Orleans ARC Approves Yacht Club Repairs, Requires Full Lighting Overhaul as Condition

ORLEANS — February 12, 2026 — Orleans Architectural Review Committee conditionally approved Orleans Yacht Club repairs, requiring full lighting compliance before work can proceed. The committee voted 4-0, with member Carol Marsh abstaining due to her club membership, to approve window replacements, cedar shingle re-siding, and a front door replacement at 39 Cove Road — but attached a condition that all exterior lighting on the building be brought into compliance with Chapter 122, the town's outdoor lighting bylaw. Chairman Stephen Salley said he visited the site beforehand and found a gable-end fixture that "was obvious that it did not comply." The committee also voted 4-0 to approve a solar panel installation at the Skaket Beach Motel, with installer Mr. Aman confirming the roof-flush panels on the southerly-facing units would require no structural modifications and that property owner Heeman Patel's company, Saishrata Inc., holds the installation contract. In extended discussion afterward, members agreed to pursue two further steps: Salley will draft a letter to the Planning Board seeking written clarification of the bylaw's disputed five-year compliance window, and member Marsh agreed to draft language for a town meeting bylaw amendment that would ban backlit and halo-style illuminated signs.