Dogfish Head expansion plans rejected by hometown

Sorry, Sam. Back to the expansion drawing board.

As the craft brewing industry’s biggest and baddest West Coast breweries search out new land on the East Coast, one of the mightiest East Coast craft breweries is being denied a chance to expand in its own backyard.

Dogfish Head, a bright off-centered pushpin on the Rehoboth Beach, Del., map, sought permission from city officials to move into a larger location (about 1,500 square-feet larger) in town. A no-brainer decision, right? Well, you don’t know Rehoboth. The city’s Board of Adjustment swiftly voted three-to-one to deny the request.

From the CBB Archives: We spoke with Dogfish Head about its great, current brewpub location

Reheboth Beach has a law on the books that is meant to curb the influx of large destination restaurants and bars in order to avoid jumping the shark, so to speak, like other name-brand beach towns. So, to that end, local rockstars like Dogfish Head must be denied too much room or influence. Because, letting Dogfish Head move into a bigger location would be the first step in sliding down that slippery slope to commercialized eye sores. Or something.

From USA Today:

Board member Clif Hilderley said Dogfish Head’s request made the business too big to fit in Rehoboth Beach.

“Why not go out of town? Find a place where they have no resistance and can do everything they want to? In a few years, sometime in the future, they’re going to want to expand again. I wish Dogfish Head all the luck in the world in selling their beer. But Rehoboth Beach is not the place to produce more beer and enhance and expand a restaurant.”

The denial clearly caught Dogfish Head off guard.

“We are pretty shocked and disappointed by the decision,” Calagione said, adding he’s aware other well-known restaurants in the beach resort area have gotten the same board’s OK to expand beyond the 5,000-square-foot cap. “It’s a little bit bewildering.”

This decision is a bit bewildering to us, too, but to be fair, we’re a little biased when it comes to cool, logical ideas. Be sure to read the full story at USA Today.