Subdivision proposed next to 40th Pole
Eight-house potential raises ire of conservation group
BY PETER B. BRACE INDEPENDENT WRITER
Beachgoers at the Nantucket Islands Land Bank's 40th Pole property on Eel Point Road could be sharing their water views with construction crews working on four new houses this summer.

On 9.6 acres between 133 Eel Point Road and 40th Pole, the Calm Waters Trust - consisting of partners Samuel C. Sichko, Eric Frost and George Frost - are proposing to develop four lots ranging in size from 2.25 to 2.5 acres. Currently, the nearest house to Land Bank property is approximately 625 feet away.

By a vote of 4-0, the Planning Board chose to support Calm Waters Trust's preliminary plan, instructing its staff to write up a positive decision letter with conditions for the board's April 23 meeting.

Project engineer Dan Mulloy of Site Design Engineering of Middleboro, Mass. told the board that his clients are asking for waivers from sidewalks and a bike path and that drainage would be vegetative swales, and that secondary dwellings are tentatively part of the plan. Calm Waters proposes to install septic systems and water wells for each lot.

Although the board approved this preliminary plan, several members said they were concerned with the condition of Eel Point Road - a bumpy, washboard dirt-and-sand road in that section. The increased traffic from the new development would likely make the road conditions worse than they already are.

"Right now, I honestly think we are looking at significant improvements that are going to need to go on out there," said Planning Board member Barry Rector.

Mulloy said his clients are offering to pave Eel Point Road from where it ends about a mile east up to 135 Eel Point Road, but the board did not discuss which road improvements it would require of Calm Waters Trust. Rutted, dusty and bone-jarring as the road is, any plan for doing roadwork beyond regular grading such as paving is likely to draw plenty of protest from neighbors who appreciate the rural feel of the Eel Point Road area. The roughly 400-foot access road would be paved to 18 feet wide and end in a cul-de-sac.

What worries protectors of the island environment, including the Nantucket Land Council, is the potential for eight dwellings - construction of secondary dwellings would be confirmed in a definitive plan - on land that amounts to dune habitat filled with potentially rare plant species.

"I am really dismayed at seeing this plan coming in, because we've been doing so much work on the Loring property and it's really sad and troubling to see such a development in that area, particularly in that unique coastal dune habitat," said Land Council Executive Director Cormac Collier. "From a biologist's perspective, this really is the only example of a rolling coastal dune habitat [other than Great Point]. It's going to be a shame to go out there and see houses on that property."

Mulloy said he expects to submit a definitive

plan for Calm Waters in a few months. I