Both projects remain under county review, and September emails identify an unresolved groundwater cleanup question at the car wash site.
HOCKESSIN, Del. — No new plans have been posted in more than a year for a proposed McDonald’s near Limestone and Paper Mill roads, while a proposed car wash at Yorklyn Road and Lancaster Pike has new filings this year. Both remain in the first stage of county review, and the county still lists both applications as “Active Plans,” according to county land-use records.
Both projects came up at the Oct. 7 League of Women Voters of New Castle County forum for the New Castle County Council District 3 seat. Delaware LIVE said in its coverage of the forum that it would report on their status.
Table 1 below lists the details for each project. Neither project has completed the county’s initial review. The McDonald’s proposal needs rezoning and a full traffic study, while the car wash still faces zoning, environmental and planning reviews.
TABLE 1: Proposed McDonald’s and Spotless Car Wash
| Project details | McDonald’s | Spotless Car Wash |
|---|---|---|
| Date filed | July 8, 2025 | Nov. 24, 2025 |
| Latest plan submission | Aug. 25, 2025 | June 2, 2026 |
| Proposed location | 5709 Limestone Road, near Paper Mill Road | 644 Yorklyn Road and 7351 Lancaster Pike |
| Building size | 3,780 square feet | 10,200 square feet |
| Requested exceptions to county rules | 3 requested (listed below) | 6 requested (listed below) |
| Rezoning needed? | Yes, from residential to neighborhood commercial; requires a public hearing and County Council vote (no date listed) | No rezoning proposed |
| Traffic study | Full study required by the Delaware Department of Transportation; none posted | Preliminary traffic analysis conditionally approved by the county; no full study listed |
| Current status |
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(Source: New Castle County Department of Land Use project records and site plans for the McDonald’s and car wash, accessed Oct. 22, 2026. Table: Delaware LIVE.) Requested exceptions to county rules
McDonald’s
- Fewer parking spaces (32 vs. 50 required)
- No landscaping in the required buffer along Limestone Road and the Route 72 connector
- A narrower buffer by the trash enclosure (15 vs. 25 feet)
Spotless Car Wash
- Fewer parking spaces (13 vs. 21 required)
- Paving 2 to 7 feet from the roads instead of 25 feet
- No landscaping in the required buffer along Yorklyn Road and Lancaster Pike
- No street trees along West Lancaster Pike
- Clearing or grading all of the wetland on the site
- Clearing or grading all of the land in a county groundwater protection area
The car wash’s environmental review
In 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) added about 32 acres of land along Lancaster Pike (Route 41) in Hockessin to its national cleanup list because of contaminated groundwater, according to its May 15, 2018, announcement. The same announcement said Artesian Water Company drew drinking water from wells in that area and treated it, and that the treated water met all drinking water standards…