The Tisbury Visioning Council is about to start a new set of workshops. Peter Simon, owner of Peter Simon Photography and Simon Gallery, and other Main Street merchants have asked to discuss ways to bolster business activity in Vineyard Haven’s retail area, and the impact that the change in Union Street traffic flow has had on business.
The meeting, scheduled for 5 to 7:30 pm on Thursday, Feb. 2, at the Town Hall Annex on High Point Lane, is open to the public.
The visioning council is an outgrowth of a planning process that began in 2015 after the Stop and Shop redevelopment plan failed.
“That wasn’t a productive way to work,” Cheryl Doble said. “We needed more dialogue between people and government and businesses.”
Ms. Doble and Ben Robinson, both council members, along with frequent workshop participant Carol Salguero, visited The Times office last week to talk about the council’s mission. Ms. Doble and Mr. Robinson are also on the Tisbury planning board.
“The meetings are a place for the public to have input and get informed,” Ms. Doble said. “We need something between town meetings to keep people informed.”
The visioning council hopes to tap a state program called Complete Streets, which reimburses towns up to $400,000 per year for expenditures on road improvement projects that encourage walkability.
“The first step is to make a priority list,” Mr. Robinson said. “A consultant will help make sure the projects are reimbursable at the state level.” The state will pay for the capital improvement, but the town must figure out how to pay planning costs.
The second step is to look at the top five or six projects in the list and “get them ready to go,” Mr. Robinson continued. The council is focused on projects that are much smaller than the Beach Road reconstruction. Work on the state highway necessarily involves the Department of Transportation (MassDOT), while the council wants to focus on town roads and sidewalks.
The third part, the planning, is up to the town. Mr. Robinson listed several potential sources of funding. Steamship Authority embarkation fees, he said, helped improve conditions near the Steamship Authority (SSA) landing. Community Preservation funds, allocations made by towns in their budgets, and grants from state, federal, and private nonprofits are all possible funding sources.
The visioning council listed among the positive outcomes of its efforts the resurgence of the business committee, ongoing improvements in Owen Park, Shellfish Day (an event that taught young and old about shellfishing), and a parking plan that led to changes at the SSA site.
See tisburyvision.discover-more.com for more information.