Coastal Maine communities that were among the hardest hit by back-to-back storms in January were the biggest beneficiaries of a round of state resilience grants announced Monday.
The grants, totaling more than $21.2 million, were awarded to more heavily used working waterfront properties that needed urgent repairs to be ready for Maine’s busy summer lobster fishing season. Recipients of the funds had to make design improvements to their properties to make them better able to withstand higher levels of storm surge, which is predicted to become more frequent because of climate change.
Of the more than 40 communities represented on the list, 13 got more than $500,000 each for local properties used by commercial fishing businesses.
Five different properties in Portland got a total of $6.7 million, and five in Stonington cumulatively received nearly $2 million, with the local lobster co-op receiving the biggest chunk of that. Another heavily represented community was Harpswell, where $1.2 million was awarded across six recipients (including two in the village of Bailey Island).
Waterfront businesses in Kennebunkport, Milbridge, Southwest Harbor, Steuben and Swan’s Island each were awarded between $500,000 and $800,000 to be divided up among multiple local properties that were damaged.
Some individual properties in other communities also received significant sums.
The town of Rockport received $2 million, and Maine Lobster and Processing Inc. in Thomaston received $1.6 million. J.O. Brown & Son on North Haven received $750,000 while New Harbor Lobster Co-op, one of several properties damaged in that community, received more than $500,000.
