Decoulos-Kitras case

Appeals Court Rules Against James Decoulos

The Massachusetts Court of Appeals has dealt another setback to an Aquinnah landowner who has tried unsuccessfully for more than two decades to argue that he is entitled to access to his landlocked property.

Moshup Trail Case Comes to an End

A decision by the U.S. Supreme court closes the book on a decades-long court battle over whether private land off Moshup Trail can be opened up for development.

State Supreme Court Upholds Town, VCS in Moshup Trail Case

The state SJC handed a legal victory to the town of Aquinnah and others who have been battling a private developer for years over whether land off Moshup Trail can be opened up for development.

State Supreme Court Set to Decide Aquinnah Land Use Case

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court heard arguments this week in a widely-watched case that will decide whether rare coastal heathland along Moshup Trail will be opened up for development.

In Long-Running Case, Court Ruling Favors Bear Realty Trust

Aquinnah landowners who have been battling for nearly 18 years to develop some 30 acres of land off Moshup Trail won a favorable decision this week from the state Court of Appeals, but the convoluted legal saga continues.

Long-Running Quest to Develop Moshup Trail Land Denied Again

The Aquinnah zoning board of appeals this week denied two variances for an Aquinnah property owner who wants to build a bridge or culverts across land he owns off Moshup Trail. James Decoulos, a Cambridge engineer, has been trying to win the right to build a house on the two-plus-acre property for 14 years.

Moshup Trail Lot Denied Permit Due to Lack of Road Frontage

A long-running effort by an Aquinnah property owner to build a house on a lot off Moshup Trail was blocked by the town planning board plan review committee this week, which found the lot lacks adequate road frontage under new zoning rules adopted by the town eight months ago.

After a series of public hearings that began in October, the committee voted 7-0 on Tuesday night to deny a special permit for James Decoulos to build on the two-plus-acre property.

Town, MVC Prevail in Moshup Trail Case

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court last week upheld the town of Aquinnah and the Martha’s Vineyard Commission in a key leg of a complicated and long-running property rights case that will ultimately decide whether a large swath of rare coastal heathland along Moshup Trail remains forever wild or is opened up to private development.

Court Ruling Favors Aquinnah, Upholding Townwide DCPC

Marking a key win for the town of Aquinnah in its long-running legal battle with James J. Decoulos and Maria Kitris, who want to open up Moshup Trail for development, the Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled yesterday on two separate fronts, finding:

• Mr. Decoulos has not won the right to subdivide two lots he owns off Moshup trail.

• The Aquinnah townwide district of critical planning concern is valid.

Townwide DCPC in Aquinnah Held Valid by Superior Court

A Middlesex Superior Court judge last week upheld the validity of a unique townwide planning and zoning district in Aquinnah.

The decision, which was entered on Friday by the Hon. Julian T. Houston, found in favor of the town and the Martha's Vineyard Commission against a developer who is seeking to open access to and subdivide parcels of vacant land off Moshup Trail. The developer, James J. Decoulos, has filed more than 10 different legal challenges against the town, a number of which are still ongoing.

Pages