Fall signals start of projects in Dewey Beach

The end of summer signals the start of off-season projects in Dewey Beach, where several initiatives are planned to tackle flooding, and improve infrastructure and pedestrian safety.

Flooding

A proposed pump station project on Read Avenue is in early planning stages with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after town officials were notified this spring they received $1 million in funding requested through Sen. Chris Coons’ congressionally directed spending requests.

All water from nearby streets flows to the stormwater outfall on Read Avenue bayside. When stormwater backs up and floods the highway, vehicles can’t get through. Town officials expressed frustration at recent meetings about continued flooding at the street after tidal gates were installed on a three-valve outfall on the street. 

Town Manager Bill Zolper said the Army Corps evaluated the project in the summer, and those officials are currently drafting a letter report for internal review. The town would be responsible for 25% of the project cost. A start date has not been set.

Beacon Engineering has been tapped to address rainwater flooding on the first and second blocks of Jersey Street where there are no storm drains, Zolper said. Engineers will either install storm drains, which would cost more than $100,000, or install a French drain, he said.

The less-expensive French drain would depend on soil testing to make sure water will penetrate, he said. If it’s clay, water will not dissipate. The infrastructure committee is set to evaluate the options at its next meeting, set for 3:30 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 26, he said.

Town officials are also seeking a more permanent solution to issues caused by a bayside outfall pipe on Van Dyke Avenue by submitting a grant request to Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control to complete a hydraulic and hydrologic study of the movement of water.

The outfall pipe is prone to clogging with sand, and when it does, water backs up and floods the public parking lot on Van Dyke Avenue. Dewey Beach Enterprises is responsible for maintaining the outfall, Zolper said, and the current maintenance entails an employee digging out the pipe with a shovel at low tide.

In April, DBE contractors moved about 250 cubic yards of sand from the toe of the beach and deposited it landward of the high-water line to clear the pipe after town officials protested a DBE request via DNREC to place 1,300 cubic yards of sand on the beach.

The study could determine if a pump station would work, Zolper said, noting that once the study is completed, he will discuss recommendations and funding with DBE. The issue needs to be addressed to make the beach safe, help the environment and alleviate flooding on the street, he said.

Streets

Originally planned for the spring, Delaware Department of Transportation is set to begin paving state-owned streets about Oct. 21, Zolper said. Town-owned streets will not be paved at this time, he said, and they include the first block of Chesapeake, the first and second block of Carolina, the second block of Jersey and the second block of West.

In recent years, DelDOT had paved Dickinson and Van Dyke bayside streets, so they will not be repaved, he said. DelDOT said Dickinson Avenue oceanside did not need to be paved, Zolper said, noting he disagreed and obtained $57,500 in CTF funding through Rep. Pete Schwartzkopf, D-Rehoboth, to pave the street. Work should begin about Sept. 25, he said.

After paving is complete, driveways will be marked to designate public parking spaces, he said.

A two-phase construction approach will tackle areas targeted for improvement in a 2019 ADA assessment. First, the post-and-rope center island pedestrian barrier on Coastal Highway will be extended from Saulsbury north to Clayton Street and from Read Avenue south to Collins Avenue, and augmented with new landscaping, he said.

Additional projects include constructing bump-outs around telephone poles located within sidewalks to improve pedestrian safety and smoothing driveway entrances that pose tripping hazards on Coastal Highway, he said.