The meeting began at 5 p.m. Twenty minutes later, Wiscasset resident Daniel Bigley stood and asked the question that was on everyone's minds: "Are we going to see which is the preferred bypass route? I mean, can we put a For Sale sign on our house and say, `Don't worry folks, the bypass isn't going here?' We've been in limbo for a long time."

Property owners from at least three towns gathered in Edgecomb Tuesday night to learn if a proposed Route 1 bypass will cut through their property. Talk of a bypass began in the early 1950s, but several decades later, many state studies later, and probably millions of dollars later, the Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT) announced a "preferred" route.

At the start of the meeting, consultant MDOT Carol Morris announced that five routes that have been on the table had been narrowed down to three. Edgecomb residents who live in the area of Engelbrekt Road apparently no longer have to worry about the bypass cutting their neighborhood in two. This route was called F2. The second route that was eliminated is N2H. Maps of the routes are available on the MDOT website.

The `preferred' route is N2A, the longest of the five routes, which all begin on Route 1 near the NAPA auto parts store and the Old Bath Road, cross the Bradford Road, Church Street, Route 27 and Route 218. N2A is the longest of the routes, at 4.8 miles, and would go through an upscale subdivision now under development by Doug Fitts and Brett Benway. Fitts pointed out that this route actually carries "the least amount of traffic" according to MDOT's own studies.

"Have you considered that this development will generate millions of dollars in taxes for the town of Wiscasset?" Bigley asked.

"Absolutely," Morris said. "The folks developing the area submitted a package of information to us and we have taken that into consideration."

Permits for the project must be issued by the Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. Jay Clement from the Army Corps, said he will be the project manager "when the project finally comes to pass." Before that happens, Clement explained that his agency will have to determine what is the Least Environmentally Damaging Practical Alternative (LEDPA). Clement said his agency agrees with MDOT and the Federal Highway Administration that the three routes, N8C, F1 and N2A are favored over F2 and N2H, but the Corps has to determine if N2A is the least environmentally damaging alternative. Until that happens the other two routes will still be under consideration, Clement said.

"The LEDPA decision will be made in writing to the MDOT and the Federal Highway Administration," Clement said.

Morris said in investigating the historic significance of a homestead in Edgecomb, MDOT discovered that the "old motor lodge," at the corner of Route 27 and Route 1 is eligible to be included in the National Historic Register. This means there could be no taking of the property or buildings.

"We're in the process of redesigning that intersection," Morris said.

The N8C route, favored by the town of Edgecomb, would have included a second long bridge across the Sheepscot, coming out on Davis Island. Former Selectman Jo Cameron questioned how another route F1, could still be under consideration since it comes so close to Cod Cove.

John VanOrsdell noted that since Wiscasset residents and the selectmen do not favor any of the five routes, his tunnel under the river should be considered, perhaps with private funding.