Swampscott/Lynn King's Beach Town Hall Set For Next Week

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — The future of King's Beach in Swampscott and Lynn will be the subject of a public forum next week after both the city and town committed to a UV Light pilot program this summer aimed at determining the effectiveness of the water treatment procedure.

The forum topics will also include source elimination efforts, complementary solutions such as the proposed UV Light treatment, summer testing and communication about water conditions to town residents and beach visitors.

• Swampscott Commits $300K To King's Beach UV Light Pilot Program

The meeting is set for the Lynn Auditorium from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Lynn Community Television will record the event.

Representatives from the Lynn Water & Sewer Commission, Lynn state legislature delegation, Kleinfelder, Apex Companies and Save the Harbors/Save the Bay will be there to facilitate the discussion and answer questions.

A three-month UV light treatment pilot program to clean the water of King's Beach in Lynn and Swampscott is on track to move forward this summer after Lynn Mayor Jared Nicholson pledged to increase that city's portion of the pilot funding by $100,000 to the Swampscott Select Board late last month.

The Swampscott Select Board then voted to spend $300,000 on the pilot — with Lynn now paying $500,000 — with Swampscott housing the temporary treatment unit on Humphrey Street this summer.

While Swampscott has pledged to spend millions to line its pipes to help curb the source pollution of the Stacey's Brook area, a steering committee made up of Lynn, Swampscott representatives and regional stakeholders have also long pushed for a "complementary solution" — such as a UV treatment or long outfall pipe — because it has said that pipe-fitting alone will not guarantee a clean beach for years, if ever.

Swampscott Select Board members said that the commitment to the pilot program is not necessarily a pledge to support a more permanent UV Light treatment program even should the pilot — as expected — show encouraging results without substantial state and federal funding to offset the local financial obligation.

Swampscott Select Board member Doug Thompson called the pilot program "a calculated risk" that was akin to the type of feasibility studies the town routinely approves before embarking on greater projects.

"We have to bite the bullet in the interest of so many people and that we're this close," Thompson said.

While the Select Board ultimately supported the pilot program funding by a 4-1 vote, members acknowledged there will be a noise and shore sightline impact with the treatment apparatus on Humphrey Street for three months this summer.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)