If Cape Cod followed Vermont’s example, all our worries about postponing town meeting would be unnecessary. Up in the Green Mountain State, almost all communities hold their annual budget-setting sessions on Town Meeting Day, the first Tuesday of March. It’s a state holiday. Vermont’s work is done for this year, but Massachusetts towns have been tripped up in the middle of the process by a pandemic disease tha...

ORLEANS — Townspeople remember the service of their military members every Memorial Day and Veterans Day at Academy Place, sometimes in such numbers that they spill out of the triangular piece of land at Route 28 and Main Street. Now there’s a plan to reorganize the monuments that recognize those who served in the nation’s conflicts and create a space well suited for reflection on their sacrifices. Memorial an...

ORLEANS — There’s something for everyone in the community preservation committee’s recommendations for spending on community housing, historical preservation, open space, and recreation. What there’s not is everything for everybody. With almost 20 requests for supporting totaling well above $2 million, the committee had a tough job getting the number down to its expected revenue for the fiscal year beginning J...

It will cost you more to park at a Cape Cod National Seashore beach this summer, and less—in fact, nothing—to participate in ranger-led programs. “The fee increase (from $20 to $25 for vehicles) has been in the work for three years,” Superintendent Brian Carlstrom said Tuesday in a phone interview. “This is the year we’re implementing it. It’s being rolled out across the National Park Service.” He said the ...

ORLEANS — F. W. Webb is working on adding some touches to its proposed 38,000-square-foot, 30-feet-high sales and storage facility at 17 Nells Way after hearing from members of the Old King’s Highway Regional Historic District Committee. “This to me is a perfect building for an industrial park,” the OKH’s Stefan Galazzi said March 5 of the structure planned for the former site of the Underground Mall on Route ...

ORLEANS — While fire department personnel “have consistently provided the highest possible level of emergency services to the Orleans community,” according to a new study, the current staffing model “is neither sustainable nor efficient.” A staffing and organizational review by Emergency Services Consulting International recommends a reorganization to increase minimum staffing to four firefighters per shift, r...

BREWSTER – There are two schools of thought about the $131,825,665 Nauset Regional High School renovation/addition project. One reflects years of work to produce a plan for a 905-student school that will receive significant financial support from the Massachusetts School Building Authority and include school choice students from other districts to maintain sufficient enrollment to provide a wide variety of cou...

ORLEANS — After four decades of fighting fires for the town, the only thing left for retiring Chief Anthony Pike to battle was his own emotions as he said goodbye to staff and colleagues from around the Cape Feb. 21. “I’ve said enough over the last 40 years,” he told a crowd gathered at the station in brief remarks. “This has been a dream, to serve the community. Thank you very much.” Standing beside Pike a...

ORLEANS — F. W. Webb is making the rounds of town boards seeking approval to tear down buildings at the former Underground Mall on Route 6A near the Brewster line and build a 38,000-square-foot, 30-foot-high combination retail and warehouse facility. On March 4 at 7 p.m., the zoning board of appeals will review requests for relief from building size and parking requirements. The next day, at 6:30 p.m., the Old...

NORTH EASTHAM – The statistics are sobering: One in four girls and one in six boys will be sexually abused before their 18 th birthdays, but only one in 10 will tell someone about it. Children's Cove has been working to change that through their Teen TASK (Taking A Stand for Kids) Force, which this year has come to Nauset Regional High School. The program originally got its start in 2016 with a partnership wi...

ORLEANS — After half a century of trying to organize the pieces of a town sewer system, the jigsaw puzzle’s outline is set and important parts are being moved into place. Town leaders heard a progress report Feb. 12 along with a reminder of what must be done in the next few months to keep things on track. Vice President Ian Catlow of Tighe & Bond, the town’s owner’s project manager, said AECOM’s design for...

ORLEANS — Now in its second season, the 44-member Lower Cape Curling Club hosted an event known as a “Friendly” with the Cape Cod Curling Club from Falmouth at the Charles Moore Arena last week. The non-competitive match was held to help new members feel comfortable playing with cutlers from other clubs, organizers say. For more information, visit www.LowerCapeCurlingClub.com. ...