Dukes County Leaders Face Deepening Crisis, Admit Lack of Oversight

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

Admitting that their own house is now in chaos, county leaders
scrambled to assay the damage this week amid a flurry of charges and
counter-charges following the abrupt departure of county manager Carol
Borer last month. Mrs. Borer cleaned out her office on New Year's
Eve and left, taking with her a check for some $22,000 in vacation pay
and sick time that she had approved for herself.

Calvin Zaiko's Fitness Gambit Is Hypothermic

By CHRIS BURRELL

Innkeeper, guitar player and come mid-January, Calvin Zaiko would
also have to be considered something of a daredevil.

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His feat? Swimming seven days a week in the ocean waters just across
the street from his home on Seaview avenue, Oak Bluffs.

Island selectmen who traveled to Boston last weekend may have
learned firsthand how bad the state budget crisis has become, but they
still have no idea just how deep the cuts in state aid to their towns
will be.

Trash District Audit Issues Bleak Report

Auditor Cites Regional Refuse District for Sloppy Bookkeeping,
Points to Opportunities for Abuse

By MANDY LOCKE

The long-awaited draft audit for the Martha's Vineyard
Regional Refuse and Resource Recovery district delivered stern warnings
for the trash district's leadership to clean house.

In a five-page management letter, auditor John J. O'Brien
detailed sloppy and incomplete bookkeeping and pointed to the potential
mishandling of cash at local drop-off centers.

State Finance Crisis Places New Strains on Budget of MVC

By JULIA WELLS

State budget cuts are expected to hit the Martha's Vineyard
Commission hard in the coming fiscal year, and town assessments will go
up as grant money goes down - way down.

MVC executive director Mark London said this week that state and
federal grant money is expected to drop by some $200,000.

"We have tightened up every expense we can, but as we take on
new planning responsibilities it is important that we keep our staffing
intact," Mr. London said.

The lobster fishery in the waters south of Cape Cod is declining, so
sharply that a number of Island commercial lobstermen are wondering how
they will survive in the new year.

Boat Line Governors Dispute Legal Bills

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

Steamship Authority governors and senior managers said yesterday
they were overbilled by a Boston law firm that represented the former
Falmouth boat line member in his legal dispute with the town.

"There is no question that Smith & Duggan should receive a
fair fee for their service. The question is what is a fair fee,"
said SSA general counsel Steven Sayers.

Expanding County Crisis Poses Tough Challenge for Leadership

By JONATHAN BURKE

Dukes County commissioners are determined to overcome the chaos of
the past few weeks.

"The county is in turmoil right now, but we're doing the
best we can to put everything back on track. We'll get through it
and we'll get through it with good leadership," said Roger
Wey, county commissioner, in a conversation with the Gazette yesterday.

John Alley, county chairman, said he would unveil a plan to move
forward at the commission's next meeting.

A group of Vineyard citizens has launched a new philanthropic initiative, the Martha’s Vineyard Donors Collaborative (MVDC). Its principal goal is to expand the universe of donors contributing to the Vineyard’s nonprofit, voluntary organizations.

Transportation Forum Grapples with Growth; Vineyard Future Requires
Thoughtful Planning

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

The subject was transportation planning, but in the end it was a
night for thinking out loud about growth and all of its attendant
contradictions on an Island seven miles off the coast of Massachusetts.