On an issue that has been filled with contention from its start over a year ago, the town of Standish and the Portland Water District appear to be at a standstill in negotiations on the proposed Pine Cove Beach.

The Standish Town Council Tuesday night ended its pursuit of an agreement with the Water District that would have provided the beach on Sebago Lake for Standish residents. The town, still wanting to pursue beach access, felt discussion with the PWD had come to an impasse.

According to Councilor Larry Simpson, the council has two main problems with the PWD’s negotiating position, a position on which the PWD is unwilling to compromise. The first problem concerns the fence that the PWD is installing to protect the two-mile limit, which they are labeling a no-trespassing zone. The PWD is requesting the town help with enforcement of the zone.

“We can’t physically do that,” said Councilor Cindy Hopkins, “and I don’t want that point to get caught up in a public beach. That’s my biggest concern.”

“I agree with our Councilor Hopkins,” said Councilor Dolores Lymburner, “the point of keeping our citizens off from their land, troubles me greatly…That one point is such a sticking point.”

The other sticking point is that the PWD could close the beach if water quality was negatively affected. PWD officials maintain that water flows counter-clockwise through the Lower Bay meaning that pollution from the beach could, in theory, find its way to the District’s water intake pipes located downstream. Test samples from the beach would have to pass regular water tests for the beach to remain open.

“The most outstanding (issue) that they had in their MOU was that they could take and close the beach without cause at any time,” Simpson said. “I think we [the Council members] were all in agreement at that time that we could not pass that on to the people or support that situation.”

PWD Spokesperson Clements said that the PWD had planned to lease the beach to the town for 25 years if a compromise could be reached. Although beach rights could be revoked at any time if water quality doesn’t meet regulations, Clements said the PWD would compensate the town if this situation ever arose.

The town in the past has balked at spending capital creating a beach just to lose it a few years later if the PWD decides to close it down.

Hopkins added that, when questioned on several occasions, the PWD had answered that neither of these two points that disturb the Standish Council were negotiable. But Clements, when asked by this newspaper, said, “The Water District wants to continue to negotiate. We are not withdrawing from the negotiations.”

“The key point in all of this,” said Hopkins at Tuesday’s meeting, “is we still would like to see a beach – a public beach for the town of Standish.”

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