LEWES, Del. — A proposed subdivision plan for the Kennedy Property, a 3.5-acre parcel off Gills Neck Road, is drawing attention for its blend of development and green space preservation.
Chase Brockstedt and Eric Sugrue, the contract purchasers of the land, plan to subdivide the property into three lots — two roughly one-acre residential parcels along the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal, and a third, larger parcel of about 1.5 acres they hope to donate to the City of Lewes for public use.
Property owners of a 3.5-acre parcel in Lewes are proposing to build roughly seven homes and donate the remaining land to the city for public use along the Georgetown-Lewes Trail.
The site sits alongside the popular Georgetown-Lewes Trail and is surrounded by residential development and the Freeman Highway. Longtime neighbor Dan Ebbert describes it as “a unique property... right in the middle of a housing development then a highway on the other side.”
While the zoning would allow for 9 to 10 single-family homes, the developers say the reduced plan reflects their desire to preserve community space. The donation, pending an appraisal for tax purposes, would come without major restrictions — though they ask the city to avoid uses like dumping that could negatively affect nearby residents.
At a city council workshop Thursday, the property owners' representative shared their ideas of using the donated space as a park, benches or pavilion as a rest area for trail users.
Joyce Ayres, a daily trail walker, hopes the land stays open. “If they’re going to do anything, then a little place to sit would be nice,” she said. “But I would rather see it just left open where we can enjoy the canal.”
No decisions were made at the meeting but city officials say they are on board with the plan, if the land's environmental studies come back clean, and they believe the parcel is a generous donation.