With state support for a major renovation to the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School now within reach, the Chilmark select board this week proposed a one-time plan to pay for the project to assuage tension over the way the six towns split the cost of the school.

Progress on updating the school, last renovated in 1995, has been stalled by a stalemate among the six towns over the high school funding formula. Oak Bluffs contends the current formula, which is based on enrollment, disproportionately burdens its taxpayers.

For six years, the Island has been passed over for funding by the Massachusetts School Building Authority, which cited lack of Islandwide support for the project.

On Wednesday, however, the MSBA recommended the high school for acceptance into the grant program. MSBA would provide roughly 38 per cent of the funds for the project.

The authority has made clear that the Island must come together on a funding plan before Sept. 1, according to school superintendent Matthew D’Andrea.

The plan proposed by Chilmark would have the three up-Island towns pool their money to contribute 25 per cent and each down-Island town contribute 25 per cent of the Island’s cost for the project. The plan is based on population data, which shows that the three up-Island towns have a total population roughly equal to each down-Island town, said selectman James Malkin, who proposed the plan.

The formula would only apply to the building project and would not change the overall budget formula, selectman Warren Doty said at a Thursday select board meeting.

“I think that’s a very well thought-out proposal,” Bill Rossi said.

Speaking to the Gazette by phone after the meeting, Mr. Malkin said he is currently drafting a letter to the other five select boards outlining the plan in hopes they will get on board.

“I view it as a simple, easy to understand, defensible and appropriate way to break this deadlock that we have,” Mr. Malkin told the Gazette by phone.