Peter Burke, executive director of the Nantucket Island Chamber of Commerce, told the Nantucket Visitor Services Advisory Committee on a January Zoom meeting that this year’s Stroll drew about the same number of visitors as last year but that one high‑visibility on‑site incident undercut otherwise positive outcomes.

“By any measure we can get — tax data and Placer AI — we saw the same number of people,” Burke said, summarizing the Chamber’s review. He said cell‑phone sampling from Placer AI and preliminary local tax measures indicated overall visitation was effectively flat compared with the prior year, with one measure up “by a fraction of a percent” and another down slightly.

Why it matters: Stroll is a major annual event for Nantucket’s businesses and public safety agencies. Committee members said maintaining family‑friendly programming while managing alcohol‑related behavior is a priority because incidents that occur in daylight hours draw outsized media attention.

Burke and town officials credited stronger coordination this year with key partners — including visible National Grid crews in the weeks before Stroll — as a constructive change after last year’s outage. “They allocated extra resources, both personnel and equipment,” Burke said, calling their participation a positive development for event planning even though the prior outage was caused by an underground cable.

The committee discussed specific operational changes that contributed to smoother events: a straighter arrival route for Santa Claus to reduce crowding at the docks, added volunteer support, and on‑site enforcement and capacity checks by licensing and fire prevention staff. Chantal Blois Murphy, representing town permitting and public‑safety coordination, said town personnel circulated through businesses before and during Stroll to remind owners of capacity and licensing requirements and to address violations when found.

But committee members pressed for better outreach to both businesses and visitors. Chantal and others raised concern about unpaid or informal one‑day pouring events and sidewalk “sip‑and‑shop” activity that can skirt licensing rules. “Maybe we need to revisit whether or not we don’t issue one‑day pour permits during that time period,” Chantal said, so alcohol sales would be tracked and served by tip‑certified staff.

Burke also reported strong raffle (“red ticket”) activity and thanked volunteers and Visitor Services staff for operational help; he estimated ticket sales “just over 500,000” and later said “about 550,000,” a figure he characterized as approximate.

Visitor data and permitting updates: The committee’s director presented Placer AI totals for the calendar year (01/01/2025–12/31/2025) showing 754,000 unique visitors, a 0.8% decrease from 2024, a 0.9% decrease from 2023 and a 4.6% decrease from 2022. The town launched new online special‑event and film permit applications on Jan. 2; two film/event applications had been submitted at the time of the meeting. The cultural district received a $15,000 grant for marketing, and $5,700 in Massachusetts Cultural Council funding has been allotted for on‑island organizations.

Stranded passengers and sheltering: Committee members also discussed 'stranded passenger' scenarios (travel cancellations or weather events). Town staff outlined two response tracks: for declared emergencies (which would trigger MEMA and high‑school cots) and for travel‑disruption cases (where the town maintains a rooms list, coordinates with dispatch, points visitors toward hotel or short‑term rental options and, if needed, offers the Public Safety Building as a warm space with benches and restrooms). Chantal said the town can provide interim shelter and coordinate resources but that housing stranded visitors on taxpayers is not the town’s regular responsibility; she also noted community members sometimes offer spaces.

Committee next steps: Members suggested practical measures — better business outreach, encouraging roving 'ambassadors' or volunteers to nudge public behavior during peak daytime hours, and asking hotels about a stranded‑passenger rate to avoid exploitative last‑minute pricing. Several members said they will raise the permitting and enforcement questions with relevant town departments, and Burke said the Chamber would refine member messaging ahead of next year’s Stroll.

Votes at a glance: The committee approved the minutes of the Dec. 9 meeting by roll call (Mary Mallevais abstained, four recorded yeas) and later moved to adjourn by roll call.

The committee plans to return with a February agenda and additional follow‑up on permitting, messaging and event coordination.