The Martha’s Vineyard Commission must hold a public hearing to decide whether the operation at Goodale’s pit in Oak Bluffs requires review as a development of regional impact (DRI), the commission executive director has said.

The decision to hold the hearing comes after some confusion about whether the town of Oak Bluffs had referred the site to the commission as a concurrence review or a discretionary referral, two different commission procedures.

When a project triggers any number of criteria on the commission’s so-called DRI checklist, town officials can refer it to the commission for what is known as a concurrence review. Even if a project triggers nothing on the commission’s checklist it can still be referred as a discretionary referral. Yesterday Martha’s Vineyard DRI coordinator Paul Foley said confusion arose when the town sent a letter to the MVC instead of a referral form.

At a recent commission subcommittee meeting with the Goodales and their attorney, commissioners voted 10-1 to recommend that no DRI review was required. Then it became apparent that the town had intended the commission to review the site as a discretionary referral.

MVC executive director Mark London said because of that, the commission must first hold a public hearing. The hearing is set for next Thursday at 7:15 p.m. at the commission building in Oak Bluffs.