BATH

A severe rain and wind storm intensified early on Oct. 30, leaving thousands in the Midcoast without power — some for more than a week. More than 470,000 Central Maine Power Co. customers were impacted by the storm. By the end of the following weekend, the utility reported 99 percent of customers had power back on. At that time there were still 490 customers in Harpswell without power.

With downed poles, trees and power lines, many roads were impassible. School Administrative District 75 was forced to cancel school all week.

Pleasant Point in Topsham suffered erosion damage and several large trees were uprooted — blocking the road more than a week and causing a lengthy power outage.

Other top stories of 2017 impacting Bath, Harpswell, Phippsburg and Woolwich include:

Harpswell decides to destroy Mitchell Field Pier

After years of decay, the Mitchell Field Pier was literally falling apart. So at the annual town meeting, Harpswell voters gave the selectmen the authority to issue up to $5 million in bonds to demolish and completely remove the former Navy pier. The bid process began in the fall, and in December Woolwich-based Reed & Reed was contracted to remove the pier. Work is expected to begin in January and be completed by September.

Parkers to remove pilings

In a move that has proven controversial in the small community of Phippsburg, last year Jackson and Susan Parker applied to remove the pilings near their home at Popham Beach, citing concerns that the pilings were adding to erosion of the beach. After an unusually lengthy period, the state Department of Environmental Protection granted the Parkers a permit to remove the pilings in summer of 2017, but the permit was appealed by the town of Phippsburg at the last moment. In December, both sides went before the state Board of Environmental Protection, where the appeal fell short and the Parkers were able to hold onto their permit. Jack Parker has stated that he will not be removing the pilings this winter.

Bath bans plastic bags

Following the examples set by Freeport and other Maine communities, the Bath City Council voted to ban single-use plastic bags in Bath in November. The two ordinances essentially ban businesses from handing out plastic bags and polystyrene, with a few exceptions. The bans will go into effect Earth Day 2018.

Woolwich goes solar

Woolwich will host a formal ribbon cutting for a new solar array in the first days of 2018. The solar array, located at the town’s old landfill, will offset 97 percent of the power used by all municipal facilities in Woolwich. The solar panels are a result of a deal struck with ReVision Energy which was authorized by Woolwich voters in April. For now, ReVision will operate the array, with the town getting a chance to purchase it at a discount after six years.

Harpswell residents strike deal for Cedar Beach access

After years of fighting in and out of court, the town of Harpswell finally struck a deal with the owners of a private road on Bailey Island to secure access to Cedar Beach. The agreement comes with a series of requirements to protect the interests of the private owners, which the town is obliged to enforce.

Bath Viaduct rebuilt

The Bath Viaduct reopened in May following months of construction as the roadway was entirely rebuilt. While the demolition and construction was a short-term pain for some Bath businesses, most saw it as a necessary endeavor. The $12 million project is expected to last for 100 years.

RSU 1 approves new Morse High School

After months of planning, discussions and presentations, voters approved the concept design and budget for a new building to host Morse High School and the Bath Regional Career and Technical Center. The districts jumped some major hurdles this year: getting approval by the state board of education, securing a concept design and convincing voters to approve up to $74,628,411 in bonds to finance the project. The new school, which will replace the current Morse High School, is expected to open in 2020.

Darcie Moore contributed to this report

nstrout@timesrecord.com

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