HARWICH — It's been 18 years since the initial Harwich Center Initiative study was done with the goal of bringing economic vitality to the historic village. There have been several additional attempts to revive the effort since then, and selectmen agreed Monday night to make another attempt. “We have several people who have shown an active interest,” Selectman Larry Ballantine said. “There is enthusiasm and I'...

HARWICH — The appeals board has issued a special permit for a reconstruction project on Forest Street that exceeded the extent of demolition on the historic structure and went beyond the special permit initially granted for the project. The property owner, builder Anthony Crugnale, was before the appeals board last Wednesday seeking to amend or modify an existing special permit granted in February to include a...

HARWICH — Police Lt. John F. Sullivan, Jr. has been working in the department since 1988, when he started as a summer officer . Today he holds an honor no other police officer coming through the ranks of the department has obtained: In September Sullivan graduated from the FBI National Academy Program in Quantico, Va. Former Police Chief William Mason and current Chief David Guillemette are graduates of the Na...

HARWICH – The 10 th anniversary of the discovery of the “Piano in the Woods” will be celebrated Oct. 6 at “Piano Daze” at the Harwich Historical Society's Brooks Academy Museum. On the grounds of the museum, three musicians will show off their talents on the piano found in the Bell's Neck Conservation Lands. At the same time, members of the Guild of Harwich Artists will paint plein air on the museum grounds. ...

HARWICH — The Cold Brook project is at about the 50 percent design stage, Harwich Conservation Trust Executive Director Michael Lach informed selectmen in a presentation on the ecological restoration initiative at the Robert F. Smith Cold Brook Preserve. The Massachusetts Division of Ecological Restoration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, HCT and the town are working together in the planning, design and permit...

HARWICH — It took three hearings to draw the public into the design debate for the proposed convenience store at the former gas station site in Harwich Center. The message they sent to the historic district and historical commission last week was for the commission to be sure the project captures the “rhythm and elements” of the historic village. Over the past couple of months the commission has been working w...

WEST HARWICH — The historic district and historical commission made it clear that it will not stand for “demolition by neglect” as a way to avoid the town's demolition delay bylaw, voting to place a one-year delay on he circa 1870 structure at 52 Route 28. The run-down building bears a large red “X” placed there by the fire department to note its hazardous condition to department personnel. It is a warning tha...

HARWICH – Robert Perry stared in amazement at his transformed back yard. What had been an area choked with weeds, cluttered with items ready for the dump, and shaded by overgrown saplings just hours before was now weed free, with trash and trees removed, sunlight dappling the freshly raked space. All the work was done by volunteers taking part in the ninth Annual Big Fix, which this year bettered the homes, and l...

HARWICH — The good news in Town Administrator Christopher Clark's five-year financial plan is that there is no projection of an override in the next fiscal year. But looking out to FY24, spending could outpace revenue by $2.5 million. Clark said he and Finance Director Carol Coppola worked closely in putting together the five-year financial plan that is required by the town charter each year. He made it clear ...

HARWICH — Treasurer/Tax Collector Amy Bullock will be getting a raise in January and selectmen are hoping that will address what they termed as a “poaching” effort by the town of Dennis to lure her away. After lengthy discussion among selectmen and Town Administrator Christopher Clark last week over a proposal Clark put forward to move Bullock from a M-4, step 9 to a M-5, step 7 pay grade as an “anti-poaching ...

HARWICH — At the cultural center on Sunday afternoon, Lower Cape Indivisible and several other local organizations sponsored a forum on disinformation, a word coined during the cold war that refers to the deliberate dissemination of wrong or distorted information. Speakers were invited to talk about three initiatives that will appear on the ballot in November which are vulnerable to disinformation campaigns: n...

HARWICH — There is a proposal in the works to restore oyster beds in the Herring River that could also serve to improve estuary's health. The oyster reef proposal would be a cooperative venture between the town's natural resources department and the conservation commission. Oysters have become a recognized source of filtration for the ability to process carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus at high rates, byprodu...