DEWEY BEACH, DE - Dewey Beach town commissioners are discussing changes to its development regulations, specifically potentially increasing freeboard height requirements.
A freeboard is the elevation of a building's lowest floor above predicted flood levels, which is a critical aspect of many homes in flood-prone areas like Dewey Beach. Presently, Dewey mandates buildings to maintain a freeboard of at least 1 foot. However, commissioners are now considering increasing that to 3 feet for future constructions.
Commissioner Paul Bauer said he sees this as preemptive measure against potential water rise in the coming years.
“It’s really a change that comes into play years from now - the next houses that are built, and the house after that, maybe over 50 years all the houses get replaced. When Dewey was first built no one was on stilts – it was just shacks and cottages on the sand line.” said Bauer.
The discussion stems from a recommendation put forth by Dewey's Climate Change Committee. Bauer says it's a reasonable proposal compared to something such as raising building elevations over street levels.
“Let's say we raise our streets two feet, all that would do is prevent flooding on the street, but that water that did come up would come up into everyone's yards and houses," Bauer added.
The proposed regulation adjustments will be discussed at the upcoming commissioners meeting on Friday. The discussion and potential vote could send the recommendation to the planning and zoning committee for further review.