Selectmen Will Hold Hearing on Plan for Church Street Bus Terminal

Edgartown selectmen will hold a public hearing next week on the VTA&rsquo;s planned charging station project at the Church Street bus terminal.</p>

In response to requests from disgruntled historic district residents, Edgartown selectmen will hold a public hearing next week on the VTA’s planned charging station project at the Church Street bus terminal.

The hearing will begin next Tuesday at 4 p.m. in the Edgartown library conference room. Edgartown selectmen, as well as representatives from the VTA, have said they will be present to answer questions from the public about the project.

Last month, the VTA requested the removal of five shade trees on town land near or on the Church street property in order to commence with a project to install an electric bus charging station at the terminal. Selectmen voted to allow the removal of three of the trees on the condition that they would be replaced elsewhere in the town or on the site. A large linden tree, as well as another tree near the road, will remain in place.

The project will also include a new patio layout, a wooden pergola and new benches on the site — as well as the charging platform on the street.

Residents have spoken up at multiple selectmen’s meetings this past winter about the project, voicing concerns about an increase in bus traffic in the historic district.

At the selectmen’s meeting Monday, town administrator James Hagerty said the VTA would be present at the meeting but he did not know if there would be a presentation. The estimated $1.4 million project received a certificate of appropriateness from the town historic district commission in December 2019, but did not need to go through the town planning or zoning boards. The certificate was updated on Jan. 23 after selectmen voted to keep the large Linden tree.

In other business, selectmen appointed Pam Dolby to the Edgartown zoning board of appeals. Ms. Dolby was chosen from a field of six applicants. Selectmen cited her experience as the former administrator for the zoning board and deep knowledge of the town’s bylaws and regulations in their decision.

“She knows the bylaw backwards and forwards,” selectman Arthur Smadbeck said. “And she knows the town.”

Comments

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 01/28/2020 - 14:44

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Answer me this Chappy

If someone takes down 3 trees why is the rule you replace it with 3 trees. Seems to me there should be a multiplier of replacement trees. 3 healthy, growing trees get chopped down to be replaced by 3 transplants that may or may not live. No one doubts we need more trees, for many reasons. If the VTA wants to run it's buses over where 3 trees were I say make them replace them with 10x trees around town.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 01/28/2020 - 18:52

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Vasha B VH

I walk around the Five Corners area every day and live on Beach Rd. Most mornings I will see 3-5 buses passing through FC, and they are carrying hardly anyone.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Tue, 01/28/2020 - 20:23

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Homeowner Edgartown

A new ZBA member? One place you won’t be able to read about her new position or her role will be in the minutes of the Edgartown ZBA. Why? Because they don’t take minutes. The board literally has no minutes of their meetings. I guess they get a pass from state laws because it is Edgartown. How special.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 01/29/2020 - 02:18

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J. Graham MV

It sure seems that this should be a mandatory referral to the MVC under section 7.1 of the DRI checklist. Has this happened?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 01/29/2020 - 08:07

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Sara Piazza Edgartown

There has been strong negative reaction to this plan - on the street, in the marketplace, and via social media and comments left on previous articles in this paper. I hope as many of you as possible will turn out for the meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 01/31/2020 - 13:32

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Edgartonian

I think this will be a big improvement on Church St. No more diesel fumes and Loud noise from idling busses. New healthy trees to replace the mangled, dying, invasive Norway Maples currently hanging on for dear life and an improved seating ares with shade. All the same whiners who thought the roundabout Was the end of life as we know it on the island.

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