When it comes to competition among the bar-keeps and restaurant owners on the Oak Bluffs harbor, the gloves have definitely come off.

The owner of Nancy's Snack Bar in Oak Bluffs is now threatening to sell beer and hot dogs in the town-owned Ocean Park if selectmen don't investigate what's going on at the bar and restaurant right next door to Nancy's.

For more than a year, Nancy's Snack Bar owner Douglas Abdelnour Sr. has been pressuring selectmen to dig into the issue of whether Menemsha Blues Sand Bar & Grille is partially sited on public land.

At issue is lot number 285, a 2,178 square foot parcel which fronts the town bulkhead by the harbor. Assessors list this lot as town-owned. The new bar on the block, Menemsha Blues, opened two years ago, sits right behind lot 285 and vies for the same customers as Nancy's.

The question is: Does Menemsha Blues and its sand-strewn patio cross the line into public turf? Menemsha Blues general manager Bob Dillon said no, adding that there's no food or drink served inside of lot 285. "People smoke there," he said.

But Mr. Abdelnour is watching very closely and wants selectmen to step in and decide.

"I have been on this harbor for over 45 years and always believed it was owned by either the state or the town of Oak Bluffs," Mr. Abdelnour wrote to selectmen in a letter dated May 14.

"Since selectmen don't seem concerned with who uses municipally owned property, I am going to set up a beer boat and hot dog stand on Ocean Park," he continued. "It has a great view and is right on the water, just like lot 285."

Selectmen are finally taking notice.

Last month, faced with Mr. Abdelnour's dose of brinkmanship, selectmen announced they were inviting town counsel Ron Rappaport to meet with them in closed session later this month for a legal analysis of land ownership on the bulkhead.

The trouble is, it's a sticky issue with lots of history, and opening up this can of worms could affect more than just Menemsha Blues.

Making things even more complicated, some selectmen are now fielding calls from residents who are less concerned with invisible lines on the bulkhead and more worried about what Mr. Abdelnour plans to do with a new third floor deck at Nancy's.

"I've had a lot of telephone calls about it," said selectman Kerry Scott . "I understand Doug has a permit to store HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) equipment, but people are apprehensive."

Chairs and tables are currently sitting on the third floor deck.

Ms. Scott said that Mr. Abdelnour's track record is causing the anxiety. Earlier this year, his business partner at Nancy's, Joseph G. Moujabber, applied for and received a building permit for a house on the North Bluff to replace a garage and ended up constructing a three-story building with exterior decks and sliding glass doors.

Last month, the town building inspector, under pressure from neighbors, revoked the building permit for the 3,000 square foot structure, rendering it an illegal building.

In another case four years ago, an expansion of Nancy's sparked protests from neighbors. Mr. Abdelnour and Mr. Moujabber added a second floor to that restaurant under strict rules from the zoning board of appeals that it would be used for storage only.

By 2002, the two businessmen had appealed the zoning board decision to superior court and convinced neighbors not to object to the expansion of their restaurant to the second floor, a move that created 140 more seats, a new bar and second floor patio for Nancy's. That expansion was never referred to the Martha's Vineyard Commission for consideration as a development of regional impact (DRI) even though a 50-seat restaurant is one threshold for referral.

While Mr. Abdelnour's actions have come under fire, the question of private and public ownership on the bulkhead is still lingering.

According to one legal opinion, given to selectmen in 1989, 80 per cent of lot 285 is owned by the town. The troubling part of that opinion from the late Edmond Coogan - a Tisbury attorney - is that it shows a 1948 survey plan using a mean low water mark of Lake Anthony as a boundary.

Here's where things become complicated. The town filled in and constructed the bulkhead more than 50 years ago but according to Mr. Coogan's letter it legally retained ownership of the newly filled-in land back to the old low water mark.

But other businesses along the harbor are built right up to the bulkhead. Eleven years ago, Terry McCarthy claimed he owned everything from his Dockside Marketplace down to the bulkhead.

But the state Supreme Judicial Court ultimately ruled against Mr. McCarthy and in favor of the town, a decision that forced Mr. McCarthy to lease the public bulkhead space he uses. He initially paid $7,200 annually for the space, and now pays about $5,800 a year to the town.

Selectmen plan to meet with Mr. Rappaport within two weeks. Meanwhile, they can wait and see if Mr. Abdelnour starts steaming hot dogs and tapping beer kegs in Ocean Park.