Housing threatens vital summer economy
The seasonal ebb and flow of Island life moves like the tides, a motion that is necessary to keep the local community afloat. But these days, the summer economy and the need for affordable housing feel more like an unpredictable crosscurrent that threatens the sustainability of the Island. Twenty thousand year-round Islanders live and work…
Calls rise for more Chappy Ferry transparency
The Chappy Ferry, the only year-round transportation service that goes between Edgartown and Chappaquiddick, is slated to potentially change hands for the first time in nearly 20 years. But before the license can be transferred from longtime owner Peter Wells and Sally Snipes, the applicant, Chappy Ferry captain and Edgartown resident Brian Scall, must undergo…
Empty Tisbury storefronts raise eminent domain question for voters
Vacant stores and darkened windows on Main Street in Vineyard Haven have become not only an eyesore for all and a lost business opportunity for the Island, they have also raised a persistent question that voters put to the candidates in a forum last week as Tisbury goes to the polls on Tuesday, May 12.…
UPS deliveries on hold, employees at wit’s end
At the local branch of the United Parcel Service (UPS) in Vineyard Haven, cardboard boxes and plastic packages are stacked nearly to the ceiling of the already cramped building. It’s the only UPS storefront on the Island, and the three employees who work there say they’re completely overrun and overworked, though they’re still showing up…
Aquinnah to close out town meeting season
Aquinnah residents head to their Annual Town Meeting on Tuesday, and are the last of the six Island towns’ voters to do so. There are 31 articles on the warrant, including a request to move properties on the Cliffs from town hands to the jurisdiction of the Aquinnah Cultural Center. The meeting is on May…
ISland Life
‘A Season of Flowers’
Running a kitchen in alpha-gal times
This week’s print edition
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Environment
Experts: Deer sterilization won’t solve Island’s tick crisis
Updated May 6. A reduction of deer densities on the Island wouldn’t necessarily mean an immediate decrease in the amount of ticks, but any efforts could make other strategies, such as chemical treatments, managing other host populations, and other solutions currently in research much more efficient and effective. That’s what Martin Feehan, deer and moose…
Health
Red House moves into new home
One of the grey-shingled buildings on the Martha’s Vineyard Community Services (MVCS) campus is now decorated with red paint, a homage to the name of the peer-run recovery center that recently set up shop inside. Staff at the Red House, the Island’s substance-use peer recovery support center, where over 100 people attend meetings, meals, and…
Housing
Chilmark takes a step in the Peaked Hills housing project
At her first meeting as a new Chilmark Select Board member on Tuesday, Rebecca Haag helped to push forward the stalled Peaked Hill Pastures, the first sign of movement for the affordable housing project in roughly a year. Haag, who was elected to the Chilmark Select Board last month, had requested that Peaked Hills be…
Education
Ten young Islanders earn education and workforce scholarships
MVYouth announced Tuesday that the community fund has awarded nearly $600,000 to 10 local high school students for college, healthcare and education, and workforce development scholarships this year. “With the generous support of our donors, MVYouth has selected an excellent group of students each spring for the past 12 years. In this time, we have…
Politics
Juli Vanderhoop resigns from Dukes County Commission
Julianne “Juli” Vanderhoop of Aquinnah resigned her seat on the Dukes County Commission, a press release from the commission announced Wednesday. Vanderhoop, who is a member of the Wampanoag Tribe as well as on the Aquinnah Select Board, cited personal priorities as a reason for her resignation, according to the release. She told The Times…
Cops and Courts
Island resident sentenced in rape case; one detained by ICE
Two Brazilian nationals accused of child rape were convicted on Tuesday, April 7 at a Dukes County Superior Court hearing at the Edgartown Courthouse. One defendant, whose child rape charge was dismissed but was convicted on a lesser charge, was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as she left the…
Immigration
Island family stranded in Canada after visa renewal denial
Updated April 17. An Island family, stranded in Canada for the past six weeks due to a denied visa renewal following a family ski trip, has been forced to seek documentation in order to try to return home. The family’s status continues to remain uncertain after federal border officials rejected Michael Freeze’s work visa renewal…
Ferry and transportation
The first 100 days
Summer is fast approaching the Vineyard. The lead-up to the tourism season is well underway as summer residents return to open their homes and visitors are steadily increasing. The Island, which will see its population surge from 20,000 year-round to more than 100,000 during July and August, is bracing for the onslaught of summer. At…
