Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center

Great idea, but don't put it near us

The near-island called Nahant -- very exposed to rising seas.-- Photo by Svabo

The near-island called Nahant -- very exposed to rising seas.

-- Photo by Svabo

Adapted from  Robert Whitcomb's "Digital Diary,'' in GoLocal24.com

There’s an entertainingly ironic not-in-my-backyard battle under way in Nahant, Mass., on the northern side of Boston Harbor.  The town, once perhaps best known for summer places of Boston Brahmins, has hosted, apparently without controversy, Northeastern University’s Marine Science Center since 1967.

Nahant, of course, is one of those coastal towns that faces the threat posed by rising sea levels and stronger storms caused by global warming.

But now Northeastern wants to build a 60,000-square-foot addition to the center in order to turn it into an internationally respected coastal sustainability institute. The structure would be built in a way to minimize its visual impact. The Boston Globe reports that two stories and a basement would go into the side and top of  a concrete bunker that housed two anti-submarine guns in World War II.  To read The Globe’s story, please hit this link:

http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2018/03/19/nahant-quiet-seaside-research-center-has-turned-into-bitter-battleground/mKkUCPnoKdriw4T1meezoO/story.html?p1=Article_Recommended_ReadMore_Pos4

Postcard from around 1910, when Nahant was best known as a summer resort.

Postcard from around 1910, when Nahant was best known as a summer resort.