Veysey Appointed As Alternate On Planning Board; Murphy Appointed To Capital Program Committee

The Select Board appointed Graham Veysey as an alternate to the Planning Board and Kit Murphy to the Capital Program Committee on Wednesday in the third round of annual committee appointments.

The positions became available when Howard Matz, formerly a member of both boards, was appointed to the Finance Committee and subsequently resigned from his other positions.

Veysey was appointed to the Planning Board on a 3-2 vote over Keith Hirschmann, who owns an alarm monitoring business.

“We have limited land and a lot of competing needs, and I care deeply about protecting what makes Nantucket special, while making sure it continues to work for the people who live here,” Veysey said at Wednesday’s meeting. “I ask a lot of questions, I listen, and I’m willing to learn. I think the alternate position is a great place to do that while contributing a position I hope will be valuable.”

Veysey entered local politics last fall as a staunch advocate for the artificial turf field proposed by the Nantucket Public Schools for installation at Vito Capizzo Stadium. She then ran for a seat on the Land Bank Commission on a platform centered around her support for indoor recreation on Land Bank land. Veysey was handily defeated by long-time incumbent Neil Patterson in the Land Bank race, but the field she supported passed by a wide margin at Town Meeting and seems to be on track for installation next year.

Kit Murphy was appointed unanimously over Mary Longacre, who already holds a number of other positions in local government. Murphy has spent her career in commercial lending and venture capital. She previously applied for both the Board of Health and Finance Committee this year, but withdrew her application for the Board of Health seat before the vote and lost to Matz on a four-one vote for the Finance Committee seat.

“I’ve always believed in citizen involvement in all levels of government, but especially at the local level,” Murphy wrote in her application. “I believe we are at an existential moment in Nantucket’s financial history, and I want to be part of the sound decision-making process for our future.”

Despite vacating his seat on the Capital Program Committee, Matz will still be serving with whichever candidate the Select Board appoints next. After taking his seat on the Finance Committee, he was voted back onto the Capital Program Committee as the Finance Committee’s representative. The Finance Committee’s previous representative to the Capital Program Committee was Jill Vieth. Vieth is now a member of the Select Board. She voted to appoint Matz to her former position, and then voted for Murphy to replace him.

The Select Board also unanimously appointed Tony Walsh to the Council on Aging over Jonathon St. Laurent.