Zoe Cioffi and Zack Stanton finished the final touches on Boothbay Harbor’s beloved footbridge on Thursday, Feb. 2. Cioffi pounded in a last handful of nails while Stanton steered Chesterfield Associates’ 28-foot landing craft, Elsie, back and forth, depending upon Cioffi’s location.

People thumped across the wooden boards freely, with no barriers blocking them, from downtown Boothbay Harbor to the east side and back. It’s been a while since they’ve been able to do that, but they’ve taken back the historic bridge, about 15 days before its scheduled completion date. The four-person crew, Cioffi and Stanton, as well as Lucinda Tillis, and Davies Allan, president of Chesterfield Associates, worked in some tricky weather to complete the temporary repairs, which allow people to walk across the span under a weight restriction.

Phase II, permanent repairs will begin a little later. The town hopes to have these completed by Memorial Day. In the meantime, a lovely walk has been restored to an already lovely place, thanks to the efforts of Allan, Cioffi, Stanton and Tillis. The Elsie and her crew is moving on to new projects, after a job well done.