Date: 2/13/26 12:08 pm From: <sohzendeh...> Subject: [Arlington Birds] Access to Rockport's Andrews Point rocky shoreline threatened; here is a sample letter opposing these restrictions
Folks,
Brookline Bird Club (BBC) recently informed us that a resident along Rockport's Andrew's Point rocky shore, specifically at 18 Longbranch Ave, is trying to restrict access to the rocky shore. This is a decades old fight that was "settled" in the 1980s. The President of BBC at that time, Judge Larry Jodrey, and another old time North Shore resident, Jerry Soucy, negotiated with the Town of Rockport and property owners along what is now called Atlantic Path to allow pedestrian access to this area with views of the open ocean to the northeast. Many significant counts of pelagic birds, particularly during nor'easter storms, have been conducted from these spots by Rick Heil and others over many years.
I urge you to write the State and the Town. Officials from the Massachusetts Attorney General and from the Town Of Rockport are negotiating with the attorneys for the property owner(s) and trying to settle these questions that were settled long ago. I have below a list of email address of relevant folks as well as a sample letter:
I am writing you as a strong supporter of pedestrian access to Atlantic Path, the rocky shoreline along Andrews Point, Rockport.
Access to the coastal portion of the property at 18 Longbranch Avenue is historically confirmed and legally written into the deed for that property. Those conditions and the access agreement were extensively negotiated in the 1980s by prominent North Shore residents Judge Lawrence Jodey and Mr Jerry Soucy. The agreements included right of pedestrian access to a significant portion of the shoreline along Andrews Point known as Atlantic Path.
I therefore request Town and State officials to affirm the conditions set out in the property deeds and other documents agreed to decades ago. Recreational and other passive uses of the shoreline by the public should not be restricted by changing ownership of the properties along the shore.
