CONCORD, Mass. – The town of Marblehead is seeking a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District to conduct work in waters of the United States in conjunction with maintaining and extending a fixed pier, installing a seasonal ramp and doing other work in Salem Harbor in Marblehead, Mass.

The town of Marblehead is proposing to retain and maintain an existing pile and timber fixed pier 200 feet long and 5 feet wide, to extend the fixed pier farther into the waterway by an additional 40 feet, and to install a seasonal ramp leading to two floating docks at the seaward end of the pier.

The entire structure will extend into the waters of Salem Harbor a total of approximately 376 feet seaward of mean high water. The pier and floating docks are together known as the Stramski Pier Project and are to provide the public with access to the navigable waters of Salem Harbor. The work is proposed in Salem Harbor at the western end (harbor side) of the town property at Stramski Way in Marblehead.

The fixed pier is elevated well above ground level and will impact 1,120 square feet of intertidal sandy habitat by shading only. The floating docks will occupy 960 square feet of the harbor waters only seasonally. They will not rest on the harbor bottom at any time and will be in waters at least 1.5 feet deep at all times. The Corps has made a determination that the impact of the floating docks is minimal since the bottom will not be affected and there is no submerged aquatic vegetation either underneath or nearby the floating docks that would possibly be affected by shading. Further consultation with the National Marine Fisheries Service regarding Essential Fish Habitat conservation recommendations is being conducted and will be concluded prior to the final permit decision.  

The application for the federal permit was filed by the town of Marblehead with the Corps in compliance with Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act, which provides for federal regulation of any work in, or affecting navigable waters of the United States. The public notice can be viewed on the Corps website at http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/Regulatory/Public%20Notices/.

Public comments on this proposal by the town of Marblehead (file # NAE 2012-1090) should be forwarded no later than Nov. 2, 2012 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, Regulatory Division (ATTN: Brian Valiton), 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742-2751. Additional information is available from Permit Project Manager Brian Valiton at 978-318-8166 or toll free 800-343-4789 or 800-362-4367 (if calling from within Massachusetts) or by email to: brian.e.valiton@usace.army.mil.