CHATHAM – When visitors stop by Lighthouse Beach, they often ask anyone who looks like a local about what, for the past several years, has been the chief topic of interest here: great white sharks. Making sure folks get accurate information about the region's shark population is the impetus behind a new program being proposed by the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy (AWSC). Under the “Shark Smart” program, AWSC...

CHATHAM – Perhaps the town's most iconic restaurant, The Chatham Squire, is being sold. Richard Costello and George Payne, who started the Main Street restaurant and tavern in 1968, are selling the business and real estate to Todd Hearle, a Connecticut businessman who grew up in Chatham. General Manager Richard Sullivan confirmed the sale Tuesday, stating that it is expected to be completed by Memorial Day....

CHATHAM — On the advice of the parks and recreation commission, selectmen this week reversed course on a proposal to move swimming lessons to Schoolhouse Pond as a precaution against sharks and seals. But the board is seeking new signs and better communications equipment to help lifeguards keep swimmers safe at Oyster Pond and all other town beaches. On April 8, selectmen voted to have the commission conside...

CHATHAM – It's Derby time! Chatham will be off to the races with its first “Downtown Derby” Saturday, May 4, a springtime event that gives a seaside twist to the venerable Kentucky Derby. Both adults and kids can play the “Seahorse Races” at the Whit Tileston Bandstand at Kate Gould Park, rolling dice to move three-foot-tall seahorses around a track. Chatham Band Director Tom Jahnke will be the race caller,...

CHATHAM – The fight over skydiving at Chatham Municipal Airport continued last week, with the town and a group of residents arguing over whether a suit seeking to ban the activity should move forward.  At a hearing in Barnstable Superior Court April 25, Citizens for a Safe Chatham Airport (CSCA) contested the town's motion for summary judgment of an injunction it sought to prevent the town from issuing a contr...

CHATHAM – Perhaps the town's most iconic restaurant, The Chatham Squire, is being sold. Richard Costello and George Payne, who started the Main Street restaurant and tavern in 1968, are selling the business and real estate to Todd Hearle, a Connecticut businessman who grew up in Chatham. General Manager Richard Sullivan confirmed the sale Tuesday, stating that it is expected to be completed by Memorial Day....

CHATHAM – The historical commission has asked the Massachusetts Historical Commission to determine if the Monomoy Theatre property is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. If the state agency issues a positive determination, it will be up to the new owner of the Main Street property to make a formal nomination to the federal National Park Service, which maintains the National Regist...

CHATHAM – “If history teaches us anything,” illustrator Bob Staake says about his cover of the April 29 issue of The New Yorker, “it's that out of flames can come rebirth.” The cover, titled “Our Lady,” depicts the iconic view of the Notre Dame towers against a background of flames which shine through the cathedral's Rose Window, indicating, as arts editor Francoise Mouly wrote on the magazine's website, that ...

CHATHAM — As part of a legal settlement with nine property owners, selectmen are moving ahead with a compromise plan to allow the town to take ownership of seven roads in exchange for a pledge not to allow sidewalks. But abutters who weren’t plaintiffs in the suit say the plan is ill-conceived, rushed, and doesn’t provide ironclad protections against future sidewalks. Following a lengthy discussion Monday at...

CHATHAM – There's usually a pretty good turnout for the annual town meeting; better, in fact, than most local towns. “Yarmouth has 20,000 voters and has trouble getting 100 people” for town meeting, said Chatham Moderator William Litchfield. “Chatham has about 5,500 voters and we get 500 at the drop of the hat.” But when it comes to the town's annual legislative session, where budgets are set and major poli...

CHATHAM – The gleaming white boat was trailered down to the ramp at Ryder’s Cove and eased into the water on an April day so windy it brought tears to your eyes. “Swing it,” said Mike Davis to the crew at Chatham Boat Company. “Go, Go Go!” Captain John Our quickly reversed the Miss Fitz and raced off to the Chatham Fish Pier. “She feels like a brand new boat,” Our said. Miss Fitz is in Chatham Harbor ...

CHATHAM — In a bid to circumvent a 164-year-old law that was rooted in religious bigotry, selectmen are going to unusual lengths to support the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post. That includes calling a special town meeting for May 14, the second night of the town’s annual town meeting. The Brown-James Buck VFW Post applied for $200,000 in historic preservation funds from the Community Preservation Act to ...