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September 25, 2022

Lubec asks MDOT to take over Safe Harbor project

By Laurie Schreiber
drawing of harbor
COURTESY / DOWN TO EARTH PROFESSIONAL LAND SERVICES INC.
A breakwater and other infrastructure extending from Main Street are designed to protect Lubec’s fishing fleet from storms.

Lubec’s select board has asked the Maine Department of Transportation to take over the town’s Safe Harbor project, citing escalating costs.

In 2019, the town was awarded $19.65 million by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development, or BUILD, transportation discretionary grants program.

The money was awarded to make major improvements to Lubec’s harbor to improve harbor infrastructure for the safety of its fishing fleet. 

But contractor bids, submitted earlier this year, came in over budget. Rockland’s Prock Marine Co.’s bid was $24.3 million and a bid from Sargent Corp. in Stillwater was $41.27 million.

At a recent select board meeting, chair Carol Dennison reported that the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration has approved the transfer of the project from the town to the state, as long as the scope of the project doesn’t change. 

The project is located off Maine Street, also Route 189, in Johnson Bay at Lubec.

According to the 2021 U.S. Army Corps of Engineering permit, the work involves the placement of up to about 3.29 acres of fill below the high tide line of Johnson Bay at Lubec in order to provide a safe harbor for the existing fishing fleet and for recreational and transient boaters 

The safe harbor project consists of a 1,250-foot-long breakwater, boat ramp, piers, floats and paved parking area

The time limit for completing the work authorized ends Dec. 31, 2026. 

The Maritime Administration required a letter from the town formally requesting the transfer.

The select board approved Dennison’s letter, which noted that the lesser of the two bids would significantly reduce the size of the breakwater and compromise the integrity of the project. The letter asks the administration to turn the project over in its entirety to MDOT.

Members of the select board noted the state has the resources to get the project done.

“My hope is it gets done,” Dennison said.

The fishing industry is the biggest employer in Lubec, yet the entire fishing fleet is on moorings and there is no safe harbor to shelter boats during storms, nor to launch skiffs during high winds in order to get to fishing vessels for operation or simply check on them.

The Marine Patrol also maintains a strong presence in Lubec, including a rescue/patrol boat. 

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