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Docks to Doorway Campaign on Great Pond

June 26, 2010 - BELGRADE -- For decades, boaters on Great Pond could hop on docks behind a former marina, which now houses the post office, to pick up a gallon of milk at Day's Store or visit Main Street shops and restaurants.

That all ended in 2004, when a pine fence was built blocking off what was, for more than 70 years, open access to and from Great Pond.

The owner of the building where the post office is located put the property up for sale and built the fence to blunt potential liability from public use of the docks.

The Belgrade Lakes Association stepped in last year and purchased two properties on Mill Stream between Great Pond and Long Pond: the former marina that now houses the post office, and the former Damren property down the street.

The association has since partnered with the Belgrade Regional Conservation Alliance and Colby College in the effort, which has grown into a community conservation project to preserve Maine lakes.

On July 4, the three groups will host a kickoff celebration at 1:30 p.m. at the Damren property on Main Street to formally announce the public phase of a $2.5 million campaign. They also will officially open the first public dock on Mill Stream.

"We'll be dedicating and opening the first new dock on the Mill Stream," said Diane Oliver, who owns of Day's Store with her husband, Kerry.

Oliver, who co-chairs the Doors to Doorways Community Committee along with Sue Gawler, said this will help all the businesses downtown and allow people a unique way to come to the village.

Loren Wright, a volunteer for the Docks to Doorways campaign, said people are invited to come to the celebration July 4 to view building plans; enjoy refreshments, music and conservation displays; and ride on Colby's research pontoon boat, Melinda Ann.

"This will bring back something that made this community special, coming by boat down the stream to the village on Mill Stream," Wright said. "We're hoping people will join us on July 4 so they can get an update on the campaign and see where we're headed."

With Colby College and the Conservation Alliance on board, Gail Rizzo, who serves on the lake association Board of Directors, said the project is much stronger.

"We have a broader reach, more community involvement and two additional, leading partners," Rizzo said.

Since last fall, the Steering Committee has been expanded to include elected officials, business owners, year-round residents and the presidents of Colby College and Kennebec Savings Bank.

Colby President William "Bro" Adams said the college is pleased to be a lead partner in the Docks to Doorways project.

He said the project aligns perfectly with Colby's past and future research and community service initiatives in the Belgrade Lakes watershed. He said it also will directly advance college's interest in fostering community-based research in the area.

Maggie Shannon, executive director of the Maine Congress of Lake Associations, a member of the steering committee, said the project is about making the Belgrade Lakes a model for conservation in Maine.

"We view the evolution of this project as a major advancement for everyone," Shannon said. "The project is no longer just about docks or about Great and Long ponds. It's about preserving lakes in the region and beyond."

Docks to Doorways has 27 volunteers on the Steering Committee and four working committees -- Building, Community, Education and Fundraising.

Tom Klingenstein, chairman of the Steering Committee, said the old boathouse on the stream, behind the post office, will be restored as originally planned. But the project now also has a conservation focus, with new designs for a "green" 3,500-square-foot conservation resource center on the vacant Damren lot.

He said the building will be modeled after an old barn and showcase conservation initiatives.

"A building in the center of town will allow us to promote our activities and programs in ways unavailable to us in the past," Klingenstein said. "The center will also be used for the farmers' market, education programs, music, lectures and other entertainment."

Plans for the post office site also have changed, he said. The plan now is to tear down two-thirds of the building and replace it with a small park where people can hang out and enjoy the stream.

"The plan is to make that little park a community space where people can get a view of the water," he said. "It's amazing. We're surrounded by water, but there isn't a great sense of water when you drive through town because it's so built up. We're hoping to have something behind the post office where we can take out food and have someone to rent paddle boats and canoes.

"But at the end of the day, this project is about conservation, getting people living in the watershed to adopt best conservation practices," he added.

Wright said more information about the project can be found at www.dockstodoorways.com. People can make donations on site or send them to P.O. Box 551, Belgrade Lakes, ME 04918.

by Mechele Cooper, Kennebec Journal, June 26, 2010

Lakes: Great Pond
Regions: Belgrade


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