Martha's Vineyard is better than Nantucket! At least, that's the
opinion of the folks at familyvacationcritic.com. The Web site has
compiled a list of the 10 best islands in the United States, and ranks
Martha's Vineyard number 8, one spot ahead of Nantucket. Amelia
Island, located off the coast of northeastern Florida, nabbed the top
spot.

In Oak Bluffs, changes in a traffic pattern have a neighborhood physically divided, and some up in arms.

Last November, motivated by concerns about safety and lack of parking, the selectmen approved redirecting traffic on part of Dukes County avenue to flow one-way toward the harbor between Masonic avenue and Wing Road. Before, the narrow street had a two-way traffic flow as well as parking on one side of the street.

A year after the Tisbury conservation commission discovered what it called the worst wetlands violation in decades, the town board, as well as the state Department of Environmental Protection, have come down hard on a West Chop homeowner responsible for dredging 11,600 square feet and filling in 1,235 square feet of wetlands at Mink Meadows Pond without a permit.

West Tisbury is on the road to becoming a Green Community.

The town is in the final stages of creating a plan to reduce energy use by 20 per cent over the next five years, with the goal of becoming designated a Green Community under the 2008 state Green Communities Act. The designation allows towns to receive special grant funding for energy efficiency studies and improvements to town buildings, among other things.

The town of Tisbury is pursuing the same designation.

On a Wednesday afternoon at the regional high school, the varsity and junior varsity sports teams are just finishing their practices. At the same time, cars pull up alongside the chain link fences ringing the fields and younger athletes step out, opening trunk doors and pulling out duffel bags of gear. The bags, and the windbreakers worn by some of the kids, are emblazoned with the same two words as those on the jackets of the high schoolers leaving the fields: Vineyard Lacrosse.

On July 1 Caroline Hunter of Oak Bluffs will receive the Rosa Parks Memorial Award from the National Education Association in Washington D.C. to honor her work in social justice, as well as her long career in education in the Cambridge school system. And just this past Wednesday, at a ceremony in Cambridge, Mrs. Hunter also received the Amandla Award from the nonprofit advocacy group, South Africa Partners.

Delayed state approval for 2012 property assessments will force the town of Chilmark to operate on borrowed money for the early part of the fiscal year, the selectmen learned this week. Without certified assessments from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, the town cannot set a tax rate, and without a tax rate it cannot send out property tax bills for the second half of the year. Preliminary tax bills for the first half of the year went out in October.

JUNE D. MANNING

508-645-2574

(lthslnks2004@yahoo.com)

The torrential rains of Monday night and Tuesday have certainly created more blooms and blossoms around Aquinnah. There are many beautiful birds to be found as well, as evidenced by a recent sighting of a very handsome woodpecker and beautiful chickadee. Of course the squirrels are in abundance in and around the bird feeders. Dreamcatcher opened this week and the Howwosswee Trading Post will be open by the end of the month.

JANE N. SLATER

508-645-3378

(slaterjn@comcast.net)

Chilmark sends best wishes to Susan Larsen and her daughter, Brigida, as they prepare for the two day Avon Walk for Breast Cancer this weekend in Boston. Susan will walk 39.3 miles and Brigida will speak at the opening ceremonies and join the youth group that supports the walkers on their two-day adventure. We hope Susan has made her fundraising goal.

There will be a flea market at the Community Center on Saturday, May 19, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and lunch will be available.

JOHN S. ALLEY

508-693-2950

(alleys@vineyard.net)

We spent Mother’s Day with our daughter, Nicole, her husband, Arsen, and grandson Robbie in Taunton and Newport, R.I. The weather was spectacular. Moms couldn’t have asked for a better day.

I want to thank Alan Gowell for minding the cemeteries, Raine Monast and her dad for writing my column, Maya Sharp for sorting the mail and Manny Estrella for cross walk duties. Manny took ill while I was away but I understand he now is on the mend.