$1M federal grant on hold for Dewey project
A previously approved $1 million federal grant for a Dewey Beach flood mitigation project is now being withheld by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, putting the project on hold.
“We haven’t lost [the money], it’s still sitting up there, but we don’t have the ability to move forward on it right now,” said Town Manager Bill Zolper. “It’s really frustrating.”
The grant is for the installation of a small pump station on Read Avenue, one of the most frequently and severely flooded streets in town, to help improve drainage and reduce flooding. Zolper began working with Sen. Chris Coons’ office in 2023 to obtain the grant, and the Army Corps approved it in 2024.
But Zolper received a call Dec. 17, from Peter Gori of the Army Corps’ Philadelphia District, notifying him the funds were being withheld. Gori said he could not provide further details and declined to provide a written statement to the town.
He did, however, say the town is not to blame for the issue, adding that funding is also being withheld for a separate project in Oak Orchard, a community located about 15 miles southwest of Dewey Beach.
Zolper has since contacted the Army Corps several more times but has not received any additional information.
The town is encouraging residents to contact their state representatives and urge them to take action to help release these funds. A template letter, along with contact information for Coons, Sen. Lisa Blunt Rochester and Rep. Sarah McBride, can be found at townofdeweybeach.gov/news/post/10293.
The Cape Gazette reached out to both Coons’ office and the Army Corps’ Philadelphia District for comment Dec. 19. As of Dec. 22, neither has responded to a request for more information. The Army Corps forwarded the request to its Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, which did not respond by deadline.
Ellen McIntyre is a reporter covering education and all things Dewey Beach. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Penn State - Schreyer Honors College in May 2024, then completed an internship writing for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. In 2023, she covered the Women’s World Cup in New Zealand as a freelancer for the Associated Press and saw her work published by outlets including The Washington Post and Fox Sports. Her variety of reporting experience covers crime and courts, investigations, politics and the arts. As a Hockessin, Delaware native, Ellen is happy to be back in her home state, though she enjoys traveling and learning about new cultures. She also loves live music, reading, hiking and spending time in nature.
