WELLFLEET — Incumbent Michael DeVasto and newcomer Barbara Carboni were elected to three-year terms on the select board in Monday’s annual town election. Just over 25 percent, 763, of the […]
ENVIRONMENT
Searching for Alternatives to ‘Beach Nourishment’
Oystermen say ‘sacrificial sand’ is burying their shellfish grants
WELLFLEET — To preserve eroding property and maintain beaches, thousands of cubic yards of so-called sacrificial sand is piled on coastal banks and bay shores here. It does not stay […]
FIRST RESPONSE
A Surfer from Maine Dies at Lecount Hollow Beach
Martin Mackey, 48, an educator from Brunswick, was surfing with his son
WELLFLEET — A surfer visiting from Maine died after being pulled from the ocean at Lecount Hollow Beach on April 20, according to the Cape and Islands district attorney’s office. […]
DEVELOPMENT
Wellfleet Offers $6.5M for Maurice’s Campground
The deal would leave the 21-acre site unchanged for 6 years
WELLFLEET — The select board has signed a purchase-and-sale agreement for the 72-year-old Maurice’s Campground and its 21.25 acres of land for $6.5 million. The board presented the purchase as […]
EROSION
Hidden Septic Tank Lands on Wellfleet Beach
As shorelines retreat, a collective effort will be needed to clean up the coast
WELLFLEET — On beaches along this eroding coastline, it’s common to stumble upon strange artifacts, from PVC pipes to electrical wires to concrete rubble. The most recent discovery: a broken […]
RIGHTS
Suit Stalls Underground Housing
Neighbors oppose ‘Out of Sight, Out of Mind’ project
TRURO — In spite of the signs in residents’ yards and on windowsills proclaiming that “Housing Is a Human Right,” efforts to create an underground campsite as a solution to […]
NESTING
Inside the Seasonal Homes of the Ospreys
Decorating with flip-flops, T-shirts, rosary beads, golf balls, fishing poles, and a Barbie
Come April, ospreys — the large raptors also known as sea hawks — make their thousands-of-miles-long journeys from South America back to Cape Cod to nest. A peek inside their […]
PAPER ROADS
Six Wellfleet Houses Cut Off by Eroding Sand Road
After three years of permit approvals, a solution is blocked by a lawsuit
WELLFLEET — After two January nor’easters, an eroding road has cut off six oceanfront property owners from access to their houses. “Each storm compromises the area even further,” said Douglas […]
TOWN HALL
Wellfleet Hires a New Town Accountant
Nick Robertson says he will ‘find that last penny’
WELLFLEET — Nick Robertson starts work as the new town accountant this Monday, April 4. For the last five years he has been Provincetown’s assistant town accountant. He sees the […]
ADDING UP
Wellfleet Chooses a New Town Treasurer
Cameron Reiss Scott says he is a ‘numbers person’
WELLFLEET — Cameron Reiss Scott, the former head account clerk at Barnstable Superior Court, now has a longer commute to work from his home in Centerville, where he lives with […]
FISCAL CRISIS
Wellfleet Town Meeting Delayed by Financial Pickle
Meeting is put off to June 11; 15% tax increase expected
WELLFLEET — The town’s continuing financial fiasco has now prompted the select board to postpone the annual town meeting until Saturday, June 11. The town charter requires that the annual […]
SHORT-TERM RENTALS
Outer Cape Towns Weigh Community Impact Fees
Revenue raised from rentals would go toward affordable housing
TRURO — In an effort to stem the loss of residential property from the year-round housing stock, three Outer Cape towns are considering the adoption of an additional fee on […]
DISABILITY RIGHTS
On the Outer Cape, the ADA Doesn’t Change Much
For people with disabilities, a lack of awareness and action curbs optimism
WELLFLEET — When 84-year-old Carmen Castro had a major stroke in 2017 and needed full-time care, her daughter, Belinda, quickly stepped up, adjusting to the 24-hour routine of administering medication […]
IT'S ELEMENTARY
No Sprinklers Means Wellfleet School Might Be Shut
Cost-cutting in 1990 comes back to haunt Wellfleet budgeters
WELLFLEET — Three years ago, Fire Chief Richard Pauley raised an alarm about the nonexistent sprinkler system at the Wellfleet Elementary School — a violation of the state building code. […]
STATE OF THE TOWN
Override to Cover Wellfleet Shortfall Grows to $1.3 Million
Years of bad financial practice led to an unstable foundation, says Sumner
WELLFLEET — Town meeting voters will be asked to approve at least $1.3 million in Proposition 2½ overrides to fund last year’s budget shortfalls, maintain town services at their current […]
