MILTON, Del. - A 65 acre development project near the intersection of Route 1 and Route 16 gets the green light from the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission.
Developer Ocean One Holdings LLC still has not said what would be built on the land specifically, but the group is looking to change the property's Agricultural Residential zoning to Commercial District. This zoning change would open the area up for everything from a gas station to a waterpark, as previously reported.
But neighbors of the property are on the fence about how the landscape could shift with further approval.
"Some pros were generating revenue for current businesses by bringing more people into the area and then also additional job opportunities to use for the community," said Jaime McNatt, who lives down the street from the farm land. "On the other side, there's the concern about traffic and accidents, you know, that increased traffic and then land preservation.
According to the recent meeting, the developer would be required to construct an off-on ramp from a service road to southbound Route 1, pay for two traffic signals and contribute $105,000 to DelDOT's traffic signal revolving fund for a future signal at the Route 16-Zion Road intersection west of the property.
Alexandra Shinko of Milton agrees that there is no cut and dry opinion on the growth and its affects,
"As someone who used to work on the farmland at Totem farms locally, I have a huge passion for keeping Mother Earth as she is," said Shinko. "The same time, we are a growing community and a growing town. And I would love to see this town flourish. The only way to have that happen is to bring in more businesses, offer people more jobs, more homes, more development."
Next, the Sussex County Council will hold a public hearing on the development and ultimately decide whether or not to approve the zoning request. The council's hearing is Feb. 20 at 1:30 p.m.