Nantucket Town Government Roundup, June 26 - July 9

As the nation celebrated its 250th anniversary, Nantucket’s local government continued its work. This edition of the Current’s government roundup contains new information on the controversial Surfside Crossing development and a dispute between the Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board and the Great Harbor Yacht Club.

• The Conservation Commission previously approved a Land Bank plan to relocate a portion of Falmouth Avenue, which provides access to Cisco Beach. Neighbors sued over the decision, arguing that the Land Bank had not provided them with the legally required notice. The Land Bank and the neighbors agreed to a deal remanding a portion of the case back to the Conservation Commission, which is now hearing arguments on it again. A number of neighbors came out to protest the relocation last Thursday, arguing it would lead to greater use of the small accessway and potentially higher driving speeds. The Conservation Commission did not make a decision, and the hearing has been continued to August.
• The Zoning Board of Appeals declined to act on a request from Surfside Crossing to use granite curbing. The controversial 40b development recently received a favorable decision from the state Housing Appeals Committee, which overrules the Zoning Board of Appeals’ previous denial of its permit, and the developers have recently resumed work “at risk” on the site. However, the town of Nantucket, as well as several other parties, is suing over the Housing Appeals Committee’s decision. Surfside Crossing had asked the Zoning Board of Appeals to determine that the use of granite curbing was an “insubstantial change” to its permit and did not require a public hearing. The Zoning Board of Appeals never actually approved or acknowledged that permit, however, and Board members worried that issuing such a ruling would undermine their position on the development by tacitly admitting that Surfside Crossing does, in fact, currently have an active permit. Town counsel noted that opting not to rule on the request will likely allow Surfside Crossing to use granite curbing, as requests for insubstantial change that are not ruled on are considered insubstantial by default.
• After a sharp back and forth between board members and Natural Resources Department staff over the extent of the board’s authority, the Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board has sent a formal letter to the Select Board asking them to weigh in on an ongoing dispute between the board and the Great Harbor Yacht Club, which the board alleges is out of compliance with the permit that allows it to use and develop the waterfront near its property.
• The Select Board met in executive session to discuss a pair of lawsuits involving the Historic District Commission: one centered on a deer fence on Nonantum Avenue, and the other focused on 43A Union Street.
• The Housing Department is looking for responses to a survey that will help shape the island’s next housing production plan, which lays out the roadmap for how Nantucket will address housing in the coming years.

And here are the stories we covered in full over the last two weeks:

• Airport Manager Warren Smith has been fired without cause by the Airport Commission after just one year on the job.
• The town named former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) leader Dr. Joanna Watson as Nantucket's new Health Director on Friday.
• Planning Director Leslie Snell has received a new contract from the Nantucket Planning and Economic Development Commission as questions swirl about a raise she received last year. The new contract may not include an official raise, but it does include a one-time payment roughly equivalent to a 4 percent raise, the same amount as the raise town staff objected to last year.
• Surfside Crossing has resumed development despite ongoing legal appeals, citing a state Housing Appeals Committee ruling that went in their favor and at least temporarily overruled the Nantucket Zoning Board of Appeals’ denial of the project.
• The Historic District Commission approved a Nantucket airport terminal expansion plan. 
• The Select Board is considering paid parking and potentially an impound lot for the public parking at 2 Fairgrounds Road.
• Attorney and former Land Bank executive director Jesse Bell has been appointed to the Nantucket Planning and Economic Development Commission.
• Nantucket Cottage Hospital chief nursing officer Amy Beaton and former Health Director Richard Ray are applying for a vacant seat on the Board of Health.
• The Historic District Commission rejected the town's plans to demolish three historic structures.
• The Steamship Authority is relying on a single dry dock for the maintenance of its vessels.