Authority Feasibility Analysis Project Underway
Delaware Canal 21 was established for the purpose of doing whatever is necessary to ensure that the Delaware Canal is properly maintained and is reliably full of water from end to end. And our best idea yet is borrowed from New Jersey’s Delaware and Raritan Canal, where their 19th century canal has taken on a new role in the 21st century and leverages the value it creates to sustain itself. We want to find out if we can do the same thing with our Delaware Canal.
In 2020, we announced a pivotal agreement between the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and Bucks and Northampton Counties to investigate the possibility of creating a new county-level business partner for the Delaware Canal State Park that would be charged with the task of identifying and obtaining new recurring revenue to supplement current state funding. Such additional financial resources would not only elevate maintenance to adequate levels, but also repair existing damage and make crucial improvements.
The agreement also laid out the next milestone: to conduct a comprehensive, professional, impartial, and rigorous feasibility analysis of this concept.
In 2021, we have advanced towards that milestone by carefully framing the scope and structure of the project, searching out the best resources to conduct the analysis, and raising the funds required to pay for it.
Following a thorough search and evaluation, Delaware Canal 21 is pleased to announce that it has retained nationally recognized Econsult Solutions Inc. (ESI) to lead the project, together with sub-contractors eDesign Dynamics and Simone Collins.
This project formally commenced in September 2021 and is expected to complete in the Summer of 2022.
“The goal is to develop a plan for obtaining sufficient sustainable financial resources that will ensure long term viability for the Delaware Canal. The plan that we develop will address both the economic and political feasibility of implementation, new governance structures, and the role of the Commonwealth as steward of the Delaware Canal.”
The analysis will focus on making the following critical determinations:
Determine the value of the Canal to the communities through which it flows, including both economic value such as the positive effect on real estate values and tourism, but also non-economic value such as providing wildlife habitat, recreation, fire safety, and contributing to an overall sense of community among river/canal towns.
Determine the one-time cost of capital investment necessary to rehabilitate the canal from past chronic under-maintenance and storm damage, and to pursue the most impactful improvements identified by the Delaware Canal Vision Study.
Determine the annual cost to provide adequate ongoing maintenance, including long range planning and preventive / predictive maintenance.
Determine the feasibility of potential revenue sources, including documenting the governance model and path needed to implement each option.
Once these determinations have been established, the feasibility test is simple: Can we establish a county-level Authority that can generate enough revenue to truly rehabilitate and sustain a FULLY WATERED Canal? At Delaware Canal 21, we are optimistic about the answer and are committed to realizing the goal.