After a nearly three-hour public hearing, the Mathews County Planning Commission voted unanimously Tuesday night to recommend denial of an application for an event venue, Winding Waters Estate, on Ebenezer Church Road in Cobbs Creek.

After bombarding supervisors with advance letters and phone calls in opposition to the proposed use of the property, residents of Cobbs Shores and the wider neighborhood showed up en masse, many wearing “Say NO to Winding Waters” T-shirts, to voice their objections in person, leaving standing room only in the historic courthouse where the meeting was held.

The matter will now be considered by Mathews supervisors when that board meets at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Applicants Mike and Lori Dershowitz of Cobbs Creek and Pennsylvania, are seeking permission for a venue for up to 150 people at a time to attend up to 20 weddings, parties, ticketed events and corporate gatherings annually at the six-acre waterfront homesite, which has an adjacent 6.56-acr...