HomeMy WebLinkAbout_07202018-6439Town Government Study Committee
Minutes of the meeting of July 20, 2018. The meeting took place in the Public Safety Facility Training
Room, 4 Fairgrounds Road, Nantucket, MA 02554. Members of the committee present were: Curtis
Barnes, John Brescher, Richard Ray, and Tucker Holland.
Also Present: Jason Bridges, Chair of Select Board
1.Chair John Brescher called the meeting to order at 1:30 with a quorum.
2.Agenda: Richard Ray moved approval of the agenda, seconded by Tucker Holland. All voted in
favor
3.Minutes: Richard Ray made to approve the minutes of the June 25th meeting as drafted.
Seconded by Curtis Barnes. All voted in favor
4.Public Comment: None.
5.Discussion with Town Officials: Jason Bridges, Chair of the Select Board. Chairman Bridges
thanked the Committee for their work to date and began a dialogue with the Committee to
better understand what the Committee believes their scope to be as it relates to the Charter
and Departments. John Brescher explained that the Committee had been interviewing various
public officials, including members of Town Administration, the Planning Department, the
Finance Committee, and Parks and Recreation, among others. The Committee has also received
some feedback from Lauren Goldberg from Town Counsel’s office relative to the edits and
suggestions to the Charter. Tucker Holland also chimed in that the Committee of Non-voting tax
payers, as well as two members of the public, had asked about the Committee’s ability to create
an ombudsman to provide some oversight for the Town. The Committee had expressed some
reservations about this because of potential unintentional consequences of creating such a
Board/role in the Town, but agreed it’s an interesting question to explore. John Brescher added
that the scope of the Committee is somewhat limited because while many suggestions and
concerns have been brought to the Committee’s attention, some are beyond the scope and
purview of the Town.
Chairman Bridges discussed the role of volunteers in the Town and the important role they play.
It was noted David Worth commented that the volunteerism can be a mixed blessing in the
Town because many of the committees are only as good as the volunteers. The discussion also
touched on the importance of the current form of Town Meeting and the time commitments
that are required by Town Officials because of the influx in people since the last census, as well
as the demands placed on Town Officials and Staff.
The Committee and Chairman Bridges discussed how challenging it is for the staff and the Town
Officials to be volunteers and still devote time to their personal and professional lives. Although
the discussion may be somewhat premature, Chairman Bridges suggested that at some point it
may behoove the Town to have paid elected officials – in whatever format that may be – so the
candidates can be assured of being able to dedicate sufficient resources to the duties of the
Town.
Richard Ray explained that in his experience, there needs to be some autonomy given to the
Staff running the Boards so they have the ability to act independently. Specifically, when the
Board of Health was the Board of Selectmen, one of the former Chairmen gave the Health
Department leeway to make recommendations to the Board. The suggestion was made to
potentially create a separate Sewer Board and Licensing Board so as to alleviate the roles and
responsibilities of the Select Board. The issue that the Select Board is finding is that they are
bogged down in the minutia of the matters before them and the Select Board should, in theory,
be more focused on policy matters.
Chairman Bridges thanked the Committee for their efforts and asked to be kept in the loop as
the Committee begins to formulate their recommendations for Town Meeting and any
recommendations to the Select Board that may be beyond the scope of the Committee.
6.Other business: None.
7.Next Meeting: John will send an email to schedule another meeting before the end of the
summer.
8.Tucker Holland made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Richard, all voted in favor.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:31 P.M.
Respectfully Submitted,
John Brescher, Chairman