CHATHAM — If you're finding it easier than usual to score a choice parking space on Main Street this summer, thank a downtown merchant. A working group assembled to find ways to increase the number of available downtown parking spaces reports that it is making real progress. The group's leader, Becky Voelkel of the Chatham Merchants' Association, said downtown business owners have largely agreed to discourage ...

CHATHAM — In the wake of the “surprise” demolition of the historic Reuben C. Smith house at 1610 Main St. last month, town staff members are drafting a new policy to ensure closer cooperation with the Historic Business District Commission. Selectmen reviewed the case at the request of resident Norm Pacun, who said the law that enables the HBDC gives it clear authority to review pending demolitions of historic ...

CHATHAM – Growing up the youngest of seven children in the Bronx, Chatham resident Tom Baldwin knew very little about his father Walter’s service in World War I. “I cannot recall my Dad ever talking about his wartime experiences in our home,” Baldwin said. Walter Baldwin passed away in 1965. It wasn’t until 2012 that Tom and his sister discovered a typed manuscript while going through some of their father’s...

CHATHAM – Sharks are on the move. Not only in the waters off the Outer Cape, but in downtown Chatham as well. With Chatham Band concerts beginning in Kate Gould Park Friday, the Sharks in the Park exhibit had to relocate. Seems there's not enough space for both sharks and the throngs of concert goers who fill up the downtown park every Friday through Labor Day. So the sharks – all 40-plus of them, as well a...

Researchers tagged the first great white shark of the season today off Nauset Beach, and for the second time witnessed a shark eating a seal. The approximately 12 foot shark was tagged by Dr. Greg Skomal of the state division of marine fisheries during the twice-weekly population study trips along the coast sponsored by the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy. ...

CHATHAM — Spanning more than the banks of the Mitchell River, the town's new drawbridge – opened with a ceremonial snip of a ribbon Monday – bridged the more daunting gulf between highway engineers and preservationists. The new Mitchell River bridge won't be complete until the fall, but was scheduled to open to auto traffic this Wednesday. Its hybrid design features a modern steel and concrete substructure ...

CHATHAM – A male great white shark named "Scratchy," tagged by researchers last year, was detected earlier this month by a receiver buoy off Monomoy, becoming the first of its species confirmed in these waters this season. And on Monday a team from the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries and the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy not only saw their first great white shark this summer, but witnessed it pre...

CHATHAM PORT – The passenger of a helicopter that crashed at the end of Crow's Pond last Friday remained in critical condition early this week. Pilot John Ryan, 48, of Scituate, and his passenger, Tyra Pacheco, 48, of Acushnet, were extricated from the wreckage at the edge of the tidal pond by rescue personnel shortly after the crash, which occurred around 12:45 p.m. Both were taken by ambulance to Hyannis, wh...

CHATHAM – There are those who like sharks, and those who really like sharks. And can't keep their hands off them. Once again, the Sharks in the Park have proven just too tempting. Video surveillance cameras recently captured someone attempting to steal one of the sharks from Kate Gould Park. Luckily, the five-foot painted fish, mounted on a long metal rod, was either too big or too unwieldy – or both – for ...

CHATHAM – The fight over the Monomoy Wildlife Refuge's western boundary is headed to Congress. Rep. William Keating told town officials last week that he would file a bill to limit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's authority to Monomoy's low water line. If approved, the legislation would end a two-year-long dispute over jurisdiction over some 3,000 acres of Nantucket Sound open water and sea bottom west of ...

CHATHAM – Former selectman and long-time service station operator Ben Goodspeed has been named as the marshal of this year's Independence Day parade. Goodspeed will lead off the parade riding in a 1954 Willys Jeep, according to Independence Day Parade Committee Chairman Brad Schiff. “Well over 90” parade entries have been received for the event, which attracts thousands of people to Main Street every year, ...