James Farm preserve breaks ground on educational facilities

The Delaware Center for the Inland Bays recently celebrated the groundbreaking for Phase II of improvements at the James Farm Ecological Preserve in Ocean View.

Managed by the center on behalf of Sussex County since 1998, the 150-acre nature preserve along the Indian River Bay is open to the public 365 days a year. As the vital hub of the center’s environmental education programming, the preserve saw more than 33,000 visits last year.

Phase II of the James Farm Master Plan focuses on enhancing the preserve’s infrastructure to better accommodate environmental education, restoration, research and community recreation activities. Planned enhancements include trail system improvements and updates, a habitat restoration staging area, expanded storage and maintenance facilities, new integrated interpretive and wayfinding signage, and construction of a three-season environmental education building with capacity for up to 70 people, equipped with electricity, presentation capabilities, counter space and sinks for lab activities.

"Sussex County is excited to see its long-standing partnership with the Center for the Inland Bays flourish in this project to build a new educational center showcasing the James Farm," said Doug Hudson, the county councilman whose district includes the preserve. "Improvements like this will help in our collective mission of educating children and adults alike about the importance of the Inland Bays ecosystem here in Sussex County, as well as preserving and protecting this coastal gem for generations to come."

To secure funding for the implementation of the James Farm Master Plan, the center has undertaken a capital campaign to seek state- and county-level funding, foundation grants, individual and corporate gifts, and in-kind donations of professional services, materials and labor. The campaign’s goal is $2.8 million. For more information and to support the capital campaign, go to inlandbays.org.

The Delaware Center for the Inland Bays, established in 1994, is a nonprofit organization and one of 28 National Estuary Programs dedicated to preserving, protecting, and restoring Delaware’s Inland Bays and their watershed. For more information, go to inlandbays.org or call 302-226-8105.