OCEAN CITY — The planned public hearing for a proposed zoning change to accommodate a new hotel and restaurant complex on the site of an old concrete plant was postponed two weeks Tuesday when the developer’s attorney was unable to make the meeting.
On Tuesday, the Planning and Zoning Commission was prepared to hold a public hearing for the zoning change for the historic George Burt Cropper concrete plant along the bay just north of the Route 50 Bridge and south of 1st Street. Ropewalk Bel Air Properties LLC has a contract to purchase the property and is seeking a zoning change to accommodate a vast hotel and restaurant complex.
About a dozen citizens showed up for the public hearing on Tuesday, presumably to voice their concerns with the proposed project, but the hearing was postponed when attorney Joe Moore, who is representing Ropewalk, could not make it back from Florida due to the severe weather associated with Tropical Storm Colin. Zoning Administrator Blaine Smith explained Moore had apologized, but was snared in a web of airport delays caused by the storm.
Some parts of the historic concrete plant property are zoned DMX, or downtown mixed-use, while the majority is zoned M-1, or manufacturing, which is a bit of an aberration in an area that has flourished with commercial and residential development. Ropewalk is seeking a change in zoning to Inlet-1, or I-1, a unique zoning designation reserved for a handful of properties along the downtown waterfront.
The conceptual plan for the redevelopment includes a mixed-use project including another location in the resort for the popular Ropewalk restaurant along with a hotel situated on the north end of the property. The site, which is situated prominently along the main entrance to Ocean City at Route 50, is one of the largest undeveloped commercial properties in the resort.
In 2007, the previous property owners gained site plan approval for a 94-unit, mixed-use residential project including 54 townhouses and 40 condominiums along with some other amenities including an eventual wrap-around boardwalk on the historic property.
With a contract in hand pending the requisite due diligence period, the Ropewalk group is seeking to expedite the requested zoning change in order to meet certain contractual deadlines. A public hearing is required for the zoning change, and after Tuesday’s postponement, it will likely be moved to the Planning Commission’s next scheduled meeting on June 21.
