Two Oak Bluffs residents hoping to build a new home on Ocean avenue are suing the town’s wastewater commission for what they allege is an unsubstantiated decision and a potential conflict of interest.

Rebecca and Roy Weathers filed a lawsuit in Dukes County Superior Court last month, seeking to overturn the commission’s denial of the Weathers’ change of use or flow application. The application is a necessary step in the pair’s plan to tear down the single-bedroom house on the property and build a new home, which will also be a single-bedroom.

The Weathers bought the home on Ocean avenue from Luke and Jill Barmakian in 2019. The home was in the Barmakian family for about 75 years. 

Gail Barmakian is the chair of the wastewater commission, which denied the approval in January. Ms. Barmakian is also a former select board member and a member of the Copeland review board, a board that preserves the cultural continuity of the area and gave the project approval. 

The suit alleges that her participation in the decision is a conflict of interest and that the commission’s decision is a denial of due process.

The wastewater commission denied the change of use or flow application because the new home will be substantially bigger, according to the meeting minutes. Ms. Barmakian said that although the number of bedrooms will be the same, the increase in square footage could indicate an increase of flow and water usage. The three-person commission unanimously voted to deny the application.

Rebecca and Roy Weathers disagreed, saying the commission had little evidence to support its decision. 

“There is no statute, rule or regulation that supports the Commission’s rationale. To the contrary, the Commission’s decision flies in the face of the uncontested facts established in the application and at the Commission’s public hearing,” the suit reads.

The lawsuit argues that the speculation on size impacting the use of flow is unsupported and that Ms. Barmakian’s involvement was questionable given the fact that family members owned the property for several years. 

“Gail Barmakian should not have participated in the Commission’s hearing (or the Copeland Review Board’s) and her participation unlawfully and improperly tainted the public hearing and substantially prejudiced the Weathers’ right to due process,” the suit states.

Ms. Barmakian declined to comment on the suit, citing the ongoing litigation.

An initial hearing on the appeal has not been set.