Van Dyke Avenue outfall pipe work to begin
A permit has been issued to resolve a clogged outfall pipe problem on Van Dyke Avenue, with work tentatively set to be completed by Monday, April 15.
The bayside outfall pipe is maintained by Dewey Business Enterprises.
When sand impacts the pipe, water backs up to the street and floods the public parking lot on Van Dyke Avenue, said Town Manager Bill Zolper, who noted a DBE employee digs out the pipe with a shovel during low tide.
A permit application submitted to Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Oct. 31 was approved March 25.
The plan to restore and maintain outflow involves mechanically excavating about 250 cubic yards of sand, that was previously deposited via permit, from the toe of the beach to expose the pipe. The sand would be deposited landward of the high-water line.
The permit is valid for one year and states that construction activities cannot take place from April 15 to Aug. 30, in order to protect spawning horseshoe crabs. Any areas disturbed outside the footprint of the authorized structure must be returned to pre-construction conditions and elevations, the permit states.
DBE representative Bill Lower said his company is finalizing a date before April 15, consistent with suitable tides and weather, to complete the sand renovation to assist with stormwater management.
The town will require a building permit for the work, Zolper said, noting there will be no fee for the building permit, but the documentation is necessary because of the town’s participation in the Federal Emergency Management Agency flood insurance plan.
“I’m glad that Dewey Beach Enterprises is moving forward with a project to mitigate the stormwater outfall pipes of the sand that clogs them,” Zolper said.
In years past, DNREC had approved DBE requests to place sand on the bay beach behind Hyatt Place Dewey Beach.
According to a 2023 application filed by DBE to place 1,300 cubic yards of sand on the beach, the bay beach has been replenished four times since 2013 – 1,800 cubic yards in 2013, 400 cubic yards in 2015, 4,800 cubic yards in 2019 and 1,000 cubic yards in 2022.
Zolper said he and town Building Official Daune Hinks opposed the 2023 request because a solution was needed to resolve the clogged pipe before placement of any more sand. In January, Lower said the request was postponed to complete outfall work first.
Also, Zolper noted, the swimming area at the bayside beach on Van Dyke Avenue has been extended into the bay, as boats were coming too close to the shoreline.
