Tisbury selectmen this week said they would pursue zoning regulations to keep gun stores out of the downtown area.

Rubin Cronig, owner of the Main street specialty shop Vineyard Time, has applied for a gun dealer’s license with plans to sell high-end skeet and trap shotguns. The application sparked widespread debate two weeks ago, in the wake of the deadly mass shooting in Las Vegas.

Gun dealer licenses are handled on a federal, state and local level, and the selectmen have no authority over them. But all three selectmen reported hearing concerns from town residents about Mr. Cronig’s plans. At their meeting Tuesday, the selectmen voted unanimously to refer the issue to the planning board, seeking dedicated zoning that would keep gun stores out of the B1 district.

“This is not pro or anti-gun, it’s just the location of where it is and what vision we want to see for our downtown area,” said selectman Tristan Israel. “We’re getting head shops, we’re possibly getting a gun shop, unless we work fast and develop regulations we could potentially have retail marijuana down there, we have added hard liquor to our restaurants . . . to me this is starting to create a downtown very different than I think a lot of people want to see.”

Mr. Cronig did not attend the meeting and has been unavailable for comment. His application for a dealer’s license is pending completion of a background check with the Tisbury police.

Meanwhile, Mr. Israel said the town already has zoning regulations limiting where medical marijuana can be sold, and he suggested regulations that limit gun shops and recreational marijuana are in order.

“I’ve heard a lot from the public on this, they categorically do not want a gun store on Main street,” Mr. Israel said.

Selectman Melinda Loberg concurred. “I tend to agree with them that it’s not the ideal place for a gun store,”she said.

Harriet Barrow, a resident who attended the meeting, said she had no problem with guns but was against a gun shop on Main street.

“This is less than half a mile from an elementary school and within 400 yards of the ferry, you get a license there on the storefront and it’s just asking for trouble because of its location and just everything it represents,” she said.

The selectmen also asked that the police chief and applicant work together to make sure the license reflects the intent for types of guns, attaching conditions to the license if possible.

“In light of what’s going on in the world, I have to admit I’m not a big gun guy,” said Mr. Israel. “But people hunt here, there are some common sense things that I’m not opposed to.”

In other business, selectmen took no action on police chief Daniel Hanavan’s recommendation to hire former Chilmark police chief Brian Cioffi as a special officer.

Mr. Cioffi abruptly resigned as chief in Chilmark in December after seven years on the job. The reasons were never fully explained.

“He’s been through the full-time police officer academy, he has worked in policing for over 15 years and he has some skills and he’s been an instructor in a few topics that could probably help out some of the other specials as well,” the chief said.

The selectmen postponed a decision.

“Well, I need some more information about that, so if you don’t mind, I want to put that off for a little bit,” board chairman Larry Gomez told Mr. Hanavan.

Paul Munafo, representing the Vineyard Playhouse, asked the selectmen for a beer and wine license to sell drinks before shows and during intermission. He said the playhouse qualifies due to its status as a membership organization. The selectmen asked him to instead consider going through the established one-time beer and wine license process for events instead.

“I’m not opposed to it generally, I think it needs a little more exploration as to how it gets done so it doesn’t erode the regulations we have with regard to the restaurants,” Mr. Israel said.