Northern Baxter Road: A Way Forward

To the editor: The defeat of Article 73 at the May 2026 Town Meeting settled an important question. Once again, Nantucket voters rejected using the public beach below Sconset Bluff for erosion-control purposes. For the fifth time since 2008, voters chose to preserve town-owned coastal land as open space.

Now the Town should move forward by implementing the recommendations of the 2021 Baxter Road Long-Term Planning Memo (BRLTPM), prepared by Arcadis. The planning has been completed. The path forward is clear.

THE PLAN ALREADY EXISTS

The BRLTPM was the product of a rigorous six-month planning effort that cost taxpayers $159,000. Arcadis worked with three key stakeholder groups, including: one, the Nantucket Land & Water Council, the Nantucket Coastal Conservancy, the Quidnet Squam Association, and the Greenhill Family; two, the Sconset Trust, the Siasconset Beach Preservation Fund, Sankaty Head Golf Club, and the Siasconset Civic Association; and three, Town of Nantucket department representatives, the Coastal Resilience Advisory Committee (CRAC), and the Nantucket Select Board.

The resulting recommendations are consistent with both the Town’s 2021 Coastal Resilience Plan and CRAC’s 2023 recommendations. They represent years of technical analysis, public engagement, and careful deliberation.

The plan is in place. Now it’s time to implement it.

THE ONLY LASTING SOLUTION

The BRLTPM recognizes what all parties agree is inevitable: certain northern Baxter Road properties will ultimately require alternative access from the west, while structures threatened by coastal erosion will need to be relocated over time.

Fortunately, that transition is already underway.

Supported by a team of Arcadis engineers, Sustainability Programs Manager Vince Murphy has worked diligently with property owners and multiple municipal departments to bring the Town’s Alternative Access And Utility Relocation For Continuity Of Services For Baxter Road Residents plan to the 100% design stage. Earlier this year, the plan received unanimous approval from the Conservation Commission.

The project is currently estimated to cost $24.2 million in 2027 dollars, but not all of it is new spending. In 2024, Town Meeting approved $10 million for sewer improvements associated with northern Baxter Road, a portion of which can be applied to the alternative access project. The Town also intends to recover a substantial share of the remaining costs through betterments assessed on properties that directly benefit from the new infrastructure, following the same approach recently used for the Sheep Pond Road project.

A LEGACY BENEFIT

Implementing the BRLTPM will do far more than protect infrastructure.

It will enable the creation of one of Nantucket’s most remarkable coastal landscapes, centered on Sankaty Light and a restored Bluff Walk overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to ensuring continued vehicular access to northern Baxter Road and the lighthouse from Sankaty Road, the alternative access plan would help clear the way for the reconstitution of the Bluff Walk north of Bayberry Lane, addition of a new bicycle path, and construction of safe access to the public beach below.

The Town is also developing an island-wide Strategic Retreat and Relocation Program to support property owners who choose to move homes threatened by erosion.

Perhaps most importantly, allowing the beach-and-bluff ecosystem to recover naturally will provide an opportunity for the return of bank swallows, restoration of the nearshore cobble fish nursery, and a healthier, unique coastal habitat.

TIME TO MOVE FORWARD

The voters have spoken. The Town has invested the time, expertise, and public resources to develop a thoughtful lasting solution. Delaying the implementation will only increase costs while postponing the benefits of an outcome that has already been carefully planned for the long-term.

It’s time to move forward — to a better place.

Burton Spruce Balkind
President, Nantucket Coastal Conservancy (NCC)
On behalf of the NCC Board of Directors