LYNN — Three communities are rallying together to enact changes for King’s Beach and make it safe again.
Friends of Lynn & Nahant Beach President Bob Tucker said that he was thrilled to see so many faces from Swampscott — which shares the beach with Lynn — join the movement.
“You folks don’t know how happy I am to see another group organize around this in Swampscott,” said Tucker. “If all forces can combine, hopefully we can get the funds behind this infrastructure.”
Community members from Lynn, Nahant, and Swampscott gathered over Zoom to meet with state Sen. Brendan Crighton (D-Lynn), state Rep. Lori Ehrlich, and Save the Harbor/Save the Bay Executive Director Chris Mancini to talk about some of the problems happening at King’s Beach and what city and state officials want to see happen to resolve those issues.
Mancini said that when he started at Save the Harbor/Save the Bay in 2017, he saw a lot of plans being put into place to clean up Boston beaches — particularly Carson Beach, M Street Beach, City Point Beach and Pleasure Bay — with the aim of making them safe to swim in.
“We saw a really similar situation play out. We saw a really dirty beach that is now one of the cleanest urban beaches in the country,” Mancini said. “The first thing I said was ‘why didn’t we do this for King’s Beach?’”
According to Save the Harbor/Save the Bay’s annual water report card, King’s Beach had the lowest water quality in the Greater Boston area, with only 70-percent purity in 2020. The main reason for the water-purity issues is the two stormwater outfalls that are contaminated by sewage, the report said.
Crighton explained that the two stormwater outfalls were once sewer outfalls. When a new sewer system was built, not all of the sewer lines made it over to the new sewer system.
“We have to do the hard work of fixing the sewer system, not just carrying the waste further out to sea,” Crighton said.
Crighton and Ehrlich said that they had both been approached this year by fellow representatives and senators about this issue and think that funding will be approved to make improvements.
“There is so much need in the area of water quality,” said Crighton. “For the issues we’re talking about, we need to stay on the Department of Conservation & Recreation (DCR) and look for additional funding.”
Both Crighton and Ehrlich said that Gov. Charlie Baker knows about what is happening at the beach; Ehrlich said she wants to further that discussion.
“If I get the chance to have a conversation with Gov. Baker directly I will,” Ehrlich said. “He’s aware of the beach and the issues of the beach and he’s supported my and (Crighton’s) efforts to care for the beach.”
A large concern from community members participating in the virtual meeting was how they could further help this project. In the public chat on Zoom, Facebook information was shared about the existing groups and the date for the Lynn Water & Sewer Commission’s upcoming public meeting was provided.
Crighton, Ehrlich, and Mancini all said in their closing remarks that they feel this is the time to enact change. They urged community members to talk to their city councilors and town officials, write letters to the state House and Senate, and keep informing their communities about the conditions at King’s Beach.
“I am hopeful. The stars are aligned and everyone is working together in tandem. We have both communities at the table,” said Ehrlich. “The time to be heard is now. The time to share your opinions is now.”
