<div>I suspect a lot of people don’t know the history of height restrictions and other efforts made over the years to retain the charm and scale of Rehoboth Beach and how we got to them. It is worthy of a reminder and discussion. There is an old saying, “Those who don’t learn their history are doomed to repeat it."Efforts by citizens to preserve and enhance the city's quality of life have been continuous since Rehoboth Beach became both a destination for tourists and a place people wanted to make their home. And efforts to remake Rehoboth into a town we would no longer recognize have continued too. We are the way we are today, and retain the small-town character we all treasure, because of intentional efforts made by individual citizens and citizen groups.Several weeks ago, a draft rewrite of the commercial code was sent to the planning commission and the board of adjustment by the firm Dover Kohl, which led the charrettes in early July to gather citizen input for the code rewrite. Even though they were told loud and clear at every charrette not to mess with our building heights, they did. And with lots of other things too – some interesting, some not so.It’s critical to both understand what is happening and to make your voice heard. It’s not easy, as the draft is long, with discrepancies and contradictions. But we must try, and we insist this process be fully open and not rushed. There must be ample time for open and honest discussion between residents and our elected officials.To review the draft and see the comments to date, go to rehobothbeachde.gov/205/Master-Planning-Initiative-Dover-Kohl-Pa.Citizens have been successful not only in limiting the height of buildings in town, but also in banning bars that don't serve food (1989), limiting the size of restaurants serving alcohol (1992), preserving our tree canopy, helping redesign Rehoboth Avenue, and limiting the size and bulk of buildings in residential neighborhoods, to name a few. Citizens decided many years ago that not only did we not want to be Ocean City, but that we also could never do Dewey Beach as well as Dewey does. Rehoboth is unique in beach communities, and that is not only why we love it, but also why our visitors do too. A first-time visitor once described her feeling about Rehoboth as a small Midwestern town with its trees and scale that just happened to find itself dropped by a beautiful ocean.For this commentary, I’m going to focus on building height. With the proposed ordinance, I think it’s especially important to understand our current height limits and how we got to where we are. There is a reason why we don’t have an oceanfront lined with high-rises.A little history:1970 – The mayor and commissioners raised the building height in commercial districts from 56 to 85 feet1971 – The Rehoboth Beach Homeowners’ Association was formed because of concern about building height1972 – Construction started on 1 Virginia Ave. and Star of the Sea. Patrician Towers and Edgewater House were already complete, and planning for the Henlopen Hotel and Condos was underway. RBHA petitioned for a 35-foot limit in residential and a 50-foot limit in commercial zones. The mayor and commissioners voted a month later to drop all building heights to 50 feetAugust 1972 – RBHA members voted out the mayor and two commission members, largely on the issue of building height. Some candidates’ platforms included lowering height to 35 feet everywhereOctober 1974 – Public hearings began on a proposal to lower height limits againApril 1975 – A compromise reached between the homeowners and the chamber of commerce resulted in height limits of 35 feet in residential areas and 42 feet in commercial areas, with a requirement for a setback from the property line. These height limits are the highest on the Delaware coast.Interestingly, since so many business people want to overturn the height limits now, and have made and continue to make trips to the board of adjustment for variances, the most restrictive height limits were proposed by a well-known businessman and Realtor, Norman Sugrue.In 1987, then-Commissioner Sugrue proposed a 28-foot limit for both commercial and residential buildings in the city. He understood that the scale of our town was a key ingredient to our success. He was afraid the streets would become tunnels of flat-roofed structures going straight up. Unfortunately, he was not successful.This is where we stand today. What lessons have we learned? Citizen activism makes the difference. Citizen activism can protect our quality of life. We were well on our way to becoming Ocean City when citizen activists stepped in and stopped it.Think about a 70-foot-tall building looming over the beach with an open bar on top. This would require significant parking changes that would either drive cars to residential areas or require a parking garage. And there are many more changes proposed without sufficient input at each and every stage of the discussion. It’s scary, isn’t it? Aren’t you glad citizen activists remain active on issues like building height, density and green spaces? Stay active. Attend the charrettes next week, Nov. 12-13, at city hall and make your voice heard. Our city’s future depends on it.Jan Konesey is a longtime citizen activist in Rehoboth Beach who served on the board of commissioners from 1990 to 1997. She also served on the city's planning commission and as a board member of Save Our Lakes Alliance3. </div>

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I suspect a lot of people don’t know the history of height restrictions and other efforts made over the years to retain the charm and scale of Rehoboth Beach and how we got to them. It is worthy of a reminder and discussion. There is an old saying, “Those who don’t learn their history are doomed to repeat it."

It's time to stand up against changes in Rehoboth

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I suspect a lot of people don’t know the history of height restrictions and other efforts made over the years to retain the charm and scale of Rehoboth Bea

It's time to stand up against changes in Rehoboth

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