Lubec asks state to take over Safe Harbor project

Lubec Select Board Chair Carol Dennison outlined a change in the approach to constructing the Safe Harbor project, addressing the board during the regular August 31 meeting. Dennison, who has long championed the project, read the contents of a letter sent to the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration, asking that the $19,650,000 federal grant approved in 2019 for the project be turned over to the Maine Department of Transportation (DOT), thus allowing the state agency to assume the lead role in the project, which must be completed by September 2026.
The letter observed that two bids were received for the Safe Harbor project; one was for a far greater amount than the grant, and the other required a significant compromise in the size of the breakwater. The letter states that "COVID and price increases" led to the shortfall in funding and observes that the state has the resources to complete the project in accord with the original design. The letter, Dennison stated, was prepared following conversations with both Senator Susan Collins' office and the DOT, and she said that she had confidence that the request would be approved. "The DOT does have the final say," she said, confirming that final approval had not yet been granted.
Dennison concluded her comments by saying, "I have a dream that it gets done by somebody. I did the best I could." She and a team of local residents and fishermen have spent several years working diligently on this project, which is intended to provide local mariners refuge during major weather incidents.
In other business during the meeting, Town Administrator Renee Gray announced the dates for the beach cleanup project as September 4 to 11. Sign-up sheets and other material are available at the library, and the dumpster at the town office is the designated drop-off point, except for tires and waste oil. Gray also announced that the town office parking lot will be closed for repaving for three days in late September or October, pointing out that it will be the first paving since 1938.
The board also encouraged eligible property owners to apply for the Property Tax Stabilization Program, open to those 65 or older who are eligible for a homestead exemption. Full details are available on the town's website.