The Oak Bluffs select board looks over plans for the Southern Tier affordable housing project.
Aidan Pollard

Plans for Southern Tier Housing Project Come Into Focus

The Oak Bluffs select board Tuesday got a first look at plans and drawings for the Southern Tier development, a two-phase, 60-unit affordable housing project off Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road near the YMCA.

The Oak Bluffs select board Tuesday got a first look at plans and drawings for the Southern Tier development, a two-phase, 60-unit affordable housing project off Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road near the YMCA.

Plans for the project show an 11-building development, including a community building to contain shared space and maintenance facilities. The residential buildings are split evenly into five buildings with six, two-bedroom units and five buildings with a mix of three-bedroom and one-bedroom units.

Craig Nicholson, who works for the Boston-based real estate consultant Affirmative Investments, said work is slated to begin in the fall of 2023.

Affordable housing committee member Mark Leonard added that developers and town officials plan to begin a set of community meetings next month to inform town residents and field questions about the project.

“It looks good,” select board member Ryan Ruley said.

In other business. the select board also appointed Matt Rossi as the town’s full time building commissioner, after he received the necessary qualifications during his time spent as an alternate building inspector for the town.

Town administrator Deborah Potter said Mr. Rossi’s promotion was always planned as the town worked to fill the building commissioner role. The select board unanimously approved the appointment with little discussion.

Mr. Rossi thanked the board after giving a short speech about his work in the building department.

“This job can be tough in a lot of ways,” he said. “But on the other hand I get to see families move into their first home.”

In an update to the select board, new shellfish constable Donovan McElligatt discussed the health of shellfish in Sengekontacket pond, and proposed ways to preserve the population for the future.

“It has been a banner season, at least in Sengy, so far,” he said.

As the select board weighs lessening the number of bushels allowed by recreational shellfishers from three to two-and-a-half, Mr. McElligatt said he thinks a bigger concern for the pond is the health of its seed — not necessarily adult shellfish. He recommended keeping the previous bushel limit in place, but introducing a restriction prohibiting shellfishing when the water is below 35 degrees. Explaining the measure to the select board, he called it a conservation effort aimed at preserving the pond’s seed.

“This is more of a conservation method that I think is a happy medium,” he said.

The board decided to take Mr. McElligatt’s recommendation under advisement, and schedule a discussion for its next meeting.

Finally Tuesday, the board set dates for two upcoming special meetings. The board will hold its tax rate setting meeting on Dec. 6, and a community development block grant meeting on Dec. 27.

Comments

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 11/24/2022 - 14:44

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Charlie Callahan So Boston/Edgartown

About time. A lot of deserving, HONEST REAL WORKING PEOPLE deserve a helping hand on this island of undeserved and in most cases unearned wealth. If I offend anyone u earned it

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