HomeMy WebLinkAboutBoard of Selectmen Minutes February 18, 2009 Second Morning Meeting_2014020616121376181
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
Minutes of the meeting of 18 February 2009 at 10:00 AM. The meeting took place in the
Conference Room, 16 Broad Street, Nantucket, MA 02554. Members of the Board present were
Rick Atherton, Brian Chadwick, Michael Kopko, Allen Reinhard, and Patricia Roggeveen. Chairman
Kopko called the meeting to order at 10:22 AM.
Solid Waste Workshop
Special solid waste counsel Michael Leon joined the meeting via conference call. Town Manager
C. Elizabeth Gibson reviewed the FY 2010 Solid Waste Enterprise Fund (SWEF) budget and the
projected $1.9 million deficit. She said Town Administration is looking at ways to close the gap,
including absorbing it into the General Fund which would result in an additional $1.9 million in cuts
to the school and Town; developing a new and/or modified fee structure; seeking an operating
override for the SWEF, which if it fails, could fall back to a fee structure; or a combination of these
options. A discussion followed among Board members, Ms. Gibson, Mr. Leon, and Assistant Town
Manager Malachy Rice regarding these options. Mr. Rice suggested that the SWEF deficit needs
to be dealt with structurally by instituting a designated revenue stream to pay for landfill operations
and related costs which the Town is contractually and legally obligated to pay. Ms. Gibson said the
Administration’s position is that the SWEF deficit should be covered by the SWEF by whatever
means necessary. Mr. Rice discussed closing the gap by means of taxing property owners and
said that revenue streams are needed for both the legacy capital costs of the landfill and the
operating costs/deficit. He went on to note that the Town has an Administrative Consent Order
(ACO) by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) which has been amended six times
since 1996 and that Nantucket is one of two towns in the state that has not capped its landfill. He
again stressed the importance of having a dedicated revenue stream to at least pay for the
accelerated landfill mining program that is being proposed. Mr. Leon said that Nantucket, unlike
Martha’s Vineyard, Block Island, and other Cape towns, does not collect fees from its residential
users despite the fact that it pays Waste Options Nantucket (WON) a contractual fee for residential
waste disposal. He said the Town has an uneven fee structure and recommends some sort of fee
system, such as a landfill access sticker program, a residential Pay-As-You-Throw program, or a
commercial hauler fee to generate income for the SWEF. Mr. Leon reviewed these options, as well
options regarding changes to the commercial waste disposal program, the creation of a waste
hauler licensing program, construction and demolition (C&D) tracking through building permits, and
the elimination of free residential C&D disposal. Ms. Roggeveen said she feels there is value to the
sticker program as it alerts citizens to the actual costs of the landfill. The Board continued its
discussion regarding a possible override and potential new fees. An additional workshop was
scheduled for 23 February 2009.
The meeting was unanimously adjourned at 12:08 PM.
Approved the 19th day of August, 2009.