Westbrook leaders gave their official blessing Monday to the recent settlement agreement toward dam removal and fish passage at Saccarappa Falls.

Last week, after years of negotiations, officials from dam owner Sappi North America and multiple environmental organizations announced the agreement. On Monday, the Westbrook City Council voted unanimously to support it.

The Saccarappa project, like the Cumberland Mills fish ladder project before it, has been touted by city officials and environmental groups as beneficial to Westbrook – creating a potential tourist attraction for both wildlife enthusiasts and kayakers, as well as other recreational opportunites.

Sappi is surrendering its license to operate the hydroelectric dams at the site after previously agreeing to work with the city, environmental organizations and other governmental agencies to remove the dams and create “nature-like” fish passage at the falls.

The agreement was entered into by Friends of the Presumpscot River, the Conservation Law Foundation, Sappi, the city of Westbrook, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Maine Department of Marine Resources. It was filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, which must also approve the agreement.

As a result of the agreement, a Denil fish ladder will be installed at the lower falls close to the new Bridge Street bridge, while the dams at the upper falls will be removed, with fish passage created at both spillways. Proponents have argued that restoring sea-run fish populations of species like alewives, shad and river herring will continue to revitalize the river while also having economic benefit.

The meeting Monday also served as a recognition for outgoing Mayor Colleen Hilton and longtime City Councilor Michael Foley. Hilton had made fish passage at Saccarappa a top priority during her tenure, and told the American Journal on Monday that the project was a big reason she ran for a third term in 2013.

City Administrator Jerre Bryant said the city became involved during the second round of serious negotiations between Sappi and the other stakeholders.

Scott Anderson, an attorney who has worked on behalf of the city, said Hilton and former assistant city administrator Bill Baker were “a good team to work with” on the project.

“I feel like balloons and confetti should be flying,” Hilton said during the meeting. “So much hard work was put into this, and it positions Westbrook into the future for great things.”

Michael Shaughnessy, the president of Friends of the Presumpscot River, said his organization has been working toward this goal since its formation in 1992. But he said the city’s support for it is what pushed it to the next level.

“It’s not over,” he said, referring to Sappi’s remaining upstream dams. “I hope the city’s support of the river continues.”