Sixty-seven years after the sad event, Archie S. Nickerson recently reminisced about the afternoon of Oct. 30, 1950, when his father and his father’s fishing partner drowned crossing Chatham Bar. Archie, now 82, is the sole remaining member of the family in which he grew up. This afternoon he is sitting at the kitchen table in his ranch house not too far from Ridgevale Beach. He opens a thin manila envelope la...

CHATHAM – The chamber of commerce is seeking an increase its annual appropriation from the town in order to step up its efforts to promote and brand Chatham as a destination for both short-term and long-term visitors. Executive Director Lisa Franz said the chamber has largely been responsible for marketing and branding Chatham, and hoped that by providing additional funds, the town could become a partner in th...

CHATHAM – Community preservation projects totaling more than $500,000 will appear on the May annual town meeting warrant, all of them with the support of the board of selectmen. Recreation-related projects dominate the CPC articles, although one critical request which almost didn't make the approved list was handled in a creative way. The historical commission had requested $30,000 under the historic preser...

HARWICH — Selectmen made clear their opposition to a petitioned article that would direct the town not to use its resources to enforce federal immigration laws unless police officers have a criminal warrant or evidence of probable cause of another crime. The petitioned article was filed by Harwich resident Elaine Dickerson, who said it is part of a Cape-wide initiative to put the concept before voters. The pet...

HARWICH — A proposal to establish a Cape Verdean Exhibit/Cultural Center, potentially in the Harwich Middle School, received strong support from selectmen Monday night. The proposal was put forward by Barbara Burgo and Jane Teixeira-Henry. Burgo worked as one of the curators in collaboration with the Harwich Historical Society in hosting So Sabi , a Cape Verdean exhibit at Brooks Academy in 2012. “During t...

HARWICH — Selectmen agreed Monday night to tiptoe through the funding of phase two of the comprehensive wastewater management plan, slated for the May annual town meeting. The board voted not to put forward a single request for $34 million to implement phase two, which calls for the design and construction of sewers in the Pleasant Bay watershed; payment to the town of Chatham for the purchase of treatment cap...

by William F. Galvin HARWICH — The appeals board was scheduled Wednesday evening to open a hearing on the Habitat for Humanity of Cape Cod application for a comprehensive permit for six single-family affordable homes and two market lots along Route 28 in West Harwich. The hearing will be opened by the appeals board and will be immediately continued to a later date, anticipated to be in late March or early...

HARWICH — With little more than two weeks left to take out nomination papers for this year's annual election, conservation commission member Rob Mador has declared his candidacy for one of the two seats on the board of selectmen. With incumbents Selectmen Peter Hughes and Angelo LaMantia stating they will not seek re-election, former selectman Larry Ballantine has taken out nomination papers for one seat. Mado...

HARWICH — When it comes to Social Security, there are some questions and problems that can't be answered by a website or a phone call. For those needing face-to-face help, a new resource is available in Harwich. The Social Security Administration is now offering assistance to recipients via video conferencing from the community center once a month. Harwich is the first video service site on Cape Cod and is par...

HYANNIS/HARWICH/SANDWICH ─ When the regular season of the Monomoy boys basketball team ended and the postseason began, head coach Keith Arnold had some important words for his Sharks. “You guys are winners,” he said. So far in the MIAA Div. 4 South Sectional tournament, Arnold hasn’t been wrong, as the Cape and Islands League Champions have now defeated Sturgis East, Southeastern Regional, and as of Tuesd...

HARWICH ─ The Monomoy girls put forth an admirable effort in last Thursday's tournament game at Cathedral, but the No. 4 Panthers ultimately overtook the No. 13 Sharks en route to a 62-38 first-round victory. “The first quarter went well,” said Monomoy head coach Pete Richer. “We were behind 10-8 after the first and did a very good job defensively containing their three-point shooters and their center, a six...

Two films made by local residents are making their debut this month, but in very different venues. “They Are Mine,” a thriller written and directed by Michael James Hull, became available for viewing on Amazon.com earlier this month. And on March 23, “Runner,” a short thriller written and directed by Paul Schuyler, will get its premiere on the big screen at the Chatham Orpheum Theater. Both films show what ...

Panel Offiers Tips To Help Clean Up Plastic Pollution Just about every four days Rebecca Arnold of Chatham walks along one of the town’s beaches collecting trash for an hour or so. In five years she has collected 25 distinct types of trash including waterlogged shoes, Styrofoam coffee cups, plastic shell casings and lots and lots of wayward plastic byproducts of commercial fishing and lobstering. Last Sa...

Given all that's going on in Washington, now is the wrong time for Monomoy Regional High School to consider dropping its government studies requirement. No matter how you feel about the current administration, there's no denying that the issues being raised by its actions demand a citizenry with a deep knowledge of how our government works. The best way to arm future generations with that information is through t...

Continued Development Not Benefiting Chatham Editor: Recently I wrote a letter to honor the elders of Chatham. I did so to set a bench mark because through attrition the community of Chatham is vanishing. This is self-evident. For some time Chatham’s mantra has been Main Street above all else. “Living the dream” of the entitlement brand Chatham, transforming what was once Main Street, Hometown USA to an ...

Everybody needs a pantry. Not today’s kitchen designer pantry-in-a-box cabinet, but the kind I played in as a child, like the ones our grandmothers had in their old houses. Those spaces were made for kids; dark secret spaces, close to the household action, but where tiny people could hide away, unnoticed, and play for hours, which, of course, is just what I did. Some pantries were little more than glorifi...