Nantucket, MA

PDF of print edition 2007 APRIL 9, 2007 TOWN MEETING GUIDE NANTUCKET, MASS. Read the Story... I n t r o d u c t i o n by Peter B. Brace & Mary Lancaster       Regardless of all the talk over the past year about changing the format of Town Meeting, the tradition of residents gathering in force to have their say in governmental spending and decisions remains intact. The 2007 Annual Town Meeting begins at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 3 in the high school auditor... More ... Pe r s p e c t i ve s by Pam Lohmann Yes to Articles 44-52       SUPPORT MOVE TO APPOINTMENTS As a member of the Town Government Study Committee (TGSC), I urge voters at Annual Town Meeting to support Articles 44-52. Their overall purpose is to streamline local government and to make it more responsive. More ... NOISE BYLAW IS UNREASONABLE by James Lydon Sponsor of Article 54       Rather than pen an outright editorial against the noise bylaw and preach to the choir, I am going to put out as much of the information as possible that formed that position. It is all public knowledge and it can all be verified if anyone makes the effort. More ... SUPPORT THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION INCENTIVE by Aaron Marcavich Sponsor of Article 55       When I was asked to write a brief article about my proposal for a tax incentive for historic building restoration at Town Meeting, I informed the staff of The Nantucket Independent that I would not be contradicting the negative decision of the Finance More ... MY FAMILY DESERVES TO KEEP OUR HOME by Eric Shaw Sponsor of Article 71       In the spring of 2003 my family and I found our home on Nantucket situated at the end of a quiet dirt road. We found a home and a community where we could raise our children and live year-round in one of the most beautiful places on earth. We gathered our savings, had the title checked and closed ... More ... IS THIS ON? Etiquette: Using the mic       Up to about 10 years ago Town Meeting voters who wanted to speak to articles up for discussion had to get up, leave their seats and walk to the nearest microphone stand plugged into the PA system and say what was one their minds. More ... TOWN MEETING GLOSSARY       WHAT IS PROPOSITION 2 1/2? Proposition 2 1/2 went into effect in Massachusetts in 1981. It restricts the amount towns may raise in revenue from property taxes to 2 1/2 percent of the community's full and fair cash value of property, called a levy ceiling, and also through a levy limit, the maximum... More ... KNOW YOUR TOWN MEETING IDIOMS, PROVERBS AND CLICHÉS       If you attend Town Meeting regularly, you've probably heard, or even uttered, some of these idioms and proverbs that have become clichés over time thinking they were indigenous to our special four nights in April at the high school. You are, of course, jumping the gun a little bit and taking i... More ... Annual Town Meeting Traditions and Procedures       I. General Overview Nantucket holds its Annual Town Meeting in the spring, after the Annual Town Election, to vote the Town's budget for the next fiscal year starting July 1st and to transact other business. Special Town Meetings may be called whenever needed. Voters are notified by publication o... More ...       INTENT This is the Health and Human Services allocation request to help fund 10 nonprofit agencies with varying missions within the community. The total allocation is $331,000, a level funded amount for the last four years, and is intended for the Council for Human Services' use in contracting wit... More ...       INTENT This article proposes to use the $231,400 collected from the ferry embarkation fee last year to be used by the police department to pay officers performing traffic control in the harbor area near the Steamship Authority terminal. This is a spot where cars and trucks jam, especially during b... More ...       INTENT Submitted by the selectmen for the Energy Study Committee, this article seeks to discover what amount, if any, voters will approve to fund the basic beginnings of an electric aggregate meant to save residents money on power bills. More ...       INTENT Would give the Nantucket Islands Land Bank the town's full faith and credit when it borrows $35 million for land acquisition. PRO With the backing of the town, the land bank could get a lower interest loan than trying to do so on its own. More ...       INTENT Creation of a harbor overlay zoning district for Nantucket Harbor's waterfront to keep water-related uses on the harbor. PRO Would ensure that commercial and private water-related uses on the harbor could not be edged out by residential uses. More ...       INTENT Drawing of overlay district map for Nantucket Harbor and Hither Creek PRO Would delineate the overlay districts and help ensure that commercial and private water-related uses on the harbor could not be edged out by residential uses. More ...       INTENT Creation of a harbor overlay zoning district for Hither Creek PRO The northwest corner of Hither Creek, namely land owned by Madaket Marine, would be protected from replacement by residential development CON The owners of Madaket Marine would not be able to redevelop their land into non... More ...       