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Open house held at Biden Environmental Center

Renovated building now used for DNREC training, community groups
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control held an open house Feb. 22, at the newly renovated Biden Environmental Center in Cape Henlopen State Park. The building underwent a $15 million makeover and was rededicated in December. BILL SHULL PHOTOS
Bill Shull
February 25, 2025

Paul McGrath from Edgewater, N.J., looked through images of Cape Henlopen State Park on an interactive screen at the Biden Environmental Center.

He was among a large crowd of people who got a look inside the newly renovated building.

“It’s nice. Preservation is always good,” McGrath said.

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control held the first of two open houses at the facility Feb. 22.

According to the Delaware State Parks website, the two-story building was constructed in 1962 by the U.S. Navy as part of the Oceanographic Research Station at Fort Miles.

The state acquired the property in the 1990s.

The building was deemed unsafe in 2013 due to its lack of modern safety and accessibility features. It recently underwent a $15 million makeover and was rededicated by then-Gov. John Carney in December.

The inside is all new, except for the lower ceilings left over from the Navy days.

The building has three meeting rooms, with the largest able to hold 98 people, and 21 overnight guest rooms. It now has an elevator, nature-themed rooms, smart boards, wi-fi and video conferencing capability.

DNREC will use the facility as its statewide training center.

The building will also serve as a resource for groups interested in the environment, especially to study Delaware’s wildlife and ecosystems, and to host educational seminars, meetings, retreats and conferences, according to the state parks website.

Another open house is scheduled from 3 to 7 p.m., Wednesday, April 30.

 

 

Richard Julian, right, nature center manager for Cape Henlopen State Park, talks to visitors in one of the meeting rooms during the Biden Environmental Center open house Feb. 22.
Paul McGrath of Edgewater, N.J., checks out an interactive screen in the lobby of the Biden Environmental Center.
Open house visitors got to check out displays about the environmental stewardship of Cape Henlopen State Park.
Madi Coleman of Delaware State Parks greets visitors to the open house Feb. 22.
The Biden Environmental Center now has 21 renovated overnight dorm-type rooms. The facility is now used as a training center for DNREC employees, and for meetings and seminars held by environmental groups.
The building has three updated meeting rooms, the largest of which can hold 98 people, according to the state parks website.

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Bill Shull has been covering Lewes for the Cape Gazette since 2023. He comes to the world of print journalism after 40 years in TV news. Bill has worked in his hometown of Philadelphia, as well as Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He came to Lewes in 2014 to help launch WRDE-TV. Bill served as WRDE’s news director for more than eight years, working in Lewes and Milton. He is a 1986 graduate of Penn State University. Bill is an avid aviation and wildlife photographer, and a big Penn State football, Phillies and PGA Tour golf fan. Bill, his wife Jill and their rescue cat, Lucky, live in Rehoboth Beach.

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