Memorial Day Weekend Marks Traditional Start for the Summer Season

By MAX HART

The handwritten sign taped to the window of the Martha's
Vineyard Gourmet Cafe and Bakery in Oak Bluffs says it all: "Rain,
rain, go away! Come back in October. We beg you!"

That about sums up this week on the Vineyard, but Island residents
fear not: Memorial Day weekend is upon us. The start to summer 2005 is
here.

A story exists for everyone who stays at the Lillian Manter Memorial Hostel.

For Lillian Manter it was a love of serving others. For Tom Thatcher it was a business and home. For Arlo Guthrie it was the beginning of a song. For Amanda Cohen it was a home and playground. And for Monroe Sheppard it is one more stop in his years of involvement with hostels.

This past weekend on the 50th anniversary of the building's opening, many former hostellers, staff and family returned to celebrate and share memories. Since its current inception the hostel has welcomed more than 100,000 guests. Hostelling International USA hoped to use the weekend celebration as a way to acknowledge the Island's hospitality.

Sharply Divided Camps Face Off Over Affordable Housing Plan

By IAN FEIN

Island residents packed a Martha's Vineyard Commission meeting
last week to offer impassioned pleas both for and against an unusual
affordable housing subdivision proposed for Watcha Path Road in
Edgartown.

Proposed by a group of Vineyard residents who want to build 11 homes
on 10.9 acres, the project is under review by the commission as a
development of regional impact (DRI).

Channel Needs Emergency Dredging

By RACHEL KOVAC

Extreme silting and clogging in the channel beneath the Little
Bridge in Oak Bluffs have prompted an emergency dredging project to
protect the ecosystem in Sengekontacket Pond.

"It is very important for the life of the pond to
flush," said county manager E. Winn Davis. "That is to say
every time the tide changes it's brining in new nutrients and
taking out nutrients."

Danubia Campos can remember back six or seven years ago when she knew every Brazilian on Martha's Vineyard.

Leaders of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) now have until July 2 to decide whether they will try to convince the United States Supreme Court to hear their appeal of the much-watched case over tribal sovereignty.

Attorneys Pressing Tax Case Underscore Serious Flaws in Town
Assessment System

By IAN FEIN

BOSTON - Attorneys for Island resident William W. Graham at a
legal hearing this week charged the fundamental system West Tisbury
assessors use to determine land values and property taxes throughout the
town is seriously flawed.

NStar Labor Strike Hits Home Hard; Workers Decry Abrupt Benefit
Cutoff

By JAMES KINSELLA

Striking NStar Electric & Gas employees on the Vineyard grew
more bitter yesterday as word spread that the power distribution company
had suspended health insurance benefits for workers on strike.

"It doesn't say much for how they feel for their
employees," said Glenn Dickson of Vineyard Haven. "Usually
there's a grace period. It seems like they don't
care."

Middle Line Housing Project Goes to a Hearing in Chilmark

By MAX HART

A third and final public hearing is set for next week on
Chilmark's first town-sponsored affordable housing project, when
residents will have the chance to discuss the details of the Middle Line
Road plan.

But debate on the hot-button topic of the day - whether to
build rental units or resident homesites - will have to wait until
the project comes before voters at a special town meeting next month.

Long Island Ferry Concern Eyes Martha's Vineyard for
Possible New Route

By James Kinsella
Gazette Senior Writer

Owners of a Montauk, N.Y., ferry company have launched a federal
lawsuit that could open the way for car ferry and fast ferry service
between Long Island and Martha's Vineyard.

In the lawsuit, entities with ownership interests in the Viking
Fleet want to strike down a ban by the town of East Hampton against car
ferries and fast ferries operating out of Montauk harbor.