ARROWSIC – New concerns raised by a state commission could undermine efforts to relocate an osprey nesting site that has delayed plans to paint a bridge linking Arrowsic and Georgetown with the mainland.

The state wanted to paint the Max L. Wilder Memorial Bridge on Route 127 last summer, but was forced to delay the $1.7 million project when ospreys returned to the bridge and built a new nest after the state removed their old one.

To prevent the birds from building a new nest this spring, the state has placed metallic cones on top of the bridge and made plans to relocate the ospreys. But now the Maine Historic Preservation Commission says the cones may harm the bridge’s historic character.

A group known as Friends of the Island’s Ospreys says further delays caused by the commission’s review could hinder plans to relocate the birds, whose nesting sites are protected under federal law from human interference.

“Things have really gotten convoluted,” said Avery Anderson, a spokeswoman for the group.

The state agreed to paint the bridge this year after it installs nesting platforms next month along the shore and on an island in the Sasanoa River. Historically, the osprey family returns in early April.