The U.S. Coast Guard is still interviewing witnesses in the investigation of last month’s fire that destroyed the Menemsha boathouse, and spokesmen said Tuesday that plans for rebuilding the historic boathouse have been put on hold until all evidence has been collected and results of the investigation are released.

“Until we are given the clearance that they no longer need to collect evidence, then unfortunately, visibly, we’re at kind of a standstill,” Coast Guard Cmder. Paul Lattanzi, a representative for the southeast sector of New England, told the Chilmark selectmen on Tuesday night.

Commander Lattanzi said he could provide no recent updates in the investigation, which is being conducted by the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) with involvement from the state fire marshal and the Coast Guard.

He said delays in the investigation have been partially caused by the fact that some witnesses have since left the Island, and have to be tracked down for interviews. But the selectmen said that several first responders to the scene, who remain on Island, have not yet been interviewed, including one of their own. “Within five minutes of the start of the fire, Frank [Fenner] ran down the burning carway to get his boat and pull it out. He would be an early witness to the fire,” said selectman and board chairman Warren Doty, referring to fellow selectman Frank M. Fenner, who owns the Galley restaurant adjacent to where the fire broke out.

“It would make us feel a lot better if they were interviewed,” said Mr. Doty later, referring to Island witnesses.

“I’m a little bit unimpressed with the Coast Guard so far,” said selectman Jonathan Mayhew on Tuesday night. Mr. Mayhew is a well-known commercial fisherman in Menemsha.

“The Coast Guard boathouse hasn’t done a darn thing except continue to look terrible,” he said. Mr. Mayhew said it is evident to most town residents that the fire originated in the boathouse, and he suggested delays in the investigation are due to the fact that the Coast Guard is trying to skirt liability for damages.

Mr. Doty softened the accusation slightly. “I think it’s fair to say, and I don’t mean to put words in [Mr. Mayhew’s] mouth . . . that at this moment he feels a little bit outside the loop,” Mr. Doty said, adding that many town residents and officials feel the same way.

But Commander Lattanzi said the Coast Guard is not leading the investigation, and challenges to the legitimacy of a federal investigation are unfounded. “That would be quite a conspiracy theory, to think that the Coast Guard is looking for a way out,” he said.

The July 12 fire that destroyed the historic boathouse, forced the evacuation of Menemsha on a sunny summer afternoon and called every emergency responder to the scene, remains fresh in the minds of Islanders, especially Chilmarkers. Miraculously there were no injuries except for one firefighter who was injured by a piece of equipment during cleanup.

On Tuesday selectmen said they were still dismayed by the lack of initiative shown by the Coast Guard in the cleanup process. “Within 30 days of the fire we were already removing burned debris and starting the reconstruction process. Somehow we were able to do it right away and other agencies are not. You can see how urgent it is to us as a board to move quickly,” said Mr. Doty. “As a town we put everything on hold and worked hard to make sure that we could move ahead.”

Commander Lattanzi said the Coast Guard is unauthorized to move forward with deconstruction and cleanup until the results of the investigation are in. “The perception of inactivity would be frustrating,” he agreed. But he said behind the scenes officials are hard at work conducting interviews, collecting evidence, and making arrangements to rebuild the boathouse and Coast Guard pier that were lost in the fire. The Coast Guard hopes to have contracts in place for the reconstruction project by early next year. “We need to expeditiously move forward with the reconstruction of this boathouse,” Commander Lattanzi said.

Unlike the town, which declared a state of emergency in Menemsha shortly after the fire, in part to expedite the bidding process for the reconstruction of a town pier leading out to the West Dock that was also destroyed in the fire, Commander Lattanzi said the Coast Guard must go through the bidding process the usual way. “We don’t have an emergency clause that allows us to forgo the federal regulations for contracts,” he said.

Commander Lattanzi said the Coast Guard estimates a total cost of some $11 million for rebuilding the boathouse and pier, drawing expressions of disbelief from the selectmen. The cost for rebuilding the town pier is now projected to be between roughly $1.3 and $1.5 million. “That would create quite a facility,” said Mr. Doty, immediately worrying about what may be contemplated as a replacement. “We’re used to the very old-fashioned appearance of everything,” he reminded Commander Lattanzi.

Mr. Doty recommended public meetings to get feedback from town residents. “It’s a very healthy process,” he said.

Meanwhile, he said the town hopes to move forward with its own pier construction plans as quickly as possible. “We’re hoping that we can do this construction over the winter and have that area open by May 31, 2011,” Mr. Doty said. Selectmen voiced concern that the Coast Guard construction may not follow the same track. “If your building process really goes into our summer season, which starts Memorial Day, it could be really disruptive in that very, very, small, tight area,” warned Mr. Fenner. “A disruption down there would be detrimental to a lot of us,” he added.

“I don’t know how long it takes to build an $11 million boat dock and pier,” said Commander Lattanzi, adding: “The Coast Guard is committed to not just replacing it, but replacing it quickly.”

Commander Lattanzi said he would bring the selectmen’s concerns back to the Coast Guard’s civil engineering unit which is responsible for the reconstruction process. He did say the new boathouse will be updated, but he noted the selectmen’s concerns about appearance. “We will be in consultation with the state historic preservation office and we have every intention of keeping it to fit in with the port,” he said.

Commander Lattanzi also said local fishermen whose boats were damaged in the fire have the option of free removal if they are willing to relinquish their rights on salvage value. “The boats are still by law the responsibility of the owners of those boats,” he said. But rather than pay for their removal, the Coast Guard will consider them abandoned property and remove them along with the rest of the fire debris, once deconstruction of the boathouse and pier begins.

But selectmen had other concerns. “We’re very close to fishing interests and our fishermen,” said Mr. Doty. “Each boat itself is not worth much, it’s worth the money they’d make scalloping,” he added, noting that the town anticipates a good scalloping season this year. “That’s something we need to work on and we’re not going to ask them to spend any more money to remove the boats,” he said.

The discussion ended with a promise from Commander Lattanzi to bring the board’s concerns to the relevant parties, and perhaps arrange for representatives from the civil engineering unit to attend the next board meeting, scheduled for August 31 at 4:30 p.m.

“I think it’s a really good thing that you came tonight and we really appreciate it. Having full communication between the town and the Coast Guard is a really good thing,” concluded Mr. Doty.