Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/646476
154 Peterson, who took over the top spot at the refuge about a year and a half ago. "Actually holding peat in your hands is better than any slide show." But as of now, no one can enjoy that experience. The area is completely off-limits—the liability of the Pink House means access is closed to the public. The proximity of the Pink House parcel to both the road and the large and inviting refuge visitor center a few hundred yards down the Plum Island Turnpike is appealing to Peterson. But the structure, and its incumbent baggage, isn't—the ex- pense of removing the house, which has asbestos and other contami- Pink House 1, Mary Baker © 2013, Digital Image nants, coupled with the community support for saving the structure, leaves the refuge amenable to the idea of swapping it for something similar nearby—if the Save the Pink House group can swing it. "I'd love to find a win-win," says Peterson, who notes that there are several parcels of land in the area that would be just as desirable from an environmental education standpoint. The challenge is for the loosely formed Save the Pink House group to come up with a unified plan— and funding—by spring, when Peterson hopes to make a decision about the fate of the parcel. While CONTACT Save the Newbury Pink House, Inc. savenbptpinkhouse.org ideas have been floated about mak- ing the house an artists' retreat, it is clear that most Pink House supporters would like to see it un- changed and unoccupied. "I originally imagined some sort of gallery or art center that would celebrate the artists and photographers who have memori- alized the building, with a mission that stressed the importance of the relationship between conser- vation of wildlife and apprecia- tion of wildlife by visual artists," says Odle. "But when we discuss it as a group, it always comes back to people wanting to see the house preserved in its isolation