Oak Bluffs approves spring paving schedule using Chapter 90 funds; estimates about $450,000 for two streets

The Oak Bluffs Select Board approved spring paving projects and a tentative schedule for several town streets at its April 7 meeting, authorizing work that Highway Superintendent Richard Combra said will be funded with Chapter 90 state transportation funds.

Combra told the board the highway crew will grind road surfaces April 21–23, 2026, and perform paving April 27–29, 2026, on Eastville Avenue and Towanticut Avenue, with additional work planned for Masonic Avenue and a small patch on Norris Avenue. He said the department will notify the police department, the Select Board office and local newspapers; the work is not expected to require full road closures but motorists should expect delays.

Combra estimated the total for the Eastville and Towanticut projects at about $450,000 and said the expenses are processed through the state website for Chapter 90 funds rather than by a preliminary Select Board signature, but that the board’s approval of spending remains important. Board members confirmed these are budgeted Chapter 90 projects and there should be no additional costs beyond the funds described.

Combra also updated the board on longer‑term highway planning: a town‑meeting warrant article would fund a professional study covering roughly 38 miles of town roads to create a 10‑year pavement and sidewalk plan. He described coordinated work with the Preservation Trust around Union Chapel to install curbing, drainage improvements and repaving once a renovation project is finished, and said he is working with MassDOT on a persistently flooded corner near the hospital with drainage that discharges toward Vineyard Haven Harbor. Combra said he is pressing Eversource to share a 10‑year projection so town paving can be coordinated with utility work.

Select Person Sean DeBettencourt moved to approve the projects and schedule; Emma Green‑Beach seconded. The motion passed on a 4–0 roll‑call vote.