Rehoboth Beach officials have given the green light to a major expansion of the city’s Dogfish Head brewpub and distillery.
Friday's unanimous approval followed two hours of debate about whether the renovations would comply with the city's zoning code.
Because Rehoboth has a 5,000-square-foot size cap on restaurants, the company’s attorneys argued the distillery should not be included when making the size determination.
That reading of city code was a concern for some city officials but not for commissioner Kathy McGuiness.
“It was a non-issue; they were before us and they met the criteria. If our code has issue or fault, we need to address that as a city and that was where I was coming from and I hope to move forward to look at that along with some other issues in the code.”
Dogfish Head CEO Nick Benz said the new brewpub was needed due to deterioration of the current facility.
McGuiness adds that the brewpub has been a good neighbor.
"We're lucky to have them,” she says. “I’m proud to have Dogfish Head based in the city limits but that’s not even the issue. The fact that we’ve allowed them to operate for twenty years and even issued a permit a couple of years ago as a distillery, upgrading that particular part of the operation speaks volumes."
Dogfish Head plans to add 1,500 square feet to the brewpub, adding an outdoor courtyard and a stage area for live concerts.
