Martha's Vineyard Commission Responds to Technical Problems

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

Amid a ripple of allegations about possible open meeting law
violations on two separate fronts, leaders at the Martha's
Vineyard Commission this week turned to their attorney for help.

Eric Wodlinger, a partner at Choate Hall & Stewart in Boston,
recommended that the commission follow the advice of the Cape and
Islands district attorney and take a second vote on the written decision
for the Down Island Golf club plan.

Tisbury Police Chief Agrees to Accord on Retirement; Resigns Post
After 29 Years

By JOSHUA SABATINI

Tisbury chief of police John McCarthy reached an agreement with the
town board of selectmen on Monday, resigning from the force after almost
29 years of service.

Hockey Team Romps to State Championship

By JOSHUA SABATINI

By the time the boys' varsity hockey team returned home from
Boston's Fleet Center on the 7:45 p.m. ferry Sunday -
fittingly, the M/V Martha's Vineyard - the word had spread:
They were the Division II state champions.

West Tisbury this week became the second Island town to embrace a
pact that preserves the north shore's natural state, ensuring that
it remains virtually free of piers, docks and groins.

SSA Board Finds New Harmony; Cancels New Bedford Freight Run

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

After months of divisive board relations and bruising politics, the
Steamship Authority governors cemented a new harmony yesterday, tackling
the business of the boat line on a variety of fronts from New Bedford to
Nantucket with virtually no discord.

"The tone of this meeting is fantastic. What a change,"
declared Nat Lowell, a Nantucket trucker who regularly attends boat line
meetings.

Hallgate is 60 sprawling acres of undeveloped land along the
Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Road. This would-be subdivision has been tagged
in more recent years as Edgartown's "car dump" -
a final resting place for the battered hulks of automobiles.

Island Hockey Wins, Advancing to State Championship Play

By JOSHUA SABATINI

The Martha's Vineyard Regional High School varsity boys'
hockey team defeated the defending state champions Sunday, earning a
trip this weekend to Boston's Fleet Center to play for the state
championship title.

Through the regular season, first-year head coach Matt Mincone and
his players knew they had what it took to contend against the toughest
teams in their Division II South league.

For generations, the arrival of the herring at coastal ponds has
been the Island's harbinger of spring. Now, major initiatives are
under way across the Island to enhance waterways for the returning
alewife.

This week, work began and is almost complete on the construction of
a fish ladder at the head of Lake Tashmoo.

When Dave Medeiros started working at the West Tisbury post office three years ago, some things were bound to change.

U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock heard the case of
Aquinnah building inspector versus the Wampanoag Tribal Council of Gay
Head Wednesday and questioned whether the federal court has jurisdiction
over the civil action. The outcome of the case will determine whether
the town has zoning jurisdiction on tribal lands.