INTENT Apermanent ban on docks, wharves and piers island-wide, except for the RC district PRO Nantucket's shores and its inner harbors would not be packed with private piers, wharves and docks any more than they already are right now. Existing eelgrass beds and other harbor habit would be left u... More ... ARTICLES 25 & 26 Read the Story...       INTENT Strengthens the town's existing zoning bylaw under permitted uses for secondary dwellings. PRO Spells out the specific use of secondary dwellings more clearly in the zoning bylaw CON If enforced, property owners would have less wiggle room in terms of who could use and lease their secon... More ...       INTENT Takes 52 lots on Chatham, Milestone, Monomoy, Polpis and Sandwich Roads out of the Town Overlay District and puts them into the Country Overlay District PRO Lowers the density of these lots, preventing their property owners from intensifying the development of the area. More ...       INTENT Part of the 41-81D Master Plan land use element, both articles remove all the lots on Doc Ryder, Henderson and Swayze's drives and 29 lots from Golf View and Farm View drives from the RC-2 district and puts them into the R-10 district. PRO These articles cut the density of the land in hal... More ...       INTENT Although on paper it is a minor technical correction, these articles readjust the boundary line between the RC-2 and LUG-2 and R-2 zoning districts by moving that boundary to the 10-foot contour line from the 20-foot contour line. The measurement is the number of feet above sea level. More ... ARTICLES 31 & 32 Read the Story...       34 INTENT Removes 10 lots on the east side of Miacomet Avenue and on the north side of Otokomi Road from the LUG-2 district and puts them into the RC-2 district. (See explanation in Article 33) PRO All of these half-acre lots would become quarter-acre lots that could be more densely developed d... More ...       INTENT Removes the portions of 13 lots that are partially in the LUG-2 district and places them in the RC-2 district, effectively zoning each of these lots entirely RC-2. (See explanation in Article 33) PRO Owners of these lots would gain more density on their property and could, depending on cu... More ...       INTENT Similar to Article 35, this would also take portions of eight lots out of the LUG-2 district and put them in the RC-2 district. PRO Commercial uses on some of these lots would be in compliance with the zoning bylaw and the density of these lots would be boosted from 20,000-square-foot min... More ...       INTENT Increases the parking requirements for secondary dwellings, duplexes, multifamily dwellings and accessory dwellings to basically one per bedroom and removes fractional parking calculations from the bylaw. Also, introduces required parking for studios. More ...       INTENT Would require lots with frontage on more than one street or way to adhere to a frontyard setback on just one of its frontage streets and to sideyard setbacks on each other lot line except in RC-2 and R-1 districts in which a minimum 10-foot sideyard setback would be required. More ...       INTENT Loosens up the definition of recreational facilities by not differentiating ownership of such facilities because the existing language, through the use of the phrases "nonprofit club" and "nonprofit organization," restricts ownership of recreational facilities to these kinds of organization... More ...       INTENT Changes the sunset date from 2007 to 2009 for the creation of mixed income residential developments. PRO Developers would have two more years to file applications for building these affordable housing developments. More ...       INTENT Would add one lot on Comeau Lane in 'Sconset to the 'Sconset Sewer District, 17 lots on Hummock Pond Road, and 33 lots on South Shore Road, Correia, Blueberry and South Pasture lanes, Folger and Field avenues and Cherry Street, respectively, to the town sewer district. More ...       INTENT Submitted by the Town Government Study Committee, this article seeks to change the charter and amend the Town Administrator's title to Town Manager. While there is no statutory difference between the two titles, the committee believes Town Manager is perceived by peers and staff as a strong... More ...       INTENT This Town Government Study Committee article proposes a charter change to strengthen the Town Manager's position by transferring non-regulatory appointments from the selectmen to the manager so the selectmen are focused on policy and the manager handles administrative duties. More ...       INTENT This charter change proposal from the Town Government Study Committee seeks to prohibit town employees working 20 hours or more per week and eligible for town benefits from serving on the Board of Selectmen. More ...       INTENT One of three controversial articles presented by the Town Government Study Committee, this proposes that the Planning Board become a selectmen-appointed body rather than one which is elected. More ...       INTENT This proposed change to the charter would make the Historic District Commission appointed instead of elected. As with the other two groups for which such action is suggested, approval requires a two-thirds vote at Town Meeting, review by the state Attorney General and passage by a majority ... More ...       