Government
The General Services Administration, a federal entity that handles real estate transactions for the government, plans to list the Gay Head Light as excess property this summer and begin the transfer of ownership process, a spokesperson said Monday.
The notice of availability is expected to be posted by the General Services Administration on August 1, New England public affairs officer Patrick Sclafani said. The notice will allow the town of Aquinnah, another municipal group or nonprofit organization, to apply for ownership of the property. The transfer would come at no cost.
As efforts to revive the New England groundfishery grow increasingly contentious, the state attorney general Thursday filed a lawsuit challenging n
Oak Bluffs entered the summer season Tuesday with heated debate over issues from one end of Circuit avenue to the other. At the upper end of the avenue, unfinished construction on the Edgartown National Bank’s new building was a central point of contention. Later, selectmen grappled with whether to allow a stationary food truck on the lower end of the avenue.
The Dukes County advisory board last week signed off on funding for a new emergency notification system aimed at summer visitors with smart phones. County emergency management director Chuck Cotnoir requested the use of county funds to put in place the Ping4 notification system as a way to help Island visitors receive emergency information. Ping4 is a smart phone application that allows a user to receive localized notifications. It is used by the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency and the National Weather Service, and can be programmed to send out county-specific information.
A public hearing on a major expansion plan for the Stop & Shop store on the Vineyard Haven waterfront has been postponed, the Martha’s Vineyard Commission said this week.
The hearing, the first formal public review of the expansion plan, was set for June 6.
MVC development of regional impact (DRI) coordinator Paul Foley said this week that he was notified by the attorney for Stop & Shop that changes were being made to the plans, but that the applicant would not be ready in time for June 6.
Senior personnel changes are underway in Oak Bluffs, with the longtime town clerk retiring and a new acting fire chief in place.
Town clerk Deborah deBettencourt Ratcliff, who has worked for the office for 25 years and served as town clerk since 1997, announced her retirement this week. Her last day will be June 30.
The selectmen accepted her retirement with regret at their meeting Tuesday, and appointed assistant town clerk Laura Johnston as the acting town clerk.