Lee — With Laurel Lake Dam recently acquired by a nonprofit organization, Sandy Beach might be a little different under the surface but, as usual, the water will still be fine this summer.
What Lee residents need to know
The beach opens June 16. Residents will need a beach pass, which is free and available starting June 9 from Lee Town Hall during regular business hours or, beginning June 16, at the beach gate. The beach will close on Labor Day, September 1.
To access the beach, residents can drive over the dam, followed by a trek on a private residential tract and then onto High Lawn Farm that owns a section of the road and the beach itself. Only vehicles are allowed on the access way, not pedestrians, according to Lee Town Administrator Christopher Brittain.
Under the surface
Laurel Lake Dam was purchased earlier this year by the newly formed nonprofit group Laurel Lake Dam Inc., with Jeff Cohen named as a principal. Cohen is behind the Eagle Mill project and signed off on an agreement that will allow continued public access to the dam in exchange for the town providing summer maintenance by its Department of Public Works staff at no additional cost to residents.
A September 19, 2022, report by Scheurer Consulting Engineers details the condition of the dam, listing the structure as “satisfactory” and requiring no improvements at the time. The following year, the dam failed to meet a two-thirds Town Meeting vote that would have allowed Lee to acquire the property by gift, including the top 12 feet of water as well as rights to the dam. Liability issues and the fact that it “did not get us all the way to the beach” were cited by Brittain as possible reasons for denying the measure.
Laurel Lake Dam Inc., together with High Lawn Farm and a private homeowner, have paved the way for this year’s enjoyment of the beach, and the same contract will renew unless either party prompts a change or cancellation, Brittain said.
“We are grateful that the new dam owners have been very willing to allow continued use by the town,” he said. “The beach will continue to operate exactly as it has during the past several years.”
