Monomoy Refuge Buys Main St. Building For New HQ

CHATHAM – Almost a year after its visitor center and office building on Morris Island was demolished due to encroaching erosion, the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge has a new headquarters on Main Street.

 The U.S. Department of the Interior purchased the property at 791 Main St. on March 5. A spokesperson confirmed that the building will serve as a visitor center and office for the refuge. It will also provide living space for staff and interns.

 Following a March 2023 fire, the circa 1850 Greek Revival building was completely renovated by owners Doug and Tracy Grattan of Chatham Manor LLC. The 2,982-square-foot building sits on an 11,433-square-foot lot and includes commercial and office space and two apartments. According to records at the Barnstable County Registry of Deeds, the U.S. Department of the Interior, acting for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, purchased the property for $3,255,000. The assessing department’s latest evaluation of the property put its value at $941,600.

 Last year, after the loss of the Morris Island visitor center, the Fish and Wildlife Service leased a house in West Chatham from the Chatham Conservation Foundation for offices and staff living space. That arrangement remains in place, according to Foundation Executive Director Lauren Arcomano.

 Aware that erosion at Morris Island would eventually claim the visitor center, refuge officials had been searching for new space for more than a year. Last April, Kimberly Howard, who works for the Grattans at Christie’s International Real Estate, met Grace Bottitta-Williamson, project leader of the Eastern Massachusetts National Wildlife Refuge Complex, which includes the Monomoy refuge, at a film screening at the Chatham Orpheum Theater. They made a connection, and after meeting with Bottitta-Williamson and refuge manager Rick Nye to ascertain the refuge’s requirements for new space, Howard began looking around at available real estate.

 At the time, 791 Main St. wasn’t yet on the market, but the space “seemed to meet their needs,” said Tracy Grattan. Even though the building was still under construction, Fish and Wildlife officials did a walk-through. It took several months for the agency to do an appraisal.

 “They kept circling back with questions,” she said, and eventually made an offer. “They said it would suit their needs.”

 “It’s so special to have it still be here in Chatham,” said Howard.

 The federal agency will be responsible for doing final landscaping on the property and making improvements to the parking area behind the building.

According to USFWS spokesperson Keith Shannon, the headquarters office and visitor center previously located on the agency’s Morris Island property will be relocated to the property. 

“The new location will enhance coordination and engagement with the local community and create new opportunities for refuge activities that contribute to the local economy and support outdoor recreation,” Shannon said in an email.

Shannon did not indicate when the refuge office and visitor center would open in the new space. There was no response to a followup email seeking clarification.