Nantucket Tomorrow

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                       NANTUCKET TOMORROW

   Summary of a "Yourtown Tomorrow" report by Nantucket school
teachers, 1974


> NANTUCKET ZERO--A building boom is adding to the slow but steady
growth of year-round population and the rapid rise of summer
tourism.  Aging physical facilities in such areas as education,
sanitation, and water supply are matters of community concern. 
Concern about land use and open space comes from the mainland as
well as the island; Sen. Kennedy's bill appears to be the most
likely solution to these problems.  Researchers were surprised by
the lack of long-term planning in certain areas, such as energy
supply.

> NANTUCKET ONE--By 2000, the Kennedy bill has been enacted,
preserving large areas as open space or at present levels of use. 
The building boom is over, leaving 39 percent of the island
undeveloped, but perhaps as many as 5,500 housing units have been
added to the present 3,300, dividing some 44 percent of the island
into new two and one-half acre lots.

The Kennedy bill's proposals for job development are largely
unsuccessful, and the end of the building boom forces a number of
year-round residents to relocate on the mainland.  The economic gap
between summer and year-round residents is increasingly evident. 
Air and water pollution are not problems; the amount of fresh water
available has been determined by a study done in the late '70s.  A
number of breakdowns in the sewer systems forces the improvement of
facilities.  Erosion of certain coastline areas by wind, water, and
the action of off-the-road vehicles continues despite sporadic
attempts to correct the problem.

> NANTUCKET TWO--The island, or certain parts of it, are restricted
to bicycles.  Restoration to the Nantucket of whaling days has
secured Nantucket's place in the hearts of tourists, although some
permanent residents dislike their nineteenth-century garb and
lifestyle.  Most of the housing built in the last 25 years follows
the cluster community pattern.  Several research and consulting
firms have located on the island, bringing with them a number of
professional personnel and the beginnings of a year-round economic
base.  Non-depletable energy sources contribute an increasing
percentage to the island's energy needs.

Paraprofessional health workers and a computer-television
diagnostic laboratory reduce the need to go off-island for medical
services.  Open education, increased emphasis on the fine arts and
vocational training, and considerable use of closed-circuit TV are
among the educational innovations.

• Lois M. Frey, UVM Extension, RR #4, Box 2298, Montpelier, VT 05602, (802) 223-2389, email: lfrey@sover.net
• "Group Development: Creating Group Effectiveness" by Duane Dale, DFD Associates, 99 Brattle Street, Cambridge, MA 02138-3402 (moving to 764 South East Street, Amherst, MA 01022 after 8/1/98);
• Bob Biagi, 142 Cherry Lane, Amherst, MA 01002 (413) 549-1412;

Comments to: crs@uvm.edu
Reviewed as of 4/20/98