FORECASTER • December 16, 2021
The cities of Portland and South Portland, the Portland Harbor Commission and the Maine Department of Transportation have banded together to plan a $31 million dredging project, but their request for a federal grant to fund 80% of the project was denied last month. Centuries of bad habits and storm runoff have led to the buildup. Being twice denied project funding frustrates South Port Marine owner Kip Reynolds. He stressed that dredging is vital for local industries, pier owners and other marinas, not just him. “This is something that has a much larger scope,” he said. Many of the affected areas haven’t been dredged in 70 years, if ever, William Mann said.