Chris Burrell

Scotland to the Vineyard: Vineyard Golf Club Opens Course To Early Round of Rave Reviews

The way golf enthusiasts talk about the Island’s newest course — which officially opened just over a week ago off Edgartown-West Tisbury Road in Edgartown — you expect to see guys walking around the clubhouse wearing kilts.

Well, don’t worry. The course at the Vineyard Golf Club may be unforgiving Scottish-inspired design, but the garb is just the kind of pastel microfiber blends you’ll find on most any golf course in the country.

Make that private course. A membership costs about $300,000.

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By the Numbers: A Place to Hang Your Hat
Nicole Fullin and Chris Burrell

 

 

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Teens Reply to Behavior Survey
Chris Burrell

Given the chance to sound off about the results of a survey that tracked their behavior around alcohol, drugs, violence and sex, Island teenagers are not at a loss for words.

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Buzzards Bay Spill Puts Island Waters at Risk

Prevailing winds so far have helped the Vineyard escape any real environmental impact from an oil spill Sunday that dumped almost 15,000 gallons into Buzzards Bay, killing at least five waterfowl and polluting more than 10 miles of mainland beaches along the bay.

Chunks of oil the size of hockey pucks were spotted in Vineyard Sound near the Elizabeth Islands, prompting Dukes County officials to declare a state of emergency Wednesday, but none of the oil has yet washed ashore on any Island beaches.

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Island Ends Year of War and Peace on Vital Fronts from Boat Line to Hospital and Golf Course Plans

Who needs Broadway when you live year-round on Martha's Vineyard? Turn the camera lens back on the last year, and you can spot enough drama for a dozen plays, both comedies and tragedies.

Ideal grist for the mill, money and power spurred much of the political intrigue and battles of 2002, whether the stage was the Steamship Authority, the Martha's Vineyard Hospital or the southern woodlands, which lived another year in its wild state - free of golf balls and putting greens.

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If You're New at Camp Ground, Illumination Jitters Have Arrived
CHRIS BURRELL

Amy Bannon is determined to get it right this Illumination Night. Wednesday night marks the 134th year for lighting up the Camp Ground, but for the Bannons, this is just their second try.

And the pressure is on.

"We made some mistakes last year," said Mrs. Bannon. "We were the dimmest cottage in the entire circle."

This time they plan on using real candles.

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Waiting List for English Classes Is Long; Indicator of Intent to Stay

Waiting List for English Classes Is Long; Indicator of Intent to
Stay

By CHRIS BURRELL

They are, said Jeanne Burke, the people who sustain the Island, the
ones who ring up the groceries, paint the houses and tend the gardens.

They are also the ones knocking on Ms. Burke's door in
staggering numbers, looking for a place in one of the six English
classes taught through the Martha's Vineyard Adult Learning
Partnership, where Ms. Burke is the director.

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State Plan for Sengekontacket Bridges Draws Scrutiny and Raises Concerns

The state wants to spend $3.25 million replacing the Big and Little Bridges on Beach Road along Sengekontacket Pond with concrete structures, but last week at a public hearing in the Oak Bluffs School, a handful of Islanders tried convincing state engineers to tread lightly because these are no ordinary bridges.

The two bridges built of wood are as beloved as the covered bridges of Vermont, said Thea Hansen, a resident of Oak Bluffs who handles seasonal real estate rentals.

They're recreational destinations for fishermen and children, said Kenneth Abbott of Edgartown.

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Changes at Colonial Inn: Not a Timeshare, Nor Condo, but Ultimate Vacation Residence

Something really big and different is about to happen at the Colonial Inn in Edgartown, but so far, the people who know what it is - the hotel's primary owner and a Tisbury real estate outfit involved in the deal - are keeping their lips locked.

They won't say a word until tomorrow and then again Thursday at cocktail parties in the Daniel Fisher House in downtown Edgartown. Party invitations read like a movie trailer voice-over script, enticing guests to the "grand unveiling," where they will "experience the ultimate," so "come see what it's all about."

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