Category Archives: Town/Community

15 March 2016: The Story of a Performing Arts Community on Clary Lake

The Whitefield Historical Society and the Jefferson Historical Society are putting on a program this coming Sunday, March 20th at the Whitefield Townhouse on Townhouse Road in Whitefield. Below is the cover illustration of the Whitefield Historical Society’s latest newsletter.

A performing arts community settled at the eastern end of Clary Lake beginning in the early 1900s. Clockwise from 12 o’clock: Ann Ward; Lucy Lee, a reader; Percy Hunt, baritone, and his wife, Katherine Ridgeway, a reader performed together on the Redpath Lyceum circuit; France King Ward, Crawford Peffer and his wife, Ella Harding, soprano; F. Morse Wemple and George Fergusson, baritones, who taught voice with Percy Hunt at the New England Conservatory. Mr. Peffer owned the New York and New England Redpath Lyceum and Chatauqua Circuits. Katherine Ridgeway and Ella Peffer went on to establish the Katherine Ridgeway Camp for Girls on the northern side of the lake. Descendants and people who knew them are encouraged to come and share their memories

George Fergusson, pictured above at 11 o’clock was my grandfather. He came to Maine and bought our property on Clary Lake in 1922. I well remember from my childhood days visiting with Percy Hunt and his sister Lucy Lee who lived across the road from the Highland Cemetery in a house now owned by Fasano, the Ward Sisters whose house and property on North Forty Lane is now owned by the Relyea family, and Morse Wemple whose property at the east end of Clary Lake was owned for many years by the Stickney family and is now owned by Glenn Bruce MacDonald. I never knew the Peffer family but understand their property was located just north of the Wemple property. The Robbins property on Clary Lake is part of the old Peffer place. They probably owned that nice red cape out in the field just up the hill from the Wemple place.

My sister and I have worked closely with Marie Sacks this past year to help her collect the information and materials she’ll be using in her presentation. I’m really looking forward to this!

Avian Haven’s 2015 Year End Report Now Available

American Bittern

[dropcap]The[/dropcap] Avian Haven Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center’s 2015 Year End Report is now available and has been posted on the Avian Haven website. The report is packed with pictures and fascinating stories of their rescue efforts through the year and makes for a very enjoyable read. The picture at left is of a juvenile American Bittern from their website. Avian Haven has been in existence since 1999 and are currently handling about 2000 rescue cases a year, making them one of the largest rehabilitation practices in New England. Avian Haven is a non-profit organization located on the Palermo Road in Freedom, Maine. They’re great folks, doing an amazing job caring for sick and injured birds of all sorts. In addition to the Avian Haven website, you can also follow them on their Facebook page. Enjoy the report!

Avian Haven 2015 Year End Report

31 January 2016: Clary Lake Shore Owners Rubin & Ayer File Suit in Superior Court

Bob Rubin and Cheryl Ayer sitting on their dock. Photograph by George Fergusson, 28 August 2015

[dropcap]In[/dropcap] yesterday’s Central Maine Papers article about the Clary Lake dam auction, reporter Jessica Lowell attempted to convey a sense of the frenetic, escalating pace of recent events surrounding the Clary Lake water level crisis by listing some of what just took place in January. One item that should have grabbed your attention was the statement regarding Clary Lake shore owners Robert Rubin and Cheryl Ayer, husband and wife lawyers, who have filed suit against Paul Kelley and Richard Smith in Lincoln County Superior Court. They are seeking damages for harm done to their Clary Lake front property as the result of low water conditions that have severely impacted the use and enjoyment of their property. The picture at left, taken by me last August, shows Bob and Cheryl sitting on their dock 6′ above bare rocks. That is as close as I could approach in my boat.

