REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. - The Delaware Department of Natural Resources confirms that Marine One has been cleared to land in the Gordons Pond State Park parking lot. Rehoboth Beach Police says a lot of security protocols are still in the planning process for when President-Elect Joe Biden is in town, but they're prepared to do everything in their power to support the Secret Service.
Anne Smith walks her dog, Mrs. Jones, in Gordons Pond daily and worries what would happen if a presidential helipad were built in the parking lot.
"I want him to be here," Smith says. "I want him to find a safe place to land. I support that 100%. I'm just not sure this is it." Stephanie Tomczyk thinks it's a great idea as Biden's Rehoboth Beach home is right around the corner in North Shores. "He wouldn't have to go through town to stop traffic," Tomczyk says. "It wouldn't cause a problem on Route 1 with the motorcade as it has been, you know, he's right here." "I know that the people in Rehoboth are kind of hoping that they'll have extra people coming in," says Karen Levin of Lewes. "We're from Baltimore originally and I worked at a school where a Vice President landed and they bring more than one helicopter at a time," says Robert Levin. "I think they even bring in three and they have to have fire trucks here. It will take up a good bit of this parking lot, I think." Lieutenant Jaime Riddle says Rehoboth Beach Police will do everything they can to keep the community safe and to minimize the impact security has on them. "Obviously the president hasn't been inaugurated yet," Lieutenant Riddle says. "To say that there's established plans right now, we're still in the early planning stages." When the future president is in Rehoboth Beach, WRDE won't be allowed to fly its drone or helicopter as there will be a 30-mile radius of restricted air space and another 10-mile radius inside of that for a no fly zone around Biden's location. When he was Vice President, Air Force 2 flew Biden into the Delaware Coastal Airport. The airport manager says it's too early to know if Biden will still land there or what security measures would be taken if he did. DNREC did not say if the Gordons Pond parking lot would close when Biden is in Rehoboth Beach.