MILTON, Del. - A proposed 187 single-family home development on Cave Neck Road near Milton is moving forward after the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission approved the project in a 3-1 vote.
The River’s Edge development calls for 187 single-family homes on about 125 acres. The project has drawn concerns from nearby residents over traffic, road conditions and the pace of development in the Milton area.
A proposed housing development off Cave Neck Road in Sussex County is on hold after planning officials raised concerns about environmentally sensitive land at the site.
One planning commission member who opposed the project said Cave Neck Road is more like a farm road and is not built to handle a development of this size.
According to the commission the Delaware Department of Transportation said the development’s impact on nearby roads is expected to be minor. The developer will also be required to pay for a traffic study to determine what improvements may be needed at nearby intersections.
Not everyone supports the decision. Linda Larrimore said 187 new homes is too many for Cave Neck Road. “It sounds nice, single-family homes, but we just don’t need any more houses in the area,” Larrimore said. “There’s just so many now you can’t even get anywhere. The traffic is so bad.”
John Fortunato, who lives in Milton, said the project reflects the larger changes happening in the area. “We have to be sensitive to agricultural interests, traditions of farming, generations of farming, because it’s become an art form and craft that has become a premium,” Fortunato said.
Under the approval, the development is limited to 187 lots and must preserve 70 acres, or 62% of the site, as open space.
A Sussex County spokesperson said since River’s Edge is a subdivision application, that means it does not go before Sussex County Council.
Under county code, subdivision applications remain with the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission. Change-of-zone and conditional-use applications go before both the Planning and Zoning Commission and County Council, but subdivisions do not.
That means River’s Edge can move forward once its final site plan is approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
Under the approval, the development is limited to 187 lots and must preserve 70 acres, or 62% of the site, as open space. The final site plan must also include tree preservation, buffers, stormwater approval, sidewalks, a connection to a DelDOT multimodal path and updated DelDOT roadway improvement documentation before final approval.
Unless major changes are made during the final site plan process and it is denied, the farmland off Cave Neck Road is now set to become a neighborhood for more than 180 families.
Stockley Development Deferred Again
In a separate Milton development proposal, Stockley Acres was deferred by the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission for the second time.
Plans submitted to the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission outline a subdivision known as Stockley Acres, which would include 83 single-family homes across roughly 41 acres.
The proposed development near Beaver Dam Road would add 83 single-family homes on roughly 41 acres. Project representatives said about 48% of the land would remain open space.
The commission deferred the project to prepare a motion based on recent comments.
