Tisbury has secured a $1 million state grant to rebuild Owen Park Pier, a Tisbury landmark that officials say is in disrepair and vulnerable to rising sea level.
Harbormaster Gary Kovack announced the funding at the town select board meeting on Tuesday, shortly after the state Seaport Economic Council bestowed the grant at the Massachusetts State House.
The grant is key for the town’s Owen Park Pier Replacement Project, Kovack told The Times on Thursday, to address the aging infrastructure, and as the town adapts to climate change.
“The grant is paramount to the rebuild,” he said. “The pier is aging. It’s falling apart, basically. It’s never been rebuilt; we just repaired it and repaired it. It’s just crumbling under your feet.”
The last time the pier was entirely rebuilt, Kovack added, was nearly a century ago.
And over those years, climate change has started to threaten waterfront structures.
“The rise in sea level has affected the use of the pier,” Kovack said. “Storm high tides regularly rise to or above the current deck elevation … this will elevate the pier by 18 inches, to address the effects of climate change and the rising tide levels.”
Accessibility for those with disabilities is another goal. “Currently, the dinghy dock floats are not accessible for people with disabilities,” he added. “The new pier design provides an [American with Disabilities Act]-acessible ramp and floats, to accommodate those who may need it.”
Kovack hopes the project will begin in fall 2025, and he told The Times that the projected total is estimated at just under $2 million. He noted the project is not yet out to bid, so that cost is liable to change.
He added that the project will not change the pier’s footprint, but that Vineyarders will notice active construction during the rebuild.
According to Kovack, Tisbury has so far worked with Bill Austin from Vineyard Land Surveying and Engineering on the pier project; that company has drawn plans and helped with permitting. The town is also working with the Army Corps of Engineers to finalize the permitting process, and has approved the project’s licensing with the state Department of Environmental Protection.
The project has also secured funds from town meeting warrant articles, the town embarkation fund, and Community Preservation committee funds, Kovack said.
Voters will also get to decide on some of its funding at the next annual town meeting, he said.
At Tuesday’s select board meeting, Kovack assured the select board that the pier replacement project is on track, and told the story of receiving the grant, which Lieut. Gov. Kim Driscoll presented at the State House.
Ten towns presented to the council and received funding, Kovack said, but only the Vineyard and Orleans received the maximum $1 million amount. Around $3.3 million was awarded in total to all recipients, he said.
He also noted that many at the State House in Boston were familiar with and fond of Owen Park.
“[There were] a lot of good little sidetracks [from] people up there — ‘I come to the Vineyard,’ … ‘Owen Park is my favorite spot.’ A couple people pulled me aside,” he said. “So that was special, to have that personal connection with the Vineyard from the people up at the State House.”
Kovack also thanked his predecessors at the harbormaster department for their work to address the aging pier. He told The Times that the department has been eyeing a pier project since about 2020, and that the grant process began this July. “[Former assistant harbormaster] Kim Elias and [former harbormaster] John Crockett deserve a shout-out as the team before me that put this all together,” Kovack told the board. “They worked hard on this from the conception of this grant, and I really wouldn’t’ve been up there without them.”
At Tuesday’s board meeting, chair John Cahill welcomed the state grant. “It’s not often we get to bring home a million dollars,” he said.
