Thanks to selectmen’s OK Aug. 16 and an anonymous Wiscasset Schoonerfest donor, waterfront-goers can hold up their phones and see Hesper and Luther Little in the harbor where the two vessels succumbed years ago; and thanks to Maine’s First Ship (MFS), if selectmen approve, the Virginia, a reconstruction of a 1600s ship, will lay anchor in Wiscasset this winter.

Schoonerfest Co-Admiral Peter Wells plans to return to selectmen to pitch a permanent display for accessing the “augmented reality” image of Hesper and Luther Little, the schooners that became a landmark as they wasted away here. The temporary plaque with the instructions for viewing the image is near the recreational pier, in time for the second annual Schoonerfest. The event, which runs through Aug. 21, celebrates Wiscasset’s nautical and boatbuilding heritage.

“Oh, that is awesome. That is so cool,” Schoonerfest volunteer Jan Flowers said smiling Thursday afternoon when she saw Maine native Craig Winslow II’s image of the two famed ships. Is it all Wells hoped it would be? “It is,” he said. And it can still be tweaked, Wells added.

As for the Virginia, waterfront committee member Richard Forrest told selectmen Aug. 16 and Wiscasset Newspaper in a phone interview Aug. 17, the town stands to get $2,000 for the vessel’s stay. The committee and harbor master support it, Forrest said. He has volunteered on the MFS project about 15 years. MFS launched the Virginia in June and continues work on it, shipwright Rob Stevens said.

Forrest told Wiscasset Newspaper, the committee is delighted at the prospect of the vessel’s Wiscasset stay. This is a “very appropriate” spot as both a hurricane hole and an escape from the ice the Kennebec River gets, Forrest said.

The Kennebec gets big rafts of ice “and they really do some damage,” Stevens said. He said Wiscasset’s harbor does not freeze, “so it’s an ideal spot.” Stevens also worked on the sloop Providence that was in Wiscasset from September 2018 to June 2019. The Virginia will look pretty close in size but is a little smaller, he said. 

Recalling the Providence’s Wiscasset stay, Stevens’ wife, MFS board member, Woolwich selectman and State Rep. Allison Hepler, said the Virginia would be a beautiful sight from Donald E. Davey Bridge coming into Wiscasset from Edgecomb. She and Stevens said MFS is working with the Coast Guard in hopes of getting an OK for schoolchildren and other visitors to come aboard for a look.

The whole point of the Virginia is to share it with people, Stevens said.

The Virginia’s proposed mid-November to mid-April stay on a recreational pier float will be on the board’s next agenda, Town Manager Dennis Simmons said.

Also Aug. 16, Simmons opened paving bids of $138,245 from All States Construction in Richmond; $150,176, from Littlefield Paving & Plowing in Benton; and $207,600, from Pike Industries in Fairfield. And on the broadband plan that will look at options for technologies and partnerships, Hometown Fiber bid $29,986; Axiom, $21,000; and Mission Broadband, $60,990, Simmons said. In both cases, selectmen authorized him and the other responsible party to review the bids and award them to the lowest qualified bidder.

Selectmen nodded a BYOB permit for Elizabeth Ichton’s and Brad Woods’ wedding reception in the recreational area of the waterfront Sept. 10. The board plans to look at revising the policy on alcohol on town property. Selectman Dusty Jones said BYOB at events runs the chance someone will drink to their heart’s content. At Chair Sarah Whitfield’s request, Ichton will rope off the reception area from the water. In supporting documents for the meeting, town police, fire, ambulance, code and wastewater officials cited no issues with the event.