Rehoboth Beach Patrol still tracking for May 2025 opening
Despite some early procedural and construction delays, city officials say the construction of the new Rehoboth Beach Patrol and public restroom facility will be completed in time for the 2025 season.
While the lack of rain generally hasn’t been good for the Cape Region, it’s been good for the project’s contractor, said J.D. Bartlett, project manager for the city’s construction management firm EDiS.
The city awarded the $4.9 million contract to Delmarva Veteran Builders in August 2023. Demolition of the old structure took place in January and February. Construction has been ongoing since.
The contractor built in a three-month window to complete the project, said Bartlett. The delays cut off a month of that window, but since then everything has been tracking, he said.
In terms of construction, Bartlett said, the structure as a whole is really two separate buildings – concrete blocks on the first floor and wood construction on the second floor. The second floor will go up quickly, he said.
Coming into the November meeting, the project had seen about $600,000 in change orders for a variety of reasons, but additional pile driving and sea wall work were the primary extra expenses.
Bartlett said two more change orders have been approved totaling about $82,000 – $65,000 for a design reconfiguration for a water main; $17,000 to replace a collapsed stormwater line.
At a Nov. 4 commissioner meeting, Walter Brittingham, a property owner and former commissioner, asked if there were any more pending change orders. Bartlett said there were, but didn’t get into further detail.
Following the meeting, City Manager Taylour Tedder said the change orders are being reviewed, verified and negotiated.
The amount comes to about $90,000 – $37,000 for additional piles to be monitored while they were installed and the removal of unsuitable soils; about $9,000 for the removal of an existing abandoned conduit found during excavation for the new transformer; $16,000 for three change orders related to for site adjustments throughout the project to minimize impact and help with pedestrian flow and safety; and about $29,000 for additional trench drains at the building perimeter to ensure wind-driven rain does not make its way under door openings on the lower level, while maintaining ADA accessibility.
Looking forward, Bartlett said the plan is to pour the slab for the second floor Monday, Nov. 18. After that, there’s a topping off ceremony planned for January, when the last wood truss will be installed, he said.
As winter approaches, weather could still play a factor, but once that second-flood slab is poured, the first floor will be mostly enclosed and interior work can begin, said Bartlett.
