A complaint filed last summer in opposition to Edgartown Stop & Shop’s expansion project was dismissed Tuesday.
The lawsuit, filed with Dukes County Superior Court on July 11 by Benjamin Hall Sr., names Stop & Shop, the Edgartown building inspector, Stop & Shop’s local attorney Geoghan Coogan, William J. Cummings, WJG Realty Trust, and the Martha’s Vineyard Commission in the complaint.
Benjamin Hall Sr., who is an abutter with Stop & Shop in Edgartown, argued through his son, Island attorney Benjamin Hall Jr., that the supermarket had been in violation of the agreed-upon conditions placed by the MVC when it was approved in 2018.
The multi-phase expansion project, which involved the demolition and now the rebuilding of the abutting Rockland Trust Bank, site regrading, subsurface utility installation, and the construction of a 17,432-square-foot addition to the existing supermarket’s 25,259 square feet, had been initially slated to begin in 2019.
July’s suit, filed under Courtway Trust on behalf of Benjamin Hall Sr., aimed to freeze the Edgartown Stop & Shop expansion project, which after lengthy delays — due to Hall’s previous suit — eventually commenced midsummer 2022.
Hall then argued that the onsite work surpassed the two-year limitation regarding the commencement of construction, in addition to alleging that the Martha’s Vineyard Commission (MVC) had “reviewed and accepted various substantive changes” to the project without reopening the public hearing, and thus not allowing for public comment.
Legal representatives for Stop & Shop, the MVC, and the Edgartown building inspector subsequently filed a motion to dismiss Hall’s complaint.
On Monday, Jan. 23, Superior Court Judge Mark Gildea ordered that request for dismissal.
No one has ever explained to me why this family file so many frivolous lawsuits. It does seem they want to spend more time in court than repairing their buildings. So looking forward to more selection for groceries on the island and at a price I can afford.
S&S in Edgartown has a poor selection of goods now, with many shelves empty and employee shortages. How is a bigger store going to help?
Comments are closed.