DEWEY BEACH, DE – The Town of Dewey Beach is exploring plans to acquire the property of the Dewey Beach Lifesaving Station, which it currently leases from the state. The station, integral to the beach patrol and the site for town commissioner meetings, could see significant upgrades and preservation efforts under town ownership.
Under the proposed acquisition, the town would be prohibited from building additional structures, selling the property, or changing its public use. However, gaining ownership could open the door to new opportunities for historical preservation and expansion on the existing structure.
Town Manager Bill Zolper sees acquiring the property would be a big help to expand their current resources, and said they are currently working on what the deal could look like,
"Right now, you've got over 65 lifeguards working here from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and they need some lockers, and they need some men and women's showers," he said.
Moreover, the town would look into making the property and building a historic site,
"We would like to make this piece of property a historical site," said Zolper. "The current lifeguard station is a replica of the one that was here in the early 1900s, but the property is the original property the station was on."
Reflecting on Dewey Beach's transformation over the past decades, Zolper emphasized the importance of preserving its heritage.
"A lot of changes have gone on in Dewey Beach in the last 40 to 50 years," he said. "Most of the small shacks and small homes are gone and replaced with condos. But this would be a great way to preserve Dewey Beach and the history of Dewey Beach by having this replica lifeguard station and this property as a historic site."
And as for the Beach Patrol, they can't understate how crucial the facility is,
"As our lifeguard population keeps expanding, having more room for them would be huge," said Liam Zolper of the Beach Patrol. "We use this as our headquarters, our command center. We stage all our operations out of here. We run all of our communications by walkie-talkie out of a bay station here. It would be awesome."