With public sentiment running high on both sides of the issue, the Martha’s Vineyard Commission convenes a public hearing in Tisbury tonight on the Stop & Shop expansion plan.
The meeting begins at 6 p.m. in the Tisbury senior center.
As a long public review of the Stop & Shop expansion winds down before the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, opposition to the project has begun to heat up. An Island citizens group is circulating an online petition and organizing a letter-writing campaign to the MVC.
The Gazette’s recent editorial headlined Straight Dealing is warranted in its call for transparency over Stop & Shop’s proposal for a new, much improved store in Tisbury.
At the urging of Tristan Israel who was not present last week, Tisbury selectmen voted Tuesday to remove language from an agreement with Stop & Shop pledging their support for the grocery chain’s expansion plans.
A memorandum announced by the Tisbury selectmen Tuesday calls for Stop & Shop to make a large payment to the town and meet other conditions. For its part, the town has agreed to support the expansion plan before the Martha's Vineyard Commission.
At last Thursday’s meeting Geoghan Coogan, attorney representing Stop & Shop, told the commission that the letter from the town has added a new wrinkle to the discussion, although he could not elaborate.
A letter from the town of Tisbury concerning the town parking lot is the cause of another bump in the road in Stop & Shop's effort to get approval for an expanded Vineyard Haven store. The Martha's Vineyard Commission held a four-hour hearing Thursday, then continued it to April 17.
A redesign proposal for the parking lot adjacent to the Stop & Shop building featuring 64 parking spaces set at 90 degrees and a multi-use path was approved by Tisbury selectmen on Tuesday.