OCEAN PINES -- Worcester County officials this week broke ground on an ambitious drainage project along the Beauchamp Rd. corridor near the River Run Golf Course after a generous easement donation by the property owner.

On Tuesday afternoon, a handful of Worcester County Commissioners and staff along with private-sector partners broke ground on a project aimed at relieving a chronic drainage project along the Beauchamp Rd. corridor.

The project includes the installation of a 24-inch stormwater pipe at a length of 156 linear feet along the roadway on property donated by River Run owner Lew Melzer.

The pipe will run along Beauchamp Rd. in the area of the 16th hole tee box on River Run in a northwesterly direction to a stormwater pond on the property. The project was made possible by the easement donation from Melzer and was planned by the Beauchamp Rd. Drainage Work Group.

The group’s representatives, along with County Commissioners Judy Boggs and Jimmy Bunting, county staffers, River Run representatives and the contractors officially broke ground on the project in the pouring rain at the site on Tuesday afternoon. The work was scheduled to begin late this week with a target completion date of Feb. 28.

Worcester County Public Works Director John Tustin praised the efforts of the work group and the easement donation from River Run.

“A lot of hard work went into this on the part of the committee,” he said. “Big thanks go out to Lew Melzer because without his generosity, we could be spending $3 million on this project instead of $33,000.