It’s starting a little later than expected, but the demolition of the old Rehoboth Beach Patrol headquarters began Jan. 29 with former beach patrol members taking a sledgehammer to the concrete blocks and windows.

Rehoboth Beach Patrol Capt. Jeff Giles was given the honor of taking the ceremonial first swing at the old one-story building that sits on the Boardwalk at the end of Baltimore Avenue.

“It’s time for a new facility,” said Giles, who has been captain since 2021 and was also a Rehoboth Beach lifeguard in the 1980s.

This project, estimated at about $5 million, is years in the making. The approved design keeps the same function for the new building, but turns it into a two-story structure with public restrooms and family changing stations on the first level, with the beach patrol headquarters on the second.

The city had expected to begin demolition of the existing building soon after Labor Day, but procedural delays pushed everything back nearly two months.

In an effort to still complete the project in full by May 2025, commissioners modified the original construction timeline to include construction through the summer of 2024. Originally, the plan was to finish the comfort station portion of the project by the start of the 2024 summer season, take a four-month break and resume work soon after Labor Day.

The actual demolition of the building is expected to take place in about a week or so. J.D. Bartlett, a professional engineer for the city’s design contractor EDiS, said there’s a little more work to be done before actual demolition can begin. It won’t take long for the building to come down, he said.

The city has already announced how beach patrol operations will work this coming summer with no specific headquarters. Lifeguards, EMS personnel and equipment will be split between two locations – the Delaware Avenue comfort station and a vacant parking lot that’s immediately south of the Village Improvement Association building near the north end of the Boardwalk.