Dear Editor: 

Earlier this week, my husband and I attended a scheduled meeting of the Edgecomb Select Board. We were there, as neighbors living on the Damariscotta River, to discuss the pending ordinance violations, and suggested expansion plans for Glidden Point Oysters on River Road.

When Norumbega Oysters moved into the area, the owners of Norumbega met with us and explained their intentions to farm and process oysters on the property. They made assurances that their work would not disrupt the character of the neighborhood or the everyday lives of nearby residents. Norumbega has kept their word.   

Several years ago, the property and the identity of “Glidden Oysters” changed hands. Quickly, the new owners transformed the business into a ‘Party on the River.’ Glidden Point featuring Damariscotta oysters and Maine beer is now a destination for Millennials visiting the area. All summer long, we tolerate excessive noise from blaring music, yelps and screams, events and weddings, alcohol and happy hours, saunas and river plunges, food trucks, cars parked haphazardly in their dirt lot, and inebriated drivers racing onto River Road. There are at least five town ordinance violations being ferried by the ‘Party on the River’ and, to date, no fines have been issued.   

The Damariscotta River, Sheepscot River, Cross River, Cross Point Road, Shore Road, and adjacent waterfront routes are classified as Resource Protected Districts. If Glidden Point is allowed to remain in its present condition or expand (?), a precedent will be set. Bars and event venues, with few restrictions, could be built all along our rivers. Is the rural, arcadian character that Edgecomb has maintained for 250 years not worth protecting?  

The New England Town Meeting / independent stewardship is considered the purest form of democracy. Perhaps that’s true, but what I have seen, concerning Glidden Point, is a small group of town officials tolerating complaints from Edgecomb residents, overlooking repeated ordinance citations, and an unwillingness to impose fines on levied violations. Nobody in Edgecomb town governance will take responsibility for the untenable situation at Glidden Point. Why? Is it because Glidden Point is where they choose to party? 

Cynthia Marsh 

Edgecomb