GETTING MOVING ON MILL PARK'S FUTURE

Saturday, June 17, 2006

The Mill Park property in Augusta will begin to look more like a park and less like an abandoned mill site soon. Officials broke ground yesterday on the first phase of a $9 million makeover of the 17-acre parcel that will ultimately turn the old industrial property on the north end of the capital city into a riverside gem.

But it's going to take awhile.

This first $500,000 phase includes construction of a hand-carry boat launch and a 1,400 foot road. Original plans called for the first phase to include about $3 million worth of work, but fundraising has been difficult and painfully slow. Many anticipated sources of money didn't pan out. It took heroic efforts by former Augusta lawmaker Beverly Daggett, members of the Baldacci administration, Augusta City Manager Bill Bridgeo, and other members of the Capitol River Improvement District to figure out how to pay for even this small installment of a much grander vision that includes hiking trails, an improved farmers' market site, and recreational opportunities.

After the highly successful fundraising campaigns for the new YMCA, the new regional cancer center, the new Cony High School, and with fundraising for the renovation of Augusta's Lithgow Public Library looming, area residents' generosity is likely to be stretched. We encourage the park's champions to look beyond the capital region for funds. The removal of the Edwards Dam, which once dominated the Mill Park property, was a signal event in this region's history as well as the history of this country -- it was the first dam the federal government ever ordered removed because its value as a power source was far outweighed by the damage it did to the river's health. As such, the appeal of the park stretches far beyond this area -- to fishermen, river lovers, nature worshippers and fans of ecological restoration throughout the country. We hope that the park can take its place among the jewels of Augusta -- sooner, rather than later.