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A coalition of boaters, sailors and rowers had been organizing and lobbying the town for more than four years to provide a community supported waterway access and boat storage facility off Squire Pope Road.
But as the project went from concept to reality, more costs arose, and fundraising proved to be less robust than expected.
“Where it stands at the moment, the grand plan has been shelved and we’ll have to go back and figure out what’s the minimum level of improvements we can make, and do it incrementally,” town manager Steve Riley said.
The main financial hurdle is the site itself, a 2.4-acre piece of town-owned land on Squire Pope Road that for generations served as a native islander seafood co-op.
The old dock on the site is in such bad shape that repairing or removing it makes the project cost skyrocket, Riley said. The original proposal supporters put together estimated that constructing the facility would cost $1.5 million; now, estimated costs are more than $2 million, Riley said.
A fundraising effort from community supporters of the project — including rowing, sailing and yachting clubs — has also been weaker than expected. They aimed to raise $1 million but have come up short, Riley said.
“There’s no way they’re going to be able to raise $2 million,” he said. “It’s beyond financially feasible to do the grand plan.”
Now the town staff is reviewing the project to see what small improvements can be made to make the waterway accessible to boaters at the site.