Continue reading →

18 January 2016: [UPDATED] Meeting to discuss Coopers Mills Dam proposal this Thursday January 21st

[dropcap]There[/dropcap] will be a meeting on January 21st at 7 PM at the Whitefield School to discuss Coopers Mills dam options. The Coopers Mills Dam Committee will be presenting its findings, options, and recommendations for the Coopers Mills dam. All are welcome, even if you’re not a Whitefield resident. The following information comes from a Midcoast Conservancy email I received the other day:

Options include: 1. Do nothing; 2. Repair the dam at Town expense; or 3. Remove the dam and create public access along with historical and environmental displays at the dam site, fully funded by the Atlantic Salmon Federation (ASF).

There is an important water source for the fire department behind the dam. There are engineering proposals for alternative sites within the river with some redundancy. These options, which would also be funded by ASF, deserve your careful consideration along with fish passage, historical, community and financial considerations. Please consider attending this meeting to voice your opinion.

Andy Goode with the Atlantic Salmon Federation sent me a site plan (with legend) showing the proposed design for the Coopers Mills dam site. The PDF at left consists of 2 pages, the plan and a legend page that I made from the original PowerPoint presentation, which was quite large. The PDF is still pretty large. To make it easier to view I’ve blown up a section of the original plan and saved it and the legend page in separate files.

Meeting Reminder: Property Tax Abatement Information Meeting this Tuesday 11/17

[dropcap]Just[/dropcap] a quick reminder that the Whitefield Select Board will be holding an informational meeting at 6:00 PM this coming Tuesday November 17th for people who filed property tax abatement requests this past fall. The meeting will be held at the Whitefield Fire & Rescue building, Townhouse Road (map). This Select Board sent a letter last week to interested parties which was posted here (see below).

10 November 2015: Whitefield responds to Clary Lake shore owner abatement requests

[dropcap]The[/dropcap] Whitefield Select Board is sending the following letter to Clary Lake shore owners that filed property tax abatement forms recently. According to the letter, all the abatement requests were made too late to apply to the 2014/2015 tax year, a mistake I expect will be easy to remedy. It does appear that the Whitefield Board members are being proactive and showing concern and understanding for the situation faced by Clary Lake shore owners.

[pdf-embedder url=”https://clarylake.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Whitefield_abatement_response_11-10-2015.pdf”]

05 November 2015: Whitefield Selectmen to Hold Meeting on Clary Lake Abatement Requests

There is an article in this week’s Lincoln County News by staff reporter Abigail Adams about an informational meeting to be held by the Whitefield Selectmen for Clary Lake shore owners who filed property tax abatement requests this past fall due to the impact low lake levels have had on their property values. The meeting will be held on November 17th at the Select Board’s regularly scheduled Tuesday night board meeting. The article states that the aim of the meeting is to educate landowners about the town’s current valuation methods for waterfront property. Apparently some of the abatement requests were not considered because they were received after the deadline for filing them. Abatement requests have to be filed within 185 days of when the taxes are committed.

Assessor’s Agent Tom Hayes who is quite familiar with the water level issue plaguing lake shore owners stated that Whitefield’s valuation for shore front property is already “as low as it gets.” This is small consolation to property owners who can’t deploy their docks, launch their boats, go swimming, or otherwise use and enjoy the lake in the manner in which they have become accustomed. People trying to sell their property are finding it almost impossible because of the low water conditions on their shoreline. The low water conditions which have persisted more or less continuously for the last 4 years were especially worse this past summer due to the extremely dry conditions with the lake reaching levels lower than anyone can remember.

Whitefield Selectmen to Hold Meeting on Clary Lake Abatement Requests

Continue reading →

24 October 2015: The DLWA, SVCA, HVNC, and SWLA Join Forces

[dropcap]The[/dropcap] Damariscotta Lake Watershed Association, the Hidden Valley Nature Center, the Sheepscot Valley Conservation Association, and the Sheepscot Wellspring Land Alliance have joined forces and formed a new organization, Midcoast Conservancy. Clary Lake is smack in the middle of the aggregate land area covered by this new organization. This alliance has been coming together slowly over the past year and it sounds like they’re now finalizing the transition. The following is from an announcement email I received from the HVNC a couple of days ago.

