the Boardwalk. The project includes the Grotto Pizza and the former Dolle’s Candyland property on the Boardwalk, the Sirocco Motel on Baltimore Avenue and Kohr Bros. Frozen Custard on Rehoboth Avenue. The restaurant and motel were razed earlier this year.
The frozen custard stand and the building that’s now Dreamer Coffee and Juice Bar remained through the summer, but that’s about to change.
Beginning with 1 Rehoboth Ave., the city issued a notice Sept. 19 for a two-story structure. This has been the coffee and juice bar for the last couple years, but its Boardwalk-facing side was home to the original Zelky’s Beach Arcade. The arcade, which has two other year-round locations, will reopen when hotel construction is complete.
The city issued a notice Sept. 24 for a one-story structure at 5 Rehoboth Ave., which is the longtime home to Kohr Bros.
The demolition of the old buildings isn’t the only item on the to-do list for the hotel. The developer has also asked the city’s planning commission for a minor amendment to the site plan that was approved in January. According to documents found on the city’s website, the developer would like to reduce underground parking from two levels to one. Code requires 62 parking spaces for the project. This would be accomplished, as proposed, by installing vertically stacked parking lifts at 24 spaces and by having 14 surface parking spaces. This issue is set to be discussed at the planning commission meeting Friday, Oct. 24.
The planning commission meeting is only related to construction and will not impact demolition, said Shinko.
Additional demolition notices issued
The second round of demolition notices for the new hotel aren’t the only ones issued by the city in the past few weeks.
The city issued a notice Sept. 19 for a one-and-a-half-story, single-family dwelling at 29 Kent St.
The city issued a notice Sept. 23 for a two-story, single-family dwelling and an accessory structure at 1018 Scarborough Ave. Ext.
The city issued a notice Sept. 25 for a one-story, single-family dwelling and an accessory structure at 12 Sixth St.
The city issued a notice Sept. 26 for a one-story, single-family dwelling at 42 Kent St.
Including the reissuance of the demolition notice for 5 Rehoboth Ave., the total for the year, through Oct. 23, is now 31. That’s the highest number of demolition notices issued by the city since 2020.
DEMOLITION PERMITS ISSUED IN REHOBOTH BEACH SINCE APRIL 2012
Permits issued annually since April 2012:
- 2012: 14
- 2013: 15
- 2014: 23
- 2015: 23
- 2016: 30
- 2017: 30
- 2018: 27
- 2019: 34
- 2020: 32
- 2021: 23
- 2022: 16
- 2023: 20
- 2024: 19
- 2025: 31, through Oct. 23
Permits issued by month since April 2012:
- January – 24
- February – 24
- March – 44
- April – 16
- May – 6
- June – 3
- July – 11
- August – 74
- September – 48
- October – 39
- November – 29
- December – 19
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.
