Heralded as the last of the coastal steamships in America, the steamer Nobska will be scrapped if her owners are unable to find a way to float her away from the Charlestown Navy Yard by midyear.

Word of the new deadline was delivered to members of the New England Steamship Foundation at their annual meeting last Saturday in New Bedford. Art Flathers of Vineyard Haven, president of the foundation, his officers and the 60 other members heard it from the top.

It was built for skateboarders after a grassroots effort that lasted
years, but less than three months after the Martha's Vineyard
Skatepark opened in Oak Bluffs, the skaters are dealing with some
uninvited guests - bicyclists.

Sweet Clover: Beloved Cow Had a Gentle Way with Kids

By MANDY LOCKE

Clover, a docile Brown Swiss cow that lured youngsters to her stall
at the agricultural fair for nearly two decades, died in her sleep early
Wednesday morning. She was 19.

The Island's only Brown Swiss, Clover - also known as
Dairy Queen by those who loved her - came to the Vineyard in
December of 1984, at the age of four weeks. Amy Lawry bought her as a
birthday gift for her husband, Harold.

Voters of Aquinnah Consider Patriot Act

Voters in Aquinnah will decide this week whether to join other towns
across the country in opposing the Patriot Act, federal legislation
adopted six weeks after Sept. 11 in the name of anti-terrorism.

A resolution and a town bylaw opposing the Patriot Act both appear
on the warrant for a special town meeting. The meeting begins at 7 p.m.
on Wednesday, March 10, in the Aquinnah town hall.

School District Weighs Choices

Meetings in West Tisbury, Chilmark Explore Future of Up-Island
Public Education; Costs in Chilmark Are Central

By CHRIS BURRELL

Last night, more than 80 people - parents, teachers, alumni,
selectmen and community members - rallied around the Chilmark
School. Despite declining enrollment and pressure to cut costs in the
Up-Island Regional School District, they vowed they would not close
their school down.

SSA Governing Board Postpones Its Decision On New Security Rules

By JULIA WELLS

Gazette Senior Writer

Under heavy fire from the people of the Vineyard over a new policy
that will bar people from staying in their cars on board ferries, a
fractured Steamship Authority board of governors yesterday postponed any
decision on the policy for one more month.

Signaling its own interest in a case which has attracted attention
around the country, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC)
agreed this week to hear the Aquinnah court appeal over sovereign
immunity.

Jenney Lane Plan Gains Approval

By MANDY LOCKE

The Jenney Lane project, a cluster of affordable homes slated for a
neighborhood behind Upper Main street, cleared another hurdle this week
with unanimous approval from the Edgartown planning board.

This is the last official step in a review process that began last
July.

While Vineyarders await a legislative vote needed to make the Island
Health Plan (IHP) a reality, some Island health officials are already
worrying about the impact of the new affordable insurance program on
existing Island medical services.

Ray Ellis: Artist Takes Retrospective on the Road

By C.K. WOLFSON

Ray Ellis is quietly celebrating. The artist, who these days wears
the smile of a man whose life has exceeded his expectations, is
embarking on a year of extraordinary professional tribute to the body of
work that defines him.