News
The water is safe to drink again in Oak Bluffs after the state Department of Environmental Protection lifted a boil-water order early last Friday, but questions remain about the town’s handling of the situation and its ability to disseminate information during an emergency.
At first glance, the recently completed new home at 15 Green avenue in Oak Bluffs looks like many others you might find in this quiet and scenic East Chop neighborhood.
It has a wraparound porch, a perfectly manicured lawn, an outdoor shower and plenty of space; there is a large kitchen and five spacious bedrooms, not counting the open third floor that would be perfect for bunk beds or a pool table.
But look closer and you will find this isn’t your average three-story, three-and-a-half-bath Vineyard dream house.
Volunteers Needed
Volunteers are needed to answer the phone in the mornings and some afternoons, make telephone reassurance calls and greet people when they come into the Tisbury senior center. For more information, call Joyce at at 508-696-4205.
By now the contours of the affordable housing dilemma are painfully familiar — soaring real estate values have squeezed middle-class Islanders, forcing them to choose between a shaky rental market or relocating off-Island. In an attempt to move the debate beyond Darwinian free-market economics and glacially-paced town initiatives, Vineyard realtor Jim Feiner is attempting to forge a third path, blending private philanthropy and free-market economics to provide affordable homes for the Island community.
The Oak Bluffs resident homesite committee, once responsible for finding and providing affordable lots to town residents, has long ago disbanded. The committee has not held a housing lottery in over three years, and the last recorded minutes of a meeting date back to December of 2004.
But according to town records, the committee technically still exists.
There is over $250,000 in cash in the resident homesite account, and the town committee still owns 16 properties scattered throughout town with a total assessed value of $4.8 million.
A plan to extend the town sewer system to the Island Grove subdivision in Edgartown was off and then on again this week, as selectmen debated whether to place the question on the warrant for a special town meeting later this month.
At their meeting Monday, selectmen voted to hold the $806,000 spending article for the annual town meeting in April; the question will also require an exemption from Proposition 2 1/2 on the town ballot and there is not enough time to schedule a special election to accompany the special town meeting.