Nantucket Historical Commission finalizes strategy to complete 110-property Brant Point survey

NANTUCKET -- March 20, 2026, Nantucket Historical Commission advances Brant Point survey list and lands a state preservation planning grant. At its March 20 hybrid meeting, the commission reached consensus directing staff member Holly Baxter to compile an expanded list of candidate properties along Easton Street and nearby corridors to bring a working 79-property survey list up to the 110 forms required under the Massachusetts Historical Commission Fiscal Year 23 contract with Easton Architects, with a hard completion deadline of September 2026. The commission also confirmed receipt of a Fiscal Year 2026 Certified Local Government grant from the Massachusetts State Historic Preservation Office, the first CLG award the commission has received in that category, carrying a 40-60 match structure, awarded to only four of 31 eligible communities. Separately, members agreed to hold a draft letter to the town manager on Civil War Monument protections until May, timing it to the roughly one-year anniversary of last year's damage repair. The February minutes were approved 6-0 with one abstention.