NAHANT — After a lengthy court battle, the town lost its bid to block the expansion of Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center after an Essex Superior Court Judge ruled in favor of the university in the years-long legal saga.
At issue is Northeastern’s plan to expand the research center into unused land on East Point, where the center is located. The university planned a 55,000-square-foot building to provide researchers at the center with state-of-the-art tools to enhance the impact of their work. The town, and The Nahant Preservation Trust, a nonprofit seeking to preserve open spaces, public conservation lands, and historically-significant properties in Nahant, subsequently filed a lawsuit against Northeastern in 2019.
The lawsuit alleged that the property the university intended to seize to expand the center was conservation land, a claim that Essex Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Karp found little evidence of.
“Northeastern University has not dedicated, and the public has not accepted, the land on top of and to the east of Murphy Bunker at East Point, Nahant, Massachusetts, to the public for use as an ecological preserve and for passive recreation,” Karp wrote in a summary judgment, essentially closing the book on this chapter of the ongoing legal battle between the two entities.
In 2021, the town voted overwhelmingly to take a portion of the property via eminent domain as part of its attempt to block the expansion. The decision came despite an offer from the university to place a conservation restriction on approximately 90 percent of the open space sought by the Board of Selectmen.
In a statement, the board wrote that they were disappointed by the decision and were evaluating their options in the wake of the decision.
“The town will consider all options moving forward,” the statement said. “We maintain that the continued preservation of the site by the town as vital open space and a vibrant habitat is in the best interests of our community”
The board has estimated that taking the property via eminent domain would cost the town $4.5 million. But, university officials believe the cost of the proposed taking would be substantially higher than the amount put forward by the board. The university has filed suit against the town, contesting the validity of the land taking and its valuation, which is pending before Judge Karp.
The open space the university is proposing to preserve via the conservation restriction is located east of Murphy Bunker, which houses several of the university’s marine science research labs. Under the restriction, the university would give up its existing development rights on the land and undertake “an extensive environmental remediation program to eliminate invasive species and restore native biodiversity to the area,” the university wrote in a statement.
The university has also offered to grant the town an easement to “ensure continued public access to Canoe Beach from the adjacent municipal parking area.”
In addition to the conservation restriction and easement, the university has offered the town a multi-million dollar financial package to offset any impacts the center expansion project would have on town infrastructure, help improve the town’s water and sewer system, and assist the town with operating and capital budget needs.
The package also includes scholarships of unspecified amounts for residents of the town to attend Northeastern, funding for the town’s elementary school art and music program, scholarships for local elementary and high school students to attend the center’s Coastal Ocean Science Academy summer program, paid internships at the Marine Science Center for Nahant students, and free public lectures and films for residents.
Northeastern would fund a research program to help the town develop innovative solutions to combat climate change-related threats such as storm surge and sea level rise.
Those who oppose the proposal say a larger structure on East Point would obscure the view of the coastline and natural beauty of the area, a relied-upon tourist attraction in town. The proposed development sparked concerns about land preservation and protection of wildlife.
Charlie McKenna can be reached at [email protected].
