The Daily Times from Salisbury, Maryland • Page A5

DAILY TIMESDELMARVANOW.COM|5A The sale of two city parking lots to Devreco, the developer responsible for downtown redevelopment projects such as Headquarters Live, won formal approval from the Salisbury City Council on Monday night. Devreco will pay $225,000 for Lots 1 and 11behind the Downtown Plaza and ordered by Camden, Division, West Market streets and Circle Avenue, and ill develop a multi-use plan for the land to include a mix of retail, apartments, park areas and parking. Council members have spent the past everal months ironing out the deal be- ind closed doors, and finally arrived at a agreement last week. Monday meeting was the first time they had discussed the matter in public. Councilman Tim Spies was the lone issenter, saying he had yet to be fully onvinced that what the city wants to see the 3.5-acre site will actually be built.

Spies also thought the sale price was too low, considering the land was appraised at nearly $1million. The remaining council members said hey welcomed the redevelopment of the ots which were first declared surplus roperty in 2002. is an opportunity for us to do something said Councilman Jack Heath. Monday vote will allow Mayor Jim Ireton to execute a contract with Devreco by Oct. 31.

The contract will allow the city to continue using the parking lots and collecting fees until Devreco is ready to begin construction. The contractor also will be required replace all of the existing parking spaces as part of the new design. he lots were constructed after the city closed off part of Main Street to traffic in 1968 to create the Downtown Plaza. Businesses and stores once lined amden Street, facing what is now the ack of the Plaza, and a bridge at the end onnected the street to Camden Avenue on the other side of the river. The development of the lots is key to Mayor Jim downtown plan for ransformation, which includes goals of i ncreasing the population by 750 resi- ents and commercial space by 100,000 square feet.

Devreco also built the the Gallery Building, the Brick Room, Wicomico County office and red eveloped a North Division Street space a a Salisbury University art gallery. Twitter STAFF PHOTO BY LIZ HOLLAND The Salisbury City Council gave final approval to the sale of two downtown parking lots to Devreco, which will pay $225,000 for the properties. Salisbury Council okays sale of 2downtown lots Developer plans mix LIZ HOLLAND DELMARVANOW Chesapeake Ghost Walks, a company ut of Somerset County, has scheduled more than 30 ghost tours to run between now and Halloween in 10 towns that span 8 0 linear miles across the Eastern Shore. They include guided haunted walks through historic districts of Easton, ambridge, St. Michaels, Ocean City, Berlin, Princess Anne, Pocomoke, Denton, Snow Hill and Crisfield.

There is also a special tour offered at the company haunted Victorian home. During Halloween week, the company will offer 15 walks 11of those ghost tours fall on Halloween weekend. ach ghost walk lasts just under two ours and is personally guided by some- ne well-versed in the local history as ell as the paranormal history. Most ours include a nighttime stroll through a raveyard, and some include sites like healing trees, elementals (non-human spirits), river walks or walks into a fore st. Collectively, the 10 ghost tours cover more than 120 stories of the haunted astern Shore stories that include loody Henny and the LeCompte Curse (Cambridge), The Town Dog Killer (Denton), The Ghost in the Mans ion (Snow Hill), The Haunted Carousel (Ocean City) and The Child Spirit at the Atlantic Hotel (Berlin).

All of the walks ere written and crafted by company wner and author Mindie Burgoyne. the third weekend in October, the urgoynes open their own haunted home to guests who are lucky enough to get tickets before sold out. home is what inspired me to rite about haunted Burgoyne aid. we bought our home in 2002 trange things started to happen. Then he incidents got scary.

When the inci- ents became terrifying we put the ouse up for sale, and that was only 13 months after moving Though most of the activity has qui- ted down, the Burgoynes still experience unexplained events from time to time, which they talk about as they guide uests through their home. Living in that ouse has inspired Burgoyne to write three books and scores of articles on haunted houses and properties. ore information on the ghost tours is posted on the Chesapeake Ghost Walks website. The company also has a You- ube channel where Burgoyne tells ome of the stories in a Minu series. FILE PHOTO Chesapeake Ghost Walks tour guide Mindie Burgoyne tells guests about Peter wooden statue near the Ocean City Life-Saving Station.

They say one annot stare into the eyes of the statue for more than 15 minutes without beginning to cry. Get your ghoul on! Join host tours on Delmarva STAFF REPORT "When we bought our home in 2002 strange things started to happen. Then the incidents got scary." MINDIE BURGOYNE, CHESAPEAKE GHOST WALKS.