SEAFORD, DE — A major redevelopment project aimed at transforming the waterfront entry into Seaford is moving one step closer to reality.
At Tuesday night’s Planning and Zoning Commission meeting, city officials will review the preliminary site plan for the proposed “Seaford Town Center.” The project is slated for the site of the former power plant along the Nanticoke River.
The building recently began to be demolished, and the site cleaned, with the help of a 3 million dollar brownfield grant.
Architect Keith Fisher, with Fisher Architecture, says the goal is to turn the cleared site into a vibrant, mixed-use development.
"It sort of snowballed into this entire remapping of a town center, so to speak,” Fisher said. “So the vision is to create an entirely new living experience on the Seaford waterfront, with a little bit of mixed-use in there. Commercial pieces are a part of it, but [the goal is] to sort of elevate the game in terms of apartments."
Rendering seen from Pine Street / Fisher Architecture
Fisher says the project could see over 200 units, as well as restaurants and retail on the ground floor.
“We look at this as sort of an iconic entry into the city of Seaford,” Fisher added. “When you come across [the bridge] from Blades, to look at that landscape and get an opportunity as an architect to reshape what one of the doors into town looks like. And also to make a dynamic impact on what a downtown core looks like."
City officials believe the project will not only benefit Seaford, but also the surrounding region.
“We are thrilled to have so much to come in Seaford — so much good going on,” said Trisha Newcomer, the city’s director of economic development. “What’s going to come — the jobs, the opportunities — for not just Seaford residents, but the surrounding region is going to be huge. And we’re excited about that impact.”
If the project receives site plan approval, developers say they hope to begin construction soon, with the first residents potentially moving in within two years.