[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6145770,"mediaKeyId","5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c","parentId",5530948,"title","Business and developer speakers press town for housing solutions, cost control and clearer permitting leadership","audioSeconds",2278,"startMs",537000,"endMs",2815000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c&start=537&end=2815","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c/thumbnail_537000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6145770/Nantucket-County/Massachusetts/Business-and-developer-speakers-press-town-for-housing-solutions-cost-control-and-clearer-permitting-leadership","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6145770-8e5118cf1aead94716fd203a3a4f3d49/orig.mp4?Expires=1770760313&Signature=Ju3JE30TdtgheVkkrN0Q1WoTtc4MrmYLAwCGcqxyLLXNjNujylXz78FfD4aTBvw8ZDFiJUl5ny0TWZvi~lqeJaZgyHc783izrPZqzaIAsnNTyMY-dWoBOxE2Sw6bt5McO2vGewVbi65QV9gwoofKKNpuYLR3mB6FsP4RrZEeARanft~AaQZVzZBcyabs93IGlXTtRfc3MyBvSRoZ3oDF4GoSIw5dpjBZ3agezzfhtS8yCDu10UDEid90OGm7bg~oEH8Bk8zMuYHOu4kCfm33ZRqnhI1Vfrx05dZhiGv3Ngvy-82iObo7Os~75Nf56GhHoGV8~7zE-bJplDnqAfYnNA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Town-County of Nantucket, MA","date","2025-08-05T10:53:00.17Z","article","At the meeting, multiple speakers warned that deferred capital and rising construction costs are saddling the town with large bills while municipal staffing shortages make delivery of projects harder. Matt, a long‑time local business owner, said the town faces “probably quarter billion, half a billion dollars worth of deferred infrastructure” that must be addressed, and described limits on how much property tax growth can offset big capital needs.

A developer who identified himself as working on a 32‑unit project described voluntarily providing eight year‑round affordable units and three additional units for municipal worker housing. He said the permitting process took about three and a half years and called for a single point of contact or ombudsman to coordinate across boards and departments.

Why it matters: speakers tied housing shortages and rising costs to the town’s ability to hire and retain essential staff and to deliver capital projects efficiently. They also raised concerns about the town’s procurement and prevailing‑wage requirements, which they said contribute to high local construction costs.

Discussion highlights
- Deferred infrastructure and costs: Matt said the island has built more homes in the last 30 years than in the prior 300, creating deferred maintenance and capital needs that are now costly to address. He cited an example: a recent town athletic‑field shed that cost “2 point something million dollars” and still needed an additional roughly $600,000 for utilities.
- Workforce housing and hiring: Multiple speakers urged the town to prioritize housing for municipal hires so that departments can recruit. One developer said he is dedicating several units from his market project to town and affordable housing to help fill that gap.
- Process and leadership: Speakers suggested an official ombudsman or coordinator role to shepherd projects across planning, conservation and permitting bodies. Committee members noted that the Select Board and planning departments lack the staffing capacity to manage a rising project load and that leadership or governance changes alone won’t solve staffing and housing shortages without concrete housing plans.

