NAHANT — Representatives for Northeastern University say a push by local officials to enact eminent domain over Nahant’s East Point may be more costly for residents than initially proposed.
During a virtual Eminent Domain Information Session hosted by the school Thursday, Ralph Martin, senior vice president and general counsel at Northeastern, said that if the town were to seek to enact eminent domain but ultimately choose to abandon the effort due to cost, the financial burden to taxpayers could potentially be in the hundreds of thousands.
“If the town walks away from the taking, it will owe Northeastern the damages Northeastern will suffer from delaying its expansion project,” Martin said. “In a litigation process the selectmen themselves say will last two to three years, those delayed damages will be substantial, in the range of $6-9 million.”
Earlier this month, the Board of Selectmen voted, 3-0, to place an article on the annual Town Meeting warrant that would give the town authority to take control over a portion of the East Point property currently occupied by Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center.
If passed, Article 22 would allow the town to enact eminent domain — a law that provides the government the right to purchase private property for public use — in order to declare part of East Point as a wildlife preserve, thus protecting it from future development.
Citing concern about an expansion’s impact on the local environment, as well as the desire to keep nearby Canoe Beach a public area, the board previously declared it would seek public approval to designate $1.5 million of Massachusetts Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds — which are used for public areas of need, including affordable housing, historic resources, and recreational spaces — to finance the motion.
When drafting the article, Board of Selectmen Chair Mark Cullinan previously said the board chose to use Massachusetts General Law Chapter 80A instead of MGL Chapter 79 for the proposed taking.
Unlike a Chapter 79 taking, which is irreversible, Chapter 80A allows the town to discontinue and withdraw from the taking if the process becomes too expensive or if the town and Northeastern come to an agreement.
According to Selectman Joshua Antrim, CPA funds do not affect the town’s operating budget or its tax rate in any way, and the principal interest on the money borrowed for the taking would cost the average Nahant household about $35 per year.
“I don’t have anything against Northeastern,” Antrim said in March 2020, when the board first announced it would seek to enact eminent domain over East Point. “We’re not trying to execute eminent domain over the entire property … We want to protect that area from development.”
However, Martin said Thursday that the cost to the town could actually be much higher than the sum proposed by the Board of Selectmen, estimating the land at East Point to actually be valued closer to $6 million — more than double the selectmen’s estimate of $2.5 million.
Should the selectmen walk away from c.80A Eminent Domain because the value of the property is found to be too high, Martin said the financial consequences would fall entirely on the town, which would be liable to Northeastern for damages, including attorney’s fees, experts’ fees, and other litigation costs.
“This low estimate of land value that the selectmen have put forth and suggested that there is no undue financial risk if the taking is accomplished under by Chapter 80a, will allow the town to walk away if the price is greater than the lowball value the selectmen are pitching to townspeople,” he said.
“What you may not have heard is that walking away comes with an additional price. Under Chapter 80a, if the town abandons the taking, the town will be liable to fully indemnify Northeastern for the damages it has suffered as a result of the taking process initiated by the town.”
Martin added that the town would also have to compensate Northeastern for the cost of the project’s delay, which is estimated to be $250,000 per month.
In a statement provided to The Item Thursday night, Antrim rejected Martin’s claims that the board provided the town with inaccurate cost assessments.
“The Board of Selectmen has provided written reports on costs associated with eminent domain,” Antrim said. “Northeastern has not offered a single expert opinion to substantiate its claims of dire financial consequences, presumably because it has none.”
Nahant residents will vote whether or not to approve Article 22 during Nahant’s annual Town Meeting on May 15.
Elyse Carmosino can be reached at [email protected].
