Mariners will soon get relief from the severely shoaled federal channel into Westport Harbor, as a United States Army Corps of Engineers dredging project expected to deepen the channel is set to begin within weeks.

The Corps has contracted with LAND Remediation Inc., a Waterford, NY firm, to dredge 65,000 to 75,000 cubic yards of sand from portions of the channel, a project that has long been called for by Westport Marine Services Director Chris Leonard and many commercial and private boat captains.

"Thank goodness," Leonard said Monday. "It's been a long time coming."

The channel's shoaling has been an issue for years and over the past three has become a problem for Leonard and the many boaters, commercial and otherwise, who come and go from the harbor. At low tide, portions of the channel are just a few feet deep, and grounding calls have become common at the harbormaster's office. Currently, boats use an auxiliary channel that has naturally formed adjacent to the federal channel, and Leonard said the town is lucky for that. But completing the dredging project is crucial, he said:

"It's commerce. We want not only for the commercial fisherman to not have a problem, we want boats to come in to Tripps, for restaurants and businesses," he said. "We have boat clubs out of Newport that will not allow sailboats to come into Westport because of the degradation of the channel."

Though the bid award was not available, Army Corps officials have estimated it will cost $1 to $5 million to complete the project. Corps officials wrote that when complete, the channel will be nine feet deep at mean low tide, and 150 to 200 feet wide. The area to be dredged extends just under two miles (9,700 feet) upstream from deep water off the Nubble.

Dredge spoils will be transported in 1,500-cubic-yard scows to the “Westport Harbor Nearshore Placement Site" off Horseneck. The Corps’ dredging window opened Sunday, Sept. 15, and runs through Wednesday, Jan, 15. 2025.

Leonard said there should be little to no cost to the town. Though the project is being paid for with federal dollars, Westport could incur expense if dredgers come across ghost moorings within the channel that need to be moved.

In that case, Leonard said the town would likely work with Tripp's to remove them. But he hopes and believes they will be minimal:

"We've done a good job not awarding new moorings in the federal channel."