CHATHAM — At some point in the future, Lower Cape residents and policymakers will be engaged in a very difficult debate. With rising sea levels, key roads like Route 28 – and entire neighborhoods – may need to be relocated away from the encroaching waves. And that debate will need to be informed by extremely reliable, detailed data. To that end, federal officials are planning to install a state-of-the-art tide...

New Book Profiles 139 Local Residents What makes a Cape Codder? A new book, “I Am of Cape Cod: People and Their Stories,” sets out to answer that question. From Native American Wampanoags to 12 th generation descendants of colonists to recent washashores, 139 people across the Cape tell their stories using what author Anne LeClaire of South Chatham calls, in her introduction, “a collage of voices.” The ...

CHATHAM – For years, downtown merchants worked to lure pedestrians to the east end of the Main Street business district, lobbying the town for crosswalks and an extension of the sidewalk on the north side of the road and holding special promotions to highlight shops in the area. Slowly the improvements came, with the January approval of the town's purchase of the Eldredge Garage property for parking at the eas...

CHATHAM – It's been 13 years since Lynne Fletcher O'Brien started Pantry Partners. With the help of local summer real estate rental companies, the program continues to collect leftover food from summer visitors to help stock the shelves at the Chatham Food Pantry. The idea behind Pantry Partners is deceptively simple. When people leave their short-term summer rentals, ask them to drop off unopened food or pape...

CHATHAM — Gov. Charlie Baker last week received some tangible evidence that many local residents and visitors oppose the federal taking of more than 3,000 acres of state-owned tidal flats and submerged lands west of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge. Baker's office received a petition with 1,013 signatures urging him to actively support H.R. 1157, a bill introduced by Congressman William Keating, D–9 th ...

HARWICH — After National Grid gas line replacement tied up traffic along Route 39 this past spring, a spokesman for the company made it clear work would not be done on that main road in the next couple of months. However, gas main replacement will be done on Depot Road and side streets throughout the summer. Brad Wheeler, a senior project manager for National Grid, explained to selectmen last week that work wa...

HARWICH — Grey skies and a few rain drops may have held down the crowd, but it could not contain the excitement generated by those who attended the inaugural Harwich Cape Verdean Festival held in Brooks Park on Saturday. The voice of Cape Verdean International singer Candida Rose and the heart healthy beat of Cape Cod African Dance and Drum brought warmth and eventual sunshine to the festival. The event was an...

HARWICH — With both the waterside and landside renovation projects now out to bid, there is likely going to be a lot of activity in and around Saquatucket Harbor over the winter. However, it will take a trip to the former Harwich Middle School building to locate harbor and natural resources departments staff. Harbormaster John Rendon said there are only a couple of more permits to put in place which are expect...

HARWICH — The board of health made it official this past week, voting to increase the age at which people can purchase tobacco products within town limits from 18 to 21. That was the only major change in the regulations, though there were a number of changes to the document designed to clarify language. The board worked on adjustments to the regulations for several months and weighed additional restrictions, i...

Using towns on the Lower Cape as a model, a bill filed by Congressman William Keating aims to help other communities save money when taking part in federal flood mitigation programs. The legislation, H.R. 3135, would provide resources so towns with flood-prone neighborhoods can create regional partnerships to share the cost of participating in the National Flood Insurance Program's Community Rating System (CRS...

EAST HARWICH — As they near their deadline to produce a groundbreaking report for the Friends of Pleasant Bay, researchers from the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies are gaining a clearer picture of the organisms, large and small, that inhabit the bay. The researchers gave an update of their work at the annual meeting of the Friends of Pleasant Bay Monday afternoon at the Wequassett Inn. The study, com...

HARWICH ─ The Harwich Mariners had 10 hits to Chatham's five on Saturday night, with three of those hits becoming key runs for the visiting squad, which earned a 3-0 shutout win at Whitehouse Field. Along with solid hitting was stellar pitching as southpaw Jeff Belge earned the win for the A's. Belge lasted six innings in the outing, allowing four hits with no runs and only two walks with two K's before givi...

HARWICH ─ While the serious anglers in the annual Big 3 Fishing Tournament took to the waters off Harwich in the wee hours of July 14, another vessel left Allen Harbor a little later with a smaller crew that also had its sights set on some serious angling, all the while celebrating the special relationships formed through Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Cape and Islands. The day involved two outings, one the...

Take a glance at the Cape Cod Baseball League website and you’ll note that the Orleans Firebirds have much to celebrate this week. Not only is the team sitting atop the East Division, but it's also well represented in Saturday’s All-Star game in Wareham with an impressive nine men on the East roster. Comprising the game-play lineup will be first baseman Ethan Paul, second baseman Romy Gonzalez, left-fielder Ji...

Gavin McNicholl elevates the hilarity to Monomoy Theater's presentation of Georges Feydeau's 1907 French farce "A Flea in Her Ear" in his duel comedic roles of Parisian aristocrat Victor Chandebise and the sad-sack look-a-like bell boy Poche at the Frisky Puss Hotel. Adapted by David Ives for the Chicago Shakespeare Theater in 2006, the University of Hartford Players, with local guest stars Bernard Cornwell an...

Mary Poppins might be the world’s most popular nanny, but she is anything but a lovey-dovey governess. In fact, it’s her firm approach and dry sense of humor that makes her charges feel safe, knowing she has their best interests at heart, even if she doesn’t cater to their every desire. With its strong cast, the all-volunteer Chatham Drama Guild hosts an energetic regional premiere of “Mary Poppins.” And, on open...