A Middle Ground On Housing Editor: The Harwich selectmen are frustrated with the lack of progress being made toward increasing the supply of affordable housing in town. Meanwhile, the locals are frustrated at the rate at which trees continue to fall only to be replaced by more cookie-cutter trophy homes, designed to lure in more out-of-town money, to drive up real estate values and with them tax revenues, m...

The Nov. 8 mid-term election is heavy on state-wide races, but includes several of local interest. This week we offer endorsements on two of those contests. Barnstable County Commission The contest for a seat on the Barnstable County Commission between challenger Ronald Beaty and incumbent Ronald Bergstrom is a classic liberal-conservative battle. Although partisan politics plays only a limited role at th...

Fishing Column Fan Editor: The recent article, “How Chatham Became a Fishing Center,” by Bill Amaru, was outstanding in every way. It was very informative, thorough, educational, and engaging, and I learned a lot. This caliber of writing is rare and so appreciated. I’m looking forward to more. Thanks, Bill! Donna Ricciuti-Faucher Dennis   License Question Benefits All Editor: The law in Massach...

Sorry, Leo. We're not convinced. Harwich cranberry farmer Leo Cakounes has become the public face of the Coalition to Stop the Tax Hike Amendment, a political action committee aimed at defeating a question on the Nov. 8 election ballot that would increase the tax on income above $1 million. Cakounes is a smart guy and a very good farmer who has done many positive things for his community and the Cape, but in t...

Alternative Airport Uses Editor: This is one more comment on the issue of the Chatham Airport. I understand that it is fiscally advantageous to our town to have the airport. However, seeing poll after poll on candidates positions on policy issues made me consider the Chatham Airport in terms of meeting Chatham's serious needs and problems. The number of small planes owned by residents of Chatham and O...

Library Support Appreciated Editor: Thank you to all who contributed to the success of the South Chatham Public Library's first annual Authors' Night. It was a full house at the Chatham VFW as authors Sally Cabot Gunning, Steve Koppel, and Judy Lannon presented their work. Support such as yours is so appreciated. Come visit us at the library, now open Friday 1 to 4 p.m. and Saturday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. ...

Much is made today of our divided society, of the mutually exclusive wants, needs and interests of the different factions in our country. This makes any sort of cooperative endeavor difficult, if not unthinkable. But for 50 years, a loose confederation of volunteers from Chatham have given their time to help out their fellow citizens with no thought about ideology, politics or other personal concerns. Anyone i...

The connections between Cape Cod and Florida are strong, with many of our summer residents now headed south for the winter. So the images of devastation from Hurricane Ian hit home. It’s clear that it will take months or years for the state to recover from this calamity. In response, The Chronicle’s employees have made a small donation to the American Red Cross disaster relief fund earmarked for Hurricane Ian rel...

The Local News Initiatives at Northwestern University reported recently that 2,500 newspapers had closed in the United States since 2005. By 2025, one-third of the newspapers in the country will be closed, the 2022 “State of Local News” report suggested. The majority of those are weekly newspapers. Locally, the Cape's newspaper landscape has changed considerably in the past few years. All but three papers are ...

Bikers Are The Best Editor: I would like to express my gratitude to the walkers and bikers of the CCRT. While cycling through Brewster this morning, I experienced lightheadedness. As I slowed to pull over to the side of the trail, I fainted. The next thing I remember, after being “out” for a few seconds, was men and women asking me if I was OK. They made sure I had water, something to eat, and my phone. One...

The fear of catastrophic climate change is everywhere today, including on the Cape. Well-intentioned people are working tirelessly in our schools, local governments and non-profits to promote clean energy and save the planet. What could be wrong with that? Quite a lot, actually.  Let’s start with the science. Carbon dioxide (CO2), erroneously called “pollution” by many, is a benign gas necessary for life on Ea...

The proposal to establish paid parking at the Rock Harbor lot in Orleans isn't ready for prime time. Officials should postpone the Oct. 17 special town meeting article to allow the program to be fine tuned, and more importantly, to broaden discussions to find out if the community really wants to take this step. Our sense is that right now, there is little to no support and the article is likely to fail. We've ...