The owners of the Island Theatre in Oak Bluffs, a public safety hazard at one of the Vineyard’s busiest intersections, have pledged to launch work to shore up the building as early as this week.

A federal appeals court this week temporarily froze the effect of its ruling that the Aquinnah tribe has the legal authority to operate a gambling hall on the Vineyard.

A federal appeals court has rejected another bid to halt efforts by the Aquinnah Wampanoags to conduct a gambling operation on Martha’s Vineyard, narrowing the legal options for the town, state and community group.

The commonwealth of Massachusetts joined Aquinnah and a community group this week in challenging a federal appellate panel’s ruling that gave the green light to a tribal gambling facility.

Facing long odds, the town of Aquinnah and a community group this week officially decided to fight to overturn an appellate court’s ruling that a gambling hall can be located on tribal land at the Island’s western edge.

The U.S. Court of Appeals this week delivered a sharp, clear message to the Wampanoag tribe — it has the right to operate an electronic bingo parlor on protected tribal lands.