Ferry Islander to Be Sold; Pricetag Set at $750,000
By MIKE SECCOMBE
To the extent that you can do a cost benefit analysis on sentiment, the Steamship Authority did one this week on the Vineyard's favorite ferry, the Islander, and settled on a figure of $750,000.
If the highest bidder could come up with that much money, boat line governors decided, they would be obliged to sell the venerable old ferry.
Ownership of the Chappaquiddick ferry clearly seems a good deal to a lot of people, judging by the offers Roy Hayes has received since he revealed that he is looking to sell after 19 years.
It’s not hard to see why someone would want the business — a monopoly service with an assured and growing demand.
Geological time mostly runs incredibly slowly, in measures of hundreds of thousands, if not millions or billions of years. No wonder Bob Woodruff was excited about what happened over the weekend.
While other towns agonized over their town meetings, Edgartown residents breezed through theirs on Tuesday night, approving a $24 million annual town budget in minutes and working through 67 warrant articles in a little over two hours.
In an impressive display of support for the priorities of town authorities, the 200-odd residents who turned out for the meeting failed to approve only a few of the measures put before them.
The cost of living on Martha's Vineyard is about 60 per cent above the national average, and housing costs are almost double, according to a study carried out by the Martha's Vineyard Commission.
Across all indices, or categories measured, from groceries to health care to transport and utilities, the Island was far more expensive than the national average. The standout figure was housing, which scored 196, or 96 per cent above the average.
Peter Martell, owner of the Wesley Hotel in Oak Bluffs, is in deep trouble with his summer staffing. He opens for the season next month, and he has just learned he will not get the staff he needs to make the place run.
"I'm opening May 3 and I've got three desk clerks and I need seven. I don't know where the other four are coming from. I need five chambermaids; I've got two," he said.