Nantucket presents joint DPW campus and Nantucket Hunting Association shooting and archery range at Shad Bush Road

Town of Nantucket officials on Monday laid out a joint proposal to build a new Department of Public Works campus and an underground shooting and archery range for the Nantucket Hunting Association on a 27‑acre town‑owned parcel at 1 Shad Bush Road.

The project pairs a 7.9‑acre DPW campus with a 1.1‑acre shooting and archery facility and, because the parcel is mapped as priority habitat, requires a Natural Heritage mitigation plan that would leave 18 acres under permanent conservation restriction and limit development to about 9 acres, officials said.

The proposal matters to residents because the current DPW facilities at 188 Madaket Road are aging, scattered across eight small structures and about 21,000 square feet of space, and town staff say those conditions create safety and operational problems. At the same time, the hunting association said a local, formal range would restore decades of training, law‑enforcement qualification space and youth education that currently require travel off‑island.

“There's certainly not a lot that we don't do,” Drew Padnode, director of public works for the Town of Nantucket, said while outlining the department's responsibilities and the condition of current facilities. Padnode said an OSHA consultation found the existing site lacks required clearances, appropriate storage and other code‑related features that the new campus would correct.

Padnode described the proposed DPW campus as a compact, single‑campus replacement of the current scattered buildings. Plans shown to the public included a central fleet garage with indoor vehicle storage, heated wash bay, purpose‑built workspaces and mezzanine storage; a larger salt shed located near the entrance; a fuel island; administrative offices; employee facilities; and on‑site stormwater systems. The design aims to use rooftop solar and a geothermal network to reduce fossil‑fuel use, with the town limiting fossil fuels to a backup generator and the fuel island for equipment.

Steve Holgate, president of the Nantucket Hunting Association, described the range plan as an underground, ventilated facility accessed from a roughly 4,000‑square‑foot administration building. Holgate said the basement would include staging rooms, eight shooting lanes at about 50 yards and space for a future 100‑yard rifle range. Plans also call for an electric target retrieval system, industry‑standard ventilation and lead‑capture bullet traps with periodic reclamation by vendors. Holgate said the building would include a small studio apartment to help recruit and retain a manager.

The hunting association emphasized education and community benefits: certified instructor‑led hunter education, range safety officer training, law‑enforcement qualification offered at no cost to local agencies, youth programs and potential competitive shooting teams tied to local schools and youth organizations.

Officials said permitting is underway at multiple levels. The project team submitted renderings and plans to the Historic District Commission in January and received initial review comments; Natural Heritage and the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) review processes are active. Padnode said the Commonweath’s Natural Heritage program has determined the parcel is priority habitat for a protected moth species and requires a 2:1 mitigation ratio, which the town plans to satisfy by developing approximately 9 acres and placing the remaining 18 acres into a permanent conservation restriction.

Padnode outlined project timing: schematic and design development work is complete, final design funding is scheduled to appear on the town warrant for the annual town meeting on May 3, the team intends to produce bid‑ready construction documents and to bid the project before any special town meeting so voters would have a specific bid number to consider. If approved, officials expect construction to follow; town presenters described late 2025 or early 2026 as an anticipated groundbreaking window.

During public comment, residents raised three recurring concerns: housing for seasonal staff, whether the shooting range depends on approval of the DPW project, and coastal‑resilience risks at the current DPW site.

Curtis Barnes asked about housing for seasonal DPW staff. Padnode said the department consulted the town housing office and that several separate housing projects and rental arrangements the housing office is pursuing (including seasonal dorms and other developments) led the team not to include housing at the Shad Bush Road site. “We absolutely did talk about that,” Padnode said, adding that the industrial park location, lack of sewer and the restricted 9‑acre developable area limited suitability for housing.

Amy Eldridge noted a prior town meeting action that had previously authorized the hunting association for a specific area and asked what would happen to the association's plans if voters reject DPW funding at the upcoming annual meeting. Brooke Moore, chair of the Select Board, said the town cannot commit to siting the hunting association facility without the joint development because the environmental application and site constraints were evaluated as a combined plan. “If it doesn't pass, we would all go back to the drawing board,” Moore said, adding that the joint plan was used to avoid a constrained, “skinny” parcel that would limit other uses and complicate permitting.

Burton Balkin, participating online, asked about project cost and climate risk. Padnode confirmed the presentation did not include a total project cost this evening; the team said a specific construction bid will be presented before any final town vote. Vince Murphy, the town’s sustainability programs manager, described coastal‑resilience analysis the town completed and said the Madaket Road site’s proximity to Long Pond and expected groundwater and sea level changes made the Shad Bush Road site a more resilient long‑term choice for a 50‑year investment.

Officials also said the DPW project will construct roadway and utility improvements that would benefit the range: Shad Bush Road would be upgraded with hardened crushed stone and storm drainage, and water and electric service would be extended to the parcel. The DPW would maintain a shared septic system that will serve the joint development because there is no sewer in that area.

No formal vote or permitting decision was taken at the session; presenters asked the public to submit comments as the local and state permitting reviews continue and reminded residents that final design funding would be considered at the May 3 annual town meeting.

For now, the project remains contingent on Natural Heritage mitigation approval and voter support for final design funding and construction appropriations. If voters approve funding, the town plans to proceed to final design, bid the work and seek construction approvals; if voters do not approve funding the town said it will revisit siting and design options.