Last week the Oak Bluffs police department received a $275,058 grant from the Department of Justice to rehire for three years an officer who was let go in July due to town budget cuts. The grant is part of the Department of Justice’s COPS hiring program which seeks to maintain adequate policing resources in communities that face budget shortfalls and layoffs.

In a press release Oak Bluffs town administrator Michael Dutton lauded the efforts of police chief Erik Blake in acquiring the funding.

The state has responded to Island road maintenance concerns in a rather unusual way: it wants to hand the work over to the Vineyard.

At a meeting Wednesday night, Skip McCourt, district highway director for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (DOT), met with town officials to persuade them to take over the routine maintenance of state roads in their jurisdiction.

Hillside Hires Manager

Leslie Digby Rizza has been appointed site manager at Hillside Village, a unit of Island Elderly Housing. Leslie previously worked in the legal and educational fields in New York and Boston. Leslie and her family, Alistair and Jack, summered on the Island for several years before moving here in 2007. They came to the Vineyard mainly for the quality of life and the schools. Leslie has been active at both the Tisbury and charter schools. She recently helped launch the Laura Jernegan Web site for the Martha’s Vineyard Museum.

In a room behind the teller line at the Edgartown National Bank is a door into a 10-by-6-foot structure. It looks like an ordinary wood frame door, with molding and an antique doorknob, until you try to open it. Careful, it’s easy to fall over when opening the 560-pound door to the old safe that dates back to the 1850s.

Solar Technology

SunWaterMV presents an open house demonstration on how to slash fossil fuel use and harvest local energy with new solar thermal technology on Saturday, Oct. 9 (rain date Oct. 10) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Fire When Ready

On Saturday, Oct. 9, the Martha’s Vineyard Rod and Gun Club will hold its 2010 large and small caliber pistol club championships on the club’s firing range. This event is open to club members and the public; members will receive the pistol champion’s trophy. Nonmembers will also be eligible for prizes. There will be a small entry fee. Refreshments will be available.

The public is invited to watch all the action and excitement for free. The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine.