At 7 p.m. on Friday, December 4, the 65th Annual Selbyville Christmas Parade steps off on West Church Street. Cross Main Street and keep going a short way on East Church. At 2 E. Church Street, a new building stands where the Georgia House restaurant used to be. Next door at 6 E. Church Street is the 35,000-square-foot former J. Conn Scott Furniture showroom. According to Coastal Point, those two addresses are slated to become a coffee and ice cream shop and a roller-skating rink.
In October, Selbyville learned it would not receive Delaware's Downtown Development District designation. That leaves the work on downtown to private owners and local groups. One investor is reworking a corner of Church Street. The fire company, the community club, the library and the historical society already fill this November and December with events within a few blocks of Main Street.
Five weeks, mostly within walking distance of Main Street
Most of what's on the town's holiday calendar happens on or near Main Street and Church Street. Here is the schedule as of publish day.
| Date | Event | Where | Organizer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 7, 9 a.m. | Craft show | Selbyville Fire Co., 30 N. Main St. | Selbyville Volunteer Fire Co. Auxiliary |
| Through Mon., Nov. 30 | Coats and Sweats for Vets collection | Drop-off at Selbyville Town Hall | Selbyville Community Club |
| Sat., Nov. 21, 8 a.m. | Mountaire Cares: Thanksgiving for Thousands | Mountaire, 55 Hoosier St. | Mountaire |
| Fri., Dec. 4, 7 p.m. | 65th Annual Selbyville Christmas Parade | West Church Street | Town of Selbyville |
| Sat.–Sun., Dec. 5–6 | Delaware Hospice Festival of Trees | Selbyville Historical Society Building, 11 S. Main St. | Listed by the Selbyville Community Club |
| Tue., Dec. 8 | Holiday Chorus Concert with The Singers of Note | Selbyville Public Library | Selbyville Public Library |
| Thu., Dec. 10, 4–5:30 p.m. | Holiday Cookie Decorating, all ages | Selbyville Public Library | Selbyville Public Library |
The Fire Co. Auxiliary craft show comes first, two days after this post goes up. The Festival of Trees is at the historical society building, which the Selbyville Community Club calendar also calls Townsend House. The club decorates the house on December 1 before the festival opens that weekend. Festival hours are still listed as "tbd," so check the club calendar before you go. On December 7 the club holds a cookie exchange at Salem Church, where the Coats and Sweats for Vets donations are also picked up.
The library has two December events in its own building: the Holiday Chorus Concert on December 8 and an all-ages cookie decorating session on December 10.
If you want one more stop just outside town, Ocean View holds its Old Town Holiday Market & Tree Lighting at John West Park, 32 West Ave., from 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, November 28.
The corner where the parade crosses Main
The parade starts on West Church Street. Across Main, East Church Street is where downtown's biggest change is underway.
Matt Leimbach owns Matt the Carpet Guy, which has locations in Selbyville and Salisbury, Md., and he also runs a cabinet shop in Selbyville. Coastal Point reported that he is behind both projects on the block. The first is A Moment Café at 2 E. Church Street. Plans call for a 3,000-square-foot coffee and ice cream shop with Christian music on weekends, two two-story apartments and meeting space. Leimbach told Coastal Point he wants to bring the town "that 'Berlin, Md., vibe.'" He described the café as "a place where people can go and have a moment."
The old building on that lot was not saved. Leimbach told Coastal Point it was "a steel frame with aluminum on the outside," so it was torn down and replaced with a new structure. Town Council approved the café's final site plan.
He plans to keep the J. Conn Scott building next door. He called it "100 percent worth saving" and plans to put down hardwood and use the existing structure for a roller-skating rink with an arcade, food and virtual reality. He described the property as "almost a city block of land" and said, "I will own both corners of downtown." The café comes first. Both businesses are expected to open in spring 2027, with the rink following later in the year.
The furniture building has a long history in town. Coastal Point reported that James Conn Scott founded J. Conn Scott in 1924, and the business reached its third generation under Richard and Lisa Scott. On the company's 100th anniversary, Richard Scott told the paper the furniture business had started as a split from his family's general store. If the rink opens as planned, the same building will host its third kind of business.
Leimbach also told Coastal Point he expects the rink to give some teenagers their first jobs. He said he hopes other investors will "catch the vision and do the same thing."
What the town is doing without the designation
Over the summer, the town surveyed residents, property owners, business owners and employees as part of its Downtown Development District application. Citizen Portal reported the top priorities: façade improvements, streetscape upgrades and park expansion. Committee members proposed running a second survey.
The designation did not come through. On October 7, according to Citizen Portal, the Selbyville Economic Development Committee agreed to recommend an incentive package to Town Council. It includes a 50% cut in impact fees and a property-tax phase-in. Committee members said losing the designation means losing some state financial support. They also said the town can still carry out many parts of its application on its own. For now, the package is a committee recommendation. Town Council has not adopted it.
The survey's top priorities were façades, streetscape and park space. The café and rink are both on East Church Street, and the parade runs on West Church, so Church Street is where the town's first visible downtown changes are happening.
Dates to know if you plan to take part
The town is still recruiting parade participants and vendors, and the Community Club is still collecting for veterans. These deadlines come before the events themselves:
- Tuesday, November 17: Parade sponsorship forms are due to the town at [email protected]. The sponsor form is linked from the parade page.
- Monday, November 23: Vendor License Applications for the parade are due to the same address.
- Monday, November 30: Last day to drop off coats and sweats for veterans at Selbyville Town Hall.
- Parade participants register through the online form on the town's parade page.
For anyone driving in from the Route 54 side, the town posted on September 18 that the speed limit on Route 54/Lighthouse Road is now 40 mph from the Lighthouse Crossing clubhouse to Hudson Road. Past Hudson Road it goes back to 50 mph.
Bediz Group follows the projects changing Selbyville's downtown, including the plans for 2 and 6 E. Church Street. If you'd like to talk about what these changes could mean for a home you own nearby or are thinking about buying, Book an Appointment with our Beach to Bay team.