Midcoast Conservancy has completed major road reconstruction on Charlie O. Way in Jefferson to improve the road for 26 homeowners and prevent runoff from polluting Damariscotta Lake.
Charlie O. Way, at the end of town-owned Punk Point Road, is a private gravel road that was built in the 1950s to service four seasonal camps. The road now provides access to 26 homes, and simply maintaining the original roadbed for 65 years was a losing battle and the road itself was failing. On top of this, water was not being drained properly and the road continually washed out into Damariscotta Lake.
A sinkhole opening in the road this spring convinced homeowners Chuck Olson and Pete Camplin that something had to be done or else risk losing the road entirely to the lake. A complicated and expensive undertaking, the landowners contacted Midcoast Conservancy for assistance. Because Damariscotta Lake’s water quality is threatened by pollution from runoff, Midcoast Conservancy’s director of water conservation was able to use grant funding from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to help design and pay for a project that will eliminate erosion and once again provide safe, comfortable access along the entire road.
With funding and technical assistance from Midcoast Conservancy via the U.S. EPA, and the road building expertise of contractor Darryl Flagg, of D. R. Flagg & Son, Charlie O. Way was entirely rebuilt in May. The resulting project created a much more stable road without chronic maintenance issues, and vastly improved drainage to prevent erosion and pollution, and all at a much lower cost to the homeowners who use the road. Both Charlie O. Way landowners and everyone who loves Damariscotta Lake have benefitted from this EPA-funded project.
Funding for this project, in part, was provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. The funding is administered by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection in partnership with the EPA. The EPA does not endorse any commercial products or services mentioned.