Displaying

Meet Midcoast Conservancy!

Our new name is just the beginning of an exciting period of transition

We listened to your input. We asked our supporters to weigh in on the new name of our merged organization and we received over 50 suggested names, nearly 400 responses to our survey, and nearly 200 helpful comments. Thank you! In addition we sought out help from marketing experts. All this pointed us back to Midcoast Conservancy! Continue reading →

29 September 2015: Clary Lake Association sends letter of appreciation to Whitefield Select Board

CLA President and meeting moderator Malcolm Burson sits between State Representative Deb Sanderson and State Senator Christopher Johnson near the end of the August 26th meeting of Clary Lake shore owners and town of Whitefield representatives. Photograph by George Fergusson 26 August 2015

Clary Lake Association President Malcolm Burson, on behalf of the entire Association membership, has sent a short but sweet letter to the Whitefield Select Board thanking them for their recent letter to the Maine Dept. of Environmental Protection. The Select Board’s letter did more than just voice support for the letter jointly written by Representative Deb Sanderson and Senator Christopher Johnson, they went on to describe in no uncertain terms the reasons for their concerns over the Clary Lake water level crisis, their dissatisfaction with the State’s failure to take enforcement action, and their hope that the State do everything they can to speed the process along. The Town of Whitefield Select Board which has always been supportive of the Clary Lake Association has now added their voice to the growing chorus of voices calling for a rapid resolution to this crisis:

CLA President’s Letter to Whitefield Board 09-28-2015

The Town of Jefferson has every bit as much at stake as Whitefield, and more, and we’re sincerely hoping their Select Board will take similar action soon.

A few Super Moon Total Lunar Eclipse Photos

The September 27, 2015 Super Moon total lunar eclipse about 15 minutes before totality. Notice the 3 stars below the moon! Photographed by George Fergusson using a Nikon D3300 DSLR at the prime focus of a 6″ f/5 newtonian reflector at the Brower Observatory in Whitefield.

About 20 people including half a dozen children showed up at the Brower Observatory the last Sunday night to observe the Super Moon total lunar eclipse. There were a number of telescopes set up to observe the moon. The main function of a telescope is to collect light and usually bigger is better but since the moon is so bright, you don’t really need a big telescope to get good views of it. I set up my 6″ f/5 Newtonian reflector that I built back in 1975 and attached my Nikon D3300 DSLR camera at the prime focus and took a whole bunch of photographs, a few of which I’ve uploaded to the User Uploads gallery. The moon can be a challenging object to photograph because it’s very bright and usually lacks contrast. These came out nicely I thought:

David Hodsdon also uploaded a lovely picture he took of the moon as it rose across the lake from his home.

The Central Maine Astronomical Society (CMAS) holds star parties at the Brower Observatory every couple of months. Star parties are open to the general public and you need not own a telescope, all you really need to bring is your interest and imagination. CMAS also periodically hosts star parties at the Galaxy Quest Observatory in Lincolnville and at the Damariscotta River Association‘s headquarters at 110 Belvedere Road in Damariscotta. I‘ll post CMAS events at the Brower Observatory on our Events Calendar.

24 September 2015: Grand Army Weather Station coming back online

Tim Chase’s Grand Army Weather Station website has been down for a few years. I’ve been helping him get it back up and running. Today we swapped in a new camera and got the Webcam working again. The picture at left shows Tim this morning up on the roof of his house at the top of Grand Army Hill. This new camera is much better than the original one. The view out over the Sheepscot River valley from up there is outstanding. I’ve added a Grand Army Weather Cam page on this site, because I can. You’ll find the link to it under the Pictures main menu heading (under the Clary Lake Webcam). Later this fall I’ll be helping Tim get his new weather station up and running online. Stay tuned!

