February 2024 Update

Hello, and thank you for checking in. Here’s a quick update, reach out any time if you’d like to know more.

• In the Press

  • PHIL DI VECE of the Boothbay Register and Wiscasset Newspaper posted a great story a few weeks ago in his "SALT ‘N SPAR” column under the heading “Big Ships, Tugboats on the Sheepscot River.” I genuinely enjoyed it, so I reached out to tell him so, which resulted in a nice column posted on February 21, 2024 “A Possible Future for Mason Station.”

  • Jules Walkup, Midcoast Reporter, Bangor Daily News, reached out to us with a request for an interview on February 12th, 2024. I had a really enjoyable conversation with them the following day and their article was posted on February 15, 2023, under the heading “Developer Hopes to Buy and Clean Up Former Wiscasset Power Plant.” I especially like the first comment, from “C4YRSLF” which stated simply, “Of course he does.” - I love that. Yes, I hope to. We’ll see if we can do!

• Arial Imagery

  • Tom Massey of Active Intelligence out of Rockland, ME came by Birch Point to fly some drones for arial photography, videography and photogrammetry. We will be posting a full page to show off this amazing technology and how we’re using it to redevelop the site.

• Environmental Assessment

  • MSRC retained Sevee & Maher Engineers to provide environmental services. SME is collecting decades worth of studies and preparing summary reports on the clean up efforts to-date, existing conditions, clean-up efforts currently underway and planned (e.g. the Ash Pond and North Point sites under the EPA’s Brownfield program), and assisting us with preparing new remediation plans for inside and outside the Powerhouse.

• Acquisition

  • The environmental plan is essential to the business plan and economic model to redevelop the site. Mason Station LLC, the current owner, is cooperating with our efforts and we are on-track to meet the milestones required in our 3-year option agreement. In fact, we are ahead of schedule and believe we will be able to exercise our option to acquire the property well within the 3-year option period.

• Marina Development

  • We are conducting new assessments of the existing structure and designing a dock and float system based on conservative estimates of seasonal and transient market demand. We are preparing plans to present to the Select Board and Bureau of Parks and Lands for a submerged lands lease this spring.

  • We’ve been reaching out to potential partners on the Marina operations and have some excellent prospects.

  • Portions of the existing Powerhouse are being assessed to provide marina-related services, such as restrooms, showers, laundry and general provisions. One of the screenhouses will serve as a marina offices and another as a chandlery. (The third screenhouse we hope to convert to a dockside restaurant).

I’ll stop there for now. There is certainly much more going on, so please feel free to reach out anytime for an update.

Best,

Ryan