Island Leaders Need To Take A Longer-Term Look At Nantucket

To the editor: I read with interest Dawn Holdgate’s quote in the I&M in which she expresses concern that vacationers might feel unwelcome because of the STR debate. This just sounds like more fear mongering, if there is any change, isn't it more likely due to the vacationing public's return to pre-Covid behavior?

If anything, Nantucket is simply pricing itself out of today's market by trying to perpetuate the inflated rents and property sales from that period. I seriously doubt that there is any factual basis for saying that, and I assume that the statement is likely a reflection of Ms. Holdgate’s dissatisfaction with the decision of the voters at Town Meeting. My question is: why isn't the chairperson taking a leadership role by expressing concern for those impacted by commercial STRs, like islanders trying to find housing, neighbors living next to commercial STRs, taxpayers who foot the bills for infrastructure and the thousands of workers caught in traffic everyday billing their clients by the hour to sit in their trucks, and most of all, the loss of our community.

We need our leaders to take a longer-term look at what is happening, and to stop using real estate sales and rentals as the only barometer of Nantucket’s well-being.

Sincerely,

John Sylvia