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 ...

CHATHAM – Erosion has increased along Chatham Harbor between the fish pier and Claflin Landing, across from a new washover on North Beach Island, and Chatham Bars Inn is hoping to stave further loss of its beach with an infusion of sand dredged from nearby Aunt Lydia's Cove. Changes along the stretch of shoreline began before the major washover blew out dunes and sent water cascading over the barrier beach and...

FinCom Identifies Housing As Town’s Top Priority CHATHAM — In the spirit of holding the line on expenses during the pandemic, Fire Chief David DePasquale did not ask for new full-time firefighters in the fiscal 2022 town budget, even though he’s made it clear that the extra hands are needed. Last week, having heard that the finance committee could support the idea, the select board asked Town Manager Jill Go...

NORTH CHATHAM – When the pandemic mandated that Liberty Commons Nursing Home lock all its doors in order to funnel all staff and visitors through the front entrance, where they were screened for symptoms, people began walking from the lower parking lot up a hill to the front door. In normal times, they'd use other, more conveniently located entrances. “It was fine all summer,” Broad Reach President and CEO Bil...

CHATHAM – The planning board approved a preliminary seven-lot subdivision plan for the former Monomoy Theatre property last week. It's the latest step in the redevelopment of the 2.7-acre property by owner Chatham Productions LLC. The proposal will require final subdivision approval by the planning board as well as a special permit from the zoning board of appeals to develop single-family homes on six of the l...

CHATHAM — The town will likely be storing 3,000 feet of dredge pipe at Harding’s Beach, and the parks and recreation commission wants to make sure the equipment doesn’t threaten visitors’ safety or the beach’s scenic vista. Coastal Resources Director Ted Keon briefed the commission on Feb. 23, saying the current dredging of Stage Harbor is transporting sand west to Cockle Cove, where it will nourish south-si...

Due To Morris Island Erosion CHATHAM – Erosion of the bluff at the Morris Island headquarters of the Monomoy National Wildlife Refuge has continued in recent weeks, although the pace has slowed compared to earlier this year. Its inexorable march, however, has convinced federal officials to halt the release of weather balloons from the National Weather Service's upper air inflation building on the property and ...

CHATHAM — A proposal to levy a fee of one-half of 1 percent on transfers of real estate over $2 million, using the proceeds to support affordable and attainable housing, is one step closer to going before voters for consideration. Colloquially dubbed a “mansion tax” by sponsor Select Board member Jeffrey Dykens, the measure requires final approval by selectmen and the endorsement of town meeting before it co...

The Chatham Fund has awarded $15,000 each to Monomoy Community Services and the Lower Cape Outreach Council. The two nonprofits will use the money to support ongoing programs and services as well as case work related to the Chatham Coronavirus Impact Fund (CCIF). Last year, at the onset of the pandemic, the fund distributed $25,000 to Monomoy Community Services (MCS) to meet the immediate needs of Chatham r...

After the anthrax scares that followed 9/11, local towns developed plans to open emergency dispensing sites to quickly vaccinate their citizens; those plans have now been in place for years, and have been routinely reviewed and certified. Towns practice them by staging routine flu vaccine clinics.  But during the pandemic, those plans have been shelved by state officials who favor using large mass vaccination ...

CHATHAM – Whales will return to Kate Gould Park for this summer's Chatham Merchants Association and the Chatham Chamber of Commerce-sponsored Art in the Park display. Last year's popular Oars in the Stores scavenger hunt will also return. Whale cut-outs from Stello Construction will be ready for distribution on March 10. Oars for the Oars in the Stores scavenger hunt will be ready for delivery on March 10 as w...