15 September 2015: Two Maine lawmakers say DEP has failed to protect Clary Lake

Paul Kelley standing in front of the Clary Lake dam. Photograph by George Fergusson, 8 August 2007

There is an article in today’s Central Maine Papers (Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel) by staff writer Paul Koenig about the letter written by Representative Sanderson and Senator Johnson last week (see: Representative Sanderson, Senator Johnson send letter to DEP). The article suggests the DEP has failed to protect Clary Lake by not taking enforcement action on the water level order issued by the Department over a year and a half ago, in late January 2014. The article acknowledges why DEP has not taken enforcement action, but that their failure to do anything nonetheless is “clearly in violation” of their legislative mandate to protect and prevent diminution of the state’s natural environment. Because the Water Level Order (WLO) is under appeal in Superior Court, if the DEP were to attempt traditional enforcement action, lawyers for the dam owner would likely request a stay of the Order from the court, and they would probably get one, because that’s how these things roll. However, the article points out that in light of the severe ongoing impact low water is having on Clary Lake shore owners and the sensitive lake environment, they are entitled to equitable relief in the form of a high water level while the court case plays out. Equitable relief as I understand it is a judgment that the Court would issue in lieu of the Department taking actual enforcement action. Actions by the DEP such as entering the property to physically implement the terms of the order are provided for in the statute.

Two Maine lawmakers say DEP has failed to protect Clary Lake

The article quotes Paul Kelley, owner of the company that owns the Clary Lake dam as saying that one of the reasons why he can’t raise the water level of Clary Lake is because doing so “would expose Pleasant Pond Mill LLC to potential lawsuits from upstream and the owner of the mill property below the dam.” I’ve always dismissed Kelley’s concerns over being sued by Aquafortis Associates LLC because, really, who believe his partner, Richard Smith, is going to sue him for high water damage? Continue reading →

02 September 2015: Legislators Enter Clary Lake Water Level Order Fray

There is an article in this week’s Lincoln County News by staff writer Abigail Adams about the town hall meeting of lake shore owners, Whitefield town officials, and community members that was held last week, on Wednesday, the 26th of August. The meeting, originally conceived and organized by the Clary Lake Association, was held at the Whitefield Fire & Rescue building and was attended by over 60 people. The Kennebec Journal published an article in anticipation of the meeting (see: “Legislator to hear Clary Lake water level concerns at Whitefield meeting“) and I wrote about the meeting the next day (see: “Wednesday night meeting to air grievances about Clary Lake well attended“).

Legislators Enter Clary Lake Water Level Order Fray

The primary purpose of the meeting was to provide Representative Sanderson and Senator Johnson with an opportunity to hear Clary Lake shore owner concerns and grievances. They will then jointly draft a letter to the DEP requesting equitable relief for Clary Lake shore owners (I’ll post a copy of that letter here when it becomes available). According to the article, Sanderson and Johnson also plan to meet with the dam owner to “hear Kelley’s concerns and hopefully negotiate a resolution.“

Representatives of the Clary Lake Association will be separately meeting with Jefferson and Whitefield Select Board members in the next few weeks to encourage them to play a more active role in supporting the State in their defense of the Clary Lake water level order.

10 August 2015: Drained Beaver flowage adds water to Clary Lake

A funny thing happened over the weekend: the lake level which has been falling a consistent 1/4″ daily (due to evaporation only) had, without warning, risen 1/4″ by early Saturday afternoon without us having received any rain at all… This situation had me thinking I’d made a mistake in measuring the water level until I discovered early that evening that the marsh on the south side of Route 126/215 at the primary inlet to Clary Lake which had been recently flooded by beavers was draining into Clary Lake. The picture at left shows the inlet of the culvert well plugged by sticks and mud on Thursday afternoon with the water level less than a foot from the top of the culvert. Sometime early Saturday morning someone, most likely a Town of Jefferson work crew, brought an excavator to the site and dredged out the blockage. Continue reading →

2015 Clary Lake Association annual meeting a great success

The 2015 Clary Lake Association Annual Meeting, and one of our better-attended meetings in recent years. Not sure of the exact head count but I think close 50 people showed up. The weather was perfect. That's Don Normam waving at the camera, Linda Gallion and the new treasurer-to-be Mary Gingrow-Shaw at the registration table counting money, and Butch Duncan standing next to Jeff French looking suspiciously at the camera. The meeting hadn't actually started when I took this picture. Photograph by George Fergusson 01 August 2015

