Jerry Smith

The News Journal

Paul Weber was busy all week calling people to ask them to show up to Thursday night’s Planning & Zoning Commission meeting in Middletown.

He and others also have been acquiring about 350 signatures on a petition that they hoped would sway the commission to reconsider the zoning should it vote to annex land on Bunker Hill Road where The Maples -- the historic farm built by George Derrickson in the 1850s -- now sits.

While the members of the Planning & Zoning Commission commended the efforts of Weber and his cohorts, they would not be swayed.

The commission followed through with plans to annex the parcel owned by Maple Grove Associates in accordance with the Town of Middletown Comprehensive Plan by a unanimous vote.

Weber and others at the meeting wanted the commission to consider a change to the zoning from agricultural to residential.

“What they are doing is rezoning it for anything,” said Weber, who lives at Spring Arbor 55+ development, directly across Bunker Hill Road from the land in question. “It’s the widest open zoning. We don’t want to see another gas station built in the area.”

The details for annexation were spelled out and signed off on by Gov. Jack Markell in 2012 as part of the town’s Comprehensive Plan.

While the Spring Arbor residents were concerned about The Maples farmhouse and historic barn, they were more concerned about what could happen to the land once it is annexed.

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The house, which was named The Maples because of the many maple trees that surrounded it, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

“There is no reason to have C-3 zoning in the heart of a residential area,” Weber said. “We’re not against the annexation, we’re just against the zoning and the potential use of the land.”

Some of the concerns brought up by Weber and others who spoke during the meeting were the preservation of the farmland, increased air pollution that would further compromise the air quality and increased traffic in the area, to name a few.

“And it will further decrease the value of our homes, which is already occurring in our community as a result of the U.S. 301 bypass,” said Middletown resident Angelo Gallego Jr.

Dominic J. Balascio, an attorney with Parkway Law in Middletown, and who represents Maple Grove Associates, said during the meeting that his client has been patiently waiting for plans from the Delaware Department of Transportation after being added to the Comp Plan in 2005 and again in 2013.

“DelDOT asked us to hold off, so we did,” he said. “We’re asking to be annexed in as mixed-use development, which is consistent with the comp plan. We currently have no development plan.”

Balascio told the more than 50 people in the audience who were mostly Spring Arbor residents that once plans are made, he will be back to discuss proposed uses for the land.

“It is our desire to blend in with the current residential and light commercial that is currently in the area,” he said. “This could mean mixed residential and offices. We see it being a mixed-use development.”

Weber and others vowed to be back in force when the Middletown Mayor and Council make the final decision on annexation on Jan. 9.

Jerry Smith can be reached at jsmith17@delawareonline.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Jerry SmithTNJ.