- A Royal Farms is planned on the corner of northbound Route 13 and Port Penn Road.
Two convenience stores with gas pumps have been proposed near St. Georges on the south side of the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal, but it looks like only one will be built anytime soon.
A Royal Farms is planned on northbound Route 13 at Port Penn Road just south of Frightland at the stoplight where traffic can turn from northbound Route 13 onto Route 1 to cross the Roth Bridge.
The former Ches Del restaurant is one of the buildings on the corner property, along with a former accounting business in a brick home. Both will be demolished. The plan is to combine three separate properties into one.
The address, 2106 DuPont Parkway, has a Middletown ZIP code, but it’s just south of St. Georges.
The developer, Two Farms Inc. of Baltimore, is represented by the Barnes and Thornburg law firm.
Jim Smith, project manager with the firm, said the Royal Farms is planned on about 3 acres of the property which totals about 13.8 acres along Route 13.
The convenience store will be 5,380 square feet with a gas canopy of 5,280 square feet sheltering eight gas pumps with an entrance/exit on Route 13 and another on Port Penn Road.
Long-range plans include more retail stores on the property.
The developer has filed an exploratory plan for county review and is “working through addressing the county’s comments,” Smith said.
The next step will be a historic review board hearing. If permission to demolish the buildings is granted, then the developer will apply for demolition permits.
No rezoning is needed because the land is already zoned commercial neighborhood, said county planner Brad Shockley.
Considered a “minor plan,” the project won’t go to county council, but only requires approval of the land use department and state agencies like the Delaware Department of Transportation and state fire marshal’s office.
No progress on plan for convenience store at base of Roth Bridge
The other convenience store near Frightland was proposed on Lorewood Grove Road near the base of the southbound Route 1 exit ramp from the Roth Bridge. At the end of the exit ramp, drivers can turn left to go west on Lorewood Grove Road or turn right to get back to Dupont Parkway (Route 13).
The applicant, Parkway Gravel Inc., proposed subdividing a property to create a separate parcel of about 3.13 acres to be rezoned “commercial neighborhood.” The project would include a 4,637 square-foot convenience store, a 5,280 square-foot canopy over eight gas pumps, and nearly 1.5 acres of open space.
More on developments near Middletown:New businesses may be sprouting up along Routes 1 and 13 south of the C&D Canal
In the pre-exploratory plan report, the county’s plan reviewer, Janet Vinc, said the proposed rezoning from suburban to commercial neighborhood “may be considered inappropriate at this time.”
She recommended the developer “be prepared to discuss the plan’s conformance with the Comprehensive Development Plan, impact upon the surrounding area and infrastructure, compatibility of land use intensity and scale of development, character of the neighborhood, zoning and use of nearby properties and the suitability of the property for the proposed use.”
The application expired Dec. 30 and is no longer considered an active plan, Shockley said.
Reporter Ben Mace covers real estate, housing and development stories. Reach him at rmace@gannett.com.
