CHATHAM — During a recent coastal storm, Chatham fire officials stopped in the Little Beach neighborhood to monitor the rising water at high tide. A bystander asked what they were doing, and when they explained, the man looked puzzled; he had just bought a home nearby. “It was a steal,” he said, pointing out the property with a smile. But do the flood waters ever reach his place? With a little discomfort, Chie...

CHATHAM – It's not yet set in stone, but it's very likely that a compromise will result in the historic home known as “Starboard Light” remaining on the shores of Stage Harbor, where it's served as a landmark for the past 150 or so years. Members of the historical commission reached a consensus last Tuesday on a plan proposed by prospective property purchaser Robert Moss to move the antique house, also known a...

CHATHAM — Since Vietnam, the nature of warfare has changed substantially. But what it means to serve in the armed forces—the selflessness and sacrifice—remain the same. The U.S. Coast Guard’s honor guard enters the assembly in the community center gymnasium Monday. Hank Holden, the guest speaker at Chatham’s ...

CHATHAM – The town has begun fining the contractor of the fish pier deck project $500 a day. Sciaba Construction Corporation was put on notice that the town would be seeking “liquidated damage”—the term in the contract for fines—beginning Oct. 17, the day after the latest deadline for completion of the $1.4 million deck project. As of late last week, a new completion date has yet to be set, according to Dir...

CHATHAM — At 5 p.m. Tuesday, the airport commission convened a special listening session on the divisive airport master plan update. Three-and-a-half hours later, most attendees seemed to be even more strongly opposed to the plan, calling it potentially costly, unsafe and unnecessary. Near the end of the session, board of selectmen Chairman Shareen Davis criticized the commission for staunchly defending the pl...

First of two parts CHATHAM – Two years ago, the Little Beach area experienced the worst flooding it had seen in 30 years, maybe longer. Sandbag walls were breached, houses were inundated, and boats plied the submerged streets rescuing residents. With warnings that climate change and sea level rise will only make conditions worse, property owners are already throwing up sandbags to stanch the flooding that...

CHATHAM – Times change, as do concerns and items on the public’s agenda. This became very evident last Thursday evening when the third in a “Series on Race Relations and Community Policing” was held at Saint Christopher’s Episcopal Church. Jointly sponsored by the Reverend Brian W. McGurk, rector of the church, and Chatham Police Chief Mark Pawlina, the previous two well-attended events had seen lively discuss...

CHATHAM – Critics peppered members of the airport commission with questions and comments about three sections of the Chatham Airport Master Plan Update during a three-plus-hour meeting last week, likely a dress rehearsal for a community forum on the entire plan scheduled for Tuesday. The commission is bringing in former Yarmouth town administrator Robert Lawton to serve as moderator for the Nov. 12 forum and h...

CHATHAM – The conservation commission has referred the removal of 62 trees from a coastal bank without a permit to the state department of environmental protection for enforcement. The trees, some of which were 24 inches in diameter, were removed on June 2 from the coastal bank at 107 Taylor's Pond Rd., overlooking Mill Creek. The property is owned by 107 Taylor's Pond Road Real Estate Trust, which lists Byran...

CHATHAM – Selectmen Monday authorized the expenditure of $2.6 million to rebuild the Eldredge trap dock on Stage Harbor. In a move that likely reflects ongoing problems with the fish pier observation deck construction, officials rejected the low bidder on the project, instead opting to go with the second lowest bidder. The town purchased the trap dock from the Eldredge family in 2016 for $1.3 million to pre...

CHATHAM – Even as the Castle in the Clouds playground at Harwich Elementary School was being demolished, work was ramping up on a new playground at Chatham Elementary School. The new community playground is the culmination of a years-long process to improve the play areas on the east side of the Depot Road school and included upgrading drainage and installing irrigation. Work began a few weeks ago on the main ...

CHATHAM – In the late 1960s and early '70s, the sand pit off Middle Road was the scene of dune buggy races every Sunday. Crowds came to cheer as local drivers races around the dirt track in custom-built vehicles that made up in power what they lacked in beauty. The sand pit may be generating a different kind of power if a plan to develop solar photovoltaic array on the property wins approval. NextGrid, a na...