Land Bank Rejects Neighbor Request To Restrict Public Parking At Maxcy Pond

After initially delaying its decision, the Nantucket Land Bank Commission voted unanimously Tuesday afternoon to reject a neighbor's request to restrict public parking at its Maxcy Pond property.

"If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it's probably a NIMBY," said commission chair Neil Paterson, referencing the term "not in my backyard."

Michele and Van Velle, the owners of 10 Maxey Pond Road, wrote to the Land Bank in December requesting that the commission restrict public parking in front of their home, which abuts the pond.

"...on a regular weekly basis cars park directly at the bottom of our property in full view of our house for undetermined purposes and not related to walking, fishing or picnicking," the Velles wrote in an email to the Land Bank. "We are NOT asking the Land Bank to eliminate the paper road or restrict access to Maxey Pond for walking, biking, and recreation. We are ONLY asking to eliminate parking in an undesignated parking area. Unfortunately this small area invites people to park in full view of the entire back of our house."

The Land Bank Commission took up the request two weeks ago but held off on making a decision until Tuesday to allow commission members time to view the property. During that intervening period following the meeting and the Current's initial report, Paterson said he had heard more feedback from the public about the request to restrict public parking than just about any other Land Bank-related matter during his years on the commission.

The Land Bank has acquired land abutting Maxcy Pond since 2002, and five years ago, it completed its largest transaction with the purchase of 13 acres around the pond from the Nantucket Anglers' Club for $3.2 million.

Michele Velle told the commission during the initial hearing two weeks ago that she and her husband had purchased the property in 2019. They have been year-round residents since 2020 and before that, were in Madaket seasonally for 40 years, she said.

The Velles built their house on the Maxey Pond Road property in 2022 and subsequently advertised it as a short-term rental available for $55,000 per week.

Over the weekend, the property was placed on the market for sale with an asking price of $15.9 million.

The Land Bank owns four parcels of land totaling approximately 25.79 acres surrounding Maxcy Pond off of Cliff Road. In 2002, the town sold the Land Bank 7.30 acres of land for $450,000. In 2004, the Land Bank purchased 2.54 acres for $850,000. In 2009, the Land Bank purchased 2.14 acres from Heather and Gregory Keltz for $2 million. Most recently in 2019, the Land Bank purchased 13.81 acres of land – including the parking area in question by the Velles – for $3.2 million from the Nantucket Angler’s Club.