By Dawn De Busk

Staff Writer

CASCO — Pleasant Lake town beach ranks as the most visible and most accessible of Casco’s public beaches.

People driving on Mayberry Hill Road pass by it. For those on foot, the beach is walkable from Casco Village.

However, the actual shoreline could prove to be a bit of an ankle twister. After all, the beach is at a slant toward the water and the boat launch area is less than user friendly.

Recently, the Town of Casco took a step toward improving the public beach. 

On Dec. 14, Casco Town Manager Anthony “Tony” Ward talked about the proposed improvements to the beach.

The plans will have to be approved by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). In fact, that paperwork has been submitted to the DEP for processing, according to Ward. 

Morse Environmental Consulting, LLC, prepared the proposal entitled, Town Beach Erosion Mitigation and Improvement. Mike Morse, a former employee of DEP in the region, runs Morse Environmental.

The projected timeline is that the work would have to occur in spring 2022 to allow the grass sod to take root before summer-time usage of the facility.

Some of the work includes creating a 6-foot wide walking path, which will help keep the public from traversing where vegetation will be planted.

“It makes it much more handicapped accessible, compared to what it is now,” Ward said. 

“It would have a retaining wall, which would make it more stable,” he said.

The existing retaining wall is constructed of wood. This will be replaced by concrete, which is an inert material. 

“To support the grading and beach area slope reduction, a low retaining wall is necessary to provide the structural reinforcement required for the adjacent safety fencing, sidewalk and roadway,” according to the paperwork prepared by Morse.

The retaining wall will be constructed with a precast concrete block system. The measurements of the retaining wall will be 56-feet long, and between 2-1/2 and 3-1/4 feet tall.