Saturday Fire Destroys Sailboat in Harbor; Two Towns Respond

Vineyard Haven harbor was lit up on Saturday evening by a fully
involved boat fire. Tisbury firemen and harbor masters from two towns
responded to a blaze aboard a 30-foot Catalina sailboat called Tippy
Canoe, owned by Tyler Weggel of Port Washington, N.Y.

There were no injuries. The vessel, a total loss, now lies partially
submerged, a black shell, in shallow water at the foot of Grove street.

Portuguese_American Festival Celebrates Vibrant Community

Portuguese-American Festival Celebrates Vibrant Community

By Elizabeth Bomze

When Jesse Oliver attended his first Portuguese-American festival as
a kid in 1963, he must have figured that his lineage would some day
dictate his involvement in its future; after all, his grandfather, also
Jesse Oliver, was a founding member of the P-A Club. Now, 40 years
later, he is a four-year veteran at Anne-Marie Cywinski's grill
booth, and he expects his tenure has only just begun.

Alan Dershowitz Reflects on Issues of Sovereignty and Future of Vineyard

Sovereignty is in the news these days.

It's in Rhode Island, where tempers are running hot in an
ongoing skirmish between the Narragansett Indian Tribe and state
attorney general over whether the tribe can sell tax-free tobacco.

It's in the Hamptons, where the Shinnecock Indian Nation has
begun to clear land for a casino, contravening local zoning and state
gaming laws.

Island Agencies Win U.S. Health Grant

Island Agencies Win U.S. Health Grant

Half a Million Dollars Will Address Doctor Shortage, Add Rural
Clinic, Provide Brazilian Translators

By MANDY LOCKE

Three agencies on the Vineyard have won nearly half a million
federal dollars to ease the Island's shortage of primary care
physicians and break down language barriers for Brazilian residents
seeking health care.

Wind Farm Review Needs Another Year

Wind Farm Review Needs Another Year

Army Corps of Engineers Says Issue Complex; ‘We're Not
Trying to Meet Some Artificial Deadline'

By MANDY LOCKE

Determining the fate of a 130-turbine wind farm development proposed
for the shallow waters of Nantucket Sound will take the United States
Army Corps of Engineers at least another year.

Experts Will Hold Summit Next Week to Discuss Shellfish Die Off at Hatchery

Following the die off of juvenile shellfish at the Martha's
Vineyard Shellfish Group in recent weeks, there will be a summit of the
minds next Wednesday at the Tisbury Town Hall. Shellfish constables,
biologists, members of the Lagoon Pond Association and the Tisbury
Waterways Inc. will meet at noon to talk about the next step in
protecting the water quality in the pond.

The Club That Does What Needs Doing

The Club That Does What Needs Doing

By CHRIS BURRELL

Not a drop of Portuguese blood flows in Barbara Humber's
veins. Her ancestry is Scottish and Irish, but hand her a pile of
linguica, garlic and potatoes, and she can cook up a genuine batch of
sopa.

Ms. Humber is just one of a growing number of Islanders who have not
only joined the Portuguese-American Club in Oak Bluffs but now play
pivotal roles in it despite a glaring deficit: They aren't
Portuguese-Americans.

The reasons aren't really that complicated.

You Got the Magic

New County Manager Still on Hold; She Says Nothing Wrong with Resume

By MANDY LOCKE

One week after Dukes County commissioners hoped to restore their
government image with a new leader at the helm, recently-hired county
manager Laurie Perry has not yet reported to work.

Commissioners ducked behind closed doors again Wednesday night to
discuss \"non-union personnel contracts.\"

They took no action, and said they would hold another meeting next
week.

New County Manager Still on Hold; She Says Nothing Wrong with Resume

New County Manager Still on Hold; She Says Nothing Wrong with Resume

By MANDY LOCKE

One week after Dukes County commissioners hoped to restore their
government image with a new leader at the helm, recently-hired county
manager Laurie Perry has not yet reported to work.

Commissioners ducked behind closed doors again Wednesday night to
discuss "non-union personnel contracts."

They took no action, and said they would hold another meeting next
week.

Airport Commission Asks FAA to Move on Jail, Land Transfer

Airport Commission Asks FAA to Move on Jail, Land Transfer

By ELIZABETH BOMZE

Conversations around the airport commission table on Wednesday night
left both the dormitory housing and new jail propositions for further
discussion. Two proposals, however, will be sent to the FAA: to place a
jail behind the Hot Tin Roof in the southwest corner of the airport
property, and to make a land swap between the airport and the state
forest.

Airport manager Bill Weibrecht attributes the continued delay to the
question of how best to use airport land.

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