JAY — Members of the Army National Guard 262nd Engineer Co. are moving thousands of yards of dirt to improve drainage and skiing at Spruce Mountain Ski Slope.

The 11 members are using the three-phase project as a training mission, Kenny Jacques, president of the Spruce Mountain Ski Club, said Tuesday.

There has been an issue with drainage every year where the spring runoff from the mountain washes the dirt parking lot at the base into the Androscoggin River. The towns of Jay, Livermore and Livermore Falls, owners of the property, have tried to fix the problem in the past, Jacques said.

This time Jacques called on the National Guard to move some earth and divert the runoff into a stream. The water coming off the mountain will be filtered by riprap the guardsmen will install before it drains into the river.

“We’re doing cutting, filling, drainage and grading, squad leader Staff Sgt. Damien Dufour of Turner said.

The main priority is to stop the runoff from draining across the parking lot into the river, Dufour said.

The other two phases of the project are to reshape the Orchard and Ear trails and to widen and reshape the junior trail, Jacques said.

“They expect to complete Phase 1 and we are hoping to complete Phase II and Phase III is a bonus,” Jacques said.

The Spruce Mountain Ski Club, which operates the ski slope and owns the equipment, is planning on the reshaping work to allow them to hold giant slalom races in the future, he said.

As of midday Tuesday they had started to push up topsoil at the base of the mountain and had begun digging a long ditch, said Specialist Andrew Cummings of West Paris, who returned from a tour of duty in Afghanistan in December.

They plan to install culverts and to spread the soil before they complete the project, he said.

The company arrived on the job Monday evening and already had quite a lot of work done. A crew was also working above on the trails.

The work will make for better skiing and prolong the season, Cummings said. It will also help filter the runoff as it goes through the riprap before it goes into the river.

The crew is staying at the site, sleeping in the lodge and house.

“We’re working a regular work day unless we get behind schedule,” Dufour said. “We work around the community perimeters.”

“This is one of the bigger jobs we have done as a unit,” Cummings said. They haven’t done a community project in a while, he said.

Each of three towns agreed to contribute up to $2,000 each for materials and the club is estimating it will spend between $8,000 to $10,000, Jacques said. Local business Mike’s Anytime Heating has also supplied volunteer work, he said.

Community members will be able to meet the crew doing the work, unit Commander Capt. Jason White and other public relations members from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, June 23, at the Spruce Mountain lodge.

“We’d really like them to come out to thank them for the work they’ve done,” Jacques said.

The guardsmen leave Friday, June 24.

“It’s good to have them helping in the U.S. rather than abroad,” he said.

dperry@sunjournal.com

Copy the Story Link