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Sussex County Council approves Twin Branches farm winery conditional use with limits on hours, events
Summary
Council approved a conditional use for a farm winery and events venue on 38.66 acres in Broadkill Hundred, with conditions including designated parking, ABC oversight for alcohol, and event-hour limits; applicant and owner said they expect to seek final site-plan approval and aim to reopen once county and ABC actions are complete.
Sussex County Council on Feb. 12 approved a conditional use to allow a farm winery with a tasting room and events venue on a 38.66-acre property on Twin Branch Road in Broadkill Hundred.
The council voted to adopt findings and seven conditions recommended by the Planning & Zoning Commission and accepted two amendments proposed at the meeting: adding the words “manufacture and sale” after “consumption” in the alcohol-related condition, and specifying that event hours “may vary but shall not begin before 11 a.m. nor extend past 11 p.m.”
The application, submitted by Twin Branches LLC, covers parcels with a 911 address of 14756 Twin Branch Road, Milton. Planning & Zoning staff placed exhibits into the record — including a DelDOT service-level evaluation, a staff analysis, the applicant’s conceptual site plan and photos, and correspondence from the county engineering utility-planning division — and reported 25 written responses and a petition with about 710 signatures in the file.
Applicant attorney Tim Willard told council the farm winery was licensed by the Delaware Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) in February 2020 and that the site includes a tasting room, manufacturing tanks, and roughly 10 acres of vineyard within the larger parcel. Willard said the applicant had obtained fire marshal approval and submitted a proposed final site plan showing 75 designated parking spaces; he said the interior drives and parking will allow vehicle and shuttle turnarounds on site.
Owner Shauna Thompson identified herself for the record and said her family has owned the property for generations and that the site was historically a family retreat. Thompson said the vineyard grows Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay and Vidal and that additional plantings are planned.
Under the conditions approved by council, the use is limited to farm winery operations, tasting room functions and an events venue; all areas to be used for parking must be shown on the final site plan; alcohol service is subject to ABC approval; hours of operation for the tasting room and events were set in the approved materials with tasting-room hours proposed as noon–9 p.m. Monday–Saturday and noon–6 p.m. on Sundays, and the council-added events-hour cap (no events before 11 a.m. and none extending past 11 p.m.). The final site plan must return to Planning & Zoning for approval, and the site must comply with fire marshal and other permitting requirements.
Council members recorded a unanimous yes vote on the motion as amended. Willard said that if council issued a favorable letter, ABC would schedule an inspection within days and that the applicant hoped to reopen by Valentine’s Day pending remaining approvals.
The record shows the Planning & Zoning Commission had recommended approval subject to conditions and that staff had received no opposition at the council hearing; the council closed the record after ascertaining there were attendees in favor by show of hands and no members of the public in opposition.
The council’s action authorizes the conditional use; it does not grant final site-plan approval, which remains subject to Planning & Zoning review and to any additional permits and inspections required by county departments and ABC.
