Special Town Meeting voters approve 20 of the 25 articles
BY PETER B. BRACE & MARY LANCASTER
Monday night's Special Town Meeting opened with a moment of silence in honor of the late Arch McColl, who moderator Sarah Alger described as "someone who served the town with fairness, integrity and honesty."

From left: Town Clerk Catherine Flanagan Stover, Selectman Michael Kopko, Town Administrator Libby Gibson and Selectman Whitey Willauer during Monday night's Special Town Meeeting.

The session had an iffy start when the audience was short about 100 people of the 399 needed for a quorum. Attendance topped out at about 410 and the meeting rolled along smoothly and wrapped up at 10 p.m. with no discussion on Article 17 seeking $9.5 million for the cost overrun to upgrade the Surfside Wastewater Treatment Facility.

Article 12, a zoning map change, was tabled by the Planning Board before it came before voters.

Zoning articles that were called, Articles 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7, generated little discussion other than clarifications about each arti- cle.

"I'm very pleased with it," said Planning Director Andrew Vorce. "I interpret this as a vote of confidence that provides for a good direction, which is what we were asking for."

However, Article 5, which proposed to swap five lots along the start of Polpis Road out of the Country District and into the Town District, did not please the voters enough to garner their approval. Vorce said he and his staff are now going to look at other commercial uses in the Country District to see if that thinking can be applied to Article 5's area.

"We have to look at the RC districts that are in the Country [District]," said Vorce. "We have to look at commercial districts in the country areas and develop some standards that would match the general principles of the country overlay."

Citizen zoning efforts, Articles 13, 14, 15 and 16 all made the cut as well.

Next to Article 25, Article 15 drew the most discussion on both sides of this idea to amend the zoning bylaw in the R-10 district. As adopted, this change prevents island recreational facilities, namely Nantucket Ice, but including golf courses, tennis, paddle and racquet clubs, bowling alleys and fitness centers in the R-10 district from expanding their ancillary snack bars, restaurants, catering operations and pro shops beyond the primary intent of the main facility.

These facilities are now required to get a special permit from the Planning Board to add a restaurant, catering space, a snack bar and or a pro shop that is no larger than 3,000 square feet of the total floor area and that does not function autonomously.

Article 13 actually got the nod from Town Meeting voters after they adopted Article 25, taking it out of turn after Article 7 once a quorum was reached. Vital to the sanctity of Article 25, this article changed the zoning of 1.1 acres of Miller Lane from R-2 to RC-2 to allow several affordable housing units and an office to be built for the Nantucket Housing Office.

Although voters adopted it without calling it, Article 16, it should be noted, extended the expiration date of the temporary moratorium on docks, piers and wharves to April 30, 2007.

Of the 16 zoning articles on the Special Town Meeting Warrant, 13 made the grade either by vote or not being called. Articles not called were thrown into the kitty and adopted as a group by the voters after they voted on and adopted Article 4 about midway through the meeting.

Instead of debating millions in appropriations, Article 25 to transfer town land to the Nantucket Housing Authority was called as was Article 24 to include Westmoor Farms lots in the sewer district. Both garnered plenty of discussion. Article 17 and all other uncalled articles were voted at the same time and received the necessary two-thirds majority approval.

Article 25 required a hand count and squeaked past the two-thirds majority by two votes with 227 in favor and 110 opposed. Attorney Jamie Ranney asked for a recount because of some people's confusion over when to put down their hands, but the vote stood to authorize the selectmen to transfer or sell a portion of Miller Lane to the Nantucket Housing Authority for use for affordable housing. This will allow the NHA to issue requests for proposals to eligible organizations such as the Nantucket Housing Office to build permanently affordable homes on the land as well as its own office with apartments on the second story.

Debate centered on whether another location would be more suitable for the housing so that Miller Lane could be available in the future if an additional road is wanted for airport access. The property was given to the town in 1948 by Lawrence Miller. Those in favor of the action were against the road concept because of existing residences in the neighborhood near Old South Road.

"Why should the selectmen be able to give away this land to another entity?" asked planning board chair Don Visco. "Once it's gone you'll never get it back."

Though some residents wanted more time to consider the proposal and planning commission chairman Barry Rector wanted the article tabled, their requests were defeated. The majority vote authorizing the selectmen to transfer the portion was binding; however the Finance Committee amended its motion printed in the warrant to a nonbinding comment which voters also approved. The amendment seeks a right of way area of the lane to be reserved for a walking path or other appropriate open space use as well as an easement for sewer and utility purposes.

Article 24 to include all 12 lots in the Westmoor Farms subdivision within the town sewer district was defeated by a voice vote. The article was put on the warrant because while most of a portion of the former Egan land between West Chester Street and Cliff Road bought by a developer was included in the district a small area affecting three lots was not. Without the inclusion those lots will require septic systems, explained attorney Kevin Dale, whose firm represents the developer.

