HomeMy WebLinkAboutTown Managers Newsletter - 2010 06 21
From the Desk of Town
Manager Libby Gibson
JUNE 21, 2010 VOLUME 1, NUMBER 3
Town of Nantucket
16 Broad St.
Nantucket, MA 02554
P: (508) 228-7255
F: (508) 228-7272
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The First Editions…
This new monthly e-newsletter is meant to convey information to the public
about current Town projects, programs, initiatives and accomplishments in a
timely, easy-to-access manner. This is a new initiative for Town Administration
and comments and suggestions about this newsletter are welcome.
Board of Selectmen Goals 2010-2011
At its meeting on June 2, 2010, the Board of Selectmen adopted several goals
for 2010-11. The goals can be viewed at http://www.nantucket-
ma.gov/Pages/NantucketMA_BOS/FY11BOSGoals.pdf. Town Administration is in
the process of developing an action plan for each associated task and we will be
updating the Board with regular progress reports, probably monthly. These
goals help the Board and Town Administration to focus on issues important to
the functioning of the Town, community quality of life and infrastructure
improvements. The goals were unanimously adopted by the Board with full
support from Town Administration. We look forward to working with our
departments and the Board on implementation.
PEG Channel Access Update
The Board has been discussing the implementation of a PEG channel (Public
Education Government, a local access cable channel) for several months. Most
recently at its June 2 meeting, the Board agreed to schedule a workshop
meeting later in June to review some of the issues in more detail. A PEG
channel, which is common in municipalities around the country, is funded
through (in our case) a 3% surcharge on your cable television bill. A town itself
can operate the PEG or a non-profit group can do it. We are looking at the non-
profit group arrangement. The “P” part of PEG would allow the public to televise
its own programming (within certain specified guidelines), the “G” component
would allow for the Government use – with all or most board/commission
meetings being televised as well as other public information purposes; while the
“E” would be available for the local educational purposes for the public and
private schools. The new police station will contain an area for the “G”
component to take place.
July 4th Fireworks T-Shirts for Sale
Special edition Fourth of July 2010 fireworks T-shirts are available in limited
supply from the Visitor Services office – revenue from the sale of these cool
shirts will go into a fund for the annual fireworks display. Speaking of which:
this year’s fireworks will be held on Sunday, July 4 at approximately 9:00 pm. In
the event of fog, we wait to see if it disperses. If, after an assessment (with
everyone’s jaws clenched) it does not appear to be dispersing quickly enough,
the fireworks will be postponed until Monday, July 5. If there is extreme bad
weather on July 4th, a decision will be made by 6:00 pm that day as to
postponing until the next day. Let’s hope for the best!
Landfill Wind Turbine Grant Approved
As mentioned in my prior newsletter, the Board of Selectmen recently approved
the submittal of a grant application to the state for nearly $400,000 for the
construction of a 1.5 megawatt wind turbine at the landfill where a
communications tower was located. The total cost of the turbine is estimated at
approximately $4,500,000. Payback is expected to be made within 8-10 years.
Subsequently, on-going savings would be realized through the energy generated
by the turbine. Last week, we received word from the state that our application
was…..approved! We are in the process of engaging a project manager and will
soon begin to plan for a potential special town meeting in the fall for a debt
exclusion override. As the project develops further, more information will follow.
We would appreciate receiving public input on the prospect of this wind turbine.
New Airport Parking System
The Airport’s new “Chip Coin Parking System” will be on-line, beginning on June
21. The system involves receiving a small poker-like token from an automated
station at the entrance of the parking lot which records the date and time of
entry. If your vehicle is in the lot for only the day, you simply deposit the Coin
Chip upon exit with no charge. If your vehicle is in the lot for longer than a day,
there is a charge which can be paid for with cash or credit card. A more
complete overview of this system is found on the Airport’s website at
http://www.nantucketairport.com/index.html.