Posted on January 7, 2026
“The deliverable of this study is to determine an operating procedure that will allow for enough water to enter the system to flush the marshes with salt water, while maintaining protection from detrimental flooding. The proposed solution must balance these two components.” – Sec 3.1.7 of the West Grand Marsh Resiliency Study December draft report.
Easy enough, one might think. Well, in that the town of Old Orchard Beach is dealing with the unbridled power of the Atlantic Ocean on the one hand and limiting its impacts on public infrastructure and private properties on the other, maybe not so much.
The notion of maintaining or improving the health of four defined marsh systems on the east and west sides of West Grand Avenue in OOB was the topic at the Dec. 16 town council meeting. The draft report was presented by project manager Jaime Wallace of Wright-Pierce, an engineering firm with offices in Topsham and Portland that has done work for the town in the past.
The December meeting followed an October 28 workshop with the council attended by a number of concerned residents who introduced themselves as owning property or living at addresses on streets such as New Salt Road, Winona Avenue, Temple Avenue, Clover Street, Randall Avenue – all low lying and all near or adjacent to the four marshes on either side of West Grand Avenue: the New Salt Road (1.79 acres), Randall Park (4.27), Ancona (2.35) and Jordan Park (11.95) marshes.
Wallace of Wright-Pierce confirmed that while the marshes are not owned by the town, the infrastructure that connects the marshes such as ditches and culverts is town-owned.
The Town of Old Orchard Beach received a $50k grant through the state’s Community Resiliency Partnership to assess the tide gate function at New Salt Road and its effects on the marshes. Wright-Pierce has conducted studies in this area since 2008, and developed the Town’s comprehensive drainage study in 2018 according to the report.
The firm was tasked with assessing the current conditions of each marsh, survey of elevations of structures surrounding each marsh, evaluation of current and projected conditions regarding precipitation, storm surge, and sea level rise, and determining an optimal setting for the tide gates for marsh resilience and flood mitigation.
The grant was awarded in Spring 2023. Data collection has taken place from April 2024 to December 2025, followed by the October and December council workshop and meeting.
The Self-Regulated Tide Gate (SRT) was installed in 1997, after an earlier installation was demolished by a 1996 storm. It is owned and operated by the Town. The purpose of the SRT is to prevent excessive tidal water from entering the marshes adjacent to West Grand Avenue and flooding properties along West Grand Avenue.
The SRT consists of three 48-inch diameter gates attached to the ocean side of three 48-inch diameter reinforced concrete culverts beneath New Salt Road. Two of the three gates are flap gates, which only allow water to discharge to Goosefare Brook and prevent tidal water from flowing in. The third (middle) gate is the SRT, which is an electrically powered flap gate that slides vertically to regulate the amount of tidal water that flows to the upstream saltwater marshes.
According to the draft report, the SRT is equipped with a water level sensor, located on the ocean side of the tide gates, which automatically closes the gate during periods of high tides to prevent salt water from flooding inhabited areas.
Data collection has indicated that tidal waters flow easily enough to the downstream marshes – New Salt Road, described as “a healthy saltmarsh habitat,” and Randall Park – but those further upstream, Ancona and particularly Jordan Park, are less adequately flushed during high tides.
The report states that “…the SRTs are the biggest impediment to flows moving up the channel…” and reaching the Jordan Park Marsh. Peak flows measured at Jordan Park indicate that precipitation, not tidal flows are impacting what it calls a “brackish marsh.”
Concerns voiced by residents at the October workshop included observations that only 5-6 tides each month result in water “getting up into the marsh,” that work done in the past by town crews to deepen the swale off Winona Avenue has not been done recently, and that “culverts seem to inhibit the ability of water to get to the entire marsh,” said Tom Morgan of 16 Clover Street. “(The swale) appears to be about 3.5 feet deep, and it used to be 6 feet.”
“Ocean Park was founded in 1881,” observed Mark Dumont, a resident of that neighborhood. “A lot of culverts were maybe well thought out, maybe not. Do we have any idea of the adequacy of culverts in Ocean Park?”
Other residents noted that neighboring communities Biddeford and Saco have started clearing channels in the Biddeford Pool marsh, near Camp Ellis and the Goosefare Brook. “When is OOB going to start clearing culverts?” asked a Winona Avenue resident.
“Our study started later than theirs did,” replied Wallace.
Could the York County-owned dredge be an answer?
Questions were also raised as to the availability of the York County dredge unit, acquired in 2023 at a cost of $1.5 million made possible through the American Rescue Plan Act, and when OOB might benefit from a possible dredge operation where Goosefare Brook meets the sea.
SBN contacted Arthur Cleaves, director of the York County Emergency Management Agency, for information on the dredge. He stated that three communities – Wells, Saco and Old Orchard Beach – are currently in line for projects, each exceeding $1 million in costs. But, no dredge yet for OOB.
Instead, beginning the first week in January, “Emergency Protective Dunes” will be installed along sections of the beach off both East Grand Avenue and West Grand Avenue, said Cleaves.
“…(T)he the volume of sand being placed on Old Orchard beach will be 5,500 cubic yards of sand which is an emergency protective dune engineered to a 5-year flood protection barrier,” he told the SBN. “The long-range intent is to (funding dependent) rebuild the dunes to a 100-year flood protection barrier which is much closer to the dune size that was in place originally.”
As is generally the case with Maine DEP-permitted projects, the sand must match the existing sand on the beach as to color, grain and size, said Cleaves. A source has been identified in Newfield and one in New Hampshire. The sand will be trucked to the beach, where bulldozers will install it to engineered specifications.
Upon conclusion of the beach nourishment in OOB, the county’s attention will turn to the town of Wells, the next project approved by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said Cleaves. The unit will then be towed to the city of Saco, and await mobilization at or near Camp Ellis no later than March, said Cleaves.
Back at the Marsh
SBN contacted the Maine DEP’s Portland office to ask about its involvement with the study, if any, and whether permitting would be necessary for maintenance of the marsh system. A speaker at the public meetings had suggested that man-made interventions in the marsh such as swales, ditches, channels and culverts may not require DEP permitting in order to be maintained.
In response, Alison Sirois, regional manager of the Bureau of Land Resources, said that her department has had no involvement with the study. She provided no response as to the issue of permitting being required for silt removal or culvert maintenance.
The draft report arrived at a number of conclusions and recommendations, among them, “… that water is exiting the system more efficiently than it is entering. . . explained by the fact that water can enter the system through one gate but can exit through three gates.” The report suggested that this, “… is likely due to the several culverts located” in the Ancona and Jordan Park marshes.
The report recommends retrofitting one of the flap gates to a second sluice gate, that would allow incoming tide water through two gates; the removal of built-up debris in culverts so as to increase the capacity of the structures, and that the Town engage a consultant to run a camera through the structures to understand their current conditions. Jetting and vacuuming of structures within the system should be performed by the Town on a minimum annual basis was suggested.
Also, future Capital Improvement Projects might be considered by the town that would adjust the profile of the channel, but would require more in-depth planning, engineering, and funding to complete. Other capital improvements that could be considered include:
· • Raise the roadway of New Salt Road to act as a barrier for flood waters over 7.5’.
· • Raise the roadway of other low-lying roads in the neighborhood that frequently get overtopped.
· • Evaluate the size of the culverts along the marsh profile.
· • Replace culvert under Clover Street that frequently overtops.
· • Raising infrastructure of private residences particularly adjacent to marshes.
· • Consider ordinance changes for first floor elevations for new development and renovations.
The draft report can be viewed at: WestGrandMarshResiliencyStudy_DRAFT_20251215-1.pdf
