ORLEANS – As the town's first fire station, there's no arguing the historic value of the Main Street Community Center. But the community preservation committee wasn't sold on the need to spend $2 million to restore the aging building. The committee voted 5-4 March 10 against endorsing the use of Community Preservation Act funds to make improvements to and bring up to code the building at 44 Main St., which dat...

ORLEANS – Parking restrictions and fees could be in the cards for additional town landings, but not in time for the coming summer season. Select board members on March 9 said they didn't see a wide enough window to expand the restrictions and implement fees in time for this spring's annual town meeting, the warrant for which closes April 6. Restrictions were put in place last year at Cove Road Landing, Wild...

ORLEANS – Can equity in sewer betterments be achieved for users downtown and in the area of Meetinghouse Pond? If the select board's public hearing on the matter March 9 is any indication, it doesn't seem likely. "I think what we can take away from all of this is there is no fair and equitable way to assess a betterment in this town," Finance Director Cathy Doane told the board at the conclusion of the two-hou...

ORLEANS – If Orleans wants to boost its economic profile, it needs to make better use of its waterfront and downtown areas. That's according to the consulting firm Streetsense, which the town hired in the fall to steer its economic development plan. The planning board was updated on the firm's findings to date at its Jan. 25 meeting. Streetsense's work began in November with a tour of the town's downtown ar...

ORLEANS – Water quality experts say that sewering is likely the best option for treating phosphorus loading in Baker Pond. The marine and fresh water quality committee was presented Jan. 24 with a draft final study on the 28-acre pond, which is on the Orleans-Brewster town line. The pond is the last of four waterways in town the committee has identified for study, with management plans already underway for Unc...

ORLEANS – By most accounts around town, the planned renovation of the Main Street Community Center represents a noticeable improvement to the existing building. But the Orleans Historical Commission has more specific concerns, namely whether the proposed work constitutes a historic restoration of the property. Commission members voted 5-0 Jan. 26 to find that they lacked the information needed to make a recomm...

ORLEANS – Is it a boat, or is it a sign? The zoning board of appeals on Feb. 2 will again take up the status of the boat out in front of Atlantic Workshop, even though the business' owner already won an appeal of an order calling for its removal in 2020. Scott Feen, who owns and runs the business out of his home at 94 Main St., is appealing a letter he received in November from the town's building commissio...

ORLEANS – If the town wants to move ahead with dredging the Nauset Estuary, some important questions need addressing. Questions include the location of the town boundary in the project area separating Orleans from Eastham, and can the boundary be moved? Town Counsel Michael Ford summarized for the select board Jan. 19 where things stand regarding the boundary as it relates to plans to follow through on the dre...

ORLEANS – Between state and federal COVID-19 funding and anticipated revenue from two recreational marijuana shops due to open in town, more money is coming to Orleans. But town officials need more guidance on how to spend it. The select board on Jan. 19 had a preliminary discussion on what the town can expect from state and county COVID-19 relief funding and tried to get a sense of how that money can and cann...

ORLEANS – Town officials want to have all of the information they need in place if and when the time comes to demolish the existing Governor Prence Inn buildings. The select board and the affordable housing trust board, which together co-own the 5.5-acre property on Route 6A, voted during a joint meeting Jan. 18 to begin the process of undertaking site reconstruction and a topological survey, funding for which...

ORLEANS – The select board wants clarity on the town's insurance policy on the Governor Prence Inn buildings, which Town Administrator John Kelly said the town could be at risk of losing. Kelly told the board Jan. 12 that he received communication from Lloyd's of London, which is insuring the building, that the town has 45 days to make needed repairs to the property, otherwise it could risk losing its $1 milli...

ORLEANS – A new urgent care facility is on schedule to open its doors this spring at the site of the former Lobster Claw restaurant on Route 6A. Ground broke last month on the yet-to-be-named facility, which will be located at 42 Route 6A. The 6,500-square-foot center is being built as part of an extensive $125 million capital campaign announced by Cape Cod Healthcare Jan. 4. Plans for the new center show a...

ORLEANS – A proposal to site a new fire station behind the existing facility on Eldredge Park Way would also allow expanded Orleans Elementary School parking, as well as a quicker tie-in to town sewer. The Orleans School Committee heard a preliminary pitch Jan. 12 from Ron Collins, the town's facilities manager, to site a new fire station on an unused acre of school land. The town is seeking a vote from the co...

ORLEANS – An expanded survey of the town's historic properties and improved traffic signaling near the intersection of Main Street and the Cape Cod Rail Trail are among the projects seeking community preservation funding this spring. The community preservation committee began hearing project presentations Jan. 13. The committee is charged with making recommendations on approximately $1.5 million in proposed Co...

ORLEANS – The Underground Mall off Route 6A has been vacant for years. But Chris DeSisto sees parking inside the existing buildings and landscaped greenspace breaking up the expansive pavement. More than anything, however, he sees an opportunity to provide moderately-priced housing to people in and around Orleans who need it. DeSisto, owner of Maple Hurst Builders, presented preliminary plans for building w...

ORLEANS – A proposed charter change has led to a disagreement between the finance committee and the town's finance director over how big a role the committee should have in reviewing the town's financial affairs. The charter review committee took a preliminary vote Jan. 3 not to support a proposed charter change proposed by the finance committee seeking to give it the authority to independently review all of t...