MVC schedules a triple-header tonight
By Janet Hefler - May 17, 2007
The Martha's Vineyard Commission (MVC) scheduled an ambitious agenda for tonight's meeting, with plans for a continued public hearing on the Oyster Bar andGrill, and deliberations and decisions on the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club, plus a project at 18 State Road, all three under review as developments of regional impact (DRI).
The MVC will continue a public hearing from March 15 on the Oyster Bar and Grill building proposal to demolish most of the existing bar and build a three-story building on Circuit Avenue in Oak Bluffs.
Co-owner Michael Gillespie told the MVC's land use planning committee (LUPC) that the expansion will create desperately needed employee housing and add a function hall. At the March hearing, project architect Maurice O'Connor asked the MVC to allow the owners to continue to work on the project's details, subject to the approval of the Oak Bluffs historical commission.
The commissioners' concerns included wastewater, noise, waste management, and energy. In response to complaints from homeowners in the nearby campground worried about the visual and noise impacts in their neighborhood, the project has been modified.
Design sketches of the proposed Vineyard Haven Yacht Club, from the land side (left) and from the water side (right). Sketches provided by Breese Architects.
The other two projects on tonight's agenda, the Vineyard Haven Yacht Club and 18 State Road, received the LUPC's approval, with conditions, at a meeting on May 7.
The Vineyard Haven Yacht Club proposes to demolish the existing 3,500-square-foot building and replace it with a two-story, 4,400-square-foot replacement clubhouse. The beach cabana will be removed.
At a public hearing on March 12, providing access to a public section of beach near the Yacht Club and parking issues at the bottom of Owen Little Way were the main concerns. Yacht club representatives offered to meet with town and county representatives, as well as neighbors, to discuss everyone's concerns. The LUPC voted to set a deadline for the meeting of Oct. 15.
The commissioners also plan to make a decision on a project at 18 State Road in Tisbury. Owner Sylvestro Schiavone proposed plans for the construction of a new 2,200 square-foot, mixed-used building behind the Belushi Pisano Gallery at 18 State Road. The building would contain office space in the basement and a small apartment for Mr. Schiavone.
Traffic and the possibility of disturbing a sensitive archeological area topped the commissioners' concerns about the project. Some of the conditions suggested by the LUPC included contacting the Wampanoag Tribal historic preservation officer one week before any excavation is done. The LUPC also voted to require that landscaping plans must come back to the committee for review and approval.
