Conservation Corps completes construction on Phase II of Camden’s Riverwalk

Mon, 11/23/2015 - 3:45pm

    CAMDEN –  Two teams from the Maine Conservation Corps, part of the nationwide Americorps service organization, spent several weeks in Camden working on the next phase of the town’s new Riverwalk. The newest section of the Riverwalk extends from the Seabright Dam to Mt. Battie Street, constituting a quarter mile of the new pathway.

    The Camden Riverwalk is a community initiative overseen by the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Pathways Committee. Phase I, completed in 2013, runs along the edge of the former Tannery site bordering the Megunticook River. Ultimately the Camden Riverwalk will extend the length of Washington Street into the downtown.

    The Town of Camden received a grant in 2013 from the Maine Department of Transportation to fund downtown improvement projects, including the Riverwalk. Funding to support the work of the Conservation Corps is provided by a grant from the federal Recreational Trails Program administered by the state for construction of community recreational trails.

    Working on the new pathway are young adults from several states. During the weeks they are in town, Conservation Corps members camp out at the Snow Bowl and use the facilities in the lodge. Members who worked in Camden from the end of October until early November included Jessica Ensley of Youngstown, Ohio; James Shaw of Wayland, Mass.; Stuart Blanchard of Winthrop, Maine; Joshua Kuhn of Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota; Brianna Winzenberg of Upstate New York; and Rain Yates of Port Orange, Florida.  Finishing up this past week was a team led by Kat Kelley of Augusta, working with Mitchell Dumas of Hampden, Amy Daniels of Lewiston, Maggie Lynn of Orono, and Maggie Quinn of Albany, New York.

    The Parks and Recreation Department maintains 20 parks and recreation areas owned by the Town of Camden. Camden’s parks, including the Snow Bowl ski area, constitute more than 700 acres of land within the town’s boundaries. The Parks and Recreation Department also oversees community programs such as the Summer Rec Camp, which serves about 50 local children annually.