SSA Board Sinks New Bedford Ferry Plan; Shaky Financial Footing Collapses Proposal

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

In a 2-1 vote that left Vineyard Steamship Authority governor J.B. Riggs Parker visibly seething, the SSA board yesterday killed a trial high-speed ferry project between New Bedford and the Vineyard that would have cost $10 million over the next three years.

"A $10 million investment over three years with no market study? This is not the right deal or the right time," said Falmouth SSA governor Galen Robbins.

After months of uneven discussion about whether to open up high-speed ferry service between New Bedford and the Vineyard, the Steamship Authority is now set for a crucial vote on a pilot project that will cost the boat line millions of dollars over the next three years, if it is approved.

Hospital Contract Changes Questioned

Tisbury Leaders Charge Shady Moves in Amended Contract; Turn Matter Over to Town Counsel for Study

By JOSHUA SABATINI

Tisbury selectmen this week asked town counsel to study a controversial amended contract among Island towns, the county and Martha's Vineyard Hospital for possible legal problems.

At a Tisbury selectmen's meeting Tuesday evening, selectman Thomas Pachico said there seems to be "something shady" in the agreement administered by the subcommittee in charge of the dealings.

The jokes and gritty remarks about trophy houses and the Hamptons have been circulating on the Vineyard for a couple of years, but last week the Edgartown conservation commission got its first real-life glimpse of a starter castle now planned for an unspoiled point of land on the Oyster Pond.

Cranberry Day observances brought the youngest and oldest members of the Wampanoag Tribe together on Tuesday. The weather couldn't have been better as the tribal nation celebrated its most popular holiday.

The end of the 56th annual Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby is a day away. Many of the Island's top fishermen will fish right to the end, through tonight and into tomorrow. The derby will end when the headquarters at the foot of Main street in Edgartown close at 10 p.m. tomorrow.

An awards ceremony will take place Sunday at 1 p.m. at the Oak Bluffs nightclub Atlantic Connection.