The Wareham Village Coastal Access Project moved to the next stage of development with a presentation to the community Monday, Nov. 18 where attendees provided feedback on the current project designs.

The coastal access project has been in development for over 10 years but the current iteration of the plan would transform the shoreline behind the railroad tracks on Main Street, with a boardwalk, pier, kayak launch and official railroad crossings.

Sean Ragan, senior architect for Halvorson Tighe and Bond, the architectural design firm hired by the town to design the renovation, introduced the project to meeting attendees as a “tool of economic revitalization and development.”

Ragan described the shoreline renovations, which would run from the Tremont Nail Factory to Besse Park, as both a recreational destination for residents and an economic stimulant for the town.

Currently, to access the Wareham River, residents must cross the railroad tracks, which is illegal and resulted in the death of a Dorchester man in 2023.

Director of Planning and Community Development, Ken Buckland, said creating a safe railroad crossing is a priority but that so far the town has disagreed with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation on the best way to go about it.

Buckland said that in recent discussions the transportation department asked the town to pay for the construction of a fence along the track and one crossing which the state would build. But the town's current designs for the coastal access project include at least two crossings and a fence of the town's choosing that fits with Wareham’s architecture.

Buckland said the interest shown by the community at Monday’s meeting would help with reaching an agreement with the transportation department.

“There's still some time to work on that a little bit and get our legislators involved with it too and see if we can get this thing more in line with what we want,” Buckland said.

The architectural design firm will take the input provided by attendees of the meeting and create a new proposal which will be presented for public input again in early 2025.

Chair of the Redevelopment Authority Dan Butler said a final report is due in June 2025 after which the town will begin seeking funding for the project, primarily from state grants.

“We want to build a plan that we can use to convince the state of Massachusetts and other organizations to provide Wareham the money that we will need to improve our waterfront and make our town even better,” Butler said.

Attendees of the presentation examined large cardboard printouts of the project designs and asked questions, provided feedback and wrote comments on sticky notes.

Several attendees made comments about the proposal's impact on wildlife. Wareham Land Trust Treasurer Nancy McHale noted that the river shoreline is one of the best birding sites in the area and said the plans should take into consideration birdwatchers. Wareham resident Neil Westgate remarked that the spot is ideal for crabbing and raised concerns that the proposed designs would limit the places residents could fish for crabs.

Other attendees were more interested in the walking and biking opportunities included in the designs.

“I like to bike the trails around here so I’d really like to see a bike path that connects to some of the trails that are already here,” said Wistar Wood.

30 year Wareham resident John Scheub walks along the shoreline at least once a week and said the area needs a “facelift.”

“I love the project, I’m ready to go one hundred percent, make it walkable, rideable, safe. I would pay more taxes for something like that because it would all come back to you in terms of town equity,” Scheub said.