Sussex P&Z approves Twin Masts preliminary plan

October 31, 2023 21

With a 4-0 vote, the Sussex County Planning & Zoning Commission approved the Twin Masts cluster subdivision with 249 single-family home lots on a 133-acre parcel on the north side of Round Pole Bridge Road and west side of Route 1 near Milton.

The application ignited a wave of opposition from pilots and residents who live adjacent to and use Eagle Crest Aerodrome.

Among the commission’s conditions presented during the Oct. 26 meeting by Commissioner Scott Collins is a 100-foot-by-2,000-foot safety zone along Round Pole Bridge Road on the Eagle Crest flight path. Collins said no above-ground construction can occur in the zone, including homes and amenities. Only underground utilities and roads are permitted.

Other conditions include notices that the subdivision is in proximity to a private airport with possible noise, and the area is near an active hunting parcel and farm.

Access to the community is planned for Round Pole Bridge Road. Delaware Department of Transportation officials will not allow an access road from Route 1. Developer Twin Masts LLC will be required to improve the property frontage road with 11-foot travel lanes and 5-foot shoulders.

The projected average daily traffic count generated by the subdivision is 1,185 vehicle trips (in and out of the subdivision) with a nighttime count of 240 vehicles.

Plans include a pool and pool house, pickleball courts, a 30-foot forested/vegetated perimeter buffer, central water and sewer service, a trail system, 53% (70 acres) open space, sidewalks on both sides of interior streets with a connection to a multimodal path on Round Pole Bridge Road.

All buffers must be noted as areas of nondisturbance with signs posted every 300 feet.

A 4-foot berm is required with vegetation along the border of Route 1 to shield residents from highway noise. The berm must installed prior to the issuance of the 162nd building permit.

A revised preliminary plan must be submitted to the Sussex County office and planning & zoning, and the commission will review and approve the final site plan.