DNREC seeks bids for state park projects

The state may not be moving forward with a new restaurant in Cape Henlopen State Park for now, but improved food services isn’t the only item on the list of improvements at the park. With that in mind, two requests for proposals were recently issued for the park. 

The first, issued Dec. 7, is a request for professional services to run the bait and tackle shop next to the fishing pier. The term of the contract between the successful vendor and the state shall be for approximately five years. The contract may be renewed for one five-year period through negotiation between the vendor and the state.

According to the RFP, the bait and tackle shop at the pier offers fishing supplies, licenses and snack foods April 1 to Oct. 31.

“The Cape Henlopen fishing pier is considered by many local anglers a great shallow-water location on the mouth of the Delaware Bay during the spring months, especially during high tide and late in the afternoon on bright, sunny days,” reads the RFP.

The document promotes the flounder fishing available at the pier.

“The flounder take up an ‘ambush’ position near the pier so they can feed on the baitfish that are swept from the shallows during the beginning of an outgoing tide,” said the RFP. “This makes flounder very vulnerable to baits fished by anglers on the pier. Because of this reason, the pier can be one of the most productive fishing locations in the entire Delaware Bay at certain times of the year.”

The vendor running the tackle shop would be expected to provide fishing tackle, drinks, pre-packaged snack foods and protective gear. The contract also requires the vendor to provide transport service via a golf cart onto the pier for patrons with disabilities or mobility issues.

The pier dates back to World War II. In 2012, the T-head portion of the structure was demolished because it was crumbling into Delaware Bay. Its support pilings and decking have been the subject of maintenance repairs a number of times over the past few years.

There is a non-mandatory pre-bid meeting at the pier Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Questions related to the RFP must be submitted by Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023; answers will be posted on the state’s website no later than one week later.

The deadline to submit a proposal to run the bait shop is Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023. The expected date for awarding the contract is Wednesday, March 1, 2023.

RFP issued to pave park’s main parking lot

The second request for proposals, issued Dec. 9, is to pave the park’s main parking lot at the Sen. David McBride Beach Bathhouse.

The project involves removing the existing asphalt and placing new full-depth asphalt pavement at the McBride Bathhouse parking area, including placement of new pavement markings/striping. Work also includes conversion of portions of existing vegetated islands into an infiltration area for stormwater runoff.

A mandatory pre-bid meeting will be held at 1:30 p.m., Monday, Dec. 19, at the project location for the purpose of establishing the listing of subcontractors and to answer questions. Bids for the paving project are due no later than 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023.

During an open house in June, when park officials discussed a wish list of projects to complete, the estimated cost of this project was $1.7 million.