If A Tree Votes In The Forest... Editor: In response to Beverly Nelson’s recent letter, I pose this question:  Let’s imagine I am a full-time Chatham resident with a hideaway cottage on a lake in Natick (because I cannot afford the townhouse in the Back Bay). What voice and vote do I have to affect change according my specific needs and whims in  Natick? Linda Simonitsch Chatham   A Plea For You...

As of this writing, The Cape Cod Chronicle and its readers have contributed about $23,500 toward the $60,000 goal for our Helping Neighbors campaign for the Family Pantry of Cape Cod. It’s a tremendous accomplishment. But we know we can do better. Perhaps it’s been the crush of holiday errands and travel, or maybe it’s the jittery stock market. Or maybe we’ve been focused lately on a certain letter to the editor ...

This time of year is both joyous and sad; we celebrate being together with family and friends, and as the year winds down, we also remember those who won't be celebrating with us. In 2018 we lost a number of folks who dedicated much of their lives to helping run our communities. Thomas R. “Tim” Pennypacker served as a police officer and selectman in Chatham and as a deputy sheriff and was well known for his co...

“Bye Bye Miss American Pie Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry And them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye Singing this will be the day that I die This will be the day that I die.”   Don McLean had a huge hit with American Pie in 1971. Don wrote it and sang it and the entire popular music industry was stunned when it reached number one in the country. Eight minute songs ha...

Harwich Elementary School Castle in the Clouds will celebrate its 25th birthday this spring as a landmark playground on Cape Cod. Designed by Robert Leathers and Associates and built by the Harwich community in 1994, this vintage play structure has served our children well. Current HES parents and grandparents remember vividly the excitement of this community build project which has stood as a faithful frie...

ORLEANS — Phil Howarth says the former Beth Bishop store on Route 28 “is a building my wife fell in love with on our honeymoon in 1994.” That's one of the reasons the owner of Bluefish Outfitters, the parent company of the Goose Hummock shop, signed a lease purchase agreement for the property recently. There are other people who love it, too, including Gail and Rick Runyon, whose home is directly behind the ...

Legislation amending the state's room occupancy tax to include short-term rentals was passed by the House and Senate Thursday. The legislation adds an additional 2.75 percent to the tax to create a fund to clean up coastal waterways. The legislation is a compromise between a conference committee agreement and amendments proposed by Gov. Charlie Baker last summer. The expanded rooms tax will automatically apply...

As of this writing, The Cape Cod Chronicle and its readers have contributed about $23,500 toward the $60,000 goal for our Helping Neighbors campaign for the Family Pantry of Cape Cod. It’s a tremendous accomplishment. But we know we can do better. Perhaps it’s been the crush of holiday errands and travel, or maybe it’s the jittery stock market. Or maybe we’ve been focused lately on a certain letter to the editor ...

                Roger W. Ludwig of Naples, Fla. and Chatham, 80, died suddenly on Sunday, October 28 at his home in Naples. Roger was born on January 14, 1938 in Patterson, N.J. and was a longtime resident of Wyckoff, N.J.   He was predeceased by his wife Beverly K. Ludwig and survived by his second wife Jenny A. Ludwig.                 Also surviving are his four children Roger W. Ludwig, Jr of Black Rock, Co...

Even before it's finalized, the fiscal 2020 Monomoy Regional School District budget is projected to run a deficit of nearly $1 million. Superintendent of Schools Scott Carpenter told the school committee last week that the preliminary budget is up 5.25 percent over this year's $39 million spending plan, but because of several factors, the assessments to Chatham and Harwich will increase by 6.09 percent. The in...

CHATHAM — By order of selectmen, town groundskeepers will no longer use glyphosate, the active ingredient in herbicides like Roundup, to control weeds in parks, athletic fields, mulch beds and along walkways. The board’s vote Monday came at the request of Laura Kelley of the group Protect Our Cape Cod Aquifer (POCCA), who has argued against the use of pesticides that might contaminate the region’s shallow gr...

CHATHAM – A video of a sea turtle with a plastic straw stuck in its nostril has galvanized Monomoy Regional Middle School students to work toward eliminating straws in the school's cafeteria. Members of the school's garden club and animal rights club recently brainstormed ways to increase awareness among students of the pollution caused by plastic straws as well as convincing school officials to replace plasti...

CHATHAM — Finding health insurance coverage isn’t just expensive, it’s confusing. And with news headlines about challenges to the federal Affordable Care Act, it can be all the more confounding. Adding to the stress, there’s a deadline of Jan. 23 for Massachusetts residents to enroll in a new plan or to change plans. There’s a new resource for local families who are trying to get coverage or change plans dur...

CHATHAM — When the state funeral was held for President George H.W. Bush recently, a man with Chatham roots helped provide a proper military tribute. Carlton Eldridge serves with the U.S. Army as part of the Third U.S. Infantry Regiment, known as the Old Guard; one of the unit's key duties is to fire artillery salutes at funerals. “We fired a 21-gun salute for his state funeral,” Eldridge said. “The last sta...

HARWICH — The major capital project facing the town in the coming year is a projected $5,560,471 Lower County Road reconstruction to be funded solely by the town. The project could be eligible for the state/federal Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), to qualify the road layout would have to be widened, which officials say will compromise community character. Department of Public Works Director Lincoln...