Delaware News Journal
A five-hour public hearing over Dew Point Brewing Co.’s outdoor music events became a lesson in sound travel and acoustics as the Yorklyn microbrewery’s neighbors sought the state alcoholic beverage commissioner to limit the number of outdoor events and prevent the business from using amplifiers.
Neighbors filed a petition earlier this year against the brewery and event space complaining about noise, parking issues and unsafe road conditions, prompting the Delaware Office of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner to host a public hearing Tuesday on Dew Point’s operations.
The petition, provided to Delaware Online/The News Journal by the state office, claims the brewery has “not complied with the conditions of its variance or honored its representations, and it has been unwilling to work with its neighbors in ameliorating the negative impacts of its activities on the community.”
Chad Stover, one of the petitioners who lives at the end of a cul-de-sac on Longs Court – about a half-mile from the brewery but over a mile drive – and his wife, Jennifer Wasson, led the testimony for the petitioners. The couple, who are Delaware attorneys, emphasized they’re not asking the commissioner to shut down the brewery or take away its liquor license.
“We are not opposed to having a brewery or having live music inside their brewery,” Stover said. “What we are asking is that the commissioner confirm that amplifiers and speakers are not part of their variance."
The petition provided did not include any signatures, which the state office said was withheld due to “privacy issues.”
According to Delaware Code, at least 10 residents must sign a petition to prompt the state office to host a public hearing. Deputy Commissioner Wendy Hudson confirmed that at least 10 neighbors had signed the petition but did not provide an exact number.
It’s unclear where the neighbors are located, but two of the three households that testified Tuesday live over a half-mile away near the Pennsylvania border in a residential community of single-family homes valued at over $1 million, according to Red Fin estimates. Houses located directly across from Dew Point are far more modest, with Red Fin estimating most values under $500,000.
Between the two opposing parties, over 100 exhibits were submitted to the state office. They included videos apparently showing live music heard from neighbors’ backyards over a half-mile away; decibel meter readings taken by Dew Point at various locations on and off the property; transcripts from previous permit hearings; and text messages and other conversations between neighbors and Dew Point’s owner, John Hoffman, asking the business to turn down the music, among other evidence.
Few of these exhibits were presented during the hearing, and those that were lacked audio to better ascertain the extent of the noise. Delaware Online/The News Journal submitted a Freedom of Information Act request on Wednesday for that material.
Wilmington attorney Adam Balick, who represented Hoffman during the hearing, said the evidence submitted shows the brewery has complied with its variance and permits that allow Dew Point to operate a patio and wet bar, as well as offer live entertainment.
Balick noted that those in opposition to Dew Point’s live music total a dozen households, while hundreds of others, including “dozens of Yorklyn residents” support the microbrewery and its outdoor events and want them to continue.
“Petitioners have suggested that Dew Point is uncaring and unresponsive to the concerns that petitioners have raised,” Balick said. “We are going to present some evidence throughout the course of our presentation that dispel that, and show that Dew Point has been a good neighbor, wants to be a good neighbor, and will continue to be a good neighbor.”
The complaints against Dew Point
Nearby residents say their quality of life has been destroyed by Dew Point’s frequent, loud music entertainment, which happens far more than what the brewery’s owner initially estimated when he sought a variance from the state office to allow for live entertainment and a wet bar on the patio in 2018.
Dew Point uses amplifiers and speakers when it hosts bands and musicians, neighbors said, which requires approval separate from the variances the brewery obtained for the wet bar and outdoor entertainment.
Whether Dew Point’s previous approvals gave the brewery and entertainment venue the OK to use speakers and amplifiers is a point of contention between the business and neighbors. These documents have also been requested by The News Journal.
Jacalyn Beam, who lives at the end of a cul-de-sac on Clouds Way over a half-mile away, said she can hear the words to songs and specific instruments from her patio and sometimes within her home.
“No longer can I or my family and friends enjoy our patio on weekends because of noise from Dew Point,” Beam testified during the remote public hearing.
Another resident said they’ve had to block their driveway to prevent people from using it as a turnaround and regularly deal with Dew Point patrons trespassing on the property.
While one Creek Road resident testified to Dew Point’s music being too loud and harming their quality of life, two other households similarly situated across from the venue said the business hasn’t been a problem.
Logan Umbrell, who purchased a home in 2019 on Lower Snuff Mill Row, said he's "able to hear music in the front yard of my home a little bit, but has never heard it in the house."
The petitioners are calling for Commissioner Jacqueline Paradee Mette to rule that Dew Point is in violation of using amplifiers without the necessary variance and to limit the number of live music events the venue hosts annually.
Neighbors also took issue with a portion of the Yorklyn Bridge Trail crossing through Dew Point’s property, which they contend negatively impacts the quiet enjoyment of the Auburn Valley State Park. They claim Dew Point’s patrons can be seen with alcohol on the state trail, in violation of state laws.
Can an agreement be reached?
The commissioner did not issue an oral decision Tuesday night given that there is “too much to consider,” adding that it could take “several weeks” for her to issue a written decision on the matter.
Mette stressed that the two parties coming to an agreement on their own should be considered.
“Often an agreement is better than a decision issued where there is no agreement with the parties,” she said. “If there is an opportunity to have a meeting of the minds as to the number of events that would be acceptable, I’d offer you consider that.”
Wasson, who cross-examined witnesses and gave closing arguments on the petitioners’ behalf, acknowledged neighbors may be willing to come to an agreement, but said she has “no authority to come to that conclusion without talking to the other petitioners.”
She added that a maximum of 35 events at Dew Point each year would not be acceptable.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the microbrewery held over 50 and close to 75 events in 2020 and 2021, Hoffman testified. This year, Dew Point is slated to close out the year having hosted 22 live music events, he said.
The brewery hosted more outdoor events in the last two years because of COVID-19, Hoffman said.
“We were probably the only place for them to play those two years in 2020 and to the end of 2021,” he said.
Hoffman said Wednesday that his attorney, Balick, will be reaching out to the petitioners in hopes of sitting down and coming to an agreement.
Stover and Wasson declined to comment further on the issue.
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