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Town of Dewey Beach, DE
Sussex County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (28) Index Notes (1)
The regulations set forth in this article qualify or supplement the district regulations appearing elsewhere in this chapter.
[Amended 7-10-2010 by Ord. No. 682[1]; 5-9-2015 by Ord. No. 718]
A. 
The height standard in this chapter (See Table 2, Bulk Zoning Standards in All Districts, at the end of Chapter 185.[2]) shall be waived for a pre-FIRM building or structure situated in a special flood hazard area that is substantially damaged, and therefore must be raised to a specified minimum base elevation determined by FEMA's effective Flood Insurance Rate Map base flood level plus Town mandatory freeboard, provided that said building or structure is rebuilt to a substantially similar configuration as existed prior to the damage except for any increased ceiling height in previous living space(s) as required by effective building code and not elevated more than 0.1 foot above such elevation as required to meet Town Flood Damage Reduction Ordinance standards. (See Chapter 101, Flood Damage Reduction, of the Town Code.)
B. 
All other exclusions to the height standard are included in Table 2, Bulk Zoning Standards in All Districts.[3]
[1]
Editor’s Note: This ordinance also provided that it shall take effect 9-10-2010.
A. 
If the deed or instrument under which an owner acquired title to a lot was of record prior to the application of any zoning regulations and restrictions to the premises, and if such lot does not conform to the requirements of such regulations and restrictions as to width of lots and lot area per dwelling unit, the provisions of such lot area per dwelling unit and lot width regulations and restrictions shall not prevent the owner of such lot from erecting a single-family detached dwelling or making other improvements on the lot.
B. 
One room of a detached single-family detached dwelling may be rented separately without any additional requirement of lot area per family, providing any such room does not have cooking facilities of any manner and that the maximum occupancy of any such rental room is two adults. Any such rental room is subject to inspection and approval by the Town Building Code Official and proper Town business licensing.
A. 
Where these regulations refer to side streets, the Town Building Code Official shall be guided by the pattern of development in the vicinity of the lot in question in determining which of two streets is the side street, subject to the following guidelines:
(1) 
Lots abutting on a single street shall be deemed to front on the street.
(2) 
Unimproved corner lots may front on either street at the owner's discretion.
(3) 
Lots abutting on the water or beach and a street shall be deemed to front on the street or water or beach at the owner's discretion.
(4) 
Interior lots not abutting on any street shall be deemed to front at the owner's discretion.
B. 
Every part of a required yard shall be open to the sky, except as authorized by this Code, and except ordinary projections of sills, belt courses, chimneys, cornices and ornamental features which may project a distance not to exceed 24 inches into a required yard. Window air-conditioning units may project a distance not to exceed 36 inches into the yard. Air conditioners and heat pump compressors may be located in a required yard, but not closer than three feet to a property line.
A. 
On through lots, the required front yard shall be provided on each street.
B. 
On a corner lot, a side yard abutting a street shall have a side street setback as specified in Table 2, Bulk Standards for All Districts.[1]
C. 
For the purpose of the side yard regulations, a group of business or commercial buildings separated by common or party walls shall be considered as one building occupying one lot.
D. 
In residential districts, open, unenclosed porches, platforms, steps or paved terraces not covered by a roof or canopy and which do not extend above the level of the first floor of the building may extend or project into the required front or rear yard not more than five feet. Such extension or projection shall not be greater than four feet above grade and in no event be closer than six feet to the front property line.
E. 
In the RB-1 and RB-2 Districts along Coastal Highway (SR-1), when a public sidewalk of width equal to or greater than five feet exists in the public right-of-way, open ramps, steps, platforms and terraces not covered by a roof or canopy may be constructed in the setback area to the right-of-way line, but shall not be more than four feet higher than the elevation of the abutting sidewalks.
No sign, fence or wall, or shrubbery or any obstruction to view (excepting parked motor vehicles with valid registration) extending to a height in excess of three feet above the established street grade shall be erected, permitted or maintained within the area of a corner lot that is included between the lines of the intersecting streets and a straight line connecting them at points 15 feet distant from the intersection of the street lines.
A. 
A hedge, fence or wall not more than 3.5 feet in height may project into or enclose any required front or side yard to a depth from the street line equal to the required depth of the front yard. Any fence, hedge, or wall for residential use may project into or enclose other required yards, provided such fences, hedges, and walls do not exceed a height of seven feet. This height limit does not apply to fences or walls used for commercial screening or tennis courts.
B. 
Accessory swimming pools, open and unenclosed, may occupy a required yard or side yard, provided they are not located closer than 10 feet to an interior side lot line or six feet to a rear lot line. A walk space at least three feet wide shall be provided between pool walls and protective fences or barrier walls. Every swimming pool shall be protected by a safety fence or barrier at least 4.5 feet in height and constructed of concrete, stockade wood or material of equal quality.
C. 
Accessory storage of a boat trailer or camp trailer shall not be allowed in a front yard. Accessory storage of mobile homes is prohibited.
D. 
An accessory building which is not a part of the main building may be constructed in a rear yard three feet from the side lot line and three feet from the rear lot line, provided such accessory building contains not more than 200 square feet of area, is not more than 12 feet in height and is used exclusively for storage and not for residential purposes.
E. 
A satellite antenna not exceeding four feet in diameter shall be permitted as a freestanding structure only in the rear yard and shall be subject to the same setbacks and height restrictions as an accessory building. A satellite antenna not more than four feet in diameter shall be permitted on the roof of a residential, commercial or mixed-use structure; however, any satellite antenna greater than four feet in diameter to be installed on any building in all districts requires a conditional-use approval.
F. 
