Nantucket Town Government Roundup, October 2 - 15

This edition of the Current’s government roundup features new information on next spring’s Annual Town Meeting and the Affordable Housing Trust’s Lease to Locals program.

• The 2027 Annual Town Meeting warrant is open for citizen warrant articles through November 16th at 4:00 p.m.
• Some notable warrant articles that the Select Board is considering for the 2027 Annual Town Meeting include an authorization to appropriate funds from rideshare apps, several reauthorizations of previously approved homerule petitions that have not yet been accepted by the state, the Sconset Beach Preservation Fund’s geotube expansion, a funding override for a new Department of Public Works building, and a second attempt to secure support for the second phase of improvements at the LORAN seasonal community officer barracks. None of these articles are guaranteed to be on the warrant, as the Select Board is far from making any decisions.
• With participation in the year-round rental creation program Lease to Locals faltering in its third year, the Affordable Housing Trust is considering changes to the program that could see the town offering more money to participants in an effort to drum up additional interest from homeowners who may be willing to rent their homes long-term if greater compensation is available. Participation has not increased much since the Current wrote about the program’s struggles in August, despite a concentrated marketing effort, and the facilitators now believe that, after two years they considered broadly successful, Lease to Locals has largely saturated the available market. To expand that market, they believe a greater investment is needed. However, as the Select Board works to dramatically slash municipal spending, the Affordable Housing Trust will have to weigh Lease to Locals against other competing funding priorities.
• Broadly speaking, Nantucket’s Advanced Placement test results lagged a little behind state averages this year. Most of Nantucket’s results tend to do so. But the most important results of the year will be revealed when the School Committee reviews the district’s MCAS scores at its next meeting.
• The Seven Sea Street Inn may be expanding soon. Owner and operator Matthew Parker has submitted plans to the Historic District Commission to replace a building on his complex at 3 Sea Street with a larger structure. The plans still have a long way to go before they are approved, and nothing has been filed with the Planning Board yet. Parker confirmed that the plans are “similar” to those filed in 2023, when he briefly had a deal in place to sell the business. That deal fell through, and now Parker is looking to, in his words, “make better use of that property.” More details will emerge as the plans move forward.
• The Select Board and Affordable Housing Trust are considering funding sewer connection fees for deed-restricted affordable housing units using Affordable Housing Trust funds. Currently, those connection fees are usually waived entirely, which affects the sewer department’s bottom line.
• Ray DeCosta, a local firefighter, was appointed by the Select Board to the Coastal Resilience Advisory Committee. Ray DeCosta’s father, Bob DeCosta, is a member of the Select Board, but was recused from the vote.
• The Select Board has joined advocacy efforts opposing suggested changes to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The Current wrote about those changes here.

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

• The Select Board appears to be cooling on taxpayer funding for affordable housing projects.
• Zoning changes passed by the state legislature could curtail the power of local boards, including the Zoning Board of Appeals, to restrict development.
• The Select Board imposed a $62,674 fine on the so-called “New Downtown” development on Sparks Avenue for beginning construction without required permits, half of the usual fine established by Nantucket’s bylaws.
• Restaurateur Steve Silverstein appears poised to take over the property that previously held the Tavern and Gazebo, judging from a Select Board agenda posting.
• The Select Board and Affordable Housing Trust have a major decision ahead of them regarding affordable housing projects on Orange Street, Bartlett Road, and Vesper Lane.
• The depletion of Nantucket’s sewer fund, which led the Select Board to hike sewer rates by 20 percent last month, was driven by revenues coming in under budget projections for three years in a row, dating well before the state placed the island under drought restrictions.
• Should tax-exempt nonprofits pay fees to the town? Some Select Board members think so.