Prime Delaware fishing spot in peril. Anglers upset to lose pond for canal dredging

When Kevin Hertzog heard that his favorite fishing spot near Delaware City was going to be drained and filled with dredged materials, he was upset, especially for his son, Tanner, who grew up fishing there.

So was fellow fisherman Tom Campbell.

“I’ve been fishing here for about 50 years. This is a prime place to catch fish,” Campbell said.

His brother, Rich Campbell, agreed, "The best bass fishing in Delaware, hands down.”

They’re talking about a pond on Cox Neck Road just west of Delaware City in an area known as Delaware City dikes, part of the Army Corps of Engineers property along the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

“The pond is home to a variety of wildlife, with woods around it,” Hertzog said.

The men said along with fish, they’ve seen swans, herons, ducks, beavers, otters, muskrats and deer on the property.

Fishing and kayaking are popular activities, along with duck hunting.

Posted sign was the only notice

A cardboard sign near the pond was the first notice Hertzog saw that the pond was going to be drained, but he didn’t know if it was real or a joke because it didn’t look official. But he was able to confirm the project through fellow anglers who had contacted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

His reaction? “Extreme disappointment,” Hertzog said. “This is something I’ve used for many, many years. It’s close to my house. It’s kind of a unique spot. The water is very clear. There’s a lot of grass in the water so you can’t run a motorboat.”

While you can fish from the banks, going out in a kayak is popular with many of the anglers.

Hertzog taught his teenage son, Tanner, how to fish here several years ago.

Tanner said one of the techniques he learned from his dad and other experts at the pond is “throwing top water,” using lures that float along the surface.

“This pond is an amazing place for it,” Tanner said. “It’s just a great place to come and catch fish.”

He was disappointed about the lack of notice about the draining and said he usually sees announcements on various websites when there’s going to be a change at a pond, park or wildlife area.

However, the difference here is that the pond is U.S. Army Corps of Engineers property. It’s not a state or federal park or wildlife area, but it has been open to the public.

Fisherman Joe Harvilla said the Corps of Engineers even improved the access to the pond years ago, building a dirt and gravel road leading down to the water, making it easy to put in a kayak or canoe.

“I remember when you used to have to park along the road and climb over the dike with your kayak,” said Harvilla, who’s used the pond for about 30 years.

“I was sad to hear they’re going to drain this pond, but I’m also concerned that most of the green spaces like this are closing or are now private or fishing is prohibited,” he said. “Growing up, you could fish anywhere, but now there are fewer and fewer places to go.”

The anglers said they’re worried about where younger people will go for fishing and recreation, especially north of the canal.

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Why is the pond being drained?

The pond along Cox Neck Road is part of hundreds of acres along the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal owned by the Army Corps of Engineers, designed to help with the maintenance of the shipping and boating channels for the canal and Delaware River.

Draining the pond as a place for dredged materials is part of a long-term plan, said Steve Rochette, public affairs officer for the Philadelphia District of the Army Corps of Engineers.

“This site has always been a dredged material disposal site. It just hasn’t received sediment in a number of years,” said Rochette. “We’re always evaluating capacity of various sites along both the Delaware River and the canal to ensure we have space for future dredging operations to keep the channel open for commerce.”

Preparations for the project include clearing vegetation and raising the dike. The pond will probably be drained sometime in the fall.

“Draining of the area will be a slow process,” he said. “We will then inspect and repair sections of the dike in preparation for dredge material placement. We are attempting to do this work gradually to mitigate impacts as the sites would not be receiving dredged material for more than a year from now.”

The pond will be gradually drained as sediment is moved around to rebuild the dikes around the perimeter. The water will be directed to flow to a sluice box and then out to the canal.

If fish are unable to follow the water as it’s being drained, the Corps of Engineers has a plan to relocate the fish.

“After the site receives dredged material, it would continue to exist in a somewhat natural state similar to many of the other sites that we own and operate along the canal and Delaware River,” Rochette said.

The work was coordinated with the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control's Division of Fish and Wildlife, he said.

Michael Globetti, DNREC media relations manager, referred questions about the project to the Army Corps of Engineers.

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Any hope the pond can be saved?

Some of the longtime sportsmen wonder if the site will ever return to anything close to their favorite fishing spot, but they’re holding onto hope that the project could be changed.

“There’s got to be some other place along the canal where they could put this that’s not an active pond,” said Hertzog. “I’ve tried to raise awareness. I’ve reached out to Facebook groups. I’ve emailed state legislators.”

On July 18, the state press secretary for U.S. Sen. Chris Coons said the senator didn’t have any comments about the project at that time.

For U.S. Sen. Tom Carper, the state communications director said they would look into the project but couldn’t comment yet.

Andrew Donnelly, communications director for U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, said July 19 the congresswoman’s office doesn’t have additional information other than what was provided by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Rich Campbell said while he’s going to miss fishing at the Cox Neck Road site, he and the other older anglers have enjoyed a lot of good years at the pond, but he repeated the concerns they have for kids and teenagers.

“I fished here when I was 12,” he said. “The next generation is not going to have things like this to do anymore.”

Reporter Ben Mace covers real estate and development news. Reach him at rmace@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Anglers near Delaware City upset about losing pond to dredging project