“It is unacceptable that this plan allows developers to buy their way out of regulations they don’t like,” said Peter Shelley, Senior Counsel at CLF. “The public’s right to access the waterfront has been guaranteed for generations, and officials have singlehandedly undermined that right. The municipal harbor planning process is broken, and we’re looking forward to proving it in court.”
“It is unacceptable that this plan allows developers to buy their way out of regulations they don’t like,” CLF senior counsel Peter Shelley said in response to the judge’s ruling. “The public’s right to access the waterfront has been guaranteed for generations, and officials have singlehandedly undermined that right. The municipal harbor planning process is broken, and we’re looking forward to proving it in court.”
“Boston’s redevelopment boom is an opportunity for the city to finally get this right,” said Deanna Moran, Director of Environmental Planning at CLF. “Our leaders must learn from mistakes in places like the Seaport and commit to climate-smart and equitable development from here on out. Transportation access and public open space cannot be afterthoughts any longer.”
CLF’s annual Pitch a Blanket event shows how much people around Boston care about protecting public access to the waterfront. They also give people the chance to express their shared frustration about privatization of waterfront spaces and poor public access. This combination of factors has made the waterfront feel unwelcoming to many but the wealthy.
“Waterfront spaces in Massachusetts are owned by the public, and those ownership rights are being threatened,” said Bradley Campbell, President of CLF. “Developers continue to wall off access to the water, even as climate change threatens to render useless the precious few open spaces that do exist. This event was critical in bringing together people from communities across Boston to learn how to advocate for their right to access the waterfront.”
“The waterfront and Boston Harbor belong to all of us, not just the white and wealthy,” said Brad Campbell, President of CLF. “Too many developers have been allowed to wall off access to the water for the benefit of a few, and the rest of the city is finally taking note. We all paid for the cleanup of Boston Harbor and we all deserve equal access to it.”
“Given that every resident contributed to the billions of dollars it took to clean up the harbor, we think it’s important that everyone have access to the use of and enjoyment of it,” CLF president Brad Campbell said.
Campbell says CLF is championing this cause because of its role as a watchdog of state waterfront regulations, a responsibility that includes designated port areas. He says CLF has become more involved lately because these industrial parcels, and the jobs they support, are under greater threat amid the heat of the real estate market.
Boston Harbor is nearing a crossroads: Will it remain the People’s Harbor, open and accessible to the public? Or will it become an exclusive enclave welcome only to the wealthy? Will it be swamped by sea level rise and extreme weather? Or will it emerge as a national model for climate resiliency? We all can… Continue reading Pledge to Protect the People’s Harbor
In order to meet the growing threat of climate change along the Massachusetts coast, the Commonwealth must update its laws and regulations to reflect changing climate conditions such as anticipated sea level rise and increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events. This task includes critical updates to the Public Waterfront Act program and its… Continue reading Climate Change and the Massachusetts Public Waterfront Act
