Two Oak Bluffs families are in the early stages of planning a housing development that would see 61 houses built on 68 acres on two adjoining lots off Barnes Road, if they can win approval from the town and the Martha’s Vineyard Commission. Oraibi Voumard and Davio Danielson, whose families own the two lots, appeared before a receptive town planning board on May 13 to propose in theory the project which would be the first development to test the town’s flexible zoning bylaw approved by voters in 2003.

The development would form a horseshoe around eight other lots by extending Double Ox Road onto the Danielson property and exit through the Voumard property. According to planning board chairman John Bradford the minimum zoning in the planned development area is 1.5 acres. But the developers want to take advantage of the town’s so-called flexible zoning bylaw that allows for more dense developments if there are considerations for contiguous open space, affordable housing and elderly housing.

“With cluster housing we would be able to preserve close to 70 per cent of the property from development,” said Mr. Voumard on Monday in an interview with the Gazette. The undeveloped property consists of predominantly shrub oak and pitch pine woodland.

The flexible zoning bylaw requires that 10 per cent of the units are affordable to families earning less that 50 per cent median income or 15 per cent for families earning between 50 per cent and 80 per cent of median income. Mr. Voumard said the plans would include eight units for occupants 55 and over and at least nine affordable units.

“We could make that more if we had the right kind of support,” he said.

No formal plans have been filed yet.

Mr. Voumard said it was too early to determine what form the affordable housing would take but said that the developers are looking at a wide range of mixed uses for the 61 homes.

“There will be a mix of different types of affordable: single family, multiple family buildings, small homes, large homes, different income brackets, some affordable, some fair market, some elderly — it’s not just going to be all fair-market-value homes or all cohousing style or all New England-built style,” he said.

One key hurdle for the development, which would be built within the Lagoon Pond watershed, will center on increased nitrogen loading in the already-stressed pond. Mr. Voumard said he had been in contact with the town wastewater committee and was hoping to tie into the town sewer system.

Otherwise, he said, “We’re looking at full denitrification systems.” he said.

Mr. Bradford agreed that nitrogen loading is a significant issue.

“It’s obviously one of the things we’re considering,” he said. “They’re working on different possibilities but it’s something that everyone’s concerned about.”

Mr. Voumard also said the houses would be built with an eye toward green standards and practices, including heavy insulation, the use of photovoltaics, energy metering and foot pedals for sinks.

Mr. Voumard and Mr. Danielson will appear before the planning board again on June 9 when they are expected to file a preliminary plan for the development. Once a formal plan is filed, the project will be referred to the MVC for review at the regional level.