Nantucket Harbor Board Votes to Send Chapter 91 Fuel Complaint to Select Board

NANTUCKET — April 21, 2026 — Nantucket's Harbor and Shellfish Advisory Board voted 6-0 to draft a letter to the Select Board demanding a formal review of Great Harbor Yacht Club's Chapter 91 state license, citing the absence of marine fuel service, inadequate public access signage, and an allegedly unfulfilled storm haul-out protocol. The vote came after board members received a memo from town administrator Jeff Carlson and Natural Resources Director Tara Riley warning them that Chapter 91 enforcement falls outside the advisory board's jurisdiction and must be routed through the Select Board. Commercial fisherman and board member Bob DaCosta, who burns 80 to 100 gallons of diesel daily, framed the fuel gap as a harbor-wide emergency risk: "It's July and you got a storm coming and we've lost the capacity to pump fuel at the boat basin — and there's nobody else to give them fuel." Former harbormaster Dave Fronzuto, participating by video, said the yacht club's license specifically requires an annual storm haul-out management plan coordinated with the harbormaster, and he doubted that requirement has been met in years. Members Scott Anderson and Peter Brace were tasked with co-drafting the Select Board letter for review at the next meeting, tentatively May 19. The board also debated a sweeping overhaul of commercial scalloping apprenticeship rules — including a proposed two-tiered license system and reduced paperwork for veterans of the fishery — but took no vote, with the discussion to continue when absent member Jim Sherlin can attend.