Yoga will be allowed to continue on Town Beach in Oak Bluffs, after organizers reached an agreement with the town’s parks commission Monday.
“We’re on a team now and that’s all I think anyone was looking for,” commission member Richard Combra said.
The parks commission held a meeting in town hall Monday afternoon to discuss an application for daily morning yoga on Town Beach. The yoga group there has been practicing for seven years, organizers said, but concern among the board about monetization of the yoga sessions has led to recent scrutiny.
The town ousted the group from Town Beach last month, spurring outcry from participants across social media channels like the Facebook group Islanders Talk.
With a room full of supporters of the yoga group, parks commissioners Monday said concerns about the group as it has grown in popularity have been longstanding.
“This has been an ongoing thing for several years,” commissioner Antone Lima said.
Organizers of the yoga group said the sessions have never been for-profit. When commissioners brought up advertising that assigned a monetary value to the sessions, organizers promised that all such materials would be removed.
“Monies were not collected, they did not flow,” organizer Elisa Barnes said.
Organizers also promised that for the rest of the summer season, someone will be assigned to keep an eye on the session and ensure no money changes hands.
“Everyone is welcome to yoga — at no charge,” Linda Silva-Thompson said.
Organizers and the parks commission eventually came to an agreement that Ms. Silva-Thompson and Ms. Barnes would become the town’s points of contact for the yoga sessions.
Mr. Lima said a main concern of the board was establishing a relationship with the group in case any problems crop up, or information needs to be communicated.
“I think we’ve established that relationship now, which is great,” he said.
Applicants Ms. Barnes and Ms. Silva-Thompson withdrew their request for a special permit, on the basis that a good-faith agreement between the town and organizers would suffice to continue the yoga sessions. The parks commission unanimously accepted the withdrawal.
“We just work together from here forward to make this work,” parks commissioner Amy Billings said.
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