Concerns about crumbling, dilapidated steps at Nantasket Beach

HULL, Mass. — In the prime of summer, on Nantasket Beach in Hull, it’s not just the seagulls interrupting carefree days on the beach.

It’s these deteriorating stairs, leading to Rich Bonanno’s boiling point.

"I'm past that point in my life. I don’t yell at anybody. I sure would like to," said Bonanno. "If I had a voodoo doll, I'd do anything to get these stairs fixed."

He's concerned about the crumbling, dilapidated steps. He's taken video showing the struggle to get up and down the steps, and he's pestered just about every person in a position of power who will listen.

"We’ve seen people fall. They fall into the sand, we pick them up, we brush them off. It's not necessary," he said.

As Bonanno has learned in his crusade of concerns, the stairs in obvious need of repair belong to the Hull Redevelopment Authority.

But the local agency can’t take action without a state permit because it’s considered a potential habitat for the endangered piping plover.

"Are they on the beach? They are, but they’re much further down in that tall grass," Bonanno said.

The closet ramp to get down to the sand. This portion of the beach is nearly a quarter of a mile back there and the next one is more than 200 yards past the crumbing steps.

Leaving a lot of people to take a gamble, either climbing down the rocks or using these stairs.

"This is embarrassing," said Lee Carroll, who is also concerned about the steps.

"How else do you get down? They're not going to park their car and walk a half mile down. Come on this is crazy," Carroll said.

Boston 25 News has learned that the conservation commission has signed off on the repairs to these steps.

But that's not the final step for Bonanno, another reminder of this uphill battle and his growing worries.

"You trip over, you trip over this, you’re going to get seriously injured," he said.

"It’s inevitable. We’ve already seen people fall," he said. "Are you gonna fix the problem or fix the lawsuit afterwards?"

Cox Media Group