we want what is best for the island and the community

• Upcoming Vacation Rental Related Events and Outcomes:

• Preparing for Annual Town Meeting 2025 (May 3, 2025 8:30AM)
• Following the Ward vs. Grape Family & Town of Nantucket Lawsuit (Judge Vhay's Order)
• What does the Seasonal Community Designation Mean for Vacation Rentals?

ANNUAL TOWN MEETING 2025

We fully endorse the Planning Board and Finance Committee (FINCOM) recommendations to 'recommend approval ' of citizen-sponsored (Dr. Caroline Baltzer) Article 66 and the recommendation to 'take no action' or 'not to approve' the other three. These 4 articles can be found in their entirety here. In summary:

•  Article 66 - Zoning Bylaw Amendment - Short-Term Nantucket Vacation Rentals (NVR) - Sponsored by Dr. Caroline Baltzer - this article codifies the Zoning Board of Appeals remand ruling that recognizes traditional Nantucket Vacation rentals by families whose intent is to use their properties as well as rent them.  this article received a unanimous positive 'vote to adopt' recommendation (which we fully support) by the Planning Board and FINCOM   
•  Article 67 - Zoning Bylaw Amendment - Short-Term Rentals sponsored by Frederick McClure - this article creates an STR accessory use definition and includes residency and rental day limitations including minimum stays. this article received a unanimous 'take no action' recommendation from the Planning Board and FINCOM
• Article 68 - General Bylaw Amendment to Existing STR Regulations (Chapter 123) - sponsored by Patricia Wright - this proposed amendment includes virtually the same language as Article 67 but is submitted as a general bylaw which requires only a simple majority to pass.  However, since it contains a zoning definition of accessory use, Town Counsel has noted it is not in proper legal form. This article may have been submitted in case Article 67 (which would precede it in the warrant) does not get a 2/3 majority, to give the voters another 'bite at the apple'.  This article also expands on the existing requirement for vacation rental home inspections and requires submission of home layouts with exits marked (and those layouts are already required to be posted in the home).  It is possible the submitter will propose, at ATM, wording changes to correct Town Counsel concerns but regardless, the proposed restrictions run counter to known Nantucket vacation rental data, would destroy the shoulder season and make summer rentals impossible for those families who can only afford a long weekend.  This proposal is in conflict with the recommendations made in the past by the STR Working Group, the STR Consensus Team and the town. - this article received a unanimous negative recommendation from FINCOM (voted not to adopt)
• Article 69 - General Bylaw Amendment to Existing STR Regulations (Chapter 123) - sponsored by Matthew Peel - this proposed amendment includes a 3 year cap on STRs while the town collects and publishes STR data. It also includes restrictions of 70 days of annual rentals per owner, a limit of 2 STR properties per owner, specifically permits time-share unit STR rentals and restricts sublease rentals.  At an earlier FINCOM Meeting Mr. Peel suggested that the proposed changes were submitted as a laundry list of ideas which could be modified (to be less restrictive) or removed on the floor of town meeting as 'in scope' revisions.  Having a cap before published STR demographic head counts are complete/made public and choosing an arbitrary 70 day limit, also without any rationale makes no sense to us.  this article received a unanimous negative recommendation from FINCOM (voted not to adopt)

OUR OPINION ON ATM 2025 Articles: The town Code in Chapter 123 has been updated with the two amendments passed in 2024 ATM/STM (Articles 60 and 5) since the submission of Articles 68 and 69 for the ATM 2025 warrant.  Confusing voters has proven to be problematic.  Let's leave the STR bylaw regulations alone until we see what effects they have had before we add more unsupported (by Nantucket data) restrictions.
 

Ward vs. Grape Family & Town of Nantucket Trial

 After the ZBA ruled in their remand decision last September, that STRs were a permitted customary accessory use of a residence, Cathy Ward filed an appeal with the state Land Court.  The Nantucket Current article reporting this event can be found here.  The details of the appeal can be found here.  The parallel lawsuit filed by Christopher Quick against the Keith family and the town has not been appealed and is therefore moot; case closed.