INTENT As the third Town Government Study Committee proposal to change an elected board to an appointed board, this one is for the Shellfish and Harbor Advisory Board, which opposes the change. The TGSC's final report states that the action is sought because of the anticipated restructuring of the... More ...       INTENT This Town Government Study Committee article seeks to make town audits mandatory on an annual basis, maintaining that the town is three years behind in audits, primarily due to staff shortages. PRO The current charter only recommends that an audit committee be appointed. More ...       INTENT A bylaw amendment proposed by the Town Government Study Committee, this seeks to have a seven-member Town Government Study Committee appointed by the selectmen to conduct a governmental review every five years beginning in 2010. More ...       INTENT Authorizes the Board of Selectmen to be able to amend the island's two sewer districts without running the proposed changes through the Town Meeting process in the form of articles. More ...       INTENT This citizen's article put forth by builder James Lydon seeks to return the start time for noise, such as construction noise, to 7 a.m.. That was the established onset hour before Michael Kopko last year convinced voters that it was more reasonable to move the time up to 7:30 a.m. so as not... More ...       INTENT For people committed to renovating historic structures on the island, the Historic District Commission would arrange for a tax abatement over five years using a formula based on the value of the renovation. More ...       INTENT This article sponsored by Barbara Gookin seeks to extend the end date for the Energy Study Committee from April 2007 to April 2010, with five members appointed by the selectmen for the additional threeyear term. More ...       INTENT This citizen's article was submitted by attorney and volunteer fireman Ken Gullicksen and seeks to have call firemen and volunteer emergency personnel included in the town's discounted group rate for health insurance. PRO The action would allow fire crew members unable to afford market ra... More ...       INTENT Through a home rule petition, if adopted, the Historic District Commission would have the power to preserve the historic interiors, namely primary and secondary framing members and chimneys, in certain houses. More ...       INTENT Ahome rule petition to introduce special legislation at the state level to allow Board of Selectmen the authority to establish a Board of Sewer Commissioners, should it choose to do so. It would also provide the selectmen with the authority to deal with a variety of sewer issues, districts,... More ...       INTENT An amendment to the Act establishing the Nantucket Islands Land Bank that ensures that all entities regardless of the form of ownership pay their transfer fees when no exemptions apply. PRO All individuals, couples, corporations, trusts and partnerships would be paying their transfer fees... More ...       62 INTENT This is a Home Rule Petition submitted by Barbara Gookin to change the formula of allocations from the Community Preservation Committee so that 80 percent of its funds go toward community housing. More ...       INTENT This Home Rule Petition is being proposed by Curtis Barnes. It seeks to have the legislature amend the Land Bank Act so that 25 percent of its annual revenue is allocated for affordable housing, and that some Land Bank property be used for such housing with Town Meeting approval. More ...       INTENT Through home rule petitions, grants the owners of 39 Eel Point Road an easement for their driveway across 43 Eel Point Road, which is owned by the town, in exchange for a new easement across the eastern side of their lot for public pedestrian access to Dionis Beach. If adopted, the town wou... More ...       INTENT Amish mash of shares of land in the same location owned by the town and the Land Bank east of Bunker Road would be sorted out, creating one distinct lump of land for each, allowing each to consolidate their respective shares. PRO Both the town and the Land Bank would have a clear understa... More ...       INTENT The Shaw family purchased their home at 58 Madequecham Valley Road in 2003, and have been full-time island residents since. The family is currently facing a legal battle regarding the property that their home sits upon, and is asking the residents of Nantucket to help them as they try to se... More ...       INTENT Part of the town's Yard Sale Program, passage of this article would allow the sale of undersized, unbuildable lots adjacent to dozens of islanders' lots in Madaket, Surfside, Tom Nevers and off Hummock Pond Road to the property owners whose land abuts these More ...       INTENT Converts roads existing only on paper and lots the town has cleared title for on the west side of Weweeder Pond into open space and transfers that land to the Nantucket Islands Land Bank. PRO Once passed, there would be a clear and complete connection from the Surfside Road end of South S... More ...       77 INTENT Allows the Board of Selectmen to do a covenant to merge all the parcels that comprise the landfill together so that they comply with the zoning bylaw in relation to ground cover ratios and setbacks. PRO The Nantucket Landfill would be in compliance with the zoning bylaw. More ...