Meetings Ahead
Many meetings in Wellfleet are remote only, but some are being held in person. Go to wellfleet-ma.gov/calendar and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the instructions on the agenda.
Thursday, Aug. 11
- Board of Water Commissioners, 4 p.m.
Tuesday, Aug. 16
- Select Board, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 17
- Planning Board, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Aug. 18
- Board of Water Commissioners, 7 p.m.
Conversation Starters
No Free Cash by Town Meeting
The state Dept. of Revenue (DOR) will most likely not certify the town’s free cash account in time for the Sept. 10 special town meeting.
Town Administrator Rich Waldo said he attended a six-hour meeting with the DOR during which the staff told him that this is the agency’s busy season. All 351 towns in Massachusetts have to get their free cash certified as part of a routine annual review, so Wellfleet’s more complex situation would not be resolved in time, Waldo said he was told. There is a remote chance it could still happen, but Waldo said he is not expecting it.
This matters because voters must authorize transfers from what is expected to be at least $1 million in free cash to fund projects and replenish cash reserves.
Wellfleet’s free cash has not been certified since 2019. For two years, officials have been trying to reconcile years of shoddy bookkeeping. Two interim accountants doing this work reported to the select board in early June that thousands of expense records had been posted to the wrong accounts.
One positive note: the auditors from Powers & Sullivan have reviewed the books and declared that they are ready for a free cash review, Waldo said. Part of resolving the discrepancies will involve tracking and revealing what happened to the $765,000 “unknown variance” flagged by a 2021 audit, which officials have promised to explain once the books are closed. —K.C. Myers
Farmer’s Market Coupons
Beginning Aug. 15, low-income people over age 60 can pick up $25 coupons to use at farmers markets on Cape Cod. Coupons are available for the Outer Cape at 2207 Route 6, Wellfleet — the same building that houses the Mosquito Squad and where Elder Services of Cape Cod and the Islands runs the Meals on Wheels program.
The coupons will be distributed Mon. to Fri. 10 a.m. to noon on a first-come first-served basis, as there are a limited number available. The coupons come by way of a federal grant from the Dept. of Agriculture and are not limited to clients of Elder Services. To check on availability, call 508-349-2658. —Emma Madgic
