- Division of Marine Fisheries
In 2012, DMF met with Kim Driscoll—then the mayor, now the lieutenant governor of Massachusetts—to discuss replacing the historic Salem Willows Park fishing pier. The original pier, first permitted to be built in 1894, was past its useful life and needed to be closed for safety reasons. Following that initial meeting, it has been a long and winding road of planning, designing, and permitting. But now, after a dozen years, there is a new Willows Pier open to the public in Salem.
This last year of the project has been especially exciting, with construction beginning in the spring and, after nine months, the completion of the new, fully ADA-compliant fishing pier. The pier opened to the public on November 3 and within hours word began to spread. It wasn’t long before people carrying fishing rods descended upon the new fishing pier and started to catch mackerel. It was a fantastic sight to see anglers immediately enjoying the pier again. Saltwater anglers like these are a vital source of funding for public access projects like the Salem Willows Pier. A full one-third of all dollars from saltwater fishing permit sales are dedicated to funding public access projects for saltwater anglers in Massachusetts.
The official ribbon cutting ceremony took place on December 2, when we gathered with the City of Salem, Office of Fishing & Boating Access, Department of Fish and Game, local leaders and community members at the pier to commemorate this renewed opportunity to access and enjoy the waterfront. Bringing the project full circle, Lieutenant Governor Driscoll spoke to the many partnerships that made this project a success and then made a ceremonial cast following the ribbon cutting. Although we didn’t land any fish that chilly morning in December, the rebuilt pier will continue providing anglers the opportunity to land popular species like pollock, striped bass, bluefish, mackerel, cunner, winter flounder, and squid for generations to come.
By Ross Kessler, Public Access Coordinator
