By John H. Palmer

WESTPORT — The Ned Dimes Marina at Compo Beach will be getting a much-needed facelift.

The Representative Town Meeting voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve a nearly $2.5 million project to replace aging piers, walkways, a fuel dock and electrical switchgear needed to provide electricity to the municipal marine complex.

Three decades of wear and tear taking toll

“This marine infrastructure serving the boating community is over 30 years old and is beyond its expected useful life,” wrote Public Works Director Peter Ratkiewich in a Feb. 3 letter to First Selectwoman Jennifer Tooker. The funding, already backed by the Board of Finance, was requested through a bond authorization to the Municipal Improvement Fund Account.

“It is showing signs of fatigue and needs to be replaced to maintain its functionality,” according to Ratkiewich. “In addition, the proposed project will bring the facility into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 2010, which is required whenever a facility is substantially replaced.”

The project will replace both the north and south pier as well as the fuel pier, all of which are nearly 30 years old, the public works director told the RTM at Town Hall.

“The piers are showing wear on the decking,” he said, adding that repairs have been done board-by-board in the past, but considering the decking has a life expectancy of 25 years, and the current decking is more than 30 years old, the time has come for a full overhaul.

ADA compliance a factor

In addition, the existing facilities were built before ADA guidelines were in effect, and do not comply with requirements that an accessible path be available from the parking lot to every set of docks. Currently, he said, there is only one ramp on the north pier. Also, the docks must be 80 feet long, he said, to be compliant.

A site visit with RTM members a few weeks ago revealed electrical switchgear that has been severely corroded from years of sitting out in salt air, he said, and many electrical outlets are corroded causing a potential hazard.

District 1 RTM member Chris Tait gave a report for the public works and finance committees, adding that both voted unanimously to approve the project. 

“The piers have all rotted and it needs work,” he said. “The good news is the work will be off peak time. It won’t be very disruptive.”

2026 completion date targeted

Ratkiewich added that since work on the project is slated to start in November or December, it’s important to get approval so materials could be ordered.

The new electrical switchgear equipment will take more than a year to arrive, he said. 

The renovated marina should be complete in the spring of 2026, with an expected useful life of 25 years, according to official estimates.

John Palmer, a Norwalk native, is a freelance writer who has covered community news in Fairfield County and Massachusetts for over 30 years.