Blue Surf fills up as completion nears
With the heart of the summer arriving, Bethany Beach is certainly livening up, and much of this year’s attention is focused on the town’s most recognizable difference: the newly constructed Blue Surf condos and shops along the Bethany Boardwalk. The structure situated on the plot of land wedged at the corner of Garfield Parkway and the boardwalk has been transformed from a landmark half-century-old motel into a three-story commercial and residential mixed-use establishment.
Coastal Point • Jesse Pryor
The new Blue Surf building in Bethany Beach is nearing completion and filling up fast. The first floor is dedicated for commercial space, and includes a Grotto’s Pizza. In total, there are 13 residential units and a swimming pool.
Condominiums and retail spaces are filling up quickly, as the oceanfront real estate is grabbing more and more attention.
“We have 13 residences in the building,” said Realtor Lauren Alberti late last week. Alberti took over the listings for the Blue Surf in the early stages of construction. “Eight of those are now under contract with five more available. They’re a great mixture of units, too.”
As of last week, two condominiums with views facing east over the ocean were available, while three others had east- or north-facing balconies, offering a panoramic view of downtown Bethany Beach. A pool located at the middle of the second floor provides residents with an escape from a windy beach day.
The first floor of the project is designated as commercial space, and already businesses have moved in and are open to the public. Clothing and gift shops – such as Blooming Boutique, a beach-supply store called Freaky Tiki, a local jeweler and a sunglasses shop – have all made the move into the Blue Surf.
There’s food, too. Grotto’s Pizza has added a franchise location on the northwest corner of the first floor, which opened up a few weeks ago. Kyle McCabe, whose family has owned the property and ran the motel business and the preexisting snack shop on the corner for more than 40 years, reopened an ice cream and treat spot on the new building’s northeast corner.
“People like the fact that the town has grown,” said Alberti. “The Blue Surf now offers some nice upscale shops, and Grotto’s has been a staple forever in the area. These businesses have made the building a lot more charming. The Blue Surf now has that seaside look.”
The building was among the first of Bethany Beach’s business locations to undergo the town’s new, more stringent architectural-design review process. And the balconies above the first-level shops, matching railing and columns have helped incorporate the new structure into the downtown Bethany scene.
“It’s really a beautiful new look for downtown Bethany,” Alberti added. The McCabes themselves have been instrumental in the design’s layout and development since breaking ground on the new building in November 2007.
Construction on the Blue Surf condominiums began last fall and is quickly approaching completion, after a few fits and starts.
“Last year,” Alberti said, “we just had a hole in the ground. Now, we’re doing great, and we’re ahead of our expectations. We’re ahead of sales, and we anticipate selling out by the end of the year. Our sales are coming along nicely.”
She added that full construction project is expected to be finished between the end of July and the first week of August.
For more information about available space, contact Lauren Alberti at (302) 542-4305. She can also be reached at her office at the Blue Surf between 1 and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and is available by appointment on weekends.
