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Home My WebLink About2019-8-17 VT e ADVISORY COMMITTEE OF NONVOTING TAXPAYERS2D2I JUL 13 AM- 9: 42 Minutes of meeting 10 A.M., SATURDAY, August 17, 2019, at 4 Fairgrounds Road 1. Attending: Gary Beller, Bill Gardner, Don Green, Peter Kahn, Mary Russell, and Bill Sherman; guest speaker Town Transportation Planner Mike Burns. Members absent: Secretary Kathy Baird, Lou Bassano, Peter Halle, Sue Matloff and Jay Strauss. Citizens present: Alan and Nancy Forster, Caroline Frey, Dave and Robert Frisbie, and Barbara and Dave Kaytes. 2. Chair Don Green opened the meeting at 10:07 a.m., declaring a quorum present. Proposed minutes for the July 27, 2019 meeting were approved. Our guest Mike Burns was welcomed, also the 7 citizens. 3. With a slide projection setup, Mike Burns presented selected portions of the Town's Long Range Transportation Plan for 2020, an update of the 2016 Plan. The 2020 Plan created by the Planning staff has endorsements of many island stakeholders concerned with transportation issues including the Town's Roads and Right of Way Committee. It takes into account results of a transportation survey to which some 1,000 islanders, year-round and seasonal, responded. 4. Mike noted that the 2020 Plan can be accessed on the Town's website [https://www.nantucket- ma.gov/DocumentCenter/V iew/23227/LRTP-2020---NPEDC- presentation---112018; see also https://www.nantucket- ma.gov/661/2020-Long-Range-Transportation-Plan for an explanation of USDOT requirement that Nantucket's Planning & Economic Development Commission, as our Regional Planning Agency (RPA), prepare the LRTP to qualify for federal funding]. 5. Mike spoke of Strategic Goal #3: to reduce single occupant vehicle usage, likely requiring a culture shift on island to foster alternative transport modes, e.g., NRTA buses, bikes and walking. 6. With some 35 miles of bike and multi-use paths, infrastructure is largely in place to support that alternative. Current priority for new paths is for lower Orange, then Pleasant and Sparks. 7. The NRTA has annual rider use of 250 — 300,000, likely increased if no fare charged should other funding sources allow that. Among regional bus systems, NRTA is ranked low in level of needed subsidization. Elder use is subsidized. The state helps to fund NRTA at the rate of$0.10/rider. Responding to a complaint about uncomfortable bus seating, Mike explained that Nantucket's narrow j.I : C I JUL "SSS streets and other factors sharply limited choice of bus design. Aided by ReMain, bus stop shelters are being deployed. 8. To increase availability of on-street parking in-town, paid parking will be introduced in the Core District in 2020. The demand management system will likely rely on smart phones plus discrete kiosks. 9. If present conversations about development of Harbor Square result in an intermodal transportation structure (multi-story garage), net projected revenue of$2 million/year is anticipated. Gary Beller spoke of the great results achieved by a parking structure built by the New York Botanical Garden, suggesting that a Harbor Place structure could serve for winter storage of vehicles, also for rental cars. 10.Effort is underway to determine the island's optimal vehicle carrying capacity. With some 110,000 vehicles/year carried to the island by the SSA, some retain hope that a legal limitation may prove a possibility. The island has had in 2018 an increase of over 500 more vehicle registrations, Gary noted. 11.To mitigate traffic congestion, Mike sees the issue as more a question of vehicle usages than simply the number of vehicles on island. Air quality is also a concern. 12.As understood from Mike, funding is in place for constructing the lower Orange bike lanes, a roundabout at the Bartlett and Surfside intersection, upgrade of the Milestone rotary, some Old South Road upgrades and design of a roundabout at the Surfside/Sparks/Prospect/Atlantic intersection. 13.A Brant Point resident questioned weekend overnight parking of commercial vehicles in that area. Police have not been effective in curbing that free use of Brant Point streets by SSA passengers leaving the island for the weekend. Mike spoke to the legal issue, also to the shortage of parking at 4 Fairgrounds for commercial vehicles and, more so, parking near the ferry terminal with loss of 17 spaces in the lot near the Town pier. 14.Responding to another question, Mike said that a Wauwinet bike path is envisioned but one for Quidnet Road has a low priority. 15.8111 Sherman recalled a proposal to require that tenants of Seasonal Vacation Home Rentals receive from their landlord an NRTA bus pass to reduce their impact on traffic, etc. Implementing such proposal would require state authorization. Mike noted that a requirement that in-town employers provide their employees with NRTA has been dropped following a zoning change. That requirement had been imposed in lieu of the employer having off- street employee parking. 16.There followed a discussion of the choice between Open Town Meeting and Representative Town Meeting led off with a report by Don Green who attended the August 14 meeting of the Town Government Study Committee as did Gary. While an early report from the TGSC is not expected, reliable attendance at Town Meetings by well-informed voters remains a problem. For the long term, Don urged the teaching of civic responsibility in Nantucket schools. Representative Town Meeting apparently offers great opportunity for summer residents to attend and express their views, also at the pre-RTM precinct level. 17.Bill offered a motion that ACNVT, by letter to the Select Board, renew its support of state legislation (now S. 789) to authorize a '/2% fee on island real estate transfers for added funding of Town affordable housing initiatives. In discussion that followed, questions were raised, answered in part by Gary, which merited further consideration. Note was made of the $20 million voted at 2019 ATM for affordable housing and the Town's project at 6 FG off Ticcoma Way frustrated by neighbors' court challenges. The motion was tabled and consensus reached that the Town's Housing Specialist Tucker Holland should be invited to ACNVT's September 7 meeting. 18.After Peter Kahn's departure at 11:31 a.m., a citizen attending expressed appreciation for the work of ACNVT and TGSC and hope that more summer residents could be encouraged to attend. Bill Gardner commended outreach through Civic League area associations. Gary had gotten a good turnout by personal invitation. Placing an ad in the I&M was suggested but also questioned as to effectiveness with so many summertime meetings advertised. 19.The meeting was closed at 11:39 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Bill Sherman, Secretary pro tem in absence of Secretary Kathy Baird Draft minutes e-distributed 7/8/20. Minutes adopted 7/11/20, emailed to town for posting 7/11/20