Ending: No formal committee vote or policy change was taken. Several members recommended closer coordination between developers, Select Board, planning staff and neighborhood groups and said the town should explore targeted measures — including fee adjustments and housing set‑asides — to reduce procurement and delivery obstacles.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Advisory Committee for Non-Voting Taxpayers - 8/2/2025","oneSentenceSummary","Speakers at the Non‑Voting Taxpayers Committee warned that deferred capital needs, rising construction costs and a shortage of staff housing are undermining the town’s ability to deliver projects and retain municipal workers.","taxTitle","Nantucket County, Massachusetts","taxId",61456,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6145775,"Committee hears mixed reaction to proposed 7‑7‑49 short‑term rental compromise",5195,5899000,703714,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c&start=5899&end=703","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c/thumbnail_5899000.jpg","/articles/6145775/Nantucket-County/Massachusetts/Committee-hears-mixed-reaction-to-proposed-7749-shortterm-rental-compromise","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6145775-1ec9078a1b5be051e5f0b6f17abadbf3/orig.mp4?Expires=1770760313&Signature=Pw-pmbsjbq0gTO7d1bC1CgLcHGANqkBK9VCf7BMCo2MBWizY0sNp1g3etSWuoiFdhyJdRP~iGu9UqgBMwjFxgjFEc3k9hTNy0RcK-pqTrmA4BGjfiqydDPrNmg1fw1nzQWjbbK1v32T7N7p-xFOAdzOllAzA11mwQMfimh6UJugKCOVPyGQSnop4V8sYOe3kQnjzd9r93JAj0XqJGM4DfKeWLID2SXfeBE0S3ahxsZfYCO1~9~1isRmeR4p-MJcP4N8V70UEYsuKd1qOcSs9xIwqOT19T5FPu0ilCvDOrA0kFVFWfmqtB-DZR4uG~aKxL6ZvYxhKVpIVELCs3G0nxw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","A proposal that became known in the discussion as “7‑7‑7” or “7‑7‑49” drew the meeting’s longest debate: the concept limits short‑term rental activity in a defined peak season to a maximum number of total rental days and a limit on rental turnovers, and would include a seven‑day minimum stay during peak months.

Why it matters: Multiple participants said the amendment aims to reduce neighborhood noise, limit frequent turnovers that correlate with parties and events, and discourage conversion of year‑round housing to investment properties. Several speakers said a single, unified article is essential at town meeting or competing articles will split votes and fail.

What the proposal says (as discussed at the meeting)
- Peak period: speakers discussed a roughly 90‑day peak defined in variants as around June 15–Sept. 15 (some said peak has shrunk toward mid‑June–mid‑September).
- Caps: the draft discussed a maximum of 49 rental days within that peak period and no more than seven contract turnovers during the same interval.
- Minimum stays: supporters argued for a seven‑day minimum in July and August; others said turnover limits can accomplish similar aims while preserving flexibility for shorter stays outside deep peak.

Speakers and positions
- Peter (committee member) summarized the proposal and the political strategy, saying the approach “defines a peak season” and aims to make the rules administrable. He emphasized that the coalition behind the draft sought a single article for town meeting and described the draft’s basic limits (49 days, 7 turnovers, 7‑day minimum in July and August).
- Peter also reported outreach from ActNow leadership. He said the chairman of ActNow, Carl Jelome, urged finding “a compromise” after the recent court decision, a step Peter said was important to reduce legal risk and politicized conflict.
- Several committee members, including Kathy, said enforcement capacity and reliable rental data are prerequisites. Town staffers have authority to collect rental information under existing bylaws, and speakers urged that data be used to make rule adjustments if needed.

Enforcement and legal context
Participants noted that the town cannot simply ignore enforcement questions: board of health and police capacity is limited and many enforcement mechanisms are costly. The planning board and select board roles were referenced repeatedly; several participants said some changes would require action at town meeting and might need two‑thirds votes for zoning changes. One speaker said a 2015 zoning change is at the center of current litigation and that putting a clarified zoning position before voters would resolve some legal risk.

