The Gould Academy competition center at Sunday River in Newry sits filled with mud on Dec. 19, 2023, after a devastating storm. The ski resort is one of several businesses and nonprofits that received funding to help repair damage and shore up structures against future storms. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal file

The state has issued the last awards from its $60 million grant fund to bolster Maine’s working waterfront and other businesses harmed by a series of storms in 2023 and 2024 that decimated the state’s coast and inland communities that border rivers.

The collective $2 million in grants announced Monday has been distributed to 40 businesses and nonprofits, ranging from under $10,000 to some to $100,000 for seven, including a boatyard in East Boothbay and the Sunday River ski resort in Newry.

A majority of the funding went to businesses and nonprofits along the coast, where some experts estimate that at least 60% of Maine’s working waterfront was severely damaged or destroyed.

During two back-to-back storms in January 2024, heavy rain, flooding, high tides and wind gusts of up to 60 mph ripped away entire wharves and scattered fishing equipment and gear across harbors. Then-President Joe Biden issued a major disaster declaration for the eight coastal communities impacted by the two storms.

Storms in December 2023 also flooded central inland areas along the Kennebec, Saco and Androscoggin rivers, causing more than $20 million in damage across 10 counties.

Gov. Janet Mills subsequently worked a $60 million storm relief bill into last year’s supplemental budget, including $25 million specifically to rebuild Maine’s working waterfronts.

The first round of funding, $21.2 million, went to 68 working waterfronts in July. About $6 million went to 109 small businesses in August.

This final round of funding brings the total to 217 businesses, nonprofits and working waterfronts supported by the funding. An additional 39 communities received $25.2 million for repairs to public infrastructure.

Luke’s Boatyard in East Boothbay, one of the final recipients that made the list Monday, missed the initial April 2024 deadline.

Luke’s has been repairing commercial fishing and recreational boats since 1939, when Andrew Luke’s grandfather first opened up shop on Linekin Bay.

The ocean swells and high tides lifted the boatyard’s pier, wharf and boathouse from the ground during the January storms. They were set back down in place, but the structures rapidly deteriorated in the following months.

“The boatyard looked like something out of ‘Popeye the Sailor,’ where it was ramshackle. This was not what a professional boatyard looks like,” said business vice president Andrew Luke, grandson of the founder.

Luke’s Boatyard racked up a bill of roughly $250,000 for all the repairs. The Luke family had no time to wait, and they acquired the money through personal and family funds, as well as private loans.

During that time, in full swing on the repairs, Andrew Luke said that when the heads of the 86-year-old business realized funding was available, they were three days too late.

“Missing out was heartbreaking,” he said.

But Andrew Luke said the business was locked and loaded for the second round of funding applications. They asked for the full $100,000 — but intentionally kept their expectations low.

Andrew Luke said his family found out last week that they had not only made the list, but got all of the money they asked for.

“We’re humbled by the committee thinking we’re an important part of the working waterfront,” he said. “By helping us, we get to help others. We want to make sure we could again continue with long standing tradition of working with fishermen. That’s been our intention all along — to be a good community member.”

Andrew Luke said they have finished over 75% of the repairs, which in part fortify the boatyard’s structures so they can better withstand future storms. The pier, wharf and boathouse were rebuilt 3 feet higher, and the wharf will be covered in concrete to add extra weight against the tides.

“This isn’t just a stop-gap measure,” he said. “Now it is rebuilt, rugged and robust, and built to last.”

The fortification might have been a boon to their application as Mills shifts priorities from rebuilding to resiliency.

Mills has introduced a bipartisan bill, “An Act to Increase Storm Preparedness for Maine’s Communities, Homes and Infrastructure,” that would create a $15 million grant program. It would help Maine residents prepare their homes for storms, increase state funding for disaster relief and preparedness, and create a $10 million revolving loan fund to help communities qualify for federal disaster relief.

Luke’s Boatyard still has a $150,000 bill remaining, and will be paying off the loans for another 10 to 15 years, Andrew Luke anticipates. But he said that the grant, which will go straight toward paying off loans, has provided a “profound” sense of relief for his family.

“Completing the project was not conditional on receiving the money. But because we did, we’ll now complete it with a lot more enthusiasm,” he said. “It’s lifted a tremendous weight off of our financial shoulders.”