News
Following the lead of Edgartown and Tisbury, West Tisbury has taken the first steps toward developing a municipal solar project. On Wednesday selectmen signed a letter of intent with the Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative to request proposals for solar projects at the town landfill.
“All this allows us to do is entertain the possibility of putting solar panels at the dump,” said town administrator Jennifer Rand.
The commercial season for striped bass ended this past Wednesday. The closure came when fisheries managers estimated that the 1,061,898-pound quota had been taken in Massachusetts. The season ran short this year.
Last year the 1.12 million-pound quota was taken at the conclusion of the third week of August. The fishery was closed on August 22.
Recreational fishing for striped bass continues. Anglers are required to possess a state saltwater recreational fishing license. They are allowed a bag limit of two fish per day; the minimum size is 28 inches.
Dollar for dollar, pound for pound, conch is the most valuable resource landed at the dock on the Vineyard in the summer. It is a huge, unsung fishery that draws little attention. One reason for this is almost no one on Martha’s Vineyard eats conch. Nearly all the conch is shipped to the mainland.
Nevertheless, it is a profitable business, more profitable than the lobster or bay scallop fishery. According to state figures, one million pounds of conch were landed on the Vineyard last year, nearly half of the 2.4 million pounds landed statewide.
As members of Congress limp back to their home districts and the president heads for summer vacation on the Vineyard, still bruised from the debt ceiling showdown, Vineyard Democrats turn their eyes to the next fight: the 2012 election. On the expected day of Mr. Obama’s arrival, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee will also travel to the Island to headline an evening of speakers and performers at a fundraiser at the Union Chapel in Oak Bluffs.
Health Insurance Check
Individuals who purchase health insurance on their own have until August 15 to take advantage of the last open enrollment period this year.
Open enrollment is the only time those consumers can switch or change plans. If their current coverage expires outside of the open enrollment period, the only option for coverage will be to renew the same plan.
The former Falmouth town manager was selected for the top administrative post in Oak Bluffs in a unanimous vote by the town selectmen Tuesday.
Robert Whritenour, who served as Falmouth town manager for 10 years, and the Mashpee town administrator for a decade before that, will be offered the job of interim town administrator. He was the only final candidate for the position after a second finalist dropped out last week.
Selectmen cited Mr. Whritenour’s strong financial background and managerial experience as pluses.