Entertainment

Why Is Rhode Island Mad at Taylor Swift?

When it comes to her current home state of Rhode Island, it seems that Tay Tay just cannot catch a break. According to E! Online, Westerly, R.I. residents are angry that Taylor Swift rebuilt a seawall around her beachside home that was damaged during Hurricane Sandy back in 2012 — despite the fact that she's just protecting her investment from high tides and landslide risks. If you're not aware of Swift's shaky history with her R.I. neighbors, here's a little background: When Swift moved into the large mansion, which sits on a cliff overlooking the ocean, earlier this year, residents were reportedly "angered" that she had security trawling about the area near her home, because the land it sat near is apparently a part of a public beach that was a "popular" place for surfers and residents to hang out.

Now, residents are pissed that Swift is rebuilding a large seawall (consisting of rocks) in front of her home to block the incoming tide, and prevent the cliff her home sits on from eroding due to the water. The bitterness got even worse when one opinion columnist with local paper The Westerly Sun claimed that Swift was going ahead with the construction without "one single permit" from the town — a story that was picked up by The Daily Mail and other news outlets. This, however, wasn't even true: A spokeswoman for the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council, Laura Dwyer, commented that Swift had in fact obtained all the proper permits she needed for the construction, and it had all been approved.

"There must be access at all times [during construction]," Dwyer added. "We made sure of that."

So, what's the problem here? Haters hating — that's all.

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