10 fixes to short-term rental problems.
It has taken decades for us to get to this point and it will surely take decades more to fix this problem. Here are a few ways to get that process going.
Ten problems that STRs cause.
I’ve been an avid observer of the short-term rental work group’s progress (or lack thereof) for the past six months. The town was tasked with creating a work group and took several months to make it happen. As a result of this drawn-out process, the workgroup has very little chance of developing something of substance …
A discussion on Facebook this week
I posted an article on Facebook about a proposed measure in Washington DC to heavily tax oversized personal vehicles that take up too much room and have an outsized impact on roads, traffic, and emissions. Interesting and rather defensive responses from many people. One person said that the problem with too many people and too …
Can peer pressure save Nantucket?
I ran a little survey this past week. 60 people responded. The goal was not to find out what people’s opinions are on housing, but instead to understand how people feel about those who sell their homes and the choices they make. Here’s the rather purposefully round-a-bout hypothetical question: Let’s say you have an older …
An Analogy for Nantucket
There comes a time in your life when it hits you. Usually, it’s when your pants are getting tight and you think, the easiest thing is to buy bigger pants. Perhaps you go to Target and they don’t have any pants in your size, or they do, but in the “Big&Tall” section. Embarrassing, right? And …
A hypothetical survey question about housing
Another boat is not a solution.
There has been a story in the local media about the Steamship Authority looking into adding a new boat to the Nantucket route. While some think this would solve the problem of an over-booked boat line, a new boat would likely cause more problems than it would solve. We already have too many cars on …
A thought for the week
This is the time of year we all get a little sick of being here. It’s the time of year some of us go away and some of us are jealous of the people who go away. But it helps to be happy for what we have. Because we have so much here.
Are short-term rentals a property right? No.
Let’s talk about property rights as it relates to rentals on Nantucket. I’ve heard a few people say that regulating and limiting short-term rentals on the island infringes upon their property rights. And for them, it likely feels that way. But the truth is something different. As voters, we all need to grasp the fact …
Not participating has its consequences.
I wrote this on Facebook 8 years ago about a measure to add a new supermarket in the mid island. It’s even more true today. In a recent survey about the proposed supermarket on Old South Road, I received 368 responses (some people took the survey multiple times, but their duplicate responses were deleted.) And …