Sussex P&Z approves Anchors Run subdivision

Sussex County Planning and Zoning Commission has granted preliminary approval to a subdivision on Beaver Dam Road that could require the installation of two roundabouts.

At its Oct. 11 meeting, the commission unanimously approved an application for Anchors Run filed by Insight Development Co. LLC. Among the possible road improvement plans for the development are roundabouts at two proposed entrances.

The cluster subdivision will have 265 single family lots on 133 acres of AR-1 zoned land located between Stockley Road and Hopkins Road near Lewes.

Commissioner Doug Hudson said the developer has addressed concerns expressed by residents living in adjacent communities. He said a stormwater management system on the parcel will reduce runoff to other parcels, a problem that has plagued the area for years.

In addition, the developer is providing a sewer pipe connection to a pump station for an adjacent community with a failing system to allow connection to the county wastewater system. “The subdivision will actually improve wastewater and drainage issues in this area,” Hudson said.

Hudson said he joined with residents who were concerned about the fate of a large wooded tract in the southeast corner of the parcel. Hudson said the project has been designed to protect most of the existing woods. “To hold them to that promise, it's an area that must be shown as undisturbed on the final site plan,” he said. In addition, restrictive covenants must show the area as being undisturbed in perpetuity, he said.

The subdivision will have a clubhouse and pool, sidewalks on both sides of all streets, and a 40-foot forested and landscaped buffer along borders with adjacent communities. A revised site plan must be submitted to the county planning and zoning office, and the final site plan is subject to review and approval by the planning and zoning commission.