The 2015 Clary Lake Association Annual Meeting, one of our better-attended meetings in recent years. Not sure of the exact head count but I think close 50 people showed up. The weather was perfect. That’s Don Normam waving at the camera, Linda Gallion and the new treasurer-to-be Mary Gingrow-Shaw at the registration table counting money, and Butch Duncan standing next to Jeff French looking suspiciously at the camera. The meeting hadn’t actually started when I took this picture. Photograph by George Fergusson 01 August 2015

The Clary Lake Association’s 2015 Annual Meeting was held on Saturday August 1st. The meeting was well attended, the attendees were engaged and attentive, our business was efficiently and satisfactorily transacted, the weather was fantastic, and the pot luck supper afterwards was outstanding. What more could we ask for? For those of you who couldn’t make it to the meeting, here’s a summary of what went down.

First off, minutes of the 2014 annual meeting and April 1st, 2015 Special Membership meeting were presented and approved, and have been posted on the website. There were also 2 main articles on the agenda to be voted on. Article 1 (with 2 questions) involved a number of changes to the Association bylaws and article 2 was a resolution to rescind a motion that had been passed at the 2013 Annual meeting. Both articles passed by wide margins with only 1 or 2 dissenting votes. The newly-revised bylaws have already been posted on the website. Of special note are the changes to the Membership and Voting rights definitions: Membership in the Association, formerly limited to Clary Lake shore property owners only, is now open to anyone who shares the goals and purpose of the Association and pays annual dues. Any member in good standing may vote on any matter brought before the Association. We believe that going forward this “inclusive” membership definition will better serve the goals and purpose of the Association and it’s members. Speaking of members, a number of people who have not been members before (or have not been members for a long time) have decided to (re)join the Association. Welcome, and thank you. Continue reading →

31 July 2015: Another Lake shore owner complains to DEP

Jane Roy sent an impassioned email to Beth Callahan of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection the other day, and received a response from Ms. Callahan earlier today. Jane promptly posted both emails on the Clary Lake Association’s Facebook page but I thought they were worth re-posting here.

Jane Roy is a daughter of Stanley Whittier, a long time Clary Lake Association member who built his place on the lake way back in 1958. The Whittier property is located on the north shore of Clary Lake at the end of the Duncan Road in an area of the lake which as we know has been badly impacted by both low water and pond weed growth (see post “Duncan Road lake shore owners severely impacted by low water” and “Lake shore owners concerned about invasive aquatic plants“). I tied up at the Whittier’s dock the other day (in about 12” of water!) and spent a while talking with Stanley and his daughter Gail about the upcoming annual meeting, the low water conditions, the status of 80c proceeding in Lincoln County Superior Court, and various initiatives currently underway by the Clary Lake Association.

Before posting Jane’s email and Ms. Callahan’s response, I thought I’d comment briefly on this matter. First, I think Jane’s email was thoughtful and considerate and absolutely appropriate. Second, I felt Ms. Callahan’s response was honest and sincere, but understandably restrained: DEP staff has to be very careful what they say regarding an ongoing 80c proceeding. I’ll be somewhat less restrained and say that it is clear to me that both the Maine DEP and the Attorney General are actively engaged and aggressively pursuing a resolution of this matter in court and I am confident that we will ultimately prevail. So take heart people: it is only a question of when, not if, DEP will initiate aggressive enforcement action against the dam owner. Also, the Clary Lake Association is well aware of the fact that other parties besides DEP can take enforcement action. This and other initiatives will be discussed at tomorrow’s annual meeting.

Here are the emails:

From: Roy, Jane [mailto:Jane-Roy@idexx.com]
Sent: Wednesday, July 29, 2015 4:01 PM
To: Callahan, Beth
Subject: Clary Lake – Please Help Us?

