Meetings Ahead
Most meetings in Eastham are in person, typically with an online attendance option. Click on the meeting you are interested in on the calendar at eastham-ma.gov for details. All meetings are at Town Hall unless otherwise indicated.
Thursday, Sept. 12
- Affordable Housing Trust, 9 a.m.
- Nauset Regional School Committee, 6 p.m., 5 Namskaket Rd., Orleans, and online
Monday, Sept. 16
- Search Committee, 10 a.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 17
- Zoning Task Force, 4 p.m., Public Library
- School Committee, 5 p.m.
- Recycling Committee, 5 p.m.
Wednesday, Sept. 18
- Planning Board, 5 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 19
- Finance Committee, 4 p.m.
Conversation Starter
Still No Exemption
At its annual tax classification hearing on Monday, the select board once again voted not to adopt a residential tax exemption (RTE). The state requires towns to consider the exemption each year as a way to encourage year-round residency. Towns that adopt RTEs can allow resident homeowners to exempt up to 35 percent of the town’s median assessed home value from their own tax assessment.
Provincetown, Truro, and Wellfleet all offer RTEs.
The select board’s action affirmed a decision last January not to adopt the RTE this year. The assessors recommended during Monday’s meeting that the board not adopt a tax exemption policy of any kind.
During the hearing, board member Jamie Demetri expressed concern about the board’s continued opposition to the RTE. She argued that it would help Eastham residents whose incomes were too high to qualify for government aid but who might struggle to live here comfortably. Without an RTE, Demetri said, lower-income workers like teachers, landscapers, and painters would struggle to make ends meet. “These are the people that are going to disappear,” she said.
Board members Gerald Cerasale and Aimee Eckman expressed sympathy for Demetri’s position but argued that the newly created Eastham Community Fund could provide more targeted aid to residents in need.
After the tax classification hearing, Thomas McNamara, president of the Eastham Part-time Resident Taxpayers Association, made a $2,000 donation to the Eastham Community Fund.
The RTE will next be considered by the select board in January 2025. —Parker Mumford
