Steamship Authority Sues to Block Fees:
Boat Line Seeks Superior Court Ruling
Over Hefty Falmouth Parking Fees;
Hearing Monday on Injunction
By JULIA WELLS
In a legal standoff with the town of Falmouth, the
Steamship Authority went to court this week to try to block the Upper
Cape town from imposing a set of hefty licensing fees on boat line
parking lots.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has denied a petition by the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) to hold a new hearing on the much-watched sovereignty case, closing the door on the last option for the Wampanoags at the state level.
In a one-sentence ruling issued late in the day on Wednesday, the state supreme court denied the motion by the tribe to rehear the case.
The tribe will now pursue an appeal to the United States Supreme Court.
Talks Between Two Key Agencies to Form One Nursing Service Approach
Time of Decision After Thirteen Months
By JULIA WELLS
Talks about a potential merger between the Island's two
visiting nurse agencies have reached a critical juncture, and the next
few weeks will determine whether the merger becomes reality or falls
apart, leaders from both agencies said this week.
William Styron, the acclaimed novelist and leading literary figure of his generation whose summer home on the Vineyard Haven harbor has long been the hub of the area known colloquially as writer's row, died Wednesday at the Martha's Vineyard Hospital. He was 81.
The cause of death was pneumonia. Mr. Styron had been in failing
health for a number of years.
SSA Set to Vote on Fare Hikes Thursday at Cornell Theatre
By JAMES KINSELLA
When the Steamship Authority board of governors convenes next
Thursday morning at the Katharine Cornell Theatre, Vineyard governor
Marc Hanover anticipates voting for across-the-board rate increases to
fund next year\\\'s $78.3 million budget.
And this year, for the first time since he took the job in 1976,
superior court clerk Joseph E. Sollitto Jr. faces a challenge for his
seat. The court clerk is elected every six years in Dukes County.
Superior Court Says Decision to Deny Expansion for Hotel, Racquet
Club Was Reasonable, Not Arbitrary
By JULIA WELLS
A superior court judge ruled yesterday that the Martha's
Vineyard Commission did not stray outside the lines of its authority
when it rejected an expansion plan for Jack E. Robinson Sr.'s bed
and breakfast on New York avenue in Oak Bluffs last year.
Vineyard and Nantucket Hospitals Move to Join Massachusetts General
By JULIA WELLS
Trustees at the Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket hospitals this
week announced their intention to join Massachusetts General Hospital
and its parent company, Partners Health Care, as affiliates by the end
of the year.
The Martha's Vineyard Community Hospital ended its fiscal year
on a high note drenched in black ink, posting a net operating gain of
just over $1.5 million, more than double the gain posted last year
before gifts and other income. Cash reserves are also at an all-time
high at the Island's only hospital, thanks in part to a surge in
volume.
Plans for $42 Million New Facility Set to Be Filed in Oak Bluffs;
MVC Land Use Committee Will Discuss on Monday
By JULIA WELLS
The Martha's Vineyard Community Hospital, much in the news
this year with its ambitious $42 million capital campaign, is now set to
file formal plans for a new hospital building off Linton Lane in the
Eastville section of Oak Bluffs.
