Saco received over $1 million from the state to fund infrastructure improvements at the entrance to Camp Ellis. Contributed / City of Saco
The Mills administration on Friday awarded $25.2 million in storm recovery grants to 39 towns and cities in Maine, including $1,257,000 in funding for infrastructure improvements at the entrance to the coastal neighborhood of Camp Ellis, according to a Saco city spokesman.
The grants come from a $60 million fund created this year to improve the state’s infrastructure to make it more resilient to storms like the ones that devastated the coast and interior communities last winter.
The Saco project is aimed at mitigating sea level rise and coastal storm flooding around the intersection of Ferry Road and Seaside Avenue. The funds will be used to replace an aging culvert and elevate a section of roadway that frequently floods during major storms, significantly improving emergency access to more than 200 properties, as well as the city’s pier and waterfront areas, according to a statement from Saco Digital Media Manager Andrew Dickinson. Additionally, the project will enhance pedestrian and bicycle safety during the busy summer season.
The project cost is $1,357,000. Funding comes from the Maine Department of Transportation through the Maine Infrastructure Adaptation Fund. The MDOT awarded Saco $1,257,000 and the city will pick up the remaining cost of $100,000, or 8% of the total project cost.
“We are deeply grateful to MDOT for recognizing the importance of this project and providing substantial funding to make it a reality,” said Patrick Fox, Public Works director. “This infrastructure improvement is vital for protecting our community and ensuring safe and reliable access during extreme weather events.”
Gov. Janet Mills said in a written statement that “we are working closely with towns and cities to take decisive action that will protect our people, our communities and our economy from the destructive impacts of climate change. These important awards will help communities across Maine recover from last winter’s storms and upgrade their infrastructure so that they are better prepared for the future.”
The $25.2 million in funding comes from $60 million approved by the Legislature this year that was specifically set aside for improving infrastructure to make it more resilient to storms.
Bruce Van Note, commissioner of MDOT, said that “severe weather events can wreak havoc on the infrastructure that connects us. This funding will help us rebuild those connections and increase their resiliency for the future.”
Other projects funded by the $25.2 million grants include: $3.6 million, which goes to Portland for a new storm drain in the Old Port that’s designed to reduce waterfront flooding and sewage discharges into the harbor; $4 million to the Rumford-Mexico Sewerage District to renovate and flood-proof the wastewater pumping station; and $475,000 to Machiasport to move an exposed part of Port Road 1,035 feet inland.
Also from the $60 million in storm relief that the governor and Legislature approved in April, the governor announced last month that her administration had awarded 68 Maine working waterfronts a total of $21.2 million in grants from the funding to support their recovery and rebuilding. On Aug. 8, she also announced that her administration will distribute nearly $6 million in Business Recovery and Resilience Fund grants to help 108 businesses and organizations impacted by severe weather increase their resilience to future storms, with a second round of grants to come.
The Saco project is one of several ongoing initiatives in the city aimed at enhancing coastal resiliency, according to Dickinson. “The city is actively pursuing and utilizing regional, state and federal partnerships to support a variety of efforts, including a beach management plan, climate action plan, wastewater treatment plant upgrades and the (Camp Ellis) jetty erosion mitigation project,” he said.
Portland Press Herald staff writer Joe Lawler contributed to this story.