Beach neighborhoods
Reports. A new way to find and compare similar neighborhoods.

Display layers

Airplane noise

  • Noise levels (decibels)
    60 dB
    65 dB
    70 dB: defined as 'irritating' level of noise, comparable to a vacuum cleaner or television set at a loud volume.
    75 dB: defined as a constant irritating level of sound, comparable to a busy restaurant.
  • SOURCE: Noise Contour Map (2016) from Federal Aviation Authority.

    NOTE 1: Decibels are a logarithmic, not linear, measurement of noise levels. 70dB is twice as loud as 60dB, and 80 dB is twice as loud as 70dB. At 80dB, there is possible hearing damage over an eight hour exposure.

    NOTE 2: However, the noise contour map does not reflect all the neighborhoods that are affected by airplane noise. Please see our report for a chart of the neighborhoods where the most airplane noise complaints have been made.
  • < Return to map legend

Flood zones

Zoning districts

    Beach neighborhoods

 

 

Adams Shore

Contains: Riverside

 

 

Auburndale

Contains: Islington, Pigeon Hill

 

 

East Boston

Contains: Eagle Hill, Jeffries Point, Logan Airport, Orient Heights
Image via Clippership Wharf

 

 

Germantown

 

 

Houghs Neck

House on Manet Ave.

 

 

Kelwyn Manor

 

 

Marina Bay

 

 

Neponset/Port Norfolk

Contains: Pope's Hill
Part of: Dorchester
24 Ericsson St. via BPDA

 

 

Newton Centre

 

 

Quincy Point

 

 

Savin Hill

Contains: Over-the-Bridge
Part of: Dorchester
90 Grampian Way via Realtor

 

 

South Boston

Contains: Andrew Square, City Point, Dorchester Heights, Fort Hill, Seaport District
Telegraph Hill via Wikimedia Commons

 

 

Squantum

 

 

Wollaston

Contains: Wollaston Heights, Wollaston Park

Beach neighborhoods of Boston

While Boston grew up around its waterfront, most of this was either filled in for buildable land or developed into a working waterfront, like Charlestown, Seaport, and the Waterfront. However, there are still a handful of beaches – and by extension, beach neighborhoods – within Greater Boston.

Dorchester, South Boston, and East Boston. Within Boston itself, the Savin Hill neighborhood in Dorchester has Malibu and Savin beaches, Neponset/Port Norfolk has Tenean Beach, South Boston has Carson Beach, and East Boston has Constitution Beach in Lower Orient Heights. From Long Wharf on the Waterfront, there are ferries to Spectacle Island, one of Boston's Harbor Islands with a small swimming beach.

Quincy. Just south of Dorchester, the city of Quincy has over 27 miles of shoreline, and several beach neighborhoods, including Adams Shore, Germantown, Houghs Neck, Quincy Point, Squantum, and Wollaston.

Arlington, Newton, and Revere. North of the city, Arlington has Kelwyn Manor on Spy Pond as well as the Arlington Reservoir, a section of which is open for swimming during the summer. Winchester has the freshwater Little Pond Beach/Shannon Beach/Sandy Beach. The coastal city of Revere has considerable sandy beachfront, especially Revere Beach, and is accessible by the subway. West of the city, Newton residents can swim at Crystal Lake in Newton Centre, and Auburndale is the only one of Newton's 13 villages that has a sand beach, with Auburndale Cove.

Water quality issues at some beaches. According to annual report from Save the Harbor, two beaches in South Boston consistently top the list, with perfect scores of 100%, while five area beaches, in South Boston, Winthrop, and Revere receive grades of 95% or better. However, Tenean Beach in the Neponset/Port Norfolk neighborhood of Dorchester is consistently at the bottom of the list, according to the Boston Globe, the Charlestown Bridge, and the Dorchester Reporter.