At first glance, the native evergreen Epigaea repens looks a bit haggard. Its rough, leathery leaves, which have bite marks and brown spots left by the visiting insects it hosts, […]
News
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RARA AVIS
This Week’s Bird Sightings
Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, April 9 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
PROVINCETOWN: THIS WEEK'S CURRENTS
Bias-Free Policing
Meetings Ahead Most meetings in Provincetown are held in person, typically with an online-attendance option. Click on the meeting you want to attend on the calendar at provincetown-ma.gov for a […]
TRURO: THIS WEEK'S CURRENTS
Cyr’s DPW Dream
Meetings Ahead Meetings in Truro are often held remotely. Go to Truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for an agenda and details on how to join. Thursday, April […]
WELLFLEET: THIS WEEK'S CURRENTS
Dredging Task Force Meets
Meetings Ahead Most meetings in Wellfleet are remote only, but some are held in person. Go to www.wellfleet-ma.gov/calendar and click on the meeting you want to watch, then follow the […]
EASTHAM: THIS WEEK'S CURRENTS
Open Jobs and Staffing Shortages
Meetings Ahead Most meetings in Eastham are in person, typically with an online-attendance option. Click on the meeting you want to attend on the calendar at eastham-ma.gov for a link […]
TOWN MEETING
Voters OK Motta Field, Retain Fire Engineers
$11.7-million plan to rebuild field advances to May 14 ballot
PROVINCETOWN — At a four-hour town meeting on April 1, voters approved almost every article on the warrant, rejecting only two: Article 19, which would have shifted authority for hiring […]
INTO THE MUCK
Wellfleet Board Delays Dredging for Another Year
A stalled $4.5-million override request risks the loss of a $2.5-million grant
WELLFLEET — The harbor mooring basin here was last dredged in 1957. The job, which has been on the town’s agenda for a decade, will now be delayed for yet another […]
WHALE WATCH
Ship Speed Limit Sparks Local Economy Worries
Aimed at protecting right whales, changes could hit ferries and tourism
PROVINCETOWN — This year has proved especially lethal for the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale, with the discovery on March 30 of a dead female marking the fifth mortality […]
HEALTH CARE ACCESS
CVS Pharmacies Can Now Fill Scripts for Abortion Medications
OCHS is looking into certification to offer mifepristone
PROVINCETOWN — Although medication abortions are legal for terminating pregnancies of up to 10 weeks in Massachusetts, access to the two-pill combination prescription is extremely limited on Cape Cod. That’s […]
DEVELOPMENT
Eastham’s Pressure-Treated Wood Bylaw Faces Challenge
Attorney tells town its environmental bylaw conflicts with state’s building code
EASTHAM — Eastham is the only town on Cape Cod that prohibits the use of pressure-treated wood in marine environments under its wetlands protection bylaws. But according to an environmental […]
ANIMAL CONTROL
Select Board Deems Two Huskies ‘Dangerous’
Owner must pay fines and control dogs or face a judge
EASTHAM — The select board unanimously designated two aggressive male huskies who frequently run loose as “dangerous dogs” at an April 1 hearing that stretched to nearly three hours. Both […]
VIEW FROM THE BALCONY
Fast Talking and Fast Voting at Town Meeting
The pace was quick, and then it wasn’t, but the meeting wrapped in one day
PROVINCETOWN — At the midway break for refreshments, longtime voters and first-time observers all seemed to agree: Provincetown’s annual town meeting was going remarkably smoothly. Right from the beginning, town […]
THE SCUTTLEBUTT
Can Cape Cod’s Namesake Fish Come Back?
NOAA says there are signs of hope for cod, but a recovery still seems daunting
Cape Cod is named for the fish that for centuries was extremely abundant in these waters and became the focal point of a major fishery that is no more. I’ve […]
MILLION-YEAR PICNIC
When the Moon Eclipses the Sun
Totality will miss the Cape on April 8, but we’ll still get 90 percent of its magic
The solar eclipse on April 8 is America’s headline astronomical event of 2024, but Cape Cod isn’t in the path of totality. That means we won’t experience the otherworldly twilight […]
