SALISBURY — Town officials were left feeling optimistic about securing the future of Salisbury Beach against the threat of erosion after U.S. Congressman Seth Moulton walked the shores with them Wednesday afternoon.
“I think it was very productive. I think it was educational for many of the people involved, and I think if we work together, I’m positive that we can put together a short- and long-term solution for this,” Town Manager Neil Harrington said.
The visit began at Seaglass restaurant with a 30-minute, closed-door meeting between the Salem Democrat and town leaders. Following the meeting, Moulton and others drove to beach access point 8 where they toured the beach to get a sense of recent storm damage. After 15 minutes, Moulton departed and town officials dispersed.
When asked if he is putting pressure on the state to help, Moulton said first he and others have to understand exactly what is going on at the beach.
“There is some frustration with the state, the feeling that DCR could be doing more, but we talked about some things that can be done,” Moulton said, referring to the beach’s overseer, the Department of Conservation and Recreation.
For the moment, Moulton added, there is not much the federal government can do to bring relief to concerned homeowners but suggested there may be some role down the line for the U.S Army Corps of Engineers.
“Depending on what the studies show about the impact of the jetties to the north and south of here, there may be more of a federal role over time,” Moulton said.
When asked if he had spoken to Gov. Maura Healey about the beach issue, Moulton said that was a call he still had to make.
“But when we come to a better conclusion about what we think should be done and try to understand what the state’s role should be, I talk to the governor all the time, so obviously this will be on the top of the list on the agenda,” Moulton said.
The beach has been suffering from severe erosion for years, culminating in residents recently having to take action themselves.
Weeks ago, Salisbury Beach Citizens for Change, a nonprofit organization that strives to improve the quality of life in the beach area, and H.A. Richard & Sons contractor Henry Richard Jr. completed a resident-funded dune restoration project that saw Richard dump sand onto beach properties.
Over the course of the project, the 13-year-old organization collected approximately $550,000 from private property owners and oversaw the placement of 13,000 to 14,000 cubic tons of sand.
The Department of Conservation and Recreation has also been active on the beach in helping to restore damaged access points. Earlier this month, the agency laid down wooden boards at access point 7 to get equipment onto the beach.
Moulton’s appearance came only weeks after state Sen. Bruce Tarr, R-Gloucester, revealed a $6 million plan to temporarily secure Salisbury Beach dunes. The plan, which still needs funding, was proposed during the Merrimack River Beach Alliance Salisbury Beach Subcommittee meeting March 13.
Working with Tom Hughes, a wetland scientist working with the Merrimack River Beach Alliance representing Salisbury, Tarr told a virtual meeting room filled with more than 180 participants that designs on a near-term project have been completed.
The proposed plan is broken into three parts. The initial phase, which is hoped to begin before the start of the beach season, would see dunes restored to peaks of 17 feet after being decimated by storms. The second phase, occurring over the summer, would see simple maintenance. The third phase would come in the fall and see a more in-depth dune renourishment, according to Hughes.
The initial phase of the project would cost $1.5 million, with the total project costing around $6 million, according to Hughes.
Tarr said he will attempt to secure funding from the Salisbury Beach Preservation Trust Fund.
The Salisbury Beach Preservation Trust Fund was the idea in 2008 of former state Sen. Steven Baddour, who worked with then-state Rep. Michael Costello, D-Newburyport, to make it a law.
Baddour and Costello undertook that task after devastating storms ravaged Salisbury Beach three years in a row, including the Patriots Day storm of 2008, which scoured sand from the beach that is owned and maintained by the state Department of Conservation and Recreation.
Moulton said he has been in preliminary talks with Tarr about the plan and praised Tarr’s advocacy for the town.
“I know he’s invested in trying to solve this problem as I am,” Moulton said.
Erosion at Salisbury Beach has been going on for some time, dating back to December 2022 when the initial damage from nor’easter Elliott occurred.
Local leaders first learned during a Salisbury Beach Resiliency Subcommittee meeting May 4 that the Department of Conservation and Recreation had shut down points 8, 9 and 10 for a year due to beach erosion caused by the nor’easter. Points 9 and 10 were reopened the Friday before Memorial Day, with point 8 restored just before the Fourth of July.