Overbrook developer appeals Sussex's vote to deny
The development firm that failed to convince Sussex County Council a large shopping center, Overbrook Town Center, belonged on Del. 1 north of Lewes filed the first papers to appeal the Council's rejection of its plans.
TD Rehoboth LLC, Overbrook's developer, and Overbrook Acres LLC, the Delaware company that owns the proposed shopping center's land, are appealing to the Court of Chancery, asking it to order Sussex County to vote again on the proposal.
What TD Rehoboth seeks to build is a 850,000-square-foot big box shopping center on what's now 114 acres of farmland east of Del. 1 across from Cave Neck Road. The company needs a rezoning of the land to proceed, from agricultural to commercial.
In a 4-1 vote in April, the County Council voted to deny that rezoning request. Councilmembers Joan Deaver, George Cole, Sam Wilson and Mike Vincent voted against it, while Rob Arlett cast the sole vote to rezone.
The appeal, which comes nearly 60 days after the council's vote, says two councilmembers "relied on reasoning not supported, or in fact contradicted, by the record." And it says a third councilmember "recited all the reasons to favor the rezoning before inexplicably stating that he would oppose it."
That is likely a reference to Wilson, who in the April 12 meeting delivered remarks that included rationales for approving the project he said he'd heard from some constituents. Then, Wilson abruptly said: "Right now, I'm in favor of denial," and the packed meeting room erupted in applause.
Sussex swats away Overbrook developer's zoning pitch
"Delaware law requires that a governmental body create a record that a court can review should its rezoning decision be subsequently challenged," the TD Rehoboth complaint says. "Here, the statements of at least three councilmembers are either contrary to the evidence in the record or are otherwise not sufficiently clear or explanative as to why the councilmember voted against the proposed rezoning."
The debate over whether Overbrook was suitable and desirable in eastern Sussex, or whether it would exacerbate traffic woes and do environmental harm, has been the County Council's highest-profile land use decision in recent months.
Chip Guy, a Sussex County spokesman, said: "The county hasn't seen the lawsuit yet, but we do not comment on pending litigation."
A more detailed brief from the developer is likely to be filed later in the lawsuit process, along with defending briefs from Sussex County.
Contact James Fisher at (302) 983-6772, on Twitter@JamesFisherTNJorjfisher@delawareonline.com.