Representatives of Back Door Donuts successfully pitched a new plan to the Oak Bluffs select board Tuesday on how they will manage long summer lines at the downtown bakery.

The popular late-night eatery has been an ongoing concern for the select board, which has received complaints from neighbors about noise and rowdy patrons waiting for a fresh fried snack.

The business has traditionally operated through its front door during the day and its back door at night. The promise of nighttime apple fritters and doughnuts can draw more than 100 people, waiting in line in the parking lot which abuts a residential neighborhood.

The Lyons Group took over Back Door Donuts in 2018, and representative Vincent Lombardi said the business promises to now cap its back door line at 28 people. The company will also encourage patrons to place online orders that can be picked up at the front of the building, and plans to deploy more security to corral customers when the line starts to surge.

The business recently started a pop-up shop in Boston where it’s been testing the online ordering process. The owners are confident that this will help appease neighbors of the Oak Bluffs location.

Neighbor Lynn Vera attended Tuesday’s meeting and said she was skeptical about the plan and expressed exhaustion with her ongoing battle with the bakery, describing the long lines as reaching up to 200 people.

“For five years I have been showing you how they don’t follow the license and there has never been a consequence,” she said to the board.

The select board ultimately agreed to let the Back Door Donuts team move forward with their plan and said they will be closely monitoring the business over the summer. If there are complaints, the board said it will reevaluate the business’ license. 

“You do realize that if there’s a complaint we’re going to be a little more harsh than we were before,” said board member Gail Barmakian.

The select board also continued its conversation about the town’s alcohol policy and potential change to the last call hour. 

A subcommittee of Ms. Barmakian, board member Brian Packish, Oak Bluffs police officers and several bar and restaurant owners met twice this month to discuss ways to prevent late-night rowdiness without shortening the businesses’ hours. The current proposal would impose a 12:30 a.m. last call and 1 p.m. closure that matches Edgartown and shortens the current last call time by 30 minutes. 

Restaurant owners Larkin Stallings and JB Blau advocated for only a 15 minute reduction, arguing that a significant portion of their sales happens in the last half hour of the night. They also promised to take more security measures, employing one security staff for every 50 patrons until the business is at capacity. 

The select board decided to push their decision on the alcohol policy until a meeting next week. 
The board did grant alcohol and entertainment licenses to Mugs of Delight, a new business being launched by Aalia’s Coffee Shop on Kennebec avenue. It also approved the 10 recipients of the heavily discounted Oak Bluffs harbor mooring permits in this year’s resident slips lottery.