AUGUSTA — The Maine Coastal Program is awarding more than $160,000 to nine coastal communities to improve harbor management, waterfront planning and public access.

The largest grant is going to Cranberry Isles with $30,000 earmarked for Islesford Town Dock repairs. Cumberland is getting $20,906 toward the Payson Pier replacement project. Portland will get $22,500 for its East End Beach non-motorized boating facility.

Projects in Bath, Brunswick, Frenchboro, Ogunquit, Sedgwick and Wells are also getting grants.

The Maine Coastal Program is part of the state Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry. The grant money comes from the department’s coastal management award from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and the state’s Submerged Land Program.

Each community receiving a grant will match at least 25 percent of it with money or services.

Grants were awarded were:

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Bath – $10,000 for design and engineering services to develop a vacant lot along the Kennebec River into a cooperative fishing pier.

Brunswick – $15,900 to assess options for creating a town mooring field for non- residents.

Cranberry Isles – $30,000 for engineering and design to repair and extend the Islesford Town Dock.

Cumberland – $20,906 for engineering and design of a new pier.

Frenchboro – $20,000 to develop a plan for managing municipal waterfront resources.

Ogunquit – $20,000 for design and engineering of a new pedestrian bridge to provide safer access to Ogunquit Beach.

Portland – $22,500 to design new floats and dockage for non-motorized watercraft activity on East End Beach.

Sedgwick – $15,000 for engineering of improvements or a replacement for the existing pier, as well as conceptual design of the entire municipal facility.

Wells – $8,900 to evaluate the applicability of local historical deeds and possible implications for public beach access in the community.

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