Rehoboth Beach opens new beach patrol building

It took the construction crew working in the pouring rain the day before, but Rehoboth Beach officials celebrated the grand opening of the city’s beach patrol and public restroom facility with a ribbon cutting and ceremonial ringing of the bell May 22.

Now, the beach patrol has a place it can call home, said Rehoboth Beach Patrol Capt. Jeff Giles, who has been captain since 2021 and was also a Rehoboth Beach lifeguard in the 1980s. It’s a place where alumni will be able to come and share their wisdom, he said.

Giles said the lifeguards have a practice called horizon swims – getting in the water and swimming out for a half-hour or so, while always keeping an eye on a specific focal point.

The Henlopen Hotel has always been the marker he used, and now that’s not needed anymore. This building is the landmark of the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk and will be the center of everything, he said.

Mayor Stan Mills celebrated the longevity and evolution of the beach patrol, from a two-person operation more than 100 years ago to the 80 staff members of today.

It’s a shining day for the city, said Mills. The threatening rain and poor weather doesn’t dampen the spirit at all, he said.

Located at the eastern terminus of Baltimore Avenue, this project is years in the making. The design keeps the same function as the old one-story, cinder block building, but turns it into a two-story structure with public restrooms and family changing stations on the first level, and the beach patrol headquarters on the second.

Construction began with demolition of the old structure in early 2024. The city had expected to begin demolition soon after Labor Day 2023, but self-inflicted procedural delays pushed everything back nearly two months.

There were more delays when the contractor had trouble driving piles to desired depths a few months after the demolition was complete. However, construction has been steady for about a year now.

Last summer, during construction, lifeguards were stationed in a dirt parking lot immediately south of the Village Improvement Association’s home along the north Boardwalk.

The project was originally budgeted at a cost of $4.9 million, but as of a meeting in late April, the costs were coming in at about $5.7 million.

Lifeguards officially take their stands Saturday, May 24, and will be on duty until three weeks following Labor Day. Lifeguards are on duty 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the week, and 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on weekends and holidays. There will be a second bell-ringing ceremony at 9:30 a.m., Saturday, May 24.

Beach patrol/comfort station by the numbers:

In advance of the ribbon cutting, the city provided the nuts-and-bolts statistics for the new beach patrol and comfort station:

• At Boardwalk level, the two-story building is 37 feet tall

• The building is 5,468 square feet and, if exterior and covered areas are included, it’s 7,935 square feet

• The building is fully ADA-accessible

• There are four changing rooms with built-in benches

• There are 96 lockers for staff, two ATV garages, space for 32 bikes and a 28-foot-tall flagpole on the second floor that faces the beach

• There are 15 toilets, seven urinals, seven lavatories in public restrooms and two family restrooms for the public

• There are four toilets, one urinal, three lavatories and three showers for staff

• The city has hired 80 full- and part-time seasonal staff.