With the crush of a sledgehammer and the grind of heavy machinery, construction has finally begun on the long-awaited Yellow House renovation project in the heart of Edgartown.
In the latest volley between the town and tribe over the future bingo hall in Aquinnah, tribal leaders agreed this week to halt work on the site until legal issues can be resolved.
The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) has officially broken ground on a long-promised gambling facility in the small up-Island town, unleashing a flurry of concern.
Construction has begun on a large bingo hall planned by the tribe in Aquinnah — and tribal leaders have issued a stern warning to the town and the Martha’s Vineyard Commission to not interfere.
The Yellow House will stay gray until the end of next summer, according to a small change in the property’s lease agreement made at the Edgartown selectmen’s meeting last week.
Roughly 200 commuters take the early morning ferry to Martha’s Vineyard each day, many of them construction workers who hail from all over southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Building permits are up this year, and all around the Island the sounds of nail guns, classic rock and pickup trucks unloading supplies provide the backbeat for a flurry of construction activity.
A Rhode Island company was the low bidder on a a $7.3 million contract for a new library. And questions surfaced again about the Edgartown Library Foundation.