NAHANT — Plans for the expansion of Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center will be revealed in a meeting at Nahant Town Hall next Thursday night at 7:30.
“We’re going to try to work together on this,” said chairman of the Board of Selectmen Enzo Barile. “A lot of people are really upset. Nahant is small. We can’t handle something like that.”
Director Geoff Trussell will present preliminary plans for a new research and teaching building to be constructed behind the existing facility, but he said he’s sure residents will also want to hear about the proposed seawater intake project.
The university withdrew its proposal to dramatically increase seawater intake for research last week after it was met with strong opposition from residents and fishermen. They will respond to concerns they’ve heard and submit a new plan by the end of the month.
The proposed intake project would have led to an almost five-fold increase in the amount of water collected. The existing system isn’t enough to support the center’s work, said Trussell.
The system works by allowing seawater to flow through a system of pipes extending from the ocean to a supply building on the 23-acre site, which provides filtered water throughout the facility. The university wants to increase the amount of seawater it is capable of taking in from 500 gallons per minute to about 2,400 gallons.
To do that, developers want to add two new 20-inch intake lines that would extend about 400 feet into Nahant Bay in the same direction as the existing lines. The current system includes two, six-inch intake pipes that extend about 350 feet from the seawall into the bay, secured to the sea floor with anchor blocks and rock clamps.
As part of the plan, a new, 2,400-square-foot pump house would be constructed at the south end of the laboratory. The pump house would be in the basement level, making it safer and more efficient. Seawater would be pumped to the existing storage tanks, and new distribution lines would be installed. The ground level would serve as a boathouse for three research vessels.
Many objected to the plan, saying the system would dump warmer water into the ocean and that the new intakes would suck up fish eggs and other organisms.
A separate project — the construction of an additional building for research and classroom space — will be presented for the first time. Trussell stressed there are no plans to construct dormitories to house students.
But Barile said the university has been unclear about the expansion plans in the past.
“They’ve shown people the building, a 50,000-square-foot building, but they’ve also shown three other sets of plans to other people,” he said. “They have huge plans for expansion and the town needs to know about it. How are they going to take care of the open space up there? There are over 50 species of bees up there alone.”
There are also concerns about the disruption to existing birds, a snowy owl, and fox dens.
“Schools have some protection from zoning bylaws, but they are not entirely exempt,” he said.
While the Dover Amendment prevents any zoning bylaw from prohibiting or restricting the use of the land owned by a non-profit educational corporation, it also states that the land may be subject to reasonable regulations concerning the bulk and height of the structures, lot area, setbacks, open space, parking and building coverage requirements, Barile said.
He wants to see the town’s concerns addressed.
