CONCORD, Mass. – J&B Partners, LLC is seeking a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District to conduct work in waters of the U.S. in conjunction with installing seasonal floats in the Saco River to establish two seasonal marina basins in Saco, Maine.
J&B Partners proposes to place permanent fill below the high tide line and install seasonal floats in the Saco River in order to establish two seasonal marina basins with a combined 55 slips as part of the redevelopment of Saco Island (also known as Factory Island) with commercial and residential structures. A similar marina proposal at this site was previously authorized by the Corps in 2007 but was never installed and the permit has since expired.
Approximately 39,586 square feet of river bottom will be impacted by the reconstruction of existing timber and stone crib and granite block seawalls. The granite block wall will be reconstructed in kind and in-situ. The timber crib wall will be faced with a new steel sheet pile wall.
The floats will be bottom moored and accessed by ramps from the shore. They will be made available to the owners of the upland residences (Basin B) and also to members of the public (Basin A). No fueling is proposed at the facility, however, a boat pump-out building will be constructed near Basin A.
This proposed project will impact approximately 0.03 acre of Essential Fish Habitat (EFH). This bottom habitat consists of silt, sand and debris from past industrial use. Loss of this habitat may adversely affect species that use these waters and substrate. However, the Corps has made a preliminary determination that the site-specific adverse effect will not be substantial. Further consultation with National Marine Fisheries Service regarding EFH conservation recommendations is being conducted and will be concluded prior to the final permit decision.
The application for the federal permit was filed 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 U.S.; and with Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, which regulates the discharge or fill of material in U.S. waters, including wetlands. The public notice, with more specifics on the work proposed by J&B Partners, LLC can be viewed on the Corps website at www.nae.usace.army.mil/Missions/Regulatory/PublicNotices.aspx.
Public comments on this work proposed by J&B Partners, LLC (file # NAE-2018-01586) should be forwarded no later than Jan. 10, 2019 to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New England District, Regulatory Division, Maine Project Office (ATTN: Colin Greenan), 442 Civic Center Drive, Suite 350, Augusta, Maine, 04330. Additional information is available from Permit Project Manager Colin Greenan at 207-623-8367 or 978-318-8676 or by email to: colin.m.greenan@usace.army.mil.