Ending: Committee members did not vote on an official committee position. Several urged stakeholders to coordinate on a single proposal for town meeting, to ensure it is paired with a realistic enforcement plan and to rely on town rental data once collected and compiled.","A draft accessory‑use proposal — often described in the meeting as “7‑7‑49” — would cap short‑term rentals in a peak season by both total rental days and by rental turnovers, a measure backers say would reduce neighborhood disruptions.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6145780,"Local committee hears residents, business owners say traffic, deliveries and safety strain island infrastructure",812,138000,950000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c&start=138&end=950","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5530948-5d922a84d988c0e922102565bf6de04c/thumbnail_138000.jpg","/articles/6145780/Nantucket-County/Massachusetts/Local-committee-hears-residents-business-owners-say-traffic-deliveries-and-safety-strain-island-infrastructure","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6145780-118b100ae11b0ab5b222ee9e5275b28b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770760313&Signature=Od842fy6aw5IHVhSCe92z-XbbifurpIRX82NQe46scroE1WKy31ocmwRpXGe7SG2Db3h021J3QpeEiEpJNgOYiZv2tDJJmeJ99SVza6NePH6pFKeoDe5Ykt8b9BC9ddImDH1bxSaS49tOXqr8QLH~ji1REh0Ldv6QUW~TWoHIiRVwqVqV1sTYbrAwjFIrpYZMCD8TWzg4PzHIV3Xu4HDXtBwxNw~JAtSUf4vokxut45~fo6vUQuymJHUa9WxLz~8G4OE6Sv2-NYgHVtqTVkGtersOPsB9ai4YJ-GYFutDPfeM1kaLNJ5fWgRd8H-rGncvCd5BuhEVw4B~A4gyeUKIw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Matt, a local business owner, told the Non‑Voting Taxpayers Committee that the island’s traffic and infrastructure pressures have grown markedly and that peaks are “double or double and a half” what they used to be, concentrating visitors into a shorter summer season. He said recent seasons feel like “4 or 5 weeks of summer and a few key holiday weekends.”

The concern threaded through the meeting: residents and committee members described crowded sidewalks and roads, difficulty for emergency vehicles, delivery and construction trucks clogging narrow streets, frequent bike‑path incidents and limited town capacity to deliver projects. Committee member Patty Goester suggested time‑of‑day or seasonal truck restrictions and traffic marshals at ferry landings to reduce vehicle‑pedestrian gridlock.

Why it matters: speakers said congestion is already affecting safety, local businesses’ staffing and operations, and the town’s longer‑term infrastructure costs. Matt reported six serious staff accidents in about eight weeks — three requiring off‑island medical care — and characterized them as “a sign that something is out of balance.” Several residents warned that bottlenecks can delay ambulances and other emergency responses.

Discussion highlights
- Heavy vehicles and construction: Several speakers, including committee members and business owners, urged limits on large trucks at peak times. One suggestion was a daily window banning large landscaping or construction trucks during busy daytime hours so deliveries and contractor work happen outside peak visitor periods.
- Operational fixes: Participants proposed timed traffic signs ahead of roundabouts, temporary traffic marshals when ferries land, prioritized bus signal timing and designated taxi/ shuttle pick‑up points. Don Green described using digital signs and pre‑timed controls to regulate flow into congested nodes.
- Bike and scooter safety: Michael and others said motorized scooters and e‑bikes are a frequent cause of accidents on paths; one participant recommended restricting or better classifying high‑speed electric devices so enforcement and public messaging can target the riskiest vehicles.
- System planning and downstream impacts: Multiple speakers emphasized the need for comprehensive traffic modeling. One committee member warned that making one segment faster without system modeling “just moves the problem” to another neighborhood.

Town capacity and near‑term steps
- Staffing and project capacity: Several participants said the town lacks project managers and the staff bandwidth to permit and deliver paths, sidewalks and intersection changes. Committee members described fundraising and private interest for bike paths that stalled because of regulatory complexity and multiple permitting bodies.
- Enforcement and data: Speakers argued better data and an enforcement function are prerequisites for many policies. Committee members said the town is attempting to hire enforcement staff but has not yet staffed that function.

Ending: The committee did not take formal action on traffic policy at the meeting. Members suggested forming focused task groups and continuing coordination with town staff, the police department and property‑owner groups to pilot operational fixes this season while longer‑term modeling and capital planning proceed.","Committee meeting focused on congestion, rising peak demand, pedestrian and bike‑path safety, heavy vehicle impacts and the town’s limited capacity to manage incremental infrastructure projects, with residents and a long‑time business owner urging a mix of near‑term operational fixes and longer‑term planning.","actionData","errors"]

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Business and developer speakers press town for housing solutions, cost control and clearer permitting leadership

Committee hears mixed reaction to proposed 7‑7‑49 short‑term rental compromise

Local committee hears residents, business owners say traffic, deliveries and safety strain island infrastructure