Penobscot
Landing
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Brewer begins work to stabilize shoreline BREWER - Brewer has taken the first step toward stabilizing the waterfront. Workers started Wednesday on a stabilization project, which is the first phase of the city's ambitious Penobscot Landing undertaking. The Penobscot Landing will revitalize the town's riverfront, said Economic Development Director Andrew Sachs. The original shorefront supports were installed more than 100 years ago and have not been maintained since construction, Sachs said. He said for the city to go forward with the Penobscot Landing project, the shore needs to be fixed. "What we found out was that almost 90 percent of the shoreline between the three bridges was failing or had already failed," he said. "We were loosing several feet of shoreline annually. We don't have a lot of depth between the river and Main Street and we need to keep all we can." This first phase of the stabilization is a 600-square-foot area in front of the Muddy Rudder restaurant and the old Bangor Box Factory on South Main Street. The city has several plans for the 6,000-square-foot area between the three bridges, which is where the Penobscot Landing project is planned. Included in the long-term plans are a walkway, a commercial shopping area, a public pier, a children's garden and a marina. Brewer has been working with the Maine Department of Transportation , the U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on the project. "We met with Governor Angus King, at the time, and his Cabinet and met with congressional offices and federal agency representatives," said Sachs. "As a result of that we've been highly productive in leveraging federal and state funds. "We believe that we may have fully funded this project at this point," he said. "This project is the largest and most expensive component of the Penobscot Landing. A $3.5 million project for a city of 9,000 people is a pretty large project." Brewer residents kicked in $200,000 and the DOT added another $1 million, which the city used to get matching grant funds from the federal government, Sachs said. The DOT contributed $1 million through a transportation grant and the USDOT gave another $1 million through a federal highway administrative grant. HUD added $750,000 through a Neighborhood Initiative grant and $223,750 in an economic development grant. H.E. Sargent Inc. of Stillwater was awarded the contract to do the work, which began Wednesday. "The first thing they'll do is clean out the brush and trees," Assistant City Engineer Joshua Saucier said. "Then they'll create a point of access to the project so they can get equipment down there. Next week they'll be starting on the earthwork." To reinforce the shoreline, a trench will be dug between the low-tide and high-tide marks and 2,000- to 3,000-pound stones will be placed in the trench. "A layer of smaller stones will be placed on the ground above that to serve as a foundation for larger, 500-pound rocks, to create a riprap," said Saucier. The first part of the stabilization project should take five weeks. "We should be finished by the week before Christmas," said Sachs. "The second phase will begin next spring." The second phase of the stabilization project will extend the stabilized shoreline between the three bridges. Work has already begun on the children's garden, according to Sachs, which is located behind Dead River's property. "It's a 10- to 12-year improvement project and we're just starting year three," he said. A copyright story from the Bangor Daily News by Nok-Noi Hauger, Of the NEWS Staff, Friday, November 14, 2003. |
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The
City of Brewer