Planning board approves Main Street Scow Heaggan site plan for Scow Heaggan Whitewater Park

The Scowhagen Planning Board on a unanimous vote approved the major site plan, shoreland zoning permit and flood‑hazard permit for Phase One of the Scow Heaggan Whitewater Park, a downtown river recreation project led by Main Street Scow Heaggan.

Christina Cannon, president and CEO of Main Street Scow Heaggan, told the board the nonprofit is moving the project forward in collaboration with the town. “We are a nonprofit working to revitalize the community,” she said, adding that the river park was named in the town’s strategic plan and that the project will create a whitewater wave for surfing and kayaking and “provide better access to the river” with “significant economic benefit.”

The board’s approval covers the major site plan, the shoreland zoning permit and the flood‑hazard application; the motion included the four waivers Main Street requested and made the application‑fee waiver contingent on Select Board approval. The board recorded the motion, received a second and voted unanimously to grant the permits.

Engineers from Merrick Whitewater described Phase One as a roughly 300–350‑foot run of in‑river features including sculpted bedrock pools, two engineered drop structures and a tunable wave shaper (a torque tube actuated by hydraulic cylinders) that will allow operators to change the wave for surfing, kayaking or safer flows. Merrick’s product manager summarized key site elements: “it’s a 12 foot finished width with a bouldered edged access trail” from Mount Pleasant Avenue, a small 6x7 ft hydraulic control shed above the 100‑year flood line, a concrete plaza designed for spectator space and ambulance turnaround, and sculpted concrete work founded in bedrock.

On operations, Merrick estimated the wave will require about two to three part‑time staff to operate and maintain the system, with occasional debris removal after floods. Cannon said Main Street will absorb operating costs within its recreation program budget (she described the program budget as about a half‑million dollars) and plans to hire a wave technician; she said the lease between Main Street and the town assigns construction, fundraising, operations and maintenance responsibility to Main Street and is for a 10‑year term.

On safety and environmental questions, Merrick said the hydraulic fluid is a food‑grade vegetable oil stored in a small reservoir (roughly 10–20 gallons total) and that the design includes downstream racks to prevent people or large debris from getting under moving plates. The team said the wave shaper’s sensitive components are housed in concrete vaults to minimize exposure to debris and that stainless steel (304 minimum) is specified for primary hardware.

The designers also described a startup and tuning process that will include Merrick staff and an experienced operator from the Boise whitewater park to dial the facility’s performance and to train Main Street staff. Cannon said construction would begin if fundraising continues successfully, with an access‑road start around April 15, in‑river work around July 15 and tuning the following summer, targeting a grand opening in spring 2028. Sergeant Corporation was identified as the construction manager at risk.

Next steps include the Select Board’s review of the contingency waiver for the application fee and normal permitting follow‑ups; the board noted appeal rights for the decision. The project team signed the documents and left the meeting with the board’s approval.