HARWICH – The select board took a major step forward Monday by approving the filing of a notice informing the state Department of Environmental Protection that the town intends to submit a watershed permit for the Herring River, Allen Harbor, Wychmere Harbor and Saquatucket Harbor watersheds. “This is the first big milestone step toward pursuing a watershed permit,” Water-Wastewater Super...

  HARWICH – Don Yannuzzi, Jr. is getting his feet wet as the town’s new director of natural resources.  Yannuzzi, who was appointed to the director’s position five weeks ago, came to the Cape a year and a half ago and became active in natural resources issues. He was hired as a deckhand in the town’s harbor department last December. He has since become a certified harbormaster through the Executive Office o...

  HARWICH – Frustration levels are high among conservation commission members who have been pushing a North Road property owner for three years to repair a failing bulkhead along the Herring River and upgrade a septic system serving two properties.  The properties are located at 47 and 52 North Rd. The 47 North Rd. property contains a small cottage separated from the Herring River by a bulkhead that is fail...

HARWICH – There is a shortage of mental health counselors on the Cape, and the wait for kids and teenagers to obtain private counseling services can be months long. But newly hired Director of Youth and Family Services Ashley Symington is instituting a new program that will provide assistance to the town’s young people in the short term. The program is called “While You’re Waiting,” and it’s designed to help c...

  HARWICH – The reshaping of the golf committee’s charge and its advisory role has become a contentious issue between the group and the select board. On Monday, members of the golf committee called the changes proposed by the board punitive, demeaning and contradictory. Committee members made it clear they are not happy with their lack of participation in drafting the new charge and the direction it’s takin...

  by William F. Galvin HARWICH – The planning board has followed the board of appeals in granting a special permit that will allow the 12-unit expansion to the Wequassett Resort and Golf Club.   It took more than seven months to obtain the permits, with the resort property owners battling with an abutter over increased noise and light disturbance that could be generated by the expansion. The resort’s ...

The Cape and Islands are experiencing gusty winds and heavy rains associated with post-tropical cyclone Lee, but there were no major reports of damage early Saturday morning. First responders were kept busy overnight answering minor calls for downed limbs and alarm systems activated by the wind, but there were no reports of significant flooding or wind damage. As of Saturday morning, the automated weather s...

  HARWICH – The local planning committee has been working for nearly a year assessing existing conditions in the community and reaching out to stakeholders to help shape a vision statement that will identify planning and land use goals.  Local Planning Committee Chair Joyce McIntyre and Sharon Rooney, principal planner with Tighe and Bond, Inc., the consultants retained to work on the town’s local comprehen...

  HARWICH – Officials are watching Hurricane Lee, but for now, the Harwich Cranberry Arts and Music Festival is scheduled to begin Saturday at the community center on Oak Street. Cranberries haven’t been a major part of the festival for years, but that will change with a special display on cranberry production in Harwich as part of this year’s festival. Cranberry Farmer Alan Hall will be setting up a cranbe...

  HARWICH – An April incident in which a patron allegedly threw a pickaxe and a shovel at Treasure Chest volunteers and returned the following day continuing with disruptive actions has prompted officials to rewrite the swap shop’s charge to better protect the volunteers overseeing the operation.  Select board member Jeffrey Handler, the liaison to the Treasure Chest committee, said there are guidelines on ...

  HARWICH – The appeals board has unanimously approved a special permit for the 12-unit expansion at the Wequassett Resort and Golf Club, but the battle is not over yet.  Round Cove Resort Owner, the company that owns the hotel complex, must return to the planning board for a site plan review special permit. The resort has been seeking the necessary permits to demolish and rebuild three buildings along t...

HARWICH – A major task for the bikeways committee this year will be getting the word out about the state’s new Vulnerable Road Users Law promulgated in April. The law requires motor vehicles to provide a “safe passing distance” of at least four feet when encountering people walking and bicycling along the edge of roadways.  But there is a much larger list of users to which motorists will have to yield, said Ch...