East Chop Drive is closed until further notice due to further deterioration of the bluff caused by the recent gauntlet of northeasters hammering the coast.

A motion to close the road was unanimously approved by the Oak Bluffs selectmen at their meeting Wednesday evening.

“There has been further damage to the bluff,” said selectman Greg Coogan. “We’ve had to close it both ways.”

Residents who typically reach their homes via East Chop Drive are encouraged to use back and side roads while damage to the bluff is assessed.

The scenic drive has been damaged by erosion for more than a century. The road has been limited to a single lane since Hurricane Sandy destabilized the bluff in 2012.

Stabilizing the bluff has become a priority for Oak Bluffs town officials as the bluff continues to erode. The town recently received a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation to pay for the design and permitting of expanding and raising the revetment below roughly Munroe avenue to Arlington avenue.

Project engineer Carlos Pena of CLE Engineering will give an update on how recent storms will affect bluff stabilization at the regular meeting of the Martha’s Vineyard Commission Thursday evening at 7 p.m.

Selectmen will revisit the issue of whether to open East Chop Drive to traffic at their next meeting after hearing Mr. Pena’s report.

The issue of crumbling Oak Bluffs infrastructure came up again later in the meeting after selectmen Gail Barmakian and town conservation agent Liz Durkee raised concerns about the vulnerability of Oak Bluffs waterfront. Ms. Barmakian called for an action plan to be drawn up of the top five infrastructure priorities the town must urgently address in the next few years.

“We can’t wait for the seawall to fall down or Farm Pond Road to cave in,” said Ms. Barmakian. “Our infrastructure is out waterfront. We need to find a five to 10-year solution that can be incorporated into a long-term plan.”

“These projects get more expensive the longer we wait to do them,” added Ms. Durkee.

In other business, selectmen unanimously accepted a regional shelter agreement that would make the Oak Bluffs elementary school a shelter for all Island residents.

The school was chosen due to its ample size, kitchen access and proximity to the hospital and fire station.

The shelter agreement must be voted on by regional managers from all six towns to pass. Only four yay votes are required. Dissenting towns would still have to contribute funds if the agreement passes.

Oak Bluffs would only pay for the first four-hour shift of personnel manning the shelter since the town is providing the space. Other towns would pay for resources to supply the shelter and shifts past the first four hours.

“It is for our good and the good of the Island,” said selectman and board chairman Kathy Burton, who participated in the meeting remotely. “It makes sense.”

A review of the annual town meeting warrant led to some tension between selectmen and several community leaders representing various social service agencies.

In a year when money is tight, the Oak Bluffs finance committee is recommending that selectmen deny the requests for roughly $72,600 in funding for county substance abuse and prevention, Healthy Aging MV, First Stop and the Core program of Martha’s Vineyard Community Services. Similar funding requests will go before every Island town this spring.

In Oak Bluffs, the finance committee wrote that the funding “simply cannot fit within the town’s budget and the town’s current need for an override to support its own budget.”

Town administrator Robert Whritenour said $240,000 for human services is already carried into the town budget to support the Center for Living and Vineyard Health Care Access Program.

Mr. Whritenour told the Gazette later that the town is already struggling to maintain its obligations as Oak Bluffs property values go up.

“As important as these human services needs are, we have other many other needs and legally restricted revenues,” Mr. Whritenour said.

Voters will be asked to approve a $275,000 override on the town ballot this year for both general government and regional high school assessments.

The finance committee suggested a compromise appropriation of $30,000 from free sash to support regional human services broadly, with funds distributed under direction of the selectmen.

Representatives attending the meeting made it clear they were frustrated by the committee’s decision.

“You have almost the largest elderly population on the Island,” Paddy Moore, chairman of Healthy Aging MV, told selectmen. “The need for human services doesn’t go away.”

Selectmen said they heard the concerns, but cited many needs and not enough funding to go around.

“There’s no denial up here about the need,” said Mr. Coogan. “But free cash is limited. We only have so much.”

After lively debate, selectmen agreed to amend the $30,000 up to $40,000.

The town meeting is April 10. The town election is April 12.