HARWICH — Residents are once again trickling into the community center as the doors closed by the COVID-19 pandemic in March are beginning to open for limited group activities. Community Center Director Carolyn Carey said small groups of no more than 10 people are being allowed to use the activity rooms, and groups of up to 25 are using the multi-purpose room. The center's hours are limited to 8 a.m. to 5 p.m....

If Labor Day weekend was any indicator, the late summer on Cape Cod will have some of the best weather of the year. Regional tourism officials are hoping that an extended visitor season will buoy the local economy in advance of what’s expected to be a long, hard financial winter. Working with the Cape Cod Reopening Task force, the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce has launched a “Second Summer” campaign to keep tou...

HARWICH — Voters will gather in two weeks at the Monomoy High School turf field for the FY2021 annual town meeting. The session is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 26 at 10 a.m., with a rain date of Sunday, Sept. 27 at 1 p.m. Attendees will face a warrant containing 46 articles, reduced from the 56 articles slated to be addressed last May, when the meeting was postponed due to the pandemic. Given the pandemic ...

Monomoy Regional High School’s new principal Jen Police and her staff are ready for the school hallways to once again be filled with the sounds of students engaged in learning come Sept. 14, though this year it won’t be quite as many, nor learning in quite the same way as they did in the days before the COVID-19 pandemic arrived on Cape Cod. Only about half to two-thirds of the school’s 687 students will be in...

HARWICH — The fire department has received notice through FEMA that it will be awarded an Assistance to Firefighters Program grant for $409,296 to replace self-contained breathing apparatus, compressors used to refill the apparatus and rapid intervention packs. Without the grant, the town would have to fund the equipment through the capital budget, said Fire Chief David LeBlanc. The department has to replace 4...

Local results from Tuesday's state primary reflected final tallies from across the state and region, with Senator Edward Markey, Republican Senate candidate Kevin O'Connor and Barnstable County Commission Candidates Sheila Lyons and Mark Forest winning the backing of voters in the only contested races. Markey won a decisive state-wide victory over Joseph Kennedy III. Locally, Markey bested Kennedy in Chatham 1...

HARWICH — The Harwich town seal was designed in 1896 by renowned artist Charles D. Cahoon. The bottom half of the seal shows Pine Grove Seminary, today's Brooks Academy Museum, surrounded by trees. The top half depicts a Native American standing next to a teepee. Native Wampanoags, however, never lived in teepees. With efforts being made to correct inaccurate historical symbols across the country — monument...

HARWICH — It will take only 100 registered voters to reach a quorum for the annual town meeting scheduled to be held at the Monomoy Regional High School stadium field on Saturday, Sept. 26. The town has traditionally set the town meeting quorum at 150 registered voters, but given the pandemic and provisions in state statutes extending to municipalities the right to make adjustments to quorums, selectmen Monday...

HARWICH — The 12-acre photovoltaic array proposed for East Harwich received unanimous support from the appeals board this past week. There was no public comment offered on the proposal for a variance for the solar panels. The project is being proposed by DFN, Inc., Steven Clark president, owner of a 17-acre site between Depot Road and the Chatham town line, just north of the Harwich Town Forest. Access to the ...

HARWICH — In the past two weeks, the conservation commission and board of appeals have approved modifications to the Wychmere Beach Club redevelopment project. With one more approval needed — from the planning board — groundwork at the complex is scheduled to get underway this week. Wychmere Harbor Real Estate will go before the planning board on Thursday, Sept. 10 seeking an amended site plan review special p...

HARWICH — Selectmen are considering whether to reduce the quorum for the Sept. 26 annual town meeting to as low as 15 registered voters. On Monday, according to the agenda, the board will “vote pursuant (to Massachusetts General Law) to reduce the quorum for the annual town meeting…to no less than 10 percent of the quorum requirement of 150 under section 271- 2 of the Town Code, or 15 registered voters.” Mo...

HARWICH — When selectmen were unable to reach a decision on the appointment of a new town administrator several weeks ago, they agreed to retain Interim Town Administrator Joseph Powers for one year. On Monday, however, the board voted to extend Powers' appointment for 90 days. The appointment will expire on Nov. 18. It would conclude a full year of service for Powers as interim town administrator. Question...