May 19, 2022

Calculating the Value: Development vs. Waterfront Access

“The public has a right to know how much value developers are truly gaining when they depart from waterfront rules,” said Deanna Moran, CLF Director of Environmental Planning. “This calculator allows us to put a dollar value on the replacement public benefits offered by developers for the first time. This increased transparency will allow residents and regulators alike to better evaluate new waterfront projects and understand the tradeoffs at play.”  

Nov 23, 2021

MA Supreme Judicial Court Takes Up Downtown Harbor Plan Case

“The public’s right to access the waterfront has been guaranteed for generations, and we must fight any attempts by unauthorized state officials to undermine it,” said Peter Shelley, Senior Counsel at CLF. “The politicized, developer-driven process that led to Boston’s harbor plan was fundamentally flawed. The lower court was correct to conclude that the state agencies did not have the authority to approve it. We’re confident the justices will uphold that decision to send Boston’s unlawful plan back to the drawing board.”

May 14, 2021

State Issues Draft Waterfront Development Regulations

“These regulations impact everyone in Massachusetts, “said Peter Shelley, Senior Counsel at CLF.  “The state can’t just rubber-stamp its way out of this problem and ignore the tidelands development principles it broke. The public needs to be involved in every step of this process and officials must offer more than just two public meetings. Access to the waterfront is enshrined in Massachusetts law and it must stay that way.”

Jul 25, 2018

Massachusetts Bill Threatens Waterfront Public Access

There is currently legislation in front of the Massachusetts House of Representatives that not only threatens public access to Boston’s Waterfront but could set a dangerous precedent for waterfronts across the Commonwealth. If the bill (H.4505) were to pass, the Commercial Wharf East Condominium Association would be allowed to skirt their Chapter 91 obligations to… Continue reading Massachusetts Bill Threatens Waterfront Public Access

May 15, 2018

Reclaiming the People’s Harbor

A wave of luxury development threatens to wall off the experience of Boston Harbor from the people who paid to clean it up, just as the waterfront was once literally walled off behind the city’s Central Artery expressway. CLF Senior Counsel Peter Shelley remembers the original campaign to clean up the Boston Harbor, and continues to work on current issues of equity and fairness.

Boston Harbor