Hi Beth,

I just left you a voice mail at your 446-1586 number.

Please call me and help me understand why nothing has been done to
enforce the Lake Level order. Our Lake is all but gone now.

I cry each time I go to the Lake and watch it disappearing. We all are.
I can’t sit back anymore and simply hope that George Ferguson and
the facts of this case will stand on their own merit. Another Summer
has come a gone with additional losses of acreage each year. In 2012
I sold my Sea Doo and bought a kayak because of this mess. I ran aground
in my kayak in the middle of the lake this year. Is this ok? I think not. Continue reading →

29 July 2015: North Shore Clary Lake Video

Published: 29 July 2015

The north shore of Clary Lake in the vicinity of Duncan Road has been severely impacted by the ongoing water level crisis. Now, with the lake level 63″ below the top of the dam, the water has receded over 100′ from where it would normally be this time of year. How long will this be allowed to continue?

25 March 2015: Whitefield Selectmen Vote to Waive Foreclosure on Clary Lake Dam

Paul Kelley (left), of Pleasant Pond Mill LLC, and Richard Smith, of Aquafortis Associates LLC, speak about the non-payment of property taxes at the Whitefield selectmen’s meeting Tuesday, March 24. (Abigail Adams photo)

There is an article in this week’s Lincoln County News by reporter Abigail Adams about the Town of Whitefield waiving automatic foreclosures on property belonging to Aquafortis Associates LLC and Pleasant Pond Mill LLC. The article includes a lot of background information with the only obvious error being that it indicates the 2 parcels owned by Aquafortis Associates are “downstream” from the dam whereas in fact, they are on opposite sides of Route 218; the 1 acre vacant lot is actually located on the same side of the road as, and on the south side of, the Clary Lake dam.

Here’s a link to the article on the Lincoln County News site (I will archive a copy of the article in a few days):

Whitefield Selectmen Vote to Waive Foreclosure on Clary Lake Dam

I posted about this story last week; see: 19 March 2015: Whitefield votes to waive automatic foreclosures on PPM, AQF properties.

19 March 2015: Whitefield votes to waive automatic foreclosures on PPM, AQF properties

At a hastily convened Emergency Select Board meeting held this afternoon at 5:00 PM at the Whitefield fire station, the Whitefield Select Board voted 3-0 to waive the pending automatic foreclosure of property belonging to Aquafortis Associates LLC. Present at the meeting were Select Board members Tony Marple, Dennis Merrill, and Frank Ober, and Town Clerk Aaron Miller. There were only 5 people in the audience including Paul Kelley of Pleasant Pond Mill LLC.

The tax liens were for non-payment of 2013 Whitefield property taxes on two lots of land belonging to Aquafortis Associates: the Clary Mill property (and mill building) on the west side of the road (tax map 17 lot 004A) with a lien on it in the amount of $752.64 and the approximately 1 acre of land on the east side of the road adjoining the Clary Lake dam on the south (map 17 lot 055B) with a lien on it in the amount of $595.40. The total amount due for both properties was $1348.04. The automatic foreclosures were set to take effect at 3 PM tomorrow afternoon. Aquafortis Associates also owns the red building sitting on the Clary Lake dam but the taxes on that have been fully paid. Tax maps and property assessment data are available on the Town of Whitefield website.

There was little discussion and the meeting was over almost before it started. The Selectmen did not give any reason for their decision to waive automatic foreclosure of the Aquafortis Associates properties other than to state that they were acting on the advice of the Town’s attorney, Mary Denison of Lake & Denison LLP in Winthrop Maine.

The selectmen had previously voted at a regularly scheduled Select Board meeting a few weeks ago to waive automatic foreclosure of the Clary Lake dam property belonging to Pleasant Pond Mill LLC, also for non-payment of 2013 property taxes. That tax lien was for $208.10.

There are outstanding tax liens on PPM and AQF properties for non-payment of the 2014 taxes. Those liens will go to automatic foreclosure in about a year if the taxes are not paid.