HARWICH — Incumbent Selectman Michael MacAskill was returned to office in Tuesday's annual town election. Newcomer Stephen Ford also won a seat on the board with an 80-vote margin over Thomas Sherry. Meredith Henderson won a one-year unexpired term on the Monomoy Regional School Committee over former Selectman Linda A. Cebula. Voters turned aside two debt exclusion ballot questions for road work. Voters in ...

HARWICH — A plan to use the parking lot at the former fire station at 203 Bank St. for employee parking for businesses in Harwich Port is off the table. Instead, employees will be asked to use the small lot provided by TD Bank, adjacent to the Schoolhouse Road municipal parking lot. That was the proposal the Ad Hoc Harwich Port Parking Committee presented to selectmen Monday night. The group met last Tuesday t...

HARWICH — The assisted living facility Royal at Harwich Village has closed, and its residents have been relocated to other facilities. But advocates for the elderly are criticizing the way the abrupt closure was carried out. Around April 25, the facility notified residents and their families about plans to close by July 26, the 90-day minimum required by state regulations. The notification was followed sever...

HARWICH — The Massachusetts Historical Commission is applauding the efforts of the Friends of the South Harwich Meetinghouse with a historic preservation award honoring the restoration of the 183-year-old former Methodist Church on Chatham Road. The efforts of the Friends of South Harwich Meetinghouse, Inc. began in 2003, after the town took possession of the church building, which had been abandoned for 13 ye...

HARWICH — The topic of the town upgrading two roads in the Six Pond District drew a crowd to Monday night's board of selectmen meeting. Residents in the Round Cove and Seth Whitefield/Hawksnest Road area of East Harwich spoke firmly against making road improvements there, and selectmen backed them up, rejecting spending town money on the work. The improvements requested by Robert Fratus, Jr. also drew a petiti...

HARWICH — The pet cemetery project was put to rest Tuesday after town meeting voters approved a petitioned article that took the 2.25 acre parcel out from under the jurisdiction of the cemetery commission and returned it to the board of selectmen for general municipal purposes. The cemetery commission had a hard night, with voters also rejecting an article that would establish a revolving fund that would have ...

HARWICH — Approximately 75 people attended Saturday's candidates forum sponsored by the Democratic and Republic town committees at the newly restored South Harwich Meetinghouse. The three candidates vying for the two seats on the board of selectmen are incumbent Michael MacAskill; Thomas Sherry, who lost by a narrow margin to Selectman Ed McManus last year; and Stephen Ford, a retired banker and congressional ...

HARWICH — The ribbon-cutting for the new Seaside Marketplace at Saquatucket Harbor drew a crowd last Friday morning, with a number of speakers indicating that the six new artisan shacks show that Harwich is emerging as one of the more exciting arts and cultural communities in the commonwealth. The dedication at the newly renovated marina was one of many local events celebrating ArtWeek, a statewide effort to f...

HARWICH — It seems almost everybody on the Lower Cape has a story to share about a friend or family member with Alzheimer's disease or dementia, and there's a growing need for support, counseling and programs. This weekend, a special fundraiser will take place to support the grassroots Alzheimer’s Family Support Center of Cape Cod , which offers a range of services, all free of charge, covering the full range ...

HARWICH — Voters sent a strong message on the first night of town meeting that they want less spending and a better control of their tax dollars. In Monday's session voters rejected the $4.5 million reconstruction of Lower Country Road and came within 34 votes of defeating the $39.6 million operating budget. Voters also made an early statement on the use of town funds for continued construction of the controve...

HARWICH — Voters made it clear in the first night of the annual town meeting that they are dissatisfied with town spending and its impact on the tax rate. After a lengthy discussion on the budget, during which no amendments were proposed, voters approved a $39.6 million budget by only 34 votes, 267-233. They also turned aside the one major debt exclusion warrant article seeking $4.5 million for the reconstruct...

HARWICH — The selectmen did battle Monday night over the issuance of a seasonal wine and malt beverage license for the Dockside Seafood Shack, which has a 10-year lease to operate out of the new snack shack at Saquatucket Harbor. The leaseholder, Joseph W. Griffiths, was applying for the license and to serve as manager of the operation. Griffith's was the only response to a request for proposals to lease the n...