Dogfish Head donates $25,000 to canal dock in Rehoboth

Looking to ride the wave of momentum created by a $300,000 state grant, supporters of a proposed Lewes-Rehoboth Canal dock in Rehoboth gathered Sept. 20 at the Rehoboth Museum for a Connect the Canal Night fundraiser.

Dogfish Head’s Mariah Calagione got the evening going with a $25,000 donation to the project, and put up an additional $25,000 toward a matching grant opportunity. Calagione said from Milton to Dewey, Dogfish Head is a part of the community, and the dock will be a connector.

“We live here,” said Calagione. “We want to encourage people to take every opportunity to get out and explore.”

Calagione said the company did the matching grant because it was a great way for other members of the community to get involved.

Rehoboth Mayor Paul Kuhns jumped on the boat with a $5,000 donation, Commissioner Lisa Schlosser donated $1,000 and Planning Board Commissioner Rick Perry donated $2,500.

After years of inactivity, the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal Improvement Association announced in August that the Delaware Department of Transportation had given the project a Transportation Alternatives Program grant.

Rehoboth Commissioner Pat Coluzzi is also the canal association president. She said this project can serve as the entrance to the city. It’s a spectacular project, she said.

According to an informational poster board created by Landscape Architectural Service Principal Matt Spong, the construction of the dock could be completed by the end of 2019.

Spong said it was an optimistic time frame, but he said the state grant and the Dogfish Head grant were a great step in the right direction. He said the improvement association should also hear back soon on another grant request from the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.

Spong estimated the total cost of construction to be $840,000.

For more information on the project, or to donate, go to canal-connection.org or email info@canal-connection.org.