Sam Bungey
Divisiveness continues to plague attempts by Vineyard officials to reach consensus on a way to fund the Island’s regional high school.
On Monday, the high school assessment committee — a group established in July this year to find an answer to an unpopular, state-imposed school taxation formula — met at the school to address the issue.
A sharply divided Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School district committee voted 5-4 to certify a $16.2 million budget on Monday, up 2.7 per cent over last year. Approved by a single vote at an uncharacteristically well-attended high school committee meeting, the budget reflects last-minute revisions to instructional and fixed costs.
And it follows an emotional public hearing last week at which music and drama students, teachers and parents spoke out on proposed teacher and program cuts across those departments.
Caroling is all about alcohol, traditionally. “This time of year is about being with friends singing carols, and being in a pub drinking good beer,” Peter R. Boak, director of the Island Community Chorus, told his audience at a performance in the Edgartown Old Whaling Church this Sunday, making a misleading distinction.
In a win for the democratic process, a proposed bylaw to lower the quorum requirement was unanimously rejected by Edgartown voters at a special town meeting at the Old Whaling Church Tuesday.
A healthy quorum of 185 registered voters (37 more than the required number) attended the meeting to vote down the proposal which would require fewer of them to vote at any town meetings in the future.
Outerland, the Island’s main music venue, will close Jan. 1 and not reopen again until spring.
Outerland owner Barry Rosenthal came before the Edgartown selectmen on Monday to request a change in his liquor license from year-round to seasonal, one month after he had been granted permission to shift from seasonal to year-round. He said his reasons are strictly financial. “It has been bleeding money since September,” Mr. Rosenthal said.
None of the houses on North Water street in Edgartown are small. But tucked among the old whaling captains’ homes, with their broad lawns stretching down to private docks on the outer harbor is a comparatively diminutive Greek revival building known as the library. The fate of this home has hung in the balance since September, when plans for its demolition were first presented to the Edgartown historic district commission in the wake of strong neighborhood opposition to the project.
A leading opponent is neighbor John Connors.