No portion of any building lot area developed with a residential use or a mixed commercial and residential use in any district of Dewey Beach shall be covered or paved with impervious materials, including but not limited to poured concrete, asphalt, bricks, impervious pavers, or flag stones, installed in a manner as to create an impervious surface for driveways, parking spaces, or sidewalks. Impervious surfaces existing before March 14, 2009, may continue as a nonconforming structure, and may be repaired, but shall not be expanded horizontally or vertically, nor rebuilt or replaced with impervious materials.
[Added 3-14-2009 by Ord. No. 654]
G. 
No portion of any driveway entrance constructed on the public right-of-way developed with a residential use or a mixed commercial and residential use in any district of Dewey Beach may be covered or paved with impervious materials, including but not limited to poured concrete, asphalt, brick, impervious pavers, or flag stones, installed in a manner as to create an impervious surface.
[Added 8-24-2018 by Ord. No. 744]
A. 
The following regulations shall apply to accessory boathouses and boat slips in residential districts:
(1) 
A boathouse may not be used as a dwelling or guesthouse.
(2) 
The height of a boathouse shall not exceed 25 feet above mean high water.
(3) 
No boathouse shall exceed 25 feet in width nor 50 feet in depth.
(4) 
No boathouse shall be built beyond the established bulkhead line or closer than 10 feet to a side yard lot line.
(5) 
Boathouses and boat slips, together with other accessory buildings, may occupy no more than 35% of a required rear yard.
B. 
The following regulations shall apply to boat docks, piers and wharves, accessory or nonaccessory, in any district:
(1) 
Projections of docks, wharves, and piers into waterways beyond the water line, lot line, or established bulkhead lines or the placing of mooring piles or buoys shall be limited by applicable county ordinances, state laws and applicable regulations of the United States Army Corps of Engineers, and in no case shall a dock, wharf, pier, or pile project more than 10% of the width of the waterway.
(2) 
Groins, levees, bulkheads, piling, breakwaters, and other similar structures shall be erected and maintained in accordance with applicable location and construction standards of the county, state and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
A. 
Every residential dwelling unit of a townhouse, or other type of multifamily or multiunit building or structure dedicated to a residential or a mixed use, shall comply with the minimum lot area per dwelling unit specification of Table 2, Bulk Standards in All Districts.[1]
B. 
Each unit of a multiunit structure, whether in commercial or residential use, may be held in separate ownership if separate utility systems and meters are provided.
C. 
The residential dwelling units and individual lots of a townhouse complex may be held in separate ownership if separate utility systems and meters are provided and if separate lots for all units in such a townhouse building are created at the same time.
D. 
The following regulations shall apply to townhouses and residential-use units in multiunit structures:
(1) 
Townhouses and multiunit structures dedicated to residential use are prohibited in the RB-1 and RB-2 Districts.
(2) 
In the RR and RB Districts, the minimum lot area per dwelling unit shall be 3,600 square feet, as per Table 2, Bulk Zoning Standards in All Districts.[2]
(3) 
Unless otherwise restricted by district regulations, not more than three dwelling units shall be included in any one townhouse structure or residential-use or mixed-use multiunit structure, and the maximum overall street frontage of such a building shall not exceed 100 feet.
(4) 
Separation between adjacent multiunit buildings with partial or dedicated residential use on a single lot in any district in which such structures are permitted shall be 12 feet from side-to-side, and 20 feet rear-to-rear, rear-to-side or rear-to-front.
(5) 
Required off-street parking, as per Table 2, Bulk Zoning Standards in All Districts,[3] shall be provided on the lot of each dwelling unit or within an on-site parking area within the common area.
(6) 
Townhouse and residential- or mixed-use projects shall have no more than one twenty-foot-wide driveway entrance or two ten-foot-wide driveway entrances with a minimum of 20 feet of unencumbered space between such entrances to provide for public parking. Street entrances shall conform to the requirements of § 185-12.
E. 
Individual dwelling units in a dedicated residential-use or mixed-use building which come within the provision of the Unit Property Act[4] may be held in separate ownership if separate utility systems and meters are provided.
[4]
Editor's Note: See 25 Del. C. § 2201 et seq.
F. 
Separation between buildings. The separation between buildings in partial or dedicated residential use, as referred to in townhouse and multiunit residential structure regulations this section, shall be the horizontal clearance between the nearest projection of one building to the nearest projection of an adjacent building. Projections shall include bow windows, chimneys, fireplace enclosures, ornamental features, roof eaves and similar appurtenances.
A. 
Effective May 1, 1990, no motor vehicles shall be parked in the front yard of any lot except within an established driveway or within a marked parking space accessed from the driveway entrance of the lot.
B. 
No more than a total of two automotive vehicles and/or trailers of any kind or type without current license plates shall be parked or stored on any residentially zoned property other than in completely enclosed buildings.
C. 
All paved surfaces in the front, side and rear yards are to be covered with permeable materials or otherwise paved in a manner designed to create a permeable surface.
A. 
Refer to Table 2, Bulk Zoning Requirements for All Districts[1] for open space and planting requirements.
B. 
Plots. Every application for a building permit must be accompanied by a plot or sketch, acceptable to the Town Building Code Official, showing the location and dimensions of the planting or beautification area.
C. 
Definition. A planting or beautification area is an area of land which is not paved but left in its natural condition or improved by planting grass or vegetation.
D. 
The applicant shall provide a list of all plantings to be installed on the lot. Acceptable plantings shall include trees, shrubs, ornamental plants and grasses, but not species recognized as invasive or weed or vegetable.
E. 
Planting requirements may be met using potted trees, shrubs and plants, provided the surfaces that such potted species rest on are of permeable materials and are designed so as to not be used for commercial use or pedestrian traffic.