A Marina For Wethersfield Cove

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) announced it has been awarded a $494,650 grant from the Department of Interior’s Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) to fund the construction of a recreational boat marina in the Town of Wethersfield.  The marina will consist of seven transient (those staying 10 days or less) slips and 51 moorings designated for the use of transient recreational vessels.  The grant was awarded through the USFWS Boating Infrastructure Grant (BIG) Program.  Total cost of the projects is estimated to be $793,050 with the Town of Wethersfield providing $298,400.

A Mystic marina. Boaters pick up supplies, walk towns, and shop.

The design goal focus is to create a destination for day sailors and those using the Long Island Sound portion of the intercoastal waterway.  Partners include the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan District Commission, Riverfront Recapture, Wethersfield Cove Yacht Club, and local environmental groups.

The Boating Infrastructure Grant Program (BIG) provides grant funds to construct, renovate, and maintain tie-up facilities with features for transient boaters in vessels 26 feet or more in length, and to produce and distribute information and educational materials about the program. Funding sources are the Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, formerly Aquatic Resources Trust Fund, which boaters and manufacturers support through excise and other taxes on certain fishing and boating equipment and boat fuel. Funds are competitively disbursed to states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands for approved grants up to 75% of the project costs.

Previously approved and completed BIG projects: Reynolds Garage & Marine, Lyme – 2 slips; City of New Haven – 3 moorings; City of New London – 15 moorings; City of Norwalk – 9 moorings, dinghy dock; Marina, New London – 4 slips; Chrisholm Marina, Chester – 6 slips; Oak Leaf Marina, Old Saybrook – upland bathhouse.