“Water, Water Every Where, Nor Any Drop to Drink”
That was the lament of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner, but it is also sometimes the lament of owners of waterfront and water view property. Saltwater Infiltration Recently I was…
Getting a Dock In Rhode Island May Be Harder Than You Think
One of the attractions in acquiring waterfront property is to have a boat dock for recreational activities. That may, however, be easier said than done. For example, if a prospective…
Zoning the Oceans
I am pleased and proud that the American Bar Association has just published my book, “Zoning the Oceans The Next Big Step in Coastal Zone Management”. And at approximately 300…
When Buying Real Estate in Rhode Island, Absolutely Beware of Wetlands
Many property owners can innocently violate wetlands laws without even knowing they are doing it, and the penalties for doing so can be more than the cost of the property…
Rhode Island and Massachusetts Issues on the Siting of Potentially Hazardous Facilities Will Get National Attention
An American Bar Association Webinar will bring to a national audience Rhode Island’s and Massachusetts’ experience with the proposed development of a LNG facility as part of a discussion of…
A Real Estate Developer’s Worst Nightmare Gets Even Worse
To all those developers rushing off to federal court to sue because state regulations preventing development have “taken” your property without just compensation—NOT SO FAST! And to all those…
Developers and Property Owners Benefit From Permit Extensions
Many real estate developers and property owners got a significant break from the General Assembly late last year, when legislation passed to extend the expiration date of a broad…
Cape Wind and the Indians: When Everyone Has Rights, No One Has Rights
The Cape Wind project to construct 130 wind turbines in Nantucket Sound was recently approved by U.S. Secretary of the Interior Salazar over the objections of two Native American…
Cape Wind – Surviving a Dysfunctional Environmental Permitting Process
Whether or not one agrees with Interior Secretary Salazar’s decision this week to remove the last federal regulatory barrier to the permitting of the Cape Wind Project, there should be…