Sunapee seeks bids for Georges Mills Beach shoreline stabilization work

Erosion at Georges Mills Beach has moved from a planning concern to a summer construction schedule. The Town of Sunapee posted bids on May 18 for shoreline stabilization work at the town-owned beach at 18 Cooper Street, aiming to protect Lake Sunapee’s water quality and keep the site safely open to the public.

The project is not a minor repair. Contractors are being asked to install a stone base, encapsulated soil lift, coir logs and two infiltration steps along about 108 linear feet of shoreline. The work must match plans prepared by Stone Environmental in March 2026 and follow the town’s bid specifications.

The town set a tight calendar for the project. Questions are due by Friday, May 29, and proposals must be submitted by Friday, June 5 at 5 p.m. Construction is scheduled to run from July 13 through Aug. 14, with all work and equipment removal completed by the deadline. Bidders may submit proposals electronically or on paper, and the town wants submissions clearly marked for the Georges Mills Beach shoreline stabilization project.

The move follows months of public discussion and design work. On Feb. 4, the Town of Sunapee and the Lake Sunapee Protective Association held a public meeting in the Sunapee Town Office Meeting Room to present the Georges Mills Beach Stabilization Project and invite community input. Town and lake advocates said at the time that shoreline erosion had been occurring at the property and that the proposed design was meant to protect and improve the public space.

A concept plan drawn Nov. 3, 2025, shows the project’s intended shape. It includes a stone toe with 2-by-12-inch encapsulated soil lifts, a stone toe with a coir log, a defined 8-foot-wide boat-water access area, and native trees and shrubs for a former grass peninsula area. The drawing labels the site as Georges Mills Town Beach Stabilization and references a natural high-water level of 1,094.15 feet and a normal water level of 1,093.15 feet.

The shoreline work fits into a broader Lake Sunapee watershed effort. LSPA says its water-quality buoy records and transmits air and water data every ten minutes, 365 days a year, and that the buoy is part of the Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network. The group also says that when lake levels rise above 1,093.5 feet, it asks boaters to travel at headway speed to reduce shoreline damage. It reported a summer high of 1,094.64 feet on July 11.

LSPA has also said the Georges Mills, Sunapee Harbor and Mount Sunapee State Park ramps are staffed seven days a week, while Blodgett Landing and Burkehaven are staffed on weekends and holidays. In 2025, the group said all Lake Sunapee Watershed towns now have septic regulations in place and that its water-quality lab processed more samples than ever, underscoring how the Georges Mills work fits into a longer-term resilience and capital planning effort.