Bethany Beach News

The Town of Bethany Beach needs a new water tower!

The Town of Bethany Beach will observe the anniversary of its “twinning” with the town of Périers, France, with a commemorative program, special museum display and other events on Friday, July 27.

Each year, the bazaar at St. Ann’s Catholic Church in Bethany Beach draws eager bargain-hunters and supporters to the church over three days in July, offering a nearly endless array of donated items, both used and new, as well as special prizes. St. Ann’s 31st annual bazaar will start next week, with a preview night offered for a $5 charge on Thursday, Aug.2

“It was a dark and stormy night…”

Bethany Beach Town Council members got an update this week on plans for development of a town park on the former Christian Church/Neff property on the northwest corner of Routes 1 and 26.

Bethany Beach officials are looking at the problems caused by large tour buses that visit the town on a nearly daily basis in the summer, after a series of complaints by townsfolk.

Firefighters may have experienced a sense of déjà vu in the early hours of June 12 when they responded to a house fire in North Bethany.

A cottage at the Delaware shore can offer a holiday reprieve from the bustle of the city, a summer getaway spot filled with tranquility and relaxation or a home for someone year-round. Southeastern Sussex County has become one of the most sought-after home locations along the Mid-Atlantic seaboard, and these houses that have become home, or home away from home, for many will once again be on display next week, as the Friends of the South Coastal Library (FOSCL) present the 21st Annual Beach & Bay Cottage Tour.

Last week, 130 kids descended on the Delaware National Guard Training Site in Bethany Beach to take part in the 12th annual Delaware National Guard Youth Camp — Camp Colwell.

On Saturday, Sept. 8, Bethany Beach citizens will turn out to vote. But it won’t just be for the annual town council elections, or the 2012 presidential election. Bethany voters will also have their voices heard about proposed improvements to the town’s water supply, as they vote in a referendum on whether to approve borrowing up to $3.7 million to construct a new water tower at the Collins Street water plant.

Bethany Beach is enjoying the height of its summer season, and it’s doing so with a few new amenities this year, including new streetlights, underground utility wires, a newsstand area and additional parking. But a little more than a year from now, the town will be preparing for the biggest steps in this major makeover, as work gets under way on the most significant elements of the long-planned Streetscape project.

Delaware’s beaches ranked first in the U.S. in water quality for the year 2011 in a report issued last week by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Out of 30 states ranked, the state had the fewest water quality samples that exceeded national standards, with just 1 percent of samples for designated beach areas exceeding those standards.

As experienced riders can attest, the Delaware shoreline isn’t the most ideal place to “hang 10” when it comes to the surfing world. The shape of the ocean floor and the geographic makeup of the coast does not provide the sets that surfers seek in areas such as the Carolinas, California and throughout the Caribbean and Central America. Delaware’s beaches have, however, become known as one of the most elite spots for skimboarding, and pro rider Bill Baxter is aiming to capitalize on that.

Property owners in the Sea Pines Village community and nearby Bethany Beach came out victorious last week in the latest round of legal wrangling over a cellular communications tower that AT&T had hoped to erect on property just east of Route 1 and just south of town limits. Delaware Superior Court Judge T. Henley Graves issued a decision in AT&T’s appeal of a denial for a special use exception for the tower, finding in favor of the tower’s opponents.

As summer visitors arrive in Bethany Beach in full force, the Town is beginning one of the preliminary steps toward creation of a new public park that will someday offer recreational options for visitors and residents alike.

Bethany Beach officials and citizens met recently to discuss both a proposal to build a new water tower and where that tower should be built. At a public meeting on June 9, council members heard a presentation from Town Manager Cliff Graviet, including recommendations from town staff, and got input from citizens on their feelings on the proposal ahead of a planned June 29 council vote on the tower.

Almost two decades ago, Diane Ternahan and her husband, Bob, opened the doors of Fish Tales in Bethany Beach, with the downtown apparel and gift store boasting trendy clothes and ocean-side fashion, along with gift ideas and toys. But limited space and growing potential restricted the shop from further expansion. Now, Fish Tales Home Decor is taking care of all of that, with a location on the adjacent side of Garfield Parkway, providing shoppers items for the home, and then some.

Like many who want to have the best of both worlds by not having to wait until retirement to live at the beach, Alana Keeley, a financial advisor with Edward Jones, recently moved her office from the city to the shore — from Bowie, Md., to Bethany Beach. She now works exactly one mile south of the “totem pole,” off of Route 1 near Bethany Primary Care and Jack Hickman Real Estate.

Last week, the South Coastal Library kicked off their summer reading program by having the Geek-mobile visit the library.

For just shy of three decades, the Bethany Beach 4th of July Parade has been entertaining thousands, celebrating the holiday with floats, cyclists and bands, leading to a fireworks finale to cap off the evening. On Wednesday, July 4, the 29th Annual Bethany Beach 4th of July Parade offers fun and excitement for the whole family. The theme of this year’s parade encourages participants and spectators to “Come and Celebrate Our National Birthday, Bethany Beach Style.”