The state will spend $850,000 to rehab portico and state pier

PLYMOUTH - Plymouth Rock’s 85-year-old portico will receive much needed rehabilitation from the Department of Conservation and Recreation.

After years of using “Band-Aids” including a net to protect visitors from falling ceiling tiles, to remedy the major structural problems, the DCR will invest $500,000 to rehabilitate the famous structure, and $350,000 for improvements at Pilgrim Memorial State Park and Frazier State Pier, where the Mayflower II is docked.

“This is the first time the DCR has looked at the portico as a structure,” Raul Silva, the deputy chief engineer for facilities at the DCR, said. “No more Band-Aids.”

DCR representatives said construction would begin on the pier in January, 2007, if all goes as planned, and end in March, in time for spring tourists and the 50th anniversary of the Mayflower II sailing to Plymouth from England where it was built.

The rehabilitation to the pier will include replacing about 1,000 board feet of planks on the pier, replacing the railings with ones that come in sections which can be easily removed when a boat docks at the pier, and lock on place when a boat is not docked.

The state park will also see some rehabilitated, including new grass seed, some new paths, and a new coat of stain on the public bathrooms.

The portico over the Rock will take more time. State Rep. Vinny deMacedo, R-Plymouth, said state funds were procured about four years ago to repair the portico, but the money was not enough after the portico was found to have more damage than originally thought.

The portico suffers from extensive water damage, which has rusted the main I-beam of the structure and caused ceiling tiles to become loose. The protective net has been in place for about five years. Water has also seeped into the mortar joints of the structure and caused stains on the portico’s facade.

The DCR plans to close the portico for about three weeks in the spring to investigate the extent of the damage to the portico and will cut two large holes in the roof to view the damage to the I-beam.

No renovations will be done to the portico until 2008 to ensure the Rock will be accessible to tourists during the 50th anniversary celebration. Renovations will most likely begin in late winter and continue into early spring.

“The project will only take a couple of months, but it’s really pressed,” said Shaun Provencher, a preservation planner with the DCR. “We wanted it done before the 50th anniversary, but it was impossible. That’s why we opted for ’08, to not disrupt the celebration.”

State Senator Therese Murray worried fishermen and lobstermen who use the pier would be shut out from their business for an extended period while the pier was being renovated.

Fishermen will most likely be asked to dock at the town wharf by East Bay Grille during construction.

© 2006 Enterprise NewsMedia, divison of GateHouse Media All rights reserved.

Old Colony Memorial - By Casey Meserve, CNC Newspapers