In August 2025, the Plantation applied for a Community Action Grant from the Community Resilience Partnership for funds to support the next phase of engineered design for future Wharf planning. This phase will result in clarified design parameters for the selected design and is anticipated to include permitting with regulatory agencies.

In May 2026, the Plantation received the official notice of award from the Community Resilience Partnership. The press release from the Maine Office of Community Affairs can be found here.

Following the public announcement, the Plantation released a Request for Proposals for the engineering work in thisi project phase. At this time, the Plantation is reviewing bids.

More information will be added here as the project progresses.

In March 2026, the Plantation applied for the Maine Public Working Waterfront Infrastructure Fund. This one-time grant opportunity is designed to support communities in renovating existing waterfront infrastructure in support of community longevity and economic vitality. The Plantation applied for funds to use for the first phase of Wharf construction. The Wharf project is not currently shovel-ready and designs have not been finalized. The purpose of applying for funds before the designs are ready for construction is to maintain momentum over the course of the project. Community involvement is still needed to clarify goals and specifications for the final Wharf design.

Award and non-award letters for this grant are anticipated to be sent out in August. This page will be updated as the project progresses.

In January 2026, the Board of Assessors received the revised concept design from GEI Consultants, Inc. as part of the Fiscal Year 2025 Shore and Harbor Planning Grant. The designs combined community feedback with new data collected over the course of the grant to create drawings that captured the desires of the community using the most accurate physical data possible. The deliverables also included a topographic and bathymetric survey, a geophysical survey, a permitting and regulatory memorandum, an opinion of probable cost, a funding strategy memorandum, and the presentation given by the engineers. These deliverables are provided below.

Revised Concept Deliverables

The revised designs were then discussed at a public meeting on February 27, 2026, at the Monhegan Memorial Library. The presentation slides, handout, and minutes from said meeting are provided below.

Design Discussion Presentation

Meeting Handout

Meeting Minutes

In the First Regular Session of 2025, the 132nd Maine Legislature passed LD 1186. This resolve directed the Maine Department of Transportation to conduct a state ferry feasibility study. This study was required to include an assessment of the economic and social benefits and challenges of implementing ferry service, the infrastructure resources and needs on the island and mainland and the overall feasibility of such a service. It also recommended that the department include relevant stakeholders in their analysis, including but not limited to a Monhegan Plantation representative, a year-round resident, a representative of the DOT not involved with the Maine State Ferry Service, a representative of the Maine State Ferry Service, a member of the House of Representatives, and a member of the Senate.

The resulting report was released in December 2025. The final recommendation stated that the establishment of a new Maine State Ferry Service route to Monhegan Island appears unfeasible because of high operating costs and disruption of existing summer frequency. The department did, however, recommend that MaineDOT assist the Plantation with planning and grant writing for future wharf rehabilitation efforts. The full report can be found below:

"LD 1186: Maine Department of Transportation Feasibility Study for Ferry Service to Monhegan Island"

Following the January 2024 storms, the declaration of emergency status allowed Monhegan to establish a working project with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Details about this work will be added to this page in the near future.

At the Annual Town Meeting on April 5, 2025, the Monhegan community approved Article 48, a warrant article for the institution of a Wharf Surcharge fee for the ferry companies. In this proposal, a nominal charge from all passenger ticket purchases would be directed towards wharf maintenance and long-term planning. The Monhegan community approved the exploration of what this surcharge could entail as well as issues and options for implementation.

On June 17, 2025, the Assessors hosted a Wharf Surcharge Input Meeting to gather feedback about implementing a surcharge to wharf users. Below are the slides presented at the meeting as well as notes.

Wharf Surcharge Presentation Slides

Community Meeting Notes

Following the public meeting, the Wharf Surcharge Survey was created to further consider public opinion towards the wharf surcharge proposal. A PDF of the survey questions is linked below.

Wharf Surcharge Survey

To conclude the analysis period for the Wharf Surcharge Proposal, the insights from the community meeting and the survey were combined into an analysis report. This was shared with the Monhegan ferry companies to promote process transparency, and it is linked below.

Community Perception Report

Thanks to grant funds from the Maine Coastal Program, Monhegan Plantation retained GEI Consultants, Inc. to conduct a resiliency assessment of the public wharf facilities. This project included a wharf condition assessment, an operations review, and an evaluation of the impact of climate change on the long-term safety, and serviceability of the only public deep water access to the island. The final report (linked below) was presented to the community in a public meeting, the minutes for which are provided below. This project concluded in December 2023, and it set the stage for future wharf resiliency efforts described on this webpage.

Monhegan Public Wharf Condition and Resiliency Assessment Final Report

November 6, 2023 Monhegan Wharf Condition & Resiliency Assessment Presentation Minutes