The trial was held in the Boston Land Court 19-21 February,  The town subpoenaed 4 witnesses to testify for the town (and the Grape family who joined the town in this lawsuit), 2 prominent real estate brokers, Dr. Caroline Baltzer (sponsor of Article 66 and Kathy Baird, President and Co-founder of Nantucket Together), all of whom were cited in the ZBA's remand ruling for salient facts provided at the public hearing.  Attorneys for Ms. Ward filed a motion to exclude the latter two witnesses stating their testimony would be duplicative of the real estate brokers.  The town then filed a motion, providing additional rationale for why that would not be the case and Judge Vhay agreed to reconsider once all the approved witnesses had given their testimony.  This turned out to be mid-morning on the last day of the trial.  As potential witnesses, Ms. Baird and Dr. Baltzer were not permitted in the courtroom to hear any testimony and spent those days sitting outside the courtroom waiting for the call that never came but were allowed to be present for the closing arguments.  As we understood the judge's unanswered questions, Counsel on both sides were given a 'homework assignment' to provide him with the original (1970's and 1991 replacement zoning regulations) along with the legislative definition of STRs and what the difference in 'use' is between a rental of 31 (a STR) vs. 32 days (not a STR).  

On March 19, 2025, Judge Vhay sent an Order to the town and the Grape Family (click here to read in its entirety)  The Judge laid out his understanding/interpretation of the 2 sets of zoning bylaws, asked for clarification regarding why the term 'rented' was excluded from the 1991 version and extended the date for a reply to April 9.  The fact that the term 'rent(ing)' a home (for any duration) is found nowhere in the town's zoning has always been a point of confusion for Nantucket Together and the Judge is now making that an obvious issue in his ability to make a ruling.  Town Counsel will provide a confidential memo (evaluation and recommendation of next steps) to the Select Board which may play into their final warrant article recommendations.  In any case, it is clear that the judge hopes the voters at the 2025 Annual Town Meeting will clarify their intent in zoning so he does not have to do it for them.   This trial is about one family's use of their home as a Nantucket Vacation Rental several years ago but it would set a precedent.....and whatever his decision is, another appeal is likely if it is not settled at ATM.

It should also be noted that regardless of the outcome of this trial, passage of Article 66 at ATM would render the lawsuit moot, as the definition of permissible Nantucket Vacation Rentals (NVR) would become part of the town zoning code and be regulated by existing and new general bylaws going forward.  

...And oh, by the way, Nantucket was named specifially by the state as a Seasonal Community

In the state-issued, Seasonal Communities Guidance, "The Seasonal Communities designation was created as part of the Affordable Homes Act, signed into law by Governor Maura Healey on Aug. 6, 2024. The Seasonal Communities designation is designed to recognize Massachusetts communities that experience substantial seasonal variation in housing demand, visitors, and employment and to create distinctive tools to address their unique housing needs."  This is great news for the island and an additional, powerful tool in its initiatives to create more affordable and attainable housing for town employees and the island's workforce.  And, the criteria for achieving that status includes (bold added):

• High rates of short-term rentals in relation to the overall housing inventory;
• Significant population increases in seasonal visitors;
• Excessive disparities between the area median income and the income required to purchase the municipality’s median home price;
• Percentage of housing stock that is used for seasonal, occasional or recreational use or is otherwise not used as a primary residence by the property’s owner (>60% on Nantucket); and
• High variations in the average monthly variation of employment in the sector over the full year, in relation to the municipality’s minimum employment threshold.

OUR OPINION: We fully support the town and the Grape Family in defending the use of their home as a traditional NVR. The time has come. Let's  VOTE YES AND PASS ARTICLE 66 to put this all behind us and move forward focused on the increasingly critical issues facing all of us on the island we love. 

Kathy Baird for Nantucket Together 

 ProcessFirst was selected by the town to delve into online rental platform, MA State STR registry, home sales data and combine it/ compare it to the extent possible with similar data being independently aggregated by the Nantucket Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB), removing duplicates and protecting personal information.