Free Massachusetts' Beaches

Expanding access to our shoreline.

Did you know that Massachusetts has the most restrictive beach access in the country? Private beaches are legal in the Bay State and over 70% of the coastline is private. Due to a law from the 1700s, coastal property owners in Massachusetts own the land down to the low tide line, which limits public access to the ocean.

In Oregon, private beaches are illegal. In several states like Texas and North Carolina, public access goes all the way up to the vegetation line.

In Massachusetts, public access to the ocean on a private beach is only allowed below the high water mark for “fishing, fowling, and navigation,” but some state reps want to add the word “recreation” to that list. As Representative Dylan Fernandes says, “we need to democratize access to the ocean. No one should own the ocean.”   Fox 25 News covers the bill here

Although Massachusetts has several public beaches, access to many of them is still intentionally limited today.  

Here are some ways access to public beaches is limited:

• Requiring a resident sticker to access beach parking.
• Limiting the number of parking stickers sold to non-residents and charging rates up to ten times as much for non-residents of the town.
• Providing NO parking nearby, so that a public beach is essentially only accessible to those fortunate enough to own oceanfront property or live close by.
• Charging higher rates for out-of-town MA residents and even higher fees for those visiting from out of state.
• Closing off parking spots to non-residents in favor of town residents when the lot is getting full rather than offering parking on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Dark History of Limiting Shore Access

Activist Ned Coll fought to desegregate the beaches in nearby Connecticut in 1975, but shore access is still limited in the Northeast today where most coastal towns are mainly occupied by wealthy white inhabitants.

Andrew W. Kahrl wrote the book "Free the Beaches: The story of Ned Coll and the Battle for America's Most Exclusive Shoreline" which aims to educate the public on the history of the fight to share the shore.