voices: the community speaks of Nantucket and GHYC

October 20, 2003

Board of Selectmen
Town of Nantucket
Broad Street
Nantucket, MA 02554

Ms. Marianne Stanton
Editor
Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror
1 Old South Road
Nantucket, MA 02554

Dear Madame & Gentlemen:

We, as a community, are at a critical juncture with respect to public access and the development of the waterfront in the core district area.

I urge you to investigate the feasibility of acquiring the Deeley property via the Town's Eminent Domain powers and developing it for the public's use. It seems evident that if it is sufficiently profitable for a developer to acquire and develop the property that there may well be opportunities for the Town to also derive enough revenue to acquire it and retain it for the public's use.

Many members of our community feel that it is undesirable for this property to be developed in the proposed manner for the benefit of so few. As the elected leaders of our community, it is your responsibility to inform yourselves and the residents as to the options regarding this exceptionally significant property. Perhaps there is sufficient opportunity to generate revenue so that it could be accomplished without raising the tax base. If there were to be an increase in taxes, how much would it be? What are the some of the less apparent consequences of public versus private development? What might be the impact on improving traffic and reducing the need for additional access at the Children's Beach ramp. Is there an opportunity for the Land Bank to participate in the acquisition as it does with the Miacomet Golf Course?

As you know Eminent Domain is the power of the government to acquire property for "public use" so long as the government pays "just compensation." Again, I urge you to investigate the feasibility of the acquisition and the preservation of public access to the harbor.

Respectfully,

Chip LaBonte
32 Morey Lane, Nantucket