The future of a proposed new Oak Bluffs book festival is in limbo after select board members raised questions about whether the venue is allowed under town regulations to host large scale events. 

Traci Smith went before the Oak Bluffs select board last week, requesting licenses for her proposed Martha’s Vineyard Black Book Festival inside and on the lawn of the Island Inn. The event was planned as an August celebration of Black literary excellence, according to the website, and would have panel discussions and food. 

“The last couple of years I’ve just had book gatherings, really to foster more community discussion,” Ms. Smith told the board. “I figured this year, it would be easier if I hosted it at my own home at the Island Inn.” 

But the board was hesitant to hand out an amplified noise and liquor permit over concerns about whether the planned venue, the Island Inn, could hold such an event under the town’s zoning regulations. 

The Island Inn is a condominium association that was built before the current residential zoning for the area. That means the inn can continue to do what it was initially allowed by the town, officials said. 

But the select board wasn’t sure if Ms. Smith, who owns a unit at the inn, would be crossing a line if she held the festival, which was imagined to host upwards of 150 people. 

“This isn’t about the event that you want to hold, this is more about the venue,” select board member Dion Alley said at Tuesday’s meeting. 

His colleague Gail Barmakian said there is a lot of gray area about what the inn can do.

“The law is you’re grandfathered for what existed there at the time zoning happened in the ‘70s,” she said. “If it was a hotel, you were confined to what a hotel use is.”

Select board member Jason Balboni wanted to see a site plan for the event, and learn more about how the festival would handle parking, which is extremely limited in that area. 

The town did ask its building commissioner Matthew Rossi for his thoughts on the matter. 

In a letter to the board, he said he believed it came down to the number of events held there. 

“If the Island Inn is seeking to use the grounds on a frequent basis for large outdoor events it would need to prove that the use is pre-existing nonconforming or was part of their initial permit issuance,” he wrote. “After speaking with the Island Inn manager, the general impression I received was that they are not seeking to use the grounds on a frequent basis for large outdoor events, but instead for a few events annually.” 

Mr. Alley was interested in learning what number of events constituted frequent and several residents urged the board to deny the request, saying it would overstep the inn’s original approvals from the Martha’s Vineyard Commission.  

“There’s no mention of a venue that’s open to the public,” said neighbor Stephanie Mashek. 

The board asked Ms. Smith to come back with more details on the festival’s plans so it could have a fuller understanding of the situation before making a decision. 

“It sounds like you might be open to being a little bit flexible which may or may not help this board,” select board chair Emma Green-Beach said.