Dukes County Board Suggests Full Review of SSA Operations

By ALEXIS TONTI

Amid turmoil and turnover at the Steamship Authority, the Dukes
County commissioners this week called on the boat line to steady itself
by hiring a consultant for a full review of its operations.

Superior Court Ruling on Bridge Housing Dismisses Neighbor's
Attempt to Appeal

By JULIA WELLS

Marking one more win in court for the Martha's Vineyard
Commission, a superior court judge last week threw out a
neighbor's appeal of the Bridge Housing project planned for
Vineyard Haven.

The Hon. Richard J. Chin, an associate justice of the superior
court, ruled that Kenneth and Nicole Bilzerian have no standing, and he
allowed summary judgment for Bridge Housing and the 30-year-old regional
land use commission.

The ruling was issued July 7.

Chief Says Landlord Probe Just Beginning

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

A well-known electrician is now the subject of a widening police
investigation into whether he broke the law when he allegedly secretly
videotaped a female tenant while she was in the bathroom.

Richard Lehman admitted to Tisbury police on June 27 that he had
installed a camera in the woman's bathroom so he could watch her
taking a shower, police said. The woman rents a home from Mr. Lehman on
Franklin street in Vineyard Haven.

Armed with the results of an anonymous survey that praised the Chilmark School for it small class sizes and strong sense of community but was critical of its leadership, communication and staff turnover, the chairman of a fledgling school task force unveiled a report last night, urging regional school board members to take action on more than a dozen areas of concern.

More than 2,000 people gathered in the Tabernacle Saturday night to celebrate the structure's 125th birthday.

Grandparents, grandchildren, and everyone in between filled the rows, sitting on some of the same benches used in the 1800s, when the religious campers gathered under the oak trees and the canvas tent that predated the Tabernacle's construction in 1879.

"It had begun to look its age - and so have I," said the evening's host, newsman and Vineyard Haven summer resident Mike Wallace, complimenting achievements of the Tabernacle's current restoration project.

They Go 'Round the Island in Eight Hours

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By COLEY WARD

Godspeed, captained by John Nugent, won its class in last
year's 'Round the Island Race, sponsored by the Edgartown
Yacht Club. This year the boat came in third.

What went wrong? Nothing, if you believe Godspeed's crew.

Garage Case Gets a Hearing

Oak Bluffs Renovation Controversy Receives Zoning Board Review This
Thursday Evening; Battle of the Lawyers

By CHRIS BURRELL

The three-story garage that galvanized a neighborhood and triggered
political skirmishes across Oak Bluffs comes before the town zoning
board of appeals Thursday night when garage owner Joseph Moujabber tries
to win back his building permit and put his project back on track.

What to Do if Repair Can't Happen Before This Fall's
Classes Begin? Other Old Questions Surface in a New Town Hall Setting

Faced with the prospect that the Chilmark School will not be
repaired by September, selectmen on Tuesday night discussed how the town
might get through another year with the building in its current
condition.

Tisbury Police Cut Back at Steamship Terminal

By ALEXIS TONTI

The Tisbury police department has scaled back its police detail at
the boat line terminal in Vineyard Haven.

The impact this will have on arriving and departing passengers is
unclear; but the move comes as police face budget constraints in the new
fiscal year without the guarantee of a longtime Steamship Authority
reimbursement.

Nantucket Asks: What's the Big Deal?

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

It was the logical next step in a business matter that began last
February.

This is the viewpoint on Nantucket, where residents and elected
officials are apparently mystified at last week's flap over the
news that draft legislation is now circulating to study breaking up the
public boat line which has been the lifeline to the two Islands since
1960.