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HomeMy WebLinkAboutJanuary 2015 This Newsletter is formatted for use on all browsers.View this email in your browser From the Desk of Town Manager Libby Gibson January 2015 Volume 6, Number 1 Town of Nantucket 16 Broad Street Nantucket, MA 02554 P: (508) 228-7255 F: (508) 228-7272 Contact Us! Town of Nantucket Website Newsletter Archives Subscribe to Newsletter New Airport Website Coming Soon... Sneak peak of the Nantucket Memorial Airport's home page. 1937 Fire Truck Re- Commissioned The Nantucket Fireman's Association graciously acknowledges Deputy Chief Nelson Eldridge for his tireless efforts to secure funds from the Conservation Preservation Committee for the restoration of E-4 1937 American LaFrance. A housing ceremony on December 21st, included a "push-in" of E-4. Dating back to the 19th century when firefighting vehicles were horse drawn, firefighters had to push the vehicle into the firehouse. It often took three times for the truck to be backed into place. During a housing ceremony, the new truck is pushed in and out three times: one time for God, the next for country, and the third for community. The “push-in” joins the past to the present and is a tradition shared throughout the country. Website scheduled to go live at the end of February. Receive Notifications on House Moves Click here to sign up to receive email and/or text notifications of house moves and street blockings that could potentially effect your transportation. Nantucket Police Dept on Facebook Natural Resources Department Shell Recycling Program Leah Cabral, Assistant Biologist, and Tara Riley, Shellfish Biologist, of the Natural Resources Department give a presentation to the Rotary Club about the success of the shell recycling program. Follow the Nantucket Police Department's on Facebook for public safety tips and updates on what's happening at 4 Fairgrounds Rd such as the Citizen Police Academy beginning February 5th. 1st NEET Winter Social The Nantucket Employee Empowerment Team organized their first meeting which benefitted our elder community. Over 200 items were donated to Our Island Home and Saltmarsh Center. Learn all about this program and the benefits of recycling oyster shells. Live Streaming in Training Room The Public Safety Facility at 4 Fairgrounds Rd has two rooms that can record public meetings: the downstairs Community Room and the upstairs Training Room. Until this month, we were only able to record videos On Demand for upload to our website the following day. We have added live streaming so anyone can watch the meetings in real time on our website. To find previously recorded meetings or to watch a meeting in progress in the Training Room or the Community Room please click here. Examples of meetings held in the Training Room: Historic District Commission Conservation Commission CPC Park & Rec Capital Program Committee Finance Committee Bicycle & Pedestrian Committee Click here to see the full calendar of meetings. Budget/Capital/Town Meeting Budget FY 2016 General Budget Recommendations have been reviewed with the Board of Selectmen (December 3rd), School Committee (December 16th) and Finance Committee (January 8th). The Finance Committee will be meeting with various Town departments over the next several weeks in order to formulate its budget recommendations for the 2015 Annual Town Meeting. Click here for the FY16 General Fund Budget Recommendations presentation to the Finance Committee on February 8. Capital The Capital Program Committee and Board of Selectmen FY 2016 Capital Project recommendations were reviewed with the Finance Committee on December 18. The Finance Committee's recommendations will appear in the form of motions to the various capital project articles at Town Meeting. The two largest projects are a new fire station at 4 Fairgrounds Road (see report by Fire Station Work Group) for $15,000,000 and a new school, estimated to cost in the range of $42,000,000 - $47,000,000. Both projects are expected to be contingent upon the passage debt exclusion ballot questions at the 2015 Annual Town Election (April 14, 2015). Town Meeting The 2015 Annual Town Meeting will start on Monday, April 6, 2015 at 6pm at the Mary P. Walker Auditorium at the Nantucket High School. The warrant is scheduled to be adopted by the Board of Selectmen on January 21. Meanwhile, the citizen warrant articles are available for review. The Finance Committee will be formulating its motions to all warrant articles in January, February and March and the warrant with motions will be mailed to voters 2 weeks prior to Town Meeting. Parking Enforcement Plan Effective Period: Monday after Christmas Stroll Weekend to Friday before Memorial Day A. Core Parking District: Timed Parking Enforcement from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM. All 1 hour parking zones except on Main Street between Center Street and South