The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has finally put beyond doubt the power of local officials to prevent developers from tearing down small houses on undersized lots and replacing them with McMansions.

Almost two and a half years after the state’s highest court deadlocked 3-3 in the case of Katama homeowners who wanted to double the size of their house on a substandard half-acre lot, the court came down decisively against such practices in an almost identical case involving a house in Norwell.

A 50-acre property in the Priester’s Pond area of West Tisbury has changed hands for $15 million.

The buyer is Claudia Miller, whose mainland place of residence and prior connection to the Vineyard, if any, are unknown. The land includes two houses, one that was built in the Berkshires in 1795 and brought to the Vineyard in 1987.

The property, which has frontage on both Priester’s and Crosby ponds, includes one of the oldest farms on the Vineyard. The other house on the tract, the Luce Athearn House, is even older, dating to 1714.

West Tisbury selectmen said this week that they plan to redraft the town’s affordable housing ownership covenants to avoid recurrence of the foreclosed affordable home that has the town in court with a West Coast lender.

Questioned at the weekly selectmen’s meeting about the current situation involving a Scrubby Neck Road affordable home, selectman Glenn Hearn said the town could not have predicted the problem.

Correction

A story in last week’s Gazette reported incorrectly on the school where the Rev. Judith Campbell completed her post-doctoral work. Her degree is from the Union Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Gazette regrets the error.

Charter School

Monday, Jan. 21: No school, Martin Luther King Day.

Tuesday, Jan. 22: Tomato vegetable soup, hot dog or tofu dog on a roll, fruit smoothie and milk.

Wednesday, Jan. 23: Bagels with cream cheese, tuna salad or melted cheese and tomato, Japanese salad, pineapple and milk.

Thursday, Jan. 24: Pizza (plain cheese, pepperoni or tomato, zucchini and feta), tossed salad, fresh fruit and milk.

Friday, Jan. 25: Chili with beef or vegetarian, grated cheese, cornbread and butter, applesauce and milk

New Chapter Group

The New Chapter Group will be starting again soon at the Tisbury Senior Center with Karen Meeks as facilitator. If you are newly retired, just moved to the Island or experiencing any change in your life, you are invited to join the group, which will meet monthly. More information is available by calling the center at 508-696-4205.