SOUTH BETHANY BEACH, Del. - A construction project to mitigate flooding on York Road in South Bethany Beach has been delayed until spring.
The town project is aiming to mitigate coastal flooding that often hits the neighborhood that sits just off Coastal Highway in South Bethany Beach.
According to the Mayor's Monthly November 2025 for South Bethany, work at the location will seek to raise the section of York Road between Carlisle Drive and Plymouth Road by 6 inches.
The monthly reports from November and December say work was supposed to start during those months, but was delayed. Edie Dondero, Mayor of South Bethany Beach, says weather conditions ultimately played a factor in the delays.
"They haven't been able to find a window of time when they could get it done successfully. So, contractors and engineers yesterday made the decision to just wait until the spring," says Mayor Dondero.
Mayor Dondero acknowledged how frequently the road can flood due to its low elevation, but there is a plan in place.
"It floods fairly frequently. Sometimes as many times as 40 days of the year there's standing water on the road." Mayor Dondero says. "About a 750ft portion of the road, to raise its height by 6 inches and to use a porous pavement that will allow the water to infiltrate into the roadbed and then move laterally out off of the roadway," says Mayor Dondero.
Neighbors in the area, such as Jane Vandell, who lives on Kimberly Road off York Road, say getting in and out of the neighborhood can be tough when it rains.
"It's the bane of my existence, but it gets us out to Route 1," said Vandell. "I'm very happy that someone has taken initiative to get this thing paved with a special kind of paving to keep it holding the water and not being a problem so much because it's scary," Vandell remarked.
Brandon Scott, who works with Long & Foster Real Estate, says his experience differs as he notices a difference between flooding in Bethany Beach as opposed to South Bethany Beach, which resides further down Coastal Highway.
"There's a few streets that get affected more than others, for the most part, South Bethany is pretty good," Scott says. "As far as Bethany Beach goes, you get a little bit more flooding depending on tidal currents, Nor'Easter's, storm fronts, but for the most part it's pretty good," Scott notes.
Mayor Dondero says the project will cost the town of South Bethany roughly $300,000 and will come from town infrastructure funds.