A large housing development proposed in Edgartown will soon be undergoing the Martha’s Vineyard Commission public hearing process. Nearly 300 bedrooms in a variety of styles of housing are being proposed by Katama Meadow LLC, formerly Meeting House Way LLC.
The developers want to create a new subdivision road called Atlantic Avenue on Division Road and Henry’s Path. The property would be divided into six quarter-acre lots set aside for 12 duplex units; 26 three-quarter-acre “single-family lots”; and one 3.6-acre lot for around 36 affordable housing units. Around 25 acres of open space will be preserved.
The proposed location for the project, called Katama Meadows, is at 139 Meeting House Way. Katama Meadows’ proposed location abuts the 40-unit Meshacket Commons, already under construction in Edgartown and overseen by Island Housing Trust, on 38 Meshacket Road.
Martha’s Vineyard Commission staff presented plans during a commission Land Use Planning Committee meeting on Monday, noting there would be a total of 286 bedrooms included.
The committee approved the project, which will move the proposal on to the full commission for a public hearing scheduled to start on Thursday, May 20. The developers still need to do more work on its application; they’ll have to submit an updated traffic study, which is expected to be available next month. Also, while site plans have been submitted, details on the sizes and aesthetics of the buildings have yet to be filed.
The developers have offered to prohibit accessory dwelling units on the property, which was a concern raised by Julia Livingston, Edgartown planning board member, in December. While accessory dwelling units are permitted by right under state laws, Commission housing planner Laura Silber said on Monday this type of construction can be blocked in communities run by an entity like a homeowners association.
Katama Meadows is the fourth housing project that has begun its commission review in recent months. The other three include Chapter 40B projects of Cat Hollow in Tisbury, Green Villa in Oak Bluffs, and Edgartown Gardens. The four projects in total would have 537 bedrooms. Chapter 40B is a state law designed to make the construction of affordable housing easier in communities that don’t meet a threshold for affordable housing.
No, no, please no to this and other enormous housing projects. Just awful and to yet again demolish an older house to boot! Please stop the overdevelopment our precious small island. The island can’t handle any more development and retain its local, rural character and quality of life. The masses, the traffic, the trash, the parking, the woodlands/wildlife and resources/infrastructure are being overwhelmed and make life on island very stressful. And will require more building to support the extra humans living here. Please stop this horrendous project, to enable a few to exploit the island and pad their greedy pockets. It’s sickening! Townspeople, there is more to life than collecting big money and taxes!
None of this should be remotely considered without a traffic study ….lets see
Edgartown Great Plains cannot handle this much development
Maybe the land bank would purchase this? 300 bedrooms could mean near 600 more cars entering an area already stalled by traffic. But I suspect the MVC is under pressure to approve something at this location for fear of another lawsuit.
I already stay away from Edgartown because of the traffic……..This proposal is for 286 bedrooms on top of the other 40 unit construction underway in Edgartown? I agree the island needs housing, my concern is traffic on an already painfully congested island. The character of the island keeps changing. Five large scale developments totaling 537 beds in Edgartown, Oak Bluffs and Tisbury. These are the toughest towns to drive to and drive in. Plan it well, please, if you are going to do these massive off-island scale developments. The island I knew as I grew up, that my ancestors knew before me here, is fading away fast.
My heart goes out to you Robin. Everyone loves the island just the way it is. That is why it has so much charm and its beauty is as spellbounding as far as the eyes can see. I quiver when I think of more traffic, more people and more strain on your service providers. I hope the people will do the right thing and preserve this beautiful peice of earth and not turn it into an island people don’t recognize nor want to visit as it transforms from exquisitive and breathtaking to congested and taking on the character of a large inner city. Preserve Martha’s Vineyard.
What is the human capacity of the island? Do we have a number in mind? How many people can our aquifer support? Do we have infrastructure limits? How many cars can fit on the island? At what point do we say X amount of people living here is enough? Or X amount of cars? Is the goal to build a city on the water? Just wondering if anyone has a population limit in mind?
I do agree the island infrastructure is stretched for sure but we also have a major housing crisis. Where are our island youth going to live and raise families or are we not going to reproduce island off spring because it is too crowded? Our Fire departments, Police departments and other public safety groups do not have personnel to fill the roles because of no housing. Our service industries have no places to live. Look at the several hundred off island people that come everyday to work here. Look for your classmates, where do they live, your Aunts, Uncles Cousins etc.
we need restrictions along with the housing so they cannot ever be used for investments but only for year round housing with a percentage being various affordable categories or No this cannot be approved
The island accommodates tens of thousands of day trippers every single day during the summer. Five hundred units of housing can certainly be absorbed. If the island is too crowded consider implementing a fee like Venice did, to make a certain percentage of them stay home. There was a time for most of the Cape and Islands history that the actual “character” of the island was working class, small business owners. Return to that character if you want to be authentic
I hope you looked up your numbers before stating that we accommodate “tens of thousands of day trippers every single day”. It is nowhere near that number. And those day tourists are concentrated in the down-island area and don’t bring cars.
No — 500 units of housing cannot be absorbed. Do You have a physician? A dentist? A veterinarian? The inter-relationship of housing and services needs coordination and planning. An additional 500 units — meaning around 1500 people — will need services. And we are talking about 1500 ADDITIONAL people living here — not just people who are already here.
AFFORDABLE business spaces also need to be created In Conjunction with housing and No One is paying attention to this particular need.
You make some really good points about services such as having a dentist, veterinarian, physician, etc. etc. These are already beyond stretched to the limit and we already cannot service the community. There have been multiple articles in the papers about these concerns. It doesn’t seem like that is being factored in. I think this is all turning a corner that we will never recover from.
The majority of year round residents are opposed to these large/tall housing developments because of traffic congestion, pollution, low income-part timers and higher crime incidents.
Martha’s Vineyard Commission must deny permission for all 4 of these housing projects to comply with year rounders.
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