HARPSWELL
On Thursday, the Harpswell Board of Selectmen will discuss several issues relating to Mitchell Field, among other items.
The Mitchell Field Pier, which the town took over from the Navy, has degraded over the years. Earlier this year, the pump house collapsed and had to be removed. The Mitchell Field Committee has recommended that the town remove the current pier, and is in the process of considering options for replacing the pier or having no pier at all.
Barney Baker of Baker Design Consultants, Inc. has submitted a proposal for engineering services to the selectboard, which would account for the removal of the pier. Under Baker’s proposal, his company would design a program for the removal of the pier at an estimated cost of $23,525. That estimate does not include costs related to permitting.
At a meeting earlier this month, Baker presented options for replacing the pier to the Mitchell Field Committee. Baker showed options ranging from no pier at all to a replacement pier that could handle commercial needs in the area and service 80-foot vessels. The committee will hold another public meeting in January to further discuss replacement options, which it will then recommend to the selectboard.
Also on Thursday’s agenda are two proposals to install wireless communication technology on the existing water tower. The competing proposals are from Communications Facilities, Inc. and Northern Pride Communications, Inc. The two companies both propose to seek out interest in using the communications technology, installation and maintenance.
According to an email from the deputy town administrator to the selectboard, expenditures at Mitchell Field have exceeded the budget by $500 due to building repairs. Selectmen will vote Thursday on whether to draw from the contingency funds to cover those costs.
The town has also been awarded a $7,500 grant from the Davis Conservation Foundation to develop an invasive species and natural resources management plan for the Mitchell Field property.
nstrout@timesrecord.com
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