Edgartown selectmen and members of the town Community Preservation Committee and affordable housing committee reacted with sharp skepticism to an informal proposal to steer 65 per cent of each Island town’s Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds toward a regional affordable housing effort.

The proposal, floated by an ad hoc committee exploring regional solutions to the Island’s housing crisis, came in a letter to selectmen, signaling the group’s intention to gauge support with a nonbinding referendum question on spring town meeting warrants in each of the six Island towns.

“Our current objective is to inspire all six towns to commit 65 per cent of annual CPA funds to the housing fund,” wrote Robert Sawyer, a member of the ad-hoc committee, in a letter to the Edgartown selectmen. “This would be a meaningful beginning to addressing this critical issue.”

The idea saw little support at the selectmen’s meeting Monday.

“I’m, at this point, not in favor,” said board chairman Margaret Serpa. “We have our own projects that we are trying to move forward. That’s our concentration.”

Town leaders said they feared devoting such a large portion of CPA funds to a regional effort would jeopardize projects already underway in Edgartown.

“We have never turned down a request,” said Morton Fearey, a member of the town Community Preservation Committee. “I don’t think we need to rob the other groups.”

On Tuesday, Island Housing Trust executive director Philippe Jordi, who is also involved in the effort, said the committee had revised the language of the proposed warrant article to eliminate any specific percentage of CPA funds.

“We really need to look at how we can fund this collectively,” Mr. Jordi said, referring to a regional housing effort. “It means larger projects, you can’t do it town by town. The strong feeling was we need to reach out to voters.”

Selectmen took no action on the proposal.

Also Monday, selectmen voted on the advice of the town shellfish committee to close Cape Pogue Bay to bay scalloping effective Feb. 28. Other waters will remain open. Selectmen also voted to open Sengekontacket Pond to commercial oyster fishing in all areas except the area restricted to family oystering. Commercial fishermen will be allowed to harvest oysters from March 1 to April 28. The commercial limit is two 10-gallon wash baskets per day, Monday through Friday.

Selectmen voted unanimously to sign special and annual town meeting warrants. Among the articles expected to spark debate are a measure to authorize the $3 million purchase of private property known as the Yellow House at 66 Main Street. The dilapidated building, owned in trust by the Hall family, has been the subject of a long-running legal dispute. The article would authorize purchase or taking by eminent domain, with a combination of taxpayer funds and CPA funds.

Also on the warrant is an article to spend $750,000 for a new fire truck, $160,000 for a new harbor patrol boat, $600,000 for a new dredge vessel and $255,000 for a bike path along Meshacket Road.

The annual town meeting is April 11.