One of the reasons so few developers are interested in building affordable housing on the Outer Cape is the extreme complexity of funding such projects. Another reason: the profits are […]
COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Great White Realty and Zehnder Take Zoning Board to Court
They seek to reverse decisions blocking controversial property use
WELLFLEET — The Great White Realty Group has filed suit in Mass. Land Court to overturn recent decisions by the zoning board of appeals that stopped the development of 1.3 […]
THE HOUSING CHALLENGE, PART 1
Who Builds Affordable Housing Here?
The list of interested developers on the Outer Cape is short
The list of developers expressing interest in a handful of affordable housing initiatives now in the works on Outer Cape Cod will likely be short. Taking on such a project […]
BY RIGHT
DeVasto Pleads for Broader ADU Bylaw
‘People are living in illegal spaces with hot plates,’ he tells planning board
WELLFLEET — Select board chair Michael DeVasto told the planning board at its recent hearing on zoning bylaw changes that the need to allow more accessory dwelling units (ADUs) by […]
DEVELOPMENT
New Plan for Old Reliable Wins ZBA Approval Again
On a smaller footprint, people see a project that will ‘bring a place to life’ or ‘erode its character’
PROVINCETOWN — The zoning board of appeals has approved both special permits and a height variance needed for a major mixed-use development on the former Old Reliable Fish House property, […]
HOUSING
Wellfleet Planners See Only Problems in ADU Petition
Proposed bylaw would just cause an explosion of short-term rentals, they warn
WELLFLEET — The planning board sees nothing but trouble if the town adopts a proposed bylaw allowing more accessory dwelling units, judging from its reaction at a May 5 public […]
SCHOOLS
Nauset’s Interim Superintendent Brings a ‘Tapestry of Experience’
Brooke Clenchy hopes to make the position permanent
About 1,000 miles separate Ontario, Canada, where Brooke Clenchy was born and raised, from the Outer Cape, where she will soon become the Nauset Regional School District’s interim superintendent. And […]
RIGHTS
Sylvan Lane Land Owner Sues Neighbors Over Access
Court decision will determine right to build, not just pick blueberries
TRURO — The owner of property at the top of Sylvan Lane has sued her neighbors in Land Court to settle once and for all her right to use a long […]
NUCLEAR ZONE
Legislators Are Pushed to File Pilgrim Safety Bill
Emergency planning for spent fuel mishap is ‘a heavy lift,’ says Peake
WELLFLEET — Candace Perry still has a sticker on her Subaru Forester that reads: “Pilgrim Blows: Bridges Close!” Perry first stuck it on her bumper when the Pilgrim Nuclear Power […]
REGULATION
Conservation Commission Fines Canteen Owners
After-the-fact permits will be required; fines will be appealed
PROVINCETOWN — The owners of the Canteen restaurant on Commercial Street had to pay $900 in fines and another $450, double the usual application fee, for putting in an underground propane […]
PRESERVATION
Many Historic Buildings Have No Protection
Towns struggle to find ways to prevent demolition
To a large degree, historic buildings define the beauty and charm of the Outer Cape’s villages and scenic roads. Yet a Cape Cod Commission study found that 691 of the […]
RE-USE
Modern Business Can Co-Exist With History
‘These buildings have a story to tell’
WELLFLEET — Mac Hay was standing at the sushi bar in his restaurant, Mac’s Shack, on Duck Creek. In the quiet of a preseason day, he paused to run his […]
OLD RELIABLE
Tweaked Waterfront Hotel Plan Faces Uphill Fight
Lawsuit on hold while Barker goes before Provincetown planners again
PROVINCETOWN — The future of the disintegrating Old Reliable Fish House property on the Commercial Street waterfront will once again be in the hands of the planning and zoning boards, […]
TOXIC SUBSTANCES
Outer Cape Towns to Test Drinking Water for PFAS
Legal limit for manmade ‘forever’ chemicals tightened by state DEP
Communities across the state — and on the Outer Cape — are beginning mandatory testing of their public water supplies for PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), a group of compounds […]
ENVIRONMENT
United on Shutting Pilgrim Reactor, Advocates Differ on Nuclear Waste
Navajo activist calls New Mexico plan ‘blatant environmental racism’
PLYMOUTH — The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station has been shut down, but the arguments over what to do with its highly radioactive spent fuel are heating up. A Navajo activist […]
