Why Millsboro Is Offering Up Pieces of Its Own Main Street

The Town of Millsboro owns a good part of downtown, and it is now asking for offers on much of it. The list includes the Chamber of Commerce building at 203 Main Street, the old police station at 307 Main Street, the empty lots past it, and the small depot on Railroad Avenue. Proposals are due December 31, 2026. The reason ties together two things that happened in the past year. The bypass took much of the through traffic off Main Street, and a new state designation will help pay for downtown improvements, but only on property the government does not own.

So the next version of Main Street will be shaped by whoever takes those buildings over. Town Hall is stepping back on purpose.

The bypass eased the traffic and left the buildings empty

Before the North Millsboro Bypass opened in late September 2025, getting through downtown was its own errand. In August 2025, Cape Gazette reported that Rocky's Pizza owner Rick Kangal said 75 to 80 percent of the shop's orders went out for delivery. Staff at Starting Line Barbershop said traffic was making customers late.

The $140 million bypass runs from Route 24 near Mountaire Farms, crosses Millsboro Pond, and meets Route 113 north of town at a new grade-separated interchange with Route 20. When DelDOT marked its first anniversary on September 25, 2026, the department said about 8,000 vehicles use it on a typical day. That rises to 10,000 a day in summer, including more than 1,300 tractor-trailers. The road also has a new name. Gov. Matt Meyer signed legislation on September 16 renaming it the Senator Richard S. Cordrey Bypass, Coastal Point reported.

At the anniversary ceremony, DelDOT Chief Engineer Mark Luszcz described the change to CoastTV:

"It's still busy. It's not like it's a ghost town, but it's dramatically reduced."

People working on Main Street told a more mixed story in the same report. Joy Hilliker of Black Cat Antiques said plenty of trucks still come through, and that parking on both sides of the road makes it hard for emergency vehicles to pass. Kim Barton at Nectar said business there has picked up, though she credits the people moving into Millsboro more than the bypass. A month after the bypass opened, CoastTV reported that a Downtown Millsboro Committee survey found that about 60 percent of respondents still named congestion and traffic patterns as the main obstacle to downtown growth and foot traffic. DelDOT also says design is well underway on the US 113 widening through Millsboro, so the road work has more to come.

Lighter traffic helps, but it does not fill buildings. The town's next two moves are aimed at that.

Why the town needs private owners for the state money to flow

In mid-September 2026, Millsboro joined Claymont and Newport as the first new Delaware Downtown Development Districts in about seven years. Before them, 12 towns had been added in 2015, 2016 and 2019. Millsboro's district covers 58 acres. It includes the Main Street and Washington Street corridor and several streets on each side, and it reaches out to the Millsboro Little League field at W.B. Atkins Park.

The program offers rebates to investors who make brick-and-mortar improvements to commercial, residential and mixed-use buildings. The Delaware State Housing Authority runs it with money set by the General Assembly. According to Coastal Point, the key rule is that DDD project properties cannot be owned by the government. That is one reason the town wants to sell off a handful of its own parcels. The other is to stop acting as a landlord.

Town Manager Jamie Burk was careful about expectations in the same article. "It doesn't mean that all our projects are going to be automatically approved. There's not an endless supply of money for them," he said. The state still has to approve each project and each payout.

There is a possible second incentive. The greater Millsboro region was nominated on September 28 for a federal Opportunity Zone, which could make some investments eligible for federal tax benefits if it is approved. U.S. Treasury had not certified it as of the October 9 report. Burk noted that where the two programs overlap, "It's stackable."

What is actually on the table

The town council approved the request-for-proposal forms on July 6. The town's bid opportunities page shows the process opened August 11, 2026, with submissions due December 31, 2026, at 4:30 p.m. Proposals can be to buy, lease, renovate or develop. These are the parcels:

Cupola Park is not on the list. After public objections in June, the council chose not to consider proposals for it at this time.

What the council says it is looking for

The first goal is the best sale or lease price, but Coastal Point reported that the town will also weigh each project's overall value to the community. The RFP asks for proposals that keep historical or architectural features where possible, and council members have said they prefer ideas that keep Millsboro's downtown look.

Council members did not all agree on how far the town should go. Councilman Marty Presley asked whether the point was to get out of owning land altogether. Councilwoman Kimberley Kaan said renting to reliable tenants can be a steady source of income for a town, and Councilman Gary Mack agreed that option was worth considering. Councilman Ron Mason raised the idea of design requirements for downtown. Councilwoman Mary D'Silva said at least three residents had offered to help protect the area's historic character, for example on an architecture review board. Any change like that would need a separate council vote to amend the town code.

Mayor Bob McKee called this round "a first blush," a way to see "what these properties are worth to developers." The town can accept the proposals, reject them, or start over. Burk added that whatever happens "will all be public conversation."

The building the whole plan is centered on

The town does not own the property Burk talks about most. Walter "Huck" Betts built the Ball Theatre on Main Street in 1937. It had 478 seats and stopped showing movies in 1971, though a church continued to use part of the building, DelmarvaNow reported. The owners, Eric Clarke and Julie Hattier, renamed it the Millstone Theatre. In 2018 they described their plan to Bay to Bay News as a community arts venue for music, dance, comedy, plays, local artists, talent shows and meetings, with older films now and then, rather than a first-run movie theater. Bay to Bay checked in with the couple again in a July 2026 story that describes the revival as a labor of love aimed at creating a community arts building.

Because the theater is privately owned, it is the kind of property the district can help. Burk told Coastal Point that the town is in talks about a possible public-private partnership to reopen it. "Our top project was the theater, and I think that is such a gamechanger," he said. He added that the town's application pitched it as a way to bring access to the arts downtown. No current reopening date or cost estimate has been made public. Officials have also mentioned restaurants, shops and apartments above street-level businesses, plus possibly relaunching the Downtown Millsboro Partnership for local businesses and stakeholders.

A few newer businesses have already opened in the meantime. Coastal Point reported that Lani Lou's Brew, a café its owner hopes will become a community gathering place, is open at 213 Main Street, Suite 3, a few doors from the Chamber building that is now up for proposals. Nectar Café & Juice Bar runs its Millsboro shop at 226 Main Street.

Dates on the downtown calendar

1. October 22, 5 to 7 p.m. The Greater Millsboro Chamber holds Business After Hours hosted by Grotto Pizza at 30201 Commerce Drive.
2. November 14, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The town's Holiday Market, approved by the council in June.
3. November 21 and 22. The Holiday Artisan Show at East Coast Garden Center, 30366 Cordrey Road.
4. December 31, 4:30 p.m. Deadline for proposals on the town-owned downtown parcels. Millsboro Town Hall has the RFP document.

Not everything new is downtown. Ford's Garage expects to open its Millsboro restaurant at 28362 Dupont Blvd. in early 2027. Whatever the council decides after December 31 will shape the blocks between the Chamber building and the depot.

If you own property near Main Street or are thinking about what these changes could mean for a home in town, I'm glad to talk it over and keep you posted as the proposals become public. Linda Rosatelli is following Millsboro's downtown process closely. Let's Connect.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.