At a virtual meeting of the Riverwalk Committee, members said the planned removal of the Cross Brothers dam is increasingly unlikely to occur this year because of funding uncertainty and tight environmental construction windows, and they reported that a promised land transfer from Dollar General has been delayed and will determine the planned location for a Riverwalk kiosk. Committee members said no final decisions or votes were taken at the meeting.

The Cross Brothers dam removal remains contingent on external funding and procurement steps. Committee members said Karina Daley, who would issue the request for proposals for the removal, has not yet sent the RFP and that uncertainty about federal funding from Washington, D.C., is affecting the timeline. Members described the project as facing narrow seasonal windows for in-stream work because of protections for wildlife and fisheries, and they said that could limit any construction to a short portion of the year.

Why this matters: removing the dam and completing the River Path are central pieces of the Riverwalk project. Delays in funding or procurement push work into later seasons, when environmental restrictions — for example limits tied to bat roosting and trout spawning periods — can effectively block in-stream construction for the year.

Committee members also reported on a separate but related land-transfer item. The group said the municipal transfer of a parcel now owned by Dollar General has not yet been completed because Dollar General’s corporate staff are taking extra time to process the paperwork. The committee intends to site a Riverwalk kiosk on that parcel once the transfer is finalized; the speaker who reported the status identified herself as a member of the select board and said the kiosk location was selected to improve access and to intercept bus passengers using the nearby stop.

Members noted a revised River Path layout in the most recent select-board packet and said the project team has adjusted truck routing so that construction traffic would go on the south side of the Dollar General parcel and around its rear, which the group said aligns with earlier plans. No new procurement or construction authorization was taken by the committee at the meeting.

Discussion versus decision: the transcript shows only status reports and planning discussion. There was no formal motion, procurement award, or change in municipal policy recorded during this meeting. Members said the RFP for dam removal remains outstanding and that a transfer from Dollar General is pending corporate approval.

Next steps and constraints: committee members said they are waiting on Karina Daley to issue the RFP and on confirmation of funding. Members noted a seasonal cutoff for in-stream construction (discussed later in the meeting as October 1) tied to fish spawning; they said the combination of the funding timeline and environmental restrictions makes it unlikely the dam work will start this year unless steps accelerate.

Taper: committee leaders said they will continue to track the RFP and the land-transfer paperwork and report back at the next meeting.