DeBraa k
Continued from page 1
Metz said rooms in the new mo-
tel, which will be Lewes's first
motel fronting directly on
Delaware Bay, will run between
$89 and $159 per night in the peak
season.
Roger Morgenthal, a member of
the condominium association for
Ocean House - across Savannah
Road from the DeBraak site - said
a decision on whether to appeal
the Board of Adjustment ruling
will wait until after he and attor-
ney Vince Robertson have had a
chance to read the written ruling.
"They [Board of Adjustment
members] wanted the motel no
matter what," said Morgenthal, an
attorney in Carlisle, Pa. who pre-
sented objections at the July 22
public hearing. "We were never
concerned about the appearance
of what's proposed, only the
height, and that's still a concern.
The precedent worries me.
They've given us a decision that
we can appeal successfully if we
want. But we're going to take a
look at the written decision and
try to approach this as fairly as
possible from the point of view of
what's best for the community.
I'm not looking to spoil anything
for anyone," said Morgenthal.
"I usually argue these cases
from the other side, for develop-
ers, so I know what these guys are
going through to try to do this pro-
ject. And after 24 years of prac-
ticing law I'm not surprised by the
decision."
Members discuss points
Board of Adjustment members
discussed the proposed motel pro-
ject and its requested variances
extensively before casting their
votes. They gave many reasons
why they felt variances were ap-
propriate to allow four floors in-
stead of three, a height of 46 feet
instead of 40, and a half foot set-
back along an unnamed alley in-
stead of a forty foot setback.
But when all was said and done,
the fact that no other viable pro-
ject has been proposed for the site
of what many call an "eyesore" in
its eight years of vacant existence
seemed to hold most sway in in-
fluencing their reasoning.
"The property we're talking
about is one of the cornerstones of
the City of Lewes beachfront,"
said Board of Adjustment member
Bill Stevenson. "We heard last
week from Daria at Kupchick's
Restaurant, next door to the site,
[at the public heating July 22] that
over the years a number of limou-
sines have pulled up in front of the
DeBraak shell and people got out
and made a number of inquiries
about how the building could be
used as constructed. Then they
silently got back in their limou-
sines and went home. No one else
has come up with other possible
specific uses. It all leads me to
believe there is a legitimate hard-
ship related to that property. This
is the first hard proposal since the
building was built eight years
ago .... I don't want to continue to
expand the flat roof, downtown
industrial ghetto appearance on a
beach I consider the finest in the
world. The height variance is
very justifiable as are the floor
and setback variances."
"My gut feeling is that what is
proposed will be a success and I
don't see why the variances
should be denied," said member
Joe Stewart. "It appears that the
HKM proposal is the best solution
that has come so far down the pike
and I believe an overwhelming
majority of the citizens of Lewes
feel we should do something
about the building that's there."
Cupp adds more
Board of Adjustment Chairman
Harvey Cupp added further to the
same line of thinking: "The plot
we're looking at is about three
tenths of an acre. It's small but
valuable and there are limited uses
in the C-2 zone where it's located
and a motel is one of those. Peo-
ple have kicked around all kinds
of other ideas but in the mean time
a very valuable site sits empty
producing nothing for the commu-
nity or its citizens. What's there is
not attractive and most want the
building removed. -I understand
the objections but this is a better
proposal than what's there and it's
better than a big square with a flat
roof. A gable roof as is proposed
is better looking than a flat roof
and safer in storms. There are
physical and natural reasons for a
gable roof," said Cupp, justifying
his support for a height variance
which will allow construction of a
gable roof. "And no other propos-
al - absolutely nothing - has come
along in eight years. This also
looks like it could be a viable pro-
Members of the HKM Partnership developing the DeBraak
property include (l-r) Mark Hardt, George Metz and Jim
Kyger.
ject. The people of Lewes don't
want hamburger joints or bars that
would come and go over the
years. Businesses that go bank-
rupt only cause a black eye for a
community."
Cupp also noted that the propos-
al uses a variety of innovative
technologies to keep the height
down to as low as possible.
"No code can be adhered to
strictly," said Cupp finally. "We
have to look at what's the best we
can do, what can we tolerate?
That's what the Board of Adjust-
ment is for. And we only have
CAPE GAZETTE, Friday, August 1 - August 7, 1997 -
one proposal to review. It would
be nice to see more but there are
none. It would be nice to see the
project smaller and lower but we
can't have our cake and eat it too.
It has to be worthwhile for the in-
vestors."
All three members cast favor-
able votes for the height and set-
back variances while Cupp cast
the only negative vote of the day
when he voted no to the variance
for four floors instead of three. "I
don't know why," said Cupp.
"I'm just not comfortable with
that part."
17
HKM Partners will meet with
the Lewes Commercial Architec-
ture Review Commission (CARC)
on Thursday, Aug. 7 to discuss
signage, lighting and landscaping
for the project. Then on Wednes-
day, Aug. 20 the Lewes Planning
Commission will review the motel
plans.
HKM Partners include George
Me'tz who operates three motels in
Dewey Beach and Rehoboth
Beach; Jim Kyger of All States
Construction in Bethany Beach;
and Mark Hardt of SeaHawk De-
sign Builders of Bethany Beach.
Stuart
1930
Locoted ot Se tlo end of Se
Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk
next to the Henlo Hold
Slore hours: Mon- Sat lOam
to Spin & 7:30pm to lOpm
Sun 7pm to lOpm
Call (302)227-2524
JACK SALIN
FOR COMMISSIONER
(302) 227-8477
"Experienced Candidate with the
capability, time and desire to serve
you, the People of Rehoboth Beach."
YOUR FRIEND AT CITY HALL
• Retired but Active Consulting Engineer
• Fully Qualified through Training and
Action in Municipal Matters
• Emphasizes Good Financial Planning
along with Implementation of Our Long
Range Plan
,, Anxious to Maintain Our Unique
Family Atmosphere Along with a
Vibrant Business Community
PLEASE VOTE FOR ME
Saturday, August 9, 1997
Rehoboth Beach Convention Hall 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
