CHATHAM – Researchers can't yet conclusively say how many great white sharks are in Cape waters during peak periods from August through October, but one thing is clear: Chatham and Orleans are the hot spots. In 2016, acoustic buoys off Chatham and Orleans had the most detections of any of the receivers deployed from Marshfield to Nantucket Sound. Similar results were seen in previous years. “Orleans and Cha...

CHATHAM – The town's extensive shoreline, and the public facilities which allow people to access the waterfront, are among Chatham's greatest assets. For many, it's why they vacation or buy property here. For others, it's where they make their living. It's a major economic driver, and enhancing and protecting those facilities has long been a top priority of town government. Over the next five years, officials ...

CHATHAM – The town's share of the Cape Cod Regional Technical High School annual budget will drop by $16,000 next year, but with the district eyeing a new school building, Chatham's tech school spending is likely to see a jump beginning in 2020. If the district's 12 towns vote to approve a new $141 million building in October, Chatham's annual share of the cost will be $113,000 annually over a 30-year period. ...

CHATHAM – A proposal to use $30,000 in community preservation funds to develop National Historic Register District nominations for two neighborhoods has run into a snag. Community preservation committee members questioned whether the proposal fit within the historic preservation function of the CPA, noting that it did not directly preserve an historic resource. There were two alternatives: one is to use the...

CHATHAM – Federal legislation to limit the western boundary of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge to mean low water has been filed by Congressman William Keating. Keating filed the legislation last Thursday. The bill is the same as one filed last fall and seeks to clarify the United States government's interest in the area west of the refuge. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service asserted authority over 3,000 t...

CHATHAM – The first time Sean Summers met Tim Roper was after Mr. Roper had zinged him in his satirical Crap Cod Chronicle. “I told him I thought it was funny, even if he did put me in a Speedo atop someone else's shoulders,” Summers said Monday. “We had a drink and were friends ever since.” A former selectman, Mr. Roper died at his Old Queen Anne Road home last weekend. He was 65. Although his wit could...

CHATHAM – Recent winter storms have sent waves crashing over low sections of South Beach, and in one particular location created a washover that officials say could lead to a new break in the barrier beach. Much of South Beach south of Lighthouse Beach is little more than strips of sand barely above high water. One spot about a half mile down the beach where the higher dunes give way to low, flat sand, just pa...

CHATHAM – There's no disputing Shareen Davis' lineage. A 13 th generation Nickerson and a 10 th generation Eldredge, she is descended from Mayflower passengers through her grandmother. She grew up in a fishing family, graduated from Chatham High School (Class of 1976), and for many years ran a trap fishing company with her husband Ernie Eldredge. After volunteering in local organizations and on town commi...

CHATHAM – The first time Sean Summers met Tim Roper was after Mr. Roper had zinged him in his satirical Crap Cod Chronicle. “I told him I thought it was funny, even if he did put me in a Speedo atop someone else's shoulders,” Summers said Monday. “We had a drink and were friends ever since.” A former selectman, Mr. Roper died at his Old Queen Anne Road home last weekend. He was 65. Although his wit could...

CHATHAM – Federal legislation to limit the western boundary of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge to mean low water has been filed by Congressman William Keating. Keating had filed the legislation last fall, but had to re-file the bill with the new Congress. The bill remove the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's authority over 3,000 to 4,000 acres of submerged lands west of the refuge, over which the agency...

Two major storms lashed the area with heavy snow and high winds during the past week. After temperatures reached nearly 60 degrees Wednesday, about eight inches of snow fell on Thursday, canceling school and shutting down shops and municipal offices. While only a few inches of snow fell Monday, heavy winds created white-out conditions at times, and frigid temperatures made driving a challenge. Both storms caused ...