To the Editor:
Yes, Oak Bluffs Voters, you read that subject line correctly! Only two months after zoning reform articles were resoundingly defeated at town meeting, the planning board is resurrecting them. When I asked why, the answers given were as follows. A planning board member said that he knows I live near Goodale’s (for the record, I’m fortunate to live more than a mile away!). Another planning board member explained, with an air of condescension, that if the Edgartown–Vineyard Haven Road isn’t commercialized, then in his words, “Oak Bluffs will die.” I wonder what the thriving businesses in our downtown think about that?
Since public comment was limited in the meeting, my response is as follows: Members of the planning board, since Oak Bluffs has more commercial business than most towns on this Island, perhaps the town needs to rein in spending, stop doing Prop. 2½ overrides, and work within our budget. Furthermore, why don’t you focus on the myriad violations along the Edgartown–Vineyard Haven Road? Why are we seeking to justify businesses who are in violation by rezoning? They should be held accountable with cease-and-desist orders. The sheer amount of clear-cutting done by Donaroma’s and at 0 Beth Way is an abomination.
Our Island has finite resources. Our planet is warming at an alarming rate — stop cutting down large trees. Conservation rather than accelerated growth fueled by greed must be at the forefront of decisionmaking.
Susan Desmaris
Oak Bluffs
