REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. -- On Friday, Rehoboth Beach planning commissioners looked and listened as new plans for the Atlantic Crowne Hotel were presented to them, years after the initial plans for the hotel were halted.
Gene Lankford made a proposal to commissioners in 2018 for Atlantic Crowne Hotel to become a reality in Rehoboth Beach. That plan consisted of a 40 room hotel to be built on three lots on Baltimore Ave. That plan was ended due to an incompliance with a city ordinance.
Carlton Savage of Lankford Ventures, the applicant, and Payton Bridge, and architect with engineering consultant Davis, Bowen, & Friedel, Inc. presented the new plans and design on Friday. The proposed hotel would now consist of 55 and be built on 4 lots - 17, 19, 21, and 23 - on Baltimore Ave.
Savage says the plans are not within the confines of city rules and limits, meaning the same issues as before should not arise..
"We need to progress this project forward," says Savage. "There is no chance that it isn't going to work."
Though overall well received by commissioners, the plans did stir some concerns and questions about parking and other aspects of the design.
One commissioner stating, "There is nothing that approaches the sidewalk other than the driveway which is the only way into the hotel and eatery."
Another saying, "It's a sterile design."
Savage says those concerns will be addressed and won't interfere with the project's success.
"I feel like if we work together as a team on the project, I feel like we can make a successful project that can be appealing to both us and the town," says Savage.
Commissioners plan to meet with a city consultant to review the plans before revisiting the proposal with the applicant and architect.