CHATHAM – Amid a crowd of Pumpkin People in the Park, the town will celebrate Oktoberfest Saturday at Kate Gould Park. The festival runs from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and features food, live music and games for the whole family. Sponsored by the Chatham Merchants Association, the event includes a costume parade at noon; kids and adults are encouraged to show off their Halloween outfits. Other Oktoberfest hig...

CHATHAM – Distilling four separate waterways-related regulations into a single document isn't an easy task, and even the process of reviewing the consolidated rules has become fraught with controversy. A lack of public input into the process thus far and the possibility of an independent review of the consolidated regulations took center stage at last week's board of selectmen's meeting, although the not-so-su...

Steep Enrollment Decline Likely To Lead To Changes CHATHAM – Chatham Elementary School could end up as one of the smallest elementary schools on the Cape if recent enrollment trends continue. A 12 percent drop in enrollment this fall resulted in the school's usual three classes at the kindergarten level dropping to two, requiring the transfer of one teacher to Harwich Elementary School to keep class size ...

CHATHAM — When it comes to boosting numbers of commercially important fish species – and helping the small-boat fishery that relies on them – the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen's Alliance is proposing a “no-fish zone” on the backside of the Cape designed to keep herring trawlers out. If it's implemented, the conservation measure could also benefit whales, seabirds and other species that feed on Atlantic herring....

CHATHAM – In their continuing effort to lobby the federal government to drop its claim over the waters and flats west of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge, town officials Monday scored their most influential meeting yet. Late in the afternoon they were scheduled to meet with Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke. Selectman Shareen Davis, Health and Natural Resources Director Robert Duncanson and Town Manager...

By chance, Don St. Pierre of Chatham and his long-time friend Pete Norgeot of Orleans discovered that they were both involved with what has been seen as a footnote to history. Their story revolves around the rescue boat CG36383, a twin to the famous CG36500 that played a heroic role in the rescue of 32 men from the stern of the ill-fated ship Pendleton. The Pendleton broke in half off Chatham during a bitter n...

CHATHAM – About a year ago, a large branch broke off the Bradford pear tree that shades the historic Mayo House at 540 Main St. Concerned that that could happen again and worried that the tree's oversized canopy may pose a safety hazard, the Chatham Conservation Foundation, which owns the property, has proposed removing the tree. “That was kind of like the first warning sign,” Foundation Executive Director Mat...

CHATHAM – With Sharks in the Park now history, it's time for the Pumpkin People to take their place in Kate Gould Park. Tomorrow – which just happens to be Friday the 13 th – local businesses and organizations will begin setting up the annual display of pumpkin-headed scarecrows, scary Halloween scenes and scenarios that defy description. The display will remain up through Halloween, and right in the middle t...

CHATHAM – Increasing “share the road” signs, improving access from the bike trail to Route 28, and upgrading shoulders along Main Street were among the top recommendations made at last week's “listening session” on the draft Chatham Bike Plan. Assembled by the town's bikeways advisory committee and transportation planners at the Cape Cod Commission, the plan analyzes the town's bicycle paths and routes and ide...

CHATHAM – Among the items crammed into the eight-foot skiff that sits on the lawn of the Chatham Unitarian Universalist Meetinghouse are tangles of nylon rope, fishing nets, plastic bottles of various sizes, Styrofoam insulation and lobster trap buoys. “And there's more in my backyard,” said Rebecca Arnold. Between January and May, Arnold walked various beaches daily and picked up debris she found, dragging...

CHATHAM – A comprehensive master plan concept for the Eldredge Library grounds, including a restoration and repositioning of the Pioneers Monument along Main Street, was endorsed by the board of selectmen Tuesday. The most significant changes being proposed involve the construction of a sitting wall along the sidewalk in front of the library. The monument, erected in 1924 in honor of Chatham's first European s...

For many people, the tale of the Pendleton rescue is the stuff of big-budget feature films; for others, it's the story of the greatest small-boat rescue in the history of the Coast Guard. But for Renee Pellegrino of Maryville, Ill., it's part of family lore. Pellegrino recently made a 1,000-mile pilgrimage to the Cape to honor her father, the late Raymond Steele, who was one of the 32 men rescued from the ster...