Attendees of the Damariscotta Waterfront Improvement Committee’s open house braved a snowstorm for a chance to hear about potential waterfront projects Thursday, Feb. 12.
The waterfront improvement committee currently consists of around 10 people, including representatives of business and government, as well as residents. The committee was formed after community discussions about municipal parking lot renovations in November 2013, according to Damariscotta Town Manager Matt Lutkus.
Damariscotta Selectman and committee Chairman George Parker facilitated the event.
Representatives from area government, businesses, public works, and the Great Salt Bay Sanitary District pleaded their cases to those in attendance.
According to Great Salt Bay Sanitary District Wastewater Division Manager LeaAnna Libby, the sewer lines underneath the downtown parking lot are sagging.
“We’re looking into moving or replacing the lines,” Libby said.
The cost to replace or move the sewer lines is estimated at $400,000, according to a handout distributed at the open house.
Damariscotta Superintendent of Roads, Buildings, and Grounds Steve Reynolds said the parking lot itself needs to be rebuilt. The pipes are rotting in the stormwater system, and there has been a collapse in part of the parking lot.
“Now is the time to make decisions,” he said.
The cost to rebuild the parking lot is estimated at $1 million, according to the handout.
Local businessman Barnaby Porter recommended the boardwalk at the Damariscotta waterfront resemble the deck of a clipper ship to commemorate Damariscotta’s shipbuilding history.
Porter presented this history to those in attendance. According to Porter, from the late 1700s until after World War II, about 700 ships were built on Damariscotta’s waterfront.
“In the 1850s, Maine built more ships than any other state,” Porter said.
According to the handout, the cost of a 170-foot boardwalk in the shape of a clipper ship is estimated at $660,000. The cost of a 256-foot boardwalk would be $907,000.
An alternative concept would provide more green space and benches, but does not include a boardwalk. This would cost approximately $71,000, according to the handout.
Lincoln County Planner Bob Faunce gave a presentation on sea level rise and the impacts it could have on the Damariscotta waterfront.
According to Faunce, a scientific study of rising tides on the Lincoln County coast was conducted in 2011.
With ocean temperature rising and polar ice sheets melting, the study showed that downtown Damariscotta is the most at-risk area for sea level rise in Lincoln County, and the most at-risk village in the state.
If the town were to install some sort of sea wall, the downtown infrastructure would be protected in the case of a major storm plus up to 2 feet of sea level rise.
“The top of the wall would be at an elevation of 12 feet so the businesses would be protected if the storm surge was less than that,” Lutkus said. “Currently the top of the riprap at the parking lot is much lower.”
The estimated cost of a sea wall would be $1.4 million, according to the handout.
According to Lutkus, the level of the parking lot would gradually increase in height so only a 6- to 8- inch curb or lip would surround the edge of the parking lot.
“We wouldn’t raise the parking lot level if we were not going to build the sea wall,” Lutkus said. “Raising the parking lot allows for the lot to be flush with the top of the seawall versus having a 3 to 3.5 foot high metal or concrete that would block people’s view of the harbor.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency would move the entire business district out of the flood zone if the town were to build the wall. Flood insurance premiums would decrease significantly, giving a definite savings for building owners, according to Faunce.
A survey was distributed about what parking lot and waterfront improvements attendees would like to see implemented.
Other improvement options included in the survey were the parking lot reconstruction, additional parking spaces, public restrooms, a pedestrian walkway, and any improvement of Misery Gulch.
According to Lutkus, the time frame for all projects is dependent on funding sources and what overall recommendations the public agrees upon.
“It could be around 10 years before all is said and done,” he said.
Grants are available, but they will not pay for the entire project, and many require local matches, according to Lutkus.
“The town has already received two fairly significant donations for the project,” Lutkus said.
