Tisbury board of selectmen agreed to put the question of the sale of all alcoholic beverages in restaurants, including restaurants in hotels, before voters on May 9 (Feb. 15, “Tisbury selectmen put liquor sales on the ballot”). They also voted on a proposal for a zoning bylaw amendment, and for an initiative to reduce tick-borne illness, and heard an update on conservation mooring regulations from the Tisbury harbormaster.
Marni Lipke, a resident of Vineyard Haven, appeared in front of selectmen to propose a zoning bylaw amendment to “relax or waive” accessory-unit bylaws. Her proposal, if passed, would allow for an increase in the size limit of accessory units for affordable housing and caregiving only. Accessory units in Tisbury currently can be up to 40 percent of the house, and no larger than 600 square feet.
Ms. Lipke said it would help the town deal with two serious problems it faces: affordable housing and elderly housing. “What I like about this amendment is that it’s fairly simple,” Ms. Lipke said. “It’s at little or no cost to the town.”
Ben Robinson, a member of the planning board, said it was a good idea, but cautioned that what’s simple on the surface isn’t necessarily simple in execution. Selectmen agreed to refer the proposal to the Tisbury planning board.
In other business, selectmen agreed to support the Martha’s Vineyard Boards of Health Tick Borne Disease Initiative (TBDI) to hold a state hearing with the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) on the issue of expanding the deer-hunting season to help battle the Lyme disease epidemic on the Vineyard, after hearing from Matthew Poole, Edgartown health agent, who was there to represent Dick Johnson, a field biologist for TBDI.
Island hunters had previously come out en masse in Oak Bluffs to oppose the idea (Jan. 18, “Deer-hunting debate heats up on Martha’s Vineyard”). The initiative, however, is looking to develop strategies to reduce the deer herd through a public hearing.
According to an infrared survey, there are 40 deer per square mile on the Vineyard, or about 4,000 total deer. On average, Mr. Poole said, about 800 deer are killed on-Island each year by hunting or being struck by a car.
John Crocker, Tisbury harbormaster, updated selectmen on conservation moorings, as the harbor management subcommittee continues to draft regulations for them (Feb. 15, “Which mooring technology works best in Vineyard Haven?”).
The only regulation currently is that conservation moorings are inspected annually. The subcommittee, Mr. Crocker estimated, will draft regulations for the elastic cords to be removed from the water for inspection, because the members believe the moorings haven’t been sufficiently inspected in the past.