Water Street become 2 hour parking zones. No changes to 15, 20 or 30 minute parking zones. (Note: Residential Parking Permits not valid after September 30th for parking in the 2 hour zones or for parking in the Core District.) B. Loading zones to be converted into 2 hour parking spaces: o Oak St. between South Water St. and South Beach St. Extension o Main St. between North Union and South Water St. o Candle St. between Salem St. and Main St. C. Taxi/Tour Van Zones to be turned into 2 hour parking spaces: o Lower Main Street from Easy Street to New Whale Street o Candle Street from Main Street to Salem Street Click here for the full Town of Nantucket Parking/Enforcement Plan adopted by the Board of Selectmen on October 22,2014 The "Under Construction" tree displayed at the NHA's Festival of Trees. The Town of Nantucket tree was created by Erika Mooney, Jen Ferreira, Amanda Furtado, and Kim Cassano. After last year's 3rd place finish, Harbormaster Sheila Lucey and her team returned to Main St this year with a tree to wow us all. Sheila was determined to bring home the 1st place prize with a creative use of sand and rock forming the island...and she won 1st place! Meet Your Town Volunteers Petter A. Morrison Q: How long have you lived on Nantucket? A: We moved here in 2005 (having visited seasonally since 1985). Q: Where are you from? A: Born: Buffalo, NY (hometown of such luminaries as Tim Russert and Wolf Blitzer); spent most of my working career in Los Angeles area. Q: What is your job? A: I’m retired from RAND Corporation. Since 2005, I have worked part-time as a Ramp Agent at Cape Air (I am the only Ramp Agent whose Ph.D. is from Brown University). Also, I am President of PAMA, Inc., the global international demographic consulting firm (situated above our garage). Q: How long have you served on the (committee, board, commission, volunteer position)? A: I have served on one or another committee/work group since 2006. First was the Airport Noise Advisory Committee. Q. Have you served on any other Town boards or committees besides that one? A: Thereafter, I was appointed to the Town’s Finance Committee on which I served for several years, the Energy Work Group, and then the Capital Programs Committee. I have just been appointed to the Visitors’ Services Advisory Committee. In addition, I have actively worked to expand the Town’s sponsorship of Worcester Polytechnic student projects here on Nantucket, as a de facto in-house analytic unit that can inform Town decisionmaking. Q: What interests you about serving the Town makes you want to be involved? A: First, the interesting problems I encounter. This makes committee service something like a postgraduate internship: it affords one opportunities to learn by doing while broadening one’s knowledge base). A close second: the people I’ve gotten to know, which I especially value. Third, the intrinsic satisfaction that comes from devising smarter ways for the Town to envision and adapt to its changing future. I’ve been able to translate my years of experience in a policy analysis environment at RAND into practice here on Nantucket. Q: What is the most rewarding part about serving? A: Working with--and learning from--other smart people from varied professional and academic backgrounds. Q: What is the most challenging part? A: Resisting the temptation to volunteer for that next irresistible assignment! Q: If you could change one thing about Town government, what would it be? A: That’s a tough one…I might argue for easing the workload imposed on the Selectmen, allowing them to focus more on policy decisions rather than routine hum-drum approvals. More generally, I like the idea of building an in-house analytic unit to inform Town Management decisionmaking (analogous to what the Secretary of Defense or Congressional Budget Office rely on). Nationally recognized academics retiring to Nantucket might form a pool of prospects. Q: What is your favorite spot on Nantucket? A: Pocomo Point at sunset, with a glass of wine, followed by a close second: The Atheneum. Town Manager Weekly Recap Watch Town Manager Libby Gibson on Geno TV review what's going on this week in town government. Trivia Question Women's rights and civil rights activist Lucretia Mott established what college in 1864? Last month's trivia: Q: Where was the first lifesaving station on Nantucket built and in what year? A: Surfside in 1874 Silver Level Awarded to Nantucket The League of American Bicyclists designated Nantucket as a Bicycle Friendly Community at the Silver Level. This award is presented to communities with remarkable commitments to bicycling infrastructure, education, and encouragement. The Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) worked diligently on this application throughout 2014. Click here for more information. Copyright © 2015 Town of Nantucket, All rights reserved. unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences