HARWICH — Several steps have been taken in recent months that may resolve a lawsuit against the conservation commission and pave the way for development of a home on the west bank of Saquatucket Harbor. Efforts have been underway for more than 45 years to gain access to a 2.56-acre parcel consisting of wetlands and hillside running down to the harbor. A subdivision plan was granted in 1971 to Winslow C. Grulle...

HARWICH — Town Clerk Anita Doucette has released the 2018 town election calendar with the dates for obtaining and filing nomination papers for the May 15 annual town election. There is only one selectman position on the ballot this year, and the incumbent says she is not running. Selectman Jannell Brown's three-year term expires on election day. She said she will not seek a second term, mostly for financial re...

Now that the new year is here and winter has settled in with a vengeance, the Family Pantry of Cape Cod is likely to see an uptick in business, as local residents spend more on heat and electricity and have less to spend on food. “This weather is not helping,” said Christine Menard, the Pantry's executive director. As utility bills rise with lower temperatures, “they'll need us even more.” With the help of ...

HARWICH — The town is considering drafting a request for proposals for a long-term lease to establish a restaurant on the knoll overlooking Saquatucket Harbor. The town has received one inquiry interested in a public/private partnership to build an eatery at the town-owned marina. As part of the initial landside development plan now underway, a small restaurant or snack shack had been considered, but funding f...

Harwich residents John and Jane Doe (names and some identifying information has been changed at their request) never thought they would need the services of the Family Pantry of Cape Cod. Natives of Rhode Island, Jane and her husband moved to the Cape when they retired four years ago. “I’ve loved this part of New England all of my life,” she said. Jane learned about the services of the Family Pantry from th...

HARWICH — The board of selectmen did not violate the state Open Meeting Law when it failed to conspicuously record the date and time of a revision to the notice for its Sept. 18 meeting, the Attorney General's Office has ruled. The decision issued by the Division of Open Government pointed out the board conceded it did not record the information cited in a complaint filed by Barnstable County Commissioner Rona...

EAST HARWICH — Dean Viprino, 45, pleaded guilty last Wednesday in federal court in Boston to fentanyl conspiracy. In U.S. District Court Wednesdy, Viprino pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess, with intent to distribute, 40 grams or more of fentanyl. U.S. District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock scheduled sentencing for March 20, 2018. Viprino was a customer of Alex Fraga, one of four peopl...

HARWICH — While 2016 was a contentious year for Town Administrator Christopher Clark, which caused him to seek jobs in several towns across the state, 2017 was a turn-about year for the town administrator, who heard a lot of praise from selectmen and received a 2.5 percent salary adjustment and a two-year extension on his contract. Clark Settles Back In At the tail end of 2016, Clark was a finalist for to...

HARWICH — The planning board has approved a site plan review waiver for the Cranberry Valley Golf Course cart barn project, which town officials argued is necessary to get work underway so it does not interfere with course operations in the spring. Town Administrator Christopher Clark told the board last week the town needs to have a building permit before it can order the metal barn structure, which will take...

HARWICH — The board of health voted unanimously this past week to vacate the cease and desist order issued to Resilient Family Farm last April and to drop the court appeal it had filed seeking adherence to suitable manure management practices. The board of health no longer has jurisdiction over the manure management at the farm because there are no longer horses kept there, Health Director Meggan Eldredge told...

HARWICH — Outer Cape Health Services, Inc. has filed plans with the planning board for major renovations to the former Thompson's Farm Market building across from Saquatucket Harbor for its Harwich Port Health Center. OCHS CEO Patricia Nadle was before selectmen Monday night with details of the planned expansion, with a ribbon cutting expected next November. Former selectman Ed McManus, a member of the board o...

EAST HARWICH — In about a year, if you find yourself strolling the trails of Harwich Conservation Trust’s new Muddy Creek Headwaters Conservation Area, sit on a bench and think of Carl Furner. Furner is a 17-year-old Harwich resident who recently coordinated the construction and installation of three benches at the conservation land off Church Street. The community service project was part of Furner’s bid to...