LEWES, Del. -- Sussex County organization Preserve Our Park Coalition is speaking out against the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Controls' proposal to tear down the McBride Bathhouse at Cape Henlopen State Park and rebuild it on nearby dunes.
DNREC's proposal is part of 10 capital projects for Cape Henlopen State Park that the department shared with the public in July.
WBOC spoke with coalition member Sally Boswell on Friday about her concerns. Boswell says she agrees that the bathhouse, built in 1976, is long overdue for an upgrade.
"It's tired, it's old, and it needs to be replaced," says Boswell.
However, Boswell and her colleagues disagree with building a new bathhouse on untouched dunes. She says it threatens nature and could jeopardize the continuance of decades of data collection on migrating birds conducted at the nearby Hawkwatch.
"Building on an undisturbed part of the dune is a no starter for us," says Boswell. "I mean, the park knows that; that's why they have all these signs around that say don't walk on the dune."
Boswell says Preserve Our Park Coalition began in 2022 with a mission to protect the dunes when DNREC announced a plan to build a restaurant there. After facing pushback, DNREC paused those plans. But, Boswell says learning of this proposal two years later means there is still work to be done.
"I know there's a temptation to meet every need of every person that wants to come to this park," says Boswell. "But if you do that, you'll lose the park. You'll lose what it is."
WBOC reached out to DNREC officials Friday, but they declined to comment on the bathhouse proposal.
