Dexter district seeks legal advice on boat launch

DEXTER – The Dexter Utilities District is seeking legal advice on a boat launch site proposed for big Lake Wassookeag.

A joint meeting between the Town Council and the district had been scheduled to discuss the proposed launch this week, but was canceled at the district’s request.

“Because of the time constraints we agreed to seek a legal recommendation,” Greg Brawn, district chairman, said Thursday.

The proposed launch at the picnic area off Route 23 has caused a rift between the district and some town officials. The launch site, which is 681 feet from the public water supply intake on the lake, has been used unofficially over the years. The Department of Conservation wants to make it legal so big boats can access the big lake.

Brawn said the utilities district has managed the water level so boaters can access the big lake from the little lake via the bridge, which means there is no need for another public boat access.

That boat access from the bridge is limited, according to William Gelzinis, chairman of the appeals board. If the water is too low, boat engines drag, and if it is too high, there is limited access, he said.

The proposal was submitted to the planning board which approved the request 6-1. The board stated the project, to be funded by the state, met the eight steps required by the town’s shoreland zoning ordinance.

That approval sparked the district to take its case to the appeals board on the basis that planning board members erred in their determination. The appeals board, however, voted 7-0 on Aug. 7 to deny the water district’s appeal.

The district has 45 days from the appeals board vote to file an appeal in Superior Court, thus the move to seek legal counsel, Brawn said. He said the fact the district is seeking legal advice does not necessarily mean it will take the case to court.

Gelzinis said the district is using the Source Water Protection Plan developed by the Lake Wassookeag Source Water Protection Stakeholders and approved by the council and the district as the basis of its appeal. He said the plan was approved by the council and was accepted as a guide but has never been approved as an ordinance.

Nowhere in the plan does it prohibit a launch within 1,000 feet of the intake source, according to Gelzinis.

Since the water is at or near its lowest stage while work is being done on the dam, town officials say this would be the time to do the project. The town’s ordinance prohibits any earth moving around the lake after Oct. 1 through May to protect the water source.