Northeastern wins legal victory in dispute over Nahant research center

An appeals judge ruled in favor of Northeastern University in its battle against a North Shore city that opposed the expansion of the university's marine research center.

Northeastern has operated its marine research center since the 1960s on about 20 acres in East Point in Nahant, a coastal town north of Boston with about 3,000 residents. Twelve of these undeveloped acres are in dispute, wrote Judge Ariane Vuono of the Massachusetts Court of Appeals in her decision on Monday.

In 2018, Northeastern announced plans to build a new 55,000-square-foot research facility in the undeveloped area. Nahant officials opposed the plan, saying the university had already promised the area to the public as an ecological preserve in the 1960s.

“We conclude that plaintiffs have no reasonable expectation of being able to demonstrate that Northeastern has deeded the twelve acres in question to the public for use as an ecological preserve. As a result, the land is still privately owned by Northeastern,” Vuono wrote.

Nahant and Northeastern respond to the judge's decision

Renata Nyul, Northeastern University's vice president for communications, said the university was “pleased” with the appeals court's decision.

“We hope that Nahant taxpayers will urge the City Council to forego further costly litigation and pursue a resolution that benefits the city and allows Northeastern to fulfill its important research and teaching mission,” Nyul said in a statement.

The Nahant Board of Selectmen issued a statement saying it will not back down from protecting “Nahant's very limited and valuable open space.” According to town officials, town voters declared the area a protected conservation area in 1991.

In 2021, Nahant attempted to obtain the land through expropriation, but was denied by the Essex Superior Court. The Boston Globe reported. The city has appealed this decision.

“The ongoing effort to conserve 12.5 acres of this property through expropriation is a continuation of a decades-long commitment to protect this area,” the board said. “We hope Northeastern University recognizes the value of preserving this area as a conservation area for wildlife, birds, plants and the public.”

Dispute in Nahant dates back to 1964

The court's ruling refers to a 1964 annual town meeting in Nahant at which the town opposed purchasing the property. The following year, the town supported the transfer of the property from the federal government to Northeastern.

The university's proposal at the time “did not preclude further construction, nor did it indicate any intention to preserve any portion of the property for public access or recreation,” Vuono wrote. While it mentioned the creation of a nature preserve, that was contingent on the university acquiring all of East Point.

About 20 acres of land were awarded to Northeastern, and the city built Lodge Park on an eight-acre site in the early 1970s, the report says.

Since then, the land earmarked for the expansion of the centre has been opened for public use and serves as an informal wildlife sanctuary.

There are conflicting statements about the wildlife refuge, Vuono wrote. Northeastern referred to the area as a wildlife refuge on its website between 1999 and 2007, and Nahant also declared the area a nature preserve.

Even if the land was indeed used by citizens, the court found that “the City failed to demonstrate that Northeastern had contractually agreed to preserve any portion of its land as a wildlife refuge or open space.”

Vuono said the city made its decisions based on an “impression, (and) that impression does not allow for any conclusion, let alone a conclusion.”