YMCA Backers Pitch Wastewater Solution

By JIM HICKEY

At times on Wednesday backers of the YMCA and members of the Martha's Vineyard Commission appeared to be as much at a negotiation table as a public hearing, as both sides took positions and made requests while being careful not to upset an overall spirit of goodwill that permeated the meeting.

Some commission members praised the project, including the recent proposal that calls for the YMCA to join the high school in a wastewater discharge solution. The plan now calls for pumping wastewater from both buildings to the Oak Bluffs treatment facility and then pumping treated wastewater back to a leaching field on high school property.

"When this first came in I thought the problems with the wastewater were insurmountable," said commission member Chris Murphy. "But I am very pleased with this solution. If this works out you should get a prize for using a very innovative way to address a very difficult problem."

The project calls for building a 35,000-square-foot, green-designed YMCA facility on an undeveloped five-acre property leased from the high school behind the skate park in Oak Bluffs. The commission is reviewing the proposal as a development of regional impact. Building plans call for a full gymnasium, child care rooms, meeting facilities, an Olympic sized swimming pool, hot tubs, saunas and steam room.

A public hearing last month was marked by emotional testimony largely in support of the project. Wednesday's hearing, held at the commission office in the Olde Stone Building in Oak Bluffs, was more a technical affair. After nearly three hours, the commission agreed to continue the public hearing until Aug. 9.

Meanwhile commissioners asked YMCA backers to provide more detailed information about parking, stormwater runoff and traffic.

Two main points of contention remain for the project: possible infringement on the habitat of several endangered species, including the imperial moth; and nitrogen loading from wastewater discharge which exceeds the commission's limit. The project lies in the watersheds for both Sengekontacket and Lagoon Ponds, which are at their limit for nitrogen loading.

Architect Stephanie E. Mashek said YMCA backers have been working with the state's National Heritage and Endangered Species Program in recent weeks to find ways to preserve the endangered species habitat. As a result, the northwest parking lot has been reduced by 50 per cent - from 32 to 16 parking spaces. A no-build zone has also been established on the future building footprint, and the size of an outdoor play area has been reduced, she said.

Mrs. Mashek said plans now call for some deciduous trees to be cut or pruned in order to enhance the growth of remaining pitch pines, a favorite habitat for the imperial moth.

Mark Baumhofer, chairman of the YMCA facility committee, said the new building will generate 24 kilograms of nitrogen per acre each year; the commission's limit is 17 kilograms of nitrogen per acre per year for a project of that acreage. To reduce the nitrogen level, project planners may have to acquire more land and keep it as open space, install additional vegetated swales or reduce the size of the paved parking area further.

Mr. Baumhofer said the plan for the joint wastewater solution will reduce nitrogen loading at the high school by 129.3 kilograms per year. Mr. Baumhofer also said the YMCA will pay a share of the cost of construction and operation of the combined wastewater solution. The total contribution for connecting to the town sewer system will be a minimum of $200,000 and a maximum of $300,000, he said.

"The YMCA will not be using town water for outdoor use, only collected and recycled rain water," Mr. Baumhofer said.

Kenneth MacLean, lead architect for the project, said project officials had considered the use of a larger number of vegetated swales to reduce nitrogen levels. Although one bio-retention basin and several bio-retention swales are included in the plans, the National Heritage Program has limited the number of trees that can be cut down, which makes creating additional basins and swales difficult.

Mr. MacLean said the YMCA will create 62 new parking spaces on the property, while there will be 50 shared parking spaces at the rear of the Martha's Vineyard Arena. Raised internal crosswalks will be incorporated in two locations, and a dedicated bus dropoff and shelter will be located on the west end of the drive in front of the YMCA, he said.

Mr. MacLean said the YMCA also will help design and build two crosswalks across Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road, and will contribute a minimum of $10,000 to the cost.

There is also an agreement with the Vineyard Transit Authority to move the bus stop in front of the skate park on Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road closer to Woodside Village Road. The YMCA will contribute $5,000 toward relocation of the stop and landscaping, he said.

In the only real show of emotion of the evening, transit authority administrator Angela Grant asked commissioners to reduce the number of parking spots further. Creating a large number of parking spots, she said, sends the wrong messages about public transit and encourages more people to drive to the YMCA.

"If you build it, they will come; and by creating all these spots you're just making it easier to accommodate motor vehicles. I think the YMCA can be the perfect model for public transportation . . . and I worry this will be an opportunity lost," she said.

Mrs. Grant also advocated for more innovative ways to promote public transit, such as offering a bus pass with a YMCA membership or offering a discount if someone arrived by bus. "We should do whatever we can to put the bus first," she said.

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