CHATHAM – If not for Chatham's unique coastal geology, our country might have a very different history. When the Pilgrims sighted land from the deck of the Mayflower on Nov. 9, 1620, it was the Nauset area that they saw, just north of Chatham. Heading south toward their original destination, they ran into Pollock Rip off Monomoy, and, sensing the danger that would drag many ships down over the coming centuries...

CHATHAM – With public safety their top priority, selectmen voted Monday to investigate ways to set up a net or other barrier around the swimming area at Oyster Pond Beach to keep out both seals and sharks. The step is a short-term measure the town can implement next summer in response to citizen concerns about the increasing number of seals and sharks in local waters, board members said. Actually reducing shar...

CHATHAM – Addressing low-lying points at Outermost Harbor Marine and the adjacent Starfish Lane condominiums will provide the most effective flood protection for Little Beach, a new storm tide pathways study concludes. “If you address those two, you've just tackled 78, 80 percent of your problem,” said the report's author, Mark Borrelli, a coastal geologist and director of the seafloor mapping program at the C...

CHATHAM — There's little disagreement that the town's trash transfer station and recycling center suffers from traffic congestion, odors, noise and general inefficiency. But the cost of fixing those problems is higher than expected; public works officials told selectmen last week that, using figures that are both very conservative and preliminary, the improvements could cost between $7.3 and $8.6 million. “T...

CHATHAM – The site of William and Anne Nickerson’s circa 1664 homestead proved so significant during a three-month archaeological excavation that the board of the Nickerson Family Association, Inc. (NFA) voted unanimously to extend the dig for an additional two months in 2019. A primary focus of next season will be to locate all of the outbuildings, including the barn and stables. “We have some tantalizing ...

Even though the Veterans Day holiday is being observed on Monday with school and local government closures, communities will hold Veterans Day ceremonies at the traditional time and date – Sunday, Nov. 11 at 11 a.m. This year marks the 100 th anniversary of the official ending of hostilities in World War I. Initially celebrated as Armistice Day, the holiday officially became Veterans Day, in honor of all vete...

Safety Concerns Raised Over Potential For Bird Strikes CHATHAM – For more than three decades, fishermen have stored gear on vacant Chatham Municipal Airport land off Wilfred Road. The practice may soon end, however, after a wildlife consultant raised alarms about birds attracted by the gear become a hazard to airplanes taking off and landing. The airport commission was all set to end the storage and had dra...

CHATHAM – With public safety their top priority, selectmen voted Monday to investigate ways to set up a net or other barrier around the swimming area at Oyster Pond Beach to keep out both seals and sharks. The step is a short-term measure the town can implement next summer in response to citizen concerns about the increasing number of seals and sharks in local waters, board members said. Actually reducing shar...

CHATHAM – With the board of selectmen slated to discuss the impact of seals – and sharks – on the town's beaches, fishing industry and economy next Tuesday, scientists say the issues are being clouded by misinformation and speculation about both species. Some residents have sounded alarms about the increasing seal population and the resulting attraction of great white sharks to Cape waters. They say they are a...

CHATHAM — Environmental technicians found themselves up the creek last week, looking at marsh grass and other vegetation. Consultants from the Horsley Witten Group spent Thursday and Friday examining and photographing the vegetation just inside Muddy Creek as part of an effort to track changes in the waterway's flora following the installation of the Route 28 bridge two years ago. While the results from t...

CHATHAM – There's no disagreement about the need for a new upweller to grow out quahog and other shellfish seed vital to the town's commercial shellfishing industry, which is the most valuable wild shellfishery in the state, according to Shellfish Constable Renee Gagne. And the small town-owned parcel on Bridge Street adjacent to the Mitchell River appears to be the best spot for a new building to replacing the a...

CHATHAM – The planning board approved the town's latest housing production plan last week. The document will now to go the board of selectmen for its endorsement before being submitted to the state for certification. An update of the town's 2013 housing production plan, the document provides strategies for reaching the goal of having 10 percent of the town's year-round housing stock classified as affordable. C...