Town, Tribe Pact on Land Use Nears Decision; Attorneys Press for
Accord

By IAN FEIN

After a three-month stalemate, a proposed land use agreement between
town and tribal officials in Aquinnah is approaching a tipping point,
but leaders on both sides remain unsure which way it will fall.

With all the hype surrounding tomorrow's Island Cup game between the Vineyard and Nantucket, it's easy to overlook that at its core, it's only a game.

Unlike in previous years, when the contest often determined whether the Vineyarders or the Whalers made the playoffs, the only thing on the line this year is bragging rights until the two teams lock horns again next November.

Paul Dulac Resigns to Seek New Job as Superintendent

Edgartown School principal G. Paul Dulac resigned his post on
Wednesday night, after deciding to remain in the running for school
superintendent in Marblehead, where he is a finalist.

Vineyard schools superintendent Dr. James Weiss said he asked for
Mr. Dulac's resignation after learning that he had kept his name
on the short list of final candidates in Marblehead.

"Edgartown needs to have stability and commitment and clearly
that was not the case," Mr. Weiss told the Gazette yesterday.

The Tisbury selectmen lowered the tax rate for businesses, agreed to
review a draft warrant article to introduce beer and wine in town and
took steps to regulate taxi companies more efficiently in a
three-and-a-half hour meeting on Tuesday night.

The brief but memorable playoff run for the high school boys'
soccer team ended Tuesday, following a gut-wrenching 2-1 defeat to
Hingham in the Division II quarterfinals. The game was decided by
penalty kicks after two frames of scoreless sudden-death overtime.

The winds of change were in the air for Dukes County this past week
as Island voters elected two new members to the Dukes County Commission
and approved the creation of a new county charter commission by an
almost four-to-one margin.

Tristan Israel, a longtime member of the county advisory board and
Tisbury selectman; and Carlene Gatting, a member of the Martha's
Vineyard commission, beat out a crowded field of challengers to win
seats on the board.

Vineyard voters in the state election this week overwhelmingly said
yes to a study of their county charter and swept two new members onto
the Dukes County commission, but expressing a measured mandate for
change, also returned two incumbents to the regional governing board.

Hospital's Building Proposal Draws Concern, Support at Final
Two MVC Hearings

By IAN FEIN

An offsite parking lot emerged this week as a critical sticking
point in the continuing Martha's Vineyard Commission review of the
proposed Martha's Vineyard Hospital renovation and expansion
project. Questions about the parking lot reflected longstanding concerns
among some commission members that the existing 13-acre hospital
location in the Eastville section of Oak Bluffs may not be appropriate
or adequate for further expansion.

Over-manning on vessels run by the Steamship Authority costs more
than $3 million each year, according to estimates by the Authority.

The boat line contends that its ships operate with crews more than
52 per cent above minimum Coast Guard requirements in the summer tourist
season and more than 40 per cent above requirements in the off-season.

It was the eve of an election in which most Americans were preparing
to pass judgment on the war in which Bertha Blake's two sons are
soldiers, but she politely declined to talk about that election.

Except to say this: "I respect the right of people not to
support the war. We all are entitled to our own beliefs, and my sons
hold up that freedom for us."