Edgartown residents will get a chance to draw and describe their goals for the town’s future at a series of hands-on public engagement sessions starting Feb. 16.
The sessions are part of a process to update Edgartown’s master plan for the first time since 1990. Voters approved $100,000 to finance the planning process at the 2021 town meeting.
Members of the master plan committee gave the Edgartown select board an update on the project at its regular Monday meeting.
A 19-person committee has been meeting since April and hired a consultant, Florida-based Dover, Kohl & Partners, to assist with the project. The plan will address eight aspects of community life – including housing, economic development, open space and recreation and diversity and inclusion. The plan is expected to be completed in December.
A series of design sessions will take place online and in person at the Edgartown library between Feb. 16 and 19, said Jason King, senior project director. Following the sessions, planning professionals will gather all the suggestions gathered from townspeople and present their interim ideas. Details about the sessions is at engageedgartown.com/events.
“The schedule is really busy. It’s a very exciting, packed four days and it makes good use of people’s time and makes good use of town resources,” Mr. King said.
Dover, Kohl & Partners will come back in June to hear more public input on a more refined plan, he said.
“The ideas that we hear from the public really become the core of the plan,” Mr. King said.
“Thank you for the presentation, it looked awfully comprehensive,” selectman Arthur Smadbeck said.
The select board voted to allow the committee to hang a banner announcing the design sessions across Main street in Edgartown from Feb. 11-18.
In other business, the select board approved an energy reduction plan as the town takes steps towards the Island-wide goal of a carbon-neutral future.
The plan is one prong of an application to become a Green Community, a designation by Massachusetts which provides state funds for clean energy projects. Voters adopted a stretch energy code at the 2021 town meeting to make Edgartown eligible to become a Green Community.
The five-year plan is a commitment to reduce energy consumption in municipal buildings by 20 per cent. The plan identified 51 potential energy savings measures, which could save Edgartown roughly $83,000 if implemented, energy committee chairman Alan Strahler said.
The select board also agreed to allow the Harbor View Hotel to remain closed until March.
The Harbor originally asked to close from Jan. 2 to the beginning of February in order to build a new wine cellar and make renovations to the Bettini restaurant. Delays in the global supply chain have caused the project to snag, Harbor View manager Scott Little said.
“We still plan to open our clubhouse this week, and would just be delaying the Bettini re-opening until mid-March,” Mr. Little said.
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