Bob Wirtshafter was leaving his yoga class at Power Yoga of Cape Cod in Harwich when he noticed his instructor, Stephanie Briody, was wearing a bathing suit as she left the studio and headed out into the December cold. “I saw that she had her bathing suit on after yoga and I said, ‘Where are you going?’” recalls Wirtshafter, a Chatham resident. “She said, ‘Oh, I’m going to do an ocean dip’ and I said, ‘Oh, I’l...

CHATHAM — In a couple of weeks, people will be queuing up to take a brisk swim in Nantucket Sound for a good cause. They’re Chatham’s April Fools, and they’re back this year with a pandemic-safe plunge to benefit a local woman facing medical challenges. Each year, the April Fools raise money for a different local individual or family in need, usually to ease the financial burden of an illness or injury. And,...

CHATHAM – Twelve years ago this week, the historic Stage Harbor Coast Guard boathouse was lifted off the pilings on which it had sat for more than 70 years, gently placed on a barge and floated to a Quincy shipyard. And there it remained for years, until 2019, when it was moved to Hull in an ill-fated attempt to use it as a Coast Guard museum. After a near-brush with demolition, it was once again moved to Quin...

CHATHAM – A lawsuit that attempted to prevent skydiving from returning to Chatham Municipal Airport was dismissed by the Massachusetts Appeals Court Monday. The decision by a three-judge panel affirms a 2019 ruling by a Barnstable Superior Court judge that federal law requires that the town allow skydiving at the George Ryder Road airport. It's not certain that skydiving will return to the airport, and if i...

CHATHAM – A plan to restore and renovate a 170-year-old Greek Revival house in the Old Village ran into opposition from the historical commission last week over the size of a proposed addition. Though they appreciated the effort to save the main house at 305 Main St., known as Breathwood, commission members said the addition to the rear would overwhelm the original structure. “To me it dwarfs the historic s...

CHATHAM – Although it was billed as a discussion on the future of elementary education, last Thursday's forum kept veering into the budget lane, much to the dismay of some parents. The benefits and drawbacks of small class size is the direction that the discussion should be heading, said several of those who attended the virtual session. “My hope is that we don't get so pulled into the budget inequity that ...

CHATHAM – When the call went out, local residents answered, contributing more than half a million dollars to help neighbors suffering financially due to the pandemic. After distributing most of that money, the Chatham Coronavirus Impact Fund (CCIF) is winding down and will phase out March 19. “We had a goal, we had a mission, we had a focus on trying to get assistance to those in need,” said Stephen Daniel,...

CHATHAM — The select board voted Tuesday to sign an agreement with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that preserves the town’s right to manage fishing and shellfishing on the flats west of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge. The action caps a legal and legislative battle that took more than a decade and cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. While it does not legally resolve the dispute over the...

On Feb. 5, 2020, The Chronicle’s health page revealed that 362 people globally had died as the result of a new virus that had emerged in Wuhan, China. It quoted a local health official who said, “People living on the Cape do not need to be concerned about getting the coronavirus at this time.” More than a year later, the global death toll has topped 2.58 million, including more than 400 Cape Codders. The pan...

CHATHAM — The town’s assessment for the fiscal 2022 Monomoy Regional School District budget is expected to drop by $272,845 over the current year’s assessment, even as Harwich’s share rises by $847,761. But setting the apparent inequity aside, the Chatham select board says there’s still reason to celebrate. At a projected $41,669,545, the district’s spending plan is only $408,411 higher than the current year...

CHATHAM — Though the controversial Chatham Airport Master Plan Update is now in the hands of state and federal regulators, a vocal group of critics has launched a website warning of dire consequences if the plan is implemented. Now, both airport opponents and the airport commission are fighting a battle for public opinion. “Among the things that keep getting lost in translation here is that the master plan i...

CHATHAM – Incumbent Select Board member Dean Nicastro will run for a third term, and Tom Wilson, currently the town's representative on the Cape Cod Commission, will also be seeking one of the three seats up for election on the board. Incumbent Cory Metters is also seeking a third three-year term. Wilson, retired from IT and sales management at Pepperidge Farm, currently serves on the town's charter review ...