Monomoy Civic Association - President’s Letter

January 25, 2026

Monomoy neighbors, 

I hope your year is off to a good start. Here’s a recap of 2025 and emerging plans for 2026. 

32 Monomoy STR (with Ken Roman)

The long battle to get the 32 Monomoy Road STR out of our neighborhood has been settled. In the end, The Copley Group sold the property to new family owners. We are happy to have them already as neighbors and members of the MCA.

The 32 Monomoy STR situation should never have come to this. Section 123 of the Town by-laws states “Short-term rentals are prohibited in dwelling units owned by a corporation, partnership, real estate trust, or any similar entity which pools funds from investors and is engaged primarily in investment activity.”

That describes the Copley Group. The operation of the 32 Monomoy STR by a purely corporate owner was the basis for MCA’s support for action by the abutters against the corporate owners of 32 Monomoy. We were disappointed that Town representatives turned down our request for enforcement, i.e. not viewing 32 Monomoy as a violation of the zoning code. Based on our lawyer’s advice, we then appealed Town’s decision not to enforce, raised the issue to the Zoning Board of Appeal, and took action to preserve our ability to bring a legal case. Ultimately, Copley sold the property. This end-result fulfilled our aim: ensure there are no corporate-owned STRs in Monomoy, in line with our objective of retaining the essential nature of Monomoy.

More broadly, the November 2025 Special Town Meeting vote amended the zoning code to add STRs as a primary use in residential neighborhoods. Importantly, that action does not over-ride existing Town By-Laws that apply to STRs. Views differ on whether the outcome at Town Meeting is preferable to a competing resolution that would have limited STR rentals, but the vote is done.

Thanks to the many people who supported this effort in various ways: our lawyers at Anderson & Krieger, the plaintiff abutters and the Litigation Task Force led by Franci Neely, funders, and Board members including Ken Roman, Matthew Westfall, and Laura Choma. 

Other 2025 Activities

During 2025, we worked and played together on other initiatives including:

• Holding our first Monomoy trash pick-up day, in which Monomoy volunteers worked with the “Clean Team” to pick up debris along the beaches and roads. Thanks to Debbe Nicholson for organizing this.
• Supporting the proposed island-wide change in noise regulations sponsored by the Sconset Civic Association, which are intended to tighten and standardize the hours for operation of loud machinery associated with construction and landscaping.
• Enjoying a Beachside Mingle at Mary-Randolph Ballinger’s – with a special cocktail featuring spirits made by Matthew Westfall’s growing company, Full Circle Craft Distillers.
• Planting a tree in the Creeks Preserve, dedicated to Ken Roman for his leadership of MCA during the past years.
• Holding a Sip & Social at Monomoy Beach, organized by Meg Dwyer. The weather didn’t cooperate, but a handful of hardy souls enjoyed some classic Nantucket wet and windy conditions.

Early view: 2026 Agenda

Plans for this year include:

• Cleaning up Monomoy roads and beaches. We will double down on our collaboration with the “Clean Team” - we are planning two Monomoy trash pick-up days this year.
• Working with Habitat for Humanity to build a house for an islander in need.
• Holding a neighborhood party.
• Convening our Annual MCA business meeting.
• Collaborating with the Nantucket Civic League and other groups where agendas overlap.
• Pursuing other items TBD. 

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MCA Board recognition and changes

• MCA Board Members include Laura Choma and Jeff Parker (Vice Presidents), Ken Roman (former President), Matt and Meg Dwyer, Michael Metz, Ed Orenstein, Michael Stanton, Debbe Nicholson, Steve Leinbach, Anne Finucane, and Leo Mullen. Please join me in thanking the Board for the considerable time and effort they put into the Monomoy Civic Association. We are always looking for volunteers to help in planning or managing events and initiatives; please let Laura or me know if you’re interested.
• A special thanks to Matthew Westfall, who has rolled off the Board as of end-2025. Matthew has done some heavy lifting, especially on the Monomoy Area Plan and on the 32 Monomoy STR matter.