Merchants in Oak Bluffs Win Effort to Keep Ferry Running to
Mid-October
By CHRIS BURRELL
Under pressure from selectmen and business leaders in Oak Bluffs,
the Steamship Authority yesterday backed off a cost-savings plan that
would have closed down ferry service to Oak Bluffs two weeks earlier
than usual.
Shopkeepers protested, charging that the early closure at the end of
September - instead of mid-October - would have been
"devastating."
NANTUCKET - The people of Nantucket clashed openly with the
Steamship Authority yesterday, raising tough questions about boat line
spending and demanding that the SSA abandon a new marketing venture that
will allow J. Crew to hand out catalogues on ferries and in terminals
during the popular Nantucket Christmas Stroll.
Commission Invites Public Comment on Its Plan for Blind Charitable
Trust
By MANDY LOCKE
Responding to criticism that their public agency should not mask the
identity of private donors, the Martha's Vineyard Commission last
night agreed to host a public forum for Islanders to air concerns about
the agency's recently established charitable trust.
State Auditors in Koines Case
Island Activates New State Law for Investigating
‘Irregularities' in Towns, School Districts; Will Search Go
Deeper?
By CHRIS BURRELL
After months of saying they wanted to put this controversy in the
past, high school leaders have called on state auditors to wade into the
Peter Koines scandal and issue a decision on whether they dug deeply
enough into the case of the culinary arts teacher who stole school
equipment, student funds and food supplies.
Aquinnah Deadlocks on Appeal of Tribal Sovereignty Decision
By JULIA WELLS
The Aquinnah selectmen announced this week that they are deadlocked
over whether to appeal a superior court ruling that found the Wampanoag
Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) cannot be sued because of sovereign
immunity.
"We are unable to reach a decision on this matter," said
board chairman Michael Hebert following an executive session Tuesday
afternoon with town counsel Ronald H. Rappaport.
Tisbury, Oak Bluffs at Polls Tuesday
By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer
Voters in Tisbury and Oak Bluffs go to the polls Tuesday to decide
whether to adopt a ferry passenger surcharge that was approved by the
state legislature earlier this year.
Factors Listed in Islander Mishap
By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer
Poor preparation, faulty communication and the uncharacteristic
failure of an experienced captain to keep proper command of his vessel
- these are key factors that led to an alarming accident on the
ferry Islander five months ago, a Steamship Authority report has found.
Some of the Island's heavy hitters in shellfish and water
quality management are warning MassHighway to slow its plans for the
construction of a temporary drawbridge across Lagoon Pond.
On Monday they will travel to Boston to ask officials at the state
agency to build time into the project schedule for an environmental
study.
High School Gets a Boost
Is Accredited for Next 10 Years By Visiting Team, Which Also Offers
a ‘Snapshot' Look at Class Statistics
By CHRIS BURRELL
They praised teachers for retooling the curriculum and the principal
for reaching out to the community with her monthly coffee meetings.
In the end, a 72-page report from the New England Association of
Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and the Commission on Public Secondary
Schools has accredited the Martha's Vineyard Regional High School
for another 10 years.
Crackdown at the Harbor: Can It Help Those Who Wait Years for
Moorings?
By MANDY LOCKE
There's about to be a crackdown in Edgartown's harbor
- new mooring regulations aim to fix a system in which some
boaters have been waiting a generation for a place to put their vessel.
Securing a permanent mooring in any East Coast port town these days
is often a challenge. But in Edgartown's inner harbor - one
of two Island towns that still permit private moorings -
it's practically impossible.
