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Nantucket ZBA approves replacement spa at 7 Pleasant Street with conditions
Summary
The Nantucket Zoning Board of Appeals granted a special permit allowing a slightly larger replacement spa at 7 Pleasant Street, concluding the replacement is not substantially more detrimental than the preexisting feature and imposing site and timing conditions including HDC conformance and a Memorial Day–Labor Day construction blackout.
The Town of Nantucket Zoning Board of Appeals voted to grant a special permit allowing a replacement hot tub at 7 Pleasant Street while imposing conditions to limit visibility and future expansion.
Attorney Kenneth Gullickson told the board the property contains a permitted outdoor spa installed in 1998 and that the proposed replacement would be marginally larger — 91 square feet compared with the existing 87 — and would meet setback and ground-cover requirements. Gullickson said the change was only necessary because Article 39, adopted at the 2023 annual town meeting, later prohibited residential recreational outdoor water features in the ROH zoning district.
The board’s decision rests on the finding that replacing the spa would not be “substantially more detrimental” to the neighborhood than the preexisting nonconforming structure or use. The chair read conditions that require the work to be in substantial compliance with the approved plans (exhibit A) and with HDC certificates (HDC 2025-07-12925). The board also prohibited exterior construction for the work between Memorial Day and Labor Day and required that any future increase in size return to the board for relief.
Members questioned visibility, equipment, and whether the hot tub should be treated as a structure or a use for decision drafting. Gullickson said the proposed unit is self-contained with no exterior equipment and that the site’s grade and planting largely screen the feature from the public way. During deliberation, members asked the decision be drafted to treat both structure and use where appropriate so that any future enlargement would trigger re‑submission.
The board closed the public hearing, moved for approval with the listed conditions, and recorded the motion as carried. The applicant may proceed consistent with the HDC approvals and the ZBA conditions; any enlargement beyond the approved size will require further relief.
