Breaking News Silverstein resigning from Sustainable Nantucket

Christine Silverstein

Sustainable Nantucket's Executive Director, Christine Silverstein, is stepping down this fall to pursue other interests. She helped to launch the non-profit back in 1998 as a founding director, along with former founding directors Matt Fee, John Bartlett, John Brock and current founding directors Finn Murphy and Alvin Topham. Silverstein moved to the island in 1989 with her husband Bob and two children and has been active in local issues for over fourteen years. Her first experience working with building consensus with citizens and policy makers was in 1993 at the airport. She worked with the Airport Commission, airline owners, head pilots and FAA representatives to develop noise abatement policies and procedures. "It was my first exposure to the productive work that can be done when all the relevant stakeholders are willing to sit together to hammer out solutions. I am grateful to this day that the airport and the airline owners worked so hard with local citizens to produce a program that means so much for the community's quality of life," say Silverstein.

When the Comprehensive Plan steering committee was meeting between 1996 and 2000, Silverstein became friends with several of its members and the seed germinated for starting a non-profit organization that would focus on the economic implications of losing affordable housing, having a fishery dwindle, having local mom and pop businesses leave main street and making planning decisions that might irreversibly alter the small town character of the island. Nantucket Sustainable Development Corp. (its full legal name) has taken on multiple projects concurrently since its inception. Using a community development model SN set out to support initiatives that would increase affordable housing opportunities for year round residents and to organize the local shellfishermen to focus their energies on preserving the habitat and developing management plans. This year, similar work is being done to promote agriculture. "We believe that historic industries like fishing and farming are worthy of protection for folks in the community who want and need to pursue them," says Silverstein.

Founding directors of SN had a wish list back in 1999 that included the development of a "Downtown Economic Development Bank" modeled after the Land Bank. "We pictured creating a revenue stream that could be used to acquire commercial properties in the downtown with the intent of controlling ownership and keeping rents within reach of local business owners," says Silverstein. "Imagine if a well funded entity similar to the Land Bank had been able to purchase the Dreamland, the Hardy's building, the Looms building and other key properties as they came on the market? It would have been my dream to have the power to compete with a Karp acquisition before it was too late." Today the same model has been used to create the Community Housing Bank legislation which SN is wholeheartedly supporting.

Silverstein hopes that a new executive director for SN will build on the founding philosophy that the character and economic health of the island depends entirely on the ability for its year round residents to thrive here. She is confident that her replacement will bring his or own creativity and fresh perspective to the table and that Sustainable Nantucket will continue to fulfill its mission. "It's time for me to step aside, take an overdue rest and become a cheerleader for Sustainable Nantucket and its new leader." The board of directors has initiated a search for a new executive director. For more information about SN and its programs/accomplishments, please visit the website at www.sustainablenantucket.org or contact the office at 228-3399.