After years of uphill struggle and vocal protest, the Vineyard community will finally get what it wants, a full service Coast Guard station at Menemsha. In a formal ceremony on Monday, with the eyes of Island officials, the United States Coast Guard and Cong. William Delahunt watching, the station will be upgraded to full status.
"This will be a great day for Menemsha," declared Chilmark selectman Warren Doty yesterday. It is not often that the waterfront community agrees on anything related to the federal government, but they agree on this.
Chilmark town moderator Everett H. Poole will bang the gavel Monday
night, and town voters will consider the question of parties.
A special town meeting is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Chilmark
Community Center, and the 17-article warrant includes a proposal to
limit the excessive use of private homes for commercial weddings.
Boat Line Eyes Rate Increases
Preliminary Budget Unveiled; New Fee Hikes Are Proposed for All
Parking Permits and Hazardous Trips
By CHRIS BURRELL
Despite rising fuel costs and lagging car traffic on Steamship
Authority ferries, the boat line leadership still plans to hold the line
next year on ticket rates for cars and walk-on passengers.
In other words, no fare hikes. The cost to park your car in a
mainland lot, however, is another story.
Voters in Aquinnah Will Confront Supplemental Budget Request
By ALEXIS TONTI
After twice rejecting a general override to Proposition 2 1/2,
voters in Aquinnah are being asked to consider yet another request for
extra funding, this time for $113,000.
The money would cover cost of living increases for town employees
and restore a number of other drastic cuts that were necessary to
balance the budget earlier this year.
A special town meeting to consider a supplemental budget convenes
Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Aquinnah town hall.
Westwood Crushes the Vineyard in Disappointing Home Opener
By ALEXIS TONTI
The Vineyarders took a hit Friday night, falling 35-0 to Westwood in
a game that pitted last year's Division V and Division VI
champions against one another.
Coast Guard Suspends Vineyard SSA Captain
The United States Coast Guard confirmed yesterday that it has
suspended the license of an experienced Steamship Authority captain for
negligence in an alarming accident during a man overboard drill on the
ferry Islander last year.
Lieut. John Winter, a senior marine investigator and marine safety
officer based in Providence, R.I., said Capt. David Dandridge turned in his
license last Wednesday for a 30-day suspension.
Remnants of Ivan Deliver Stormy Blast in Weekend of High Winds,
Heavy Seas
By MARK ALAN LOVEWELL
The remains of one of the worst hurricanes of the year came up from
the south and brought severe weather across the Island over the weekend.
A 36-foot power boat was destroyed on Saturday when it broke from its
mooring in the Vineyard Haven outer harbor and was thrown against the
breakwater in heavy seas.
Two other boats were grounded in the area. In Edgartown two boats
were grounded and a third sank at its dock.
Housing Committee Vetoes Restrictions
Oak Bluffs Resident Homesite Group Seeks Fewer Controls on Youth
Lots, Uncorking a Fresh Controversy
By CHRIS BURRELL
The Dukes County Regional Housing Authority raised serious questions
yesterday about a proposal in Oak Bluffs to ease restrictions on the
resale of past and future resident homesite lots.
Low enrollment numbers coupled with strict state guidelines have
forced the Martha's Vineyard Adult Learning Partnership to scrap
its general education diploma (GED) classes which typically start up in
September.
The decision leaves the Vineyard with no option for people needing
preparation for the high school equivalency diploma - unless
you're an inmate at the county jail.
Boat Line Budget Is Central Topic at Board Meeting
By ALEXIS TONTI
Steamship Authority governors meet on the Vineyard this week to take
up the 2005 draft operating budget, operating schedules and the search
for the new general manager, part of a packed agenda for the monthly
boat line meeting.
Acting general manager Wayne Lamson said yesterday that he
anticipates putting a $65 million to $70 million draft operating budget
before the board for discussion.
