Hassey’s Riverside Park

Hassey’s Riverside Park. . , Schoppee's Garage , Founded circa 1928 by Harrison (Hassey) Schoppee, Schoppee's Garage was originally on the south side of the Chandler River. When he learned that construction of a new bridge would realign Rt. 1 through his business, Hassey floated the garage downriver to his home on Beaver Brook. Once the new bridge was completed, he floated the garage upriver to the north side, now home of Hassey's Riverside Park., Hassey's son Keith took over the business in 1977 and continued the proud tradition of service that helped make the garage a hub of the community. As described in The History of Jonesboro, Maine, Bicentennial 1809 - 2009 "It was the gathering place where news was shared and yarns were spun. Any job from patching a bicycle tire to replacing a truck engine was viewed with the same ‘let's take a look’ attitude.”, Over several decades and thousands of oil changes, the soil beneath the garage became contaminated by motor oil. So when Bessie Schoppee, wife of the late Keith Schoppee, agreed to donate the property to the town, clean-up got underway., In 2014, with support from the Washington County Council of Governments and the Northern Maine Development Commission, a plan was developed to cover the soils with clean fill - all contained within the footprint of the old garage., Testing determined that once covered, the soils would not harm visitors to the.park, groundwater, or the Chandler River. Funding from MaineDOT helped stabilize the eroding river bank and improved public access to the river for recreation., Vintage Rescue! , Clean-up of the property included salvage of a 1930s vintage Dodge Brothers touring car that had been stored in the garage for decades. John Porter, a local contractor who led the effort, was delighted to find the car in good shape: "That car has been sitting there as long as I can remember. I know Keith had many offers, but the answer was always the same, it's not for sale.", This Brownfield redevelopment project was made possible with support from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.