Selectman Mike Kopko, who is on the Sewer Advisory Committee, said at this point the three lots do not meet the group's established criteria for the district and asked that the article be brought to April's Town Meeting when the committee will have a determination. Calling the proposal a capacity issue, legislative liaison Tim Madden also favored waiting until April for a vote.

Here is a summary of how the articles fared.

ARTICLES NOT CALLED AND VOTED THROUGH WITHOUT DISCUSSION:

Article 6 - Town & Country district changes to 22, 24 and 26 Bartlett Farm Road and 123 Somerset Road.

Article 8 - Town & Country district changes to 63 lots on Sesapana, Tawpoot, Milestone and Hinsdale roads, Milestone Crossing and Sheep Commons Lane.

Article 9 - Town & Country district changes to 19 lots on South Shore and Miacomet roads, Beach Plum Avenue, and Wherowhero Lane.

Article 10 - Town & Country district changes to 11 lots on Mizzenmast, Rugged and Old South roads; Scott's Way and Miacomet Avenue.

Article 11 - Zoning map change of RC-2 to R-2 on 1,3,5 and 7 Little Neck Way, and 24 and 26 North Cambridge St.

Article 14 - Zoning map change to 0,1,8 and 12 Backus Lane that shrinks the minimum lot size for from 10,000 square feet down to 5,000 square feet by changing the zoning from R-10 to RC-2.

Article 16 - Zoning bylaw amendment that extends the deadline for a temporary moratorium on docks, piers and wharves from Dec. 31 to April 30, 2007.

Article 17 - To appropriate $9.5 million to add to the $35.5 million already approved at the 2005 Special Town Meeting for the cost of upgrading the Surfside Wastewater Treatment Facility.

Article 18 - To appropriate $1,250,000 for the Nantucket Water Commission's work to improve water mains in the Brant Point area.

Article 19 - To transfer $60,000 from the landfill's operating budget to the Solid Waste Enterprise Fund to pay for salaries and health insurance for two part-time town employees monitoring the Take It or Leave It.

Article 20 - This was to appropriate $85,000 for a new fire alarm maintenance truck but no action was taken because the funds were obtained through a budget transfer prior to the meeting.

Article 21 - This was to appropriate funds to cover increases in contracts for union employees at Our Island Home but no action was taken because the union has not begun collective bargaining.

Article 22 - This Home Rule Petition to establish a Nantucket Housing Bank will be submitted to the legislature. The bank would be funded through a one percent tax to sellers of property valued at more than $2 million. The funds would be available to qualified developers of affordable housing.

ARTICLES CALLED:

Article 2 - Creation of New Commercial Districts: Adopted.

Article 3 - New Commercial District Intensity Regulations: Adopted.

Article 4 - Town & Country district changes to five lots on Fairgrounds Road: Adopted by a hand count of 265-90.

Article 5 - Town & Country district changes to six lots on Polpis Road and two lots on Sasachumet Lane: Not adopted by a hand count of 141-190.

Article 7 - Town & Country district changes to 104 lots on Monomoy, Cathcart, Brewster, Salt Marsh, Milestone, East Creek and Monomoy Creek roads, Berkeley and Boston avenues, Orange and Washington streets, and Goose Pond Lane: Adopted.

Article 12 - Zoning map change of RC-2 to R- 10 or R-2 for 123 lots on Golfview, Farmview, Swayzes, Hendersons, Doc Ryder, Clara and Raceway drives, Hatch and Todd circles, and Somerset Road: Tabled.

Article 13 - Zoning map change to 1.1 acres of Miller's Lane from R-2 to RC-2: Adopted.

Article 15 - Zoning bylaw amendment to the R- 10 district: Adopted.

Article 23 - This article was for sewer district inclusion of several lots in both the town and 'Sconset districts. Real estate broker Edward Sanford amended the article to specify three parcels within the same lot which is not further subdividable at 21 Berkeley Avenue in Monomoy. The article carried with a voice vote.

Article 24 - This article to include lots in Westmoor Farms within the town sewer district was defeated by a voice vote.

Article 2 - This article authorizing the selectmen to transfer a portion of Miller Lane off Old South Road to the Housing Authority for affordable housing use was adopted by a hand count of 227 to 110.

ARTICLES TABLED:

Article 1 - Establishment of the Open Space zoning district.

Article 12 - Zoning map change of RC-2 to R- 10 or R-2 for 123 lots on Golfview, Farmview, Swayzes, Hendersons, Doc Ryder, Clara and Raceway drives, Hatch and Todd circles, and Somerset Road.

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