In the Campground, a Feeling for What Oak Bluffs Will Gain

In the Campground, a Feeling for What Oak Bluffs Will Gain

By CHRIS BURRELL

A splotch of fluorescent orange paint tags the trunk of a pine tree
standing over what was once campsite Number 92 in the old Webb's
Camping Area.

The tree is a survivor, proof that the chainsaws didn't make
it this far and a sign that the southern woodlands in Oak Bluffs are
truly an arrested development.

County Board Presses Its Case

County Board Presses Its Case

Questions on Steamship Authority Are Explored at a Meeting:
Commissioners Worry on ‘Haphazard' Ways

By ALEXIS TONTI

Citing what they believe are missteps and backtracking by Steamship
Authority management, Dukes County commissioners this week criticized
SSA managers for their imprudence and pointedly questioned the boat
line's priorities.

"There seems to be denial and avoidance, and my gut tells me
that something isn't working right," said commissioner Paul
Strauss.

It's Preseason: What's in Store? Around Island, a Retailer Shift

It's Preseason: What's in Store? Around Island, a
Retailer Shift

By NIS KILDEGAARD

You need a scorecard to keep track of the preseason business shuffle
in downtown Vineyard Haven.

On Tisbury Great Pond, a Family Feud

On Tisbury Great Pond, a Family Feud

By MANDY LOCKE

A divided family, hundreds of feet of unlicensed docks and the
future of a cove on Tisbury Great Pond has sparked a drama in West
Tisbury.

Complicating the story is that the family member who installed these
unpermitted docks is a town selectman. Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter
reportedly installed four seasonal floating docks on Manter family land
over the last few years. This week his older brother, Whit Manter, said
it's gone too far.

Two Seized in Airport Mobil Break-in; After Search, Four Held on Drug Charges

Two Seized in Airport Mobil Break-in; After Search, Four Held on
Drug Charges

By MANDY LOCKE

A burglary investigation led Edgartown police to a house of drugs
this week.

"There were more drugs in that house than at Triangle
Pharmacy," said Edgartown police sergeant Ken Johnson, about a
Plainfield Way home searched in connection with the burglary.

Summer Visa Changes Will Leave Vineyarders Short on Foreign Help

For the last two summers, Stanimir Vasilev hauled Vineyard tourists back and forth across Beach Road between Oak Bluffs and Edgartown, practicing his English as visitors stepped aboard the purple and white Vineyard Transit Authority (VTA) bus. Mr. Vasilev came to the Vineyard early and stayed late - as did hundreds of other Bulgarians arriving each summer to help Island businesses through the busy tourist season.

Passengers May Stay in Vehicles on Ferry Crossing, Board Rules

Passengers May Stay in Vehicles on Ferry Crossing, Board Rules

By ALEXIS TONTI

The Steamship Authority board of governors overruled senior
management yesterday and abandoned a controversial new policy that would
have barred people from staying in their cars while on board the
ferries.

The boat line governors instead approved a policy to simply advise
passengers to leave their cars and to improve safety below decks through
an expanded set of fire prevention measures.

On Dutcher Dock: Menemsha's Seismic Shift: A Fish Market Faces Sale

On Dutcher Dock: Menemsha's Seismic Shift: A Fish Market Faces
Sale

By JESSIE ROYCE HILL

In a place where generations of fishermen have hawked their seafood,
fathers and sons yearly descend to cast lines off the jetty and summer
crowds have applauded the glow of a setting sun, the news is out: Stand
by for the sale of a landmark Island fish market.

Three Stories, Balconies, a Roof Deck: A Garge Project Stirs the North Bluff

Three Stories, Balconies, a Roof Deck: A Garage Project Stirs the
North Bluff

By CHRIS BURRELL

When he applied for a building permit last fall, Joseph G. Moujabber
told the Oak Bluffs building inspector he was replacing an old one-car
garage in his backyard. It would cost just $22,000 to build and would be
used for storage space only, the application states.

But almost five months later, the building under construction
- three stories tall with balconies and a roof deck - looks
more like a Florida condo than a garage.

Auto Class Revs Up Vocational Program

Auto Class Revs Up Vocational Program

By CHRIS BURRELL

Her school day is bookended by chemistry and global studies, but for
Lauren Richards, the three hours sandwiched in between are anything but
abstract and theoretical. They are grimy, noisy, hot, smelly hours.

Miss Richards is a car mechanic in training, one of nine students at
the Martha's Vineyard Regional High School who major in the
vocational automotive program.

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