CANTON — Dam Advisory Committee member Larry Giroux told the committee Monday night that the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund has awarded a $5,000 grant for the dam project.

Giroux, who lives in Hartford, was the primary author of the grant application. It is funded by special lottery tickets and is intended for land acquisition and public access.

The overall plan for the site calls for a public access boat ramp in addition to the new dam and park. The new dam will replace a temporary dam in Whitney Brook. The original dam, which regulated the water level of Lake Anasagunticook on the border of Hartford and Canton, was condemned by the state.

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Planner Leon Bucher discussed the availability of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife grant to cover three-quarters of the cost of the public access boat ramp. Work to be done by volunteers and work already done by the town will probably meet the town’s share of the cost.

Bucher said that if IF&W funds are used for the boat ramp, the state will want a limited easement from the town for the purpose of a public access boat ramp. IF&W will be responsible for maintaining the boat ramp.

Bucher and the committee discussed the possibility of having one engineering firm and one contractor work on both the dam project and the boat ramp.

Hartford and Canton have both contributed to the project. In addition, the Lake Anasagunticook Association has raised approximately $80,000 in pledges and gifts. The Environmental Protection Agency is currently reviewing a grant application to supplement the Community Development Block Grant already awarded.