Meetings are held remotely. Go to truro-ma.gov, click on the meeting you want to watch, and open its agenda for instructions on how to watch or take part online.
Thursday, March 11
- Climate Action Committee, 10:30 a.m.
- Finance Committee, 4 p.m.
- Housing Authority, 4 p.m.
- School Committee, 5:15 p.m.
Tuesday, March 16
- Board of Health, 4 p.m.
Wednesday, March 17
- Planning Board, 2:30 p.m.
Thursday, March 18
- Climate Action Committee, 10:30 a.m.
Conversation Starters
Covid-19 Update
As of March 3, Truro had six active cases of Covid-19, according to the town. The state reported there have been 39 total cases as of March 4, and no deaths related to Covid-19.
Select Board Calls for Pier Fee Moratorium
Select board member Jan Worthington authored a letter to the Provincetown Public Pier Corp. and the Provincetown Select Board calling for a one-to-two-year moratorium on fee increases at MacMillan Pier.
Worthington wrote that 24 commercial fishermen and six “eco-tourism” or charter boat owners who live in Truro fish out of Provincetown.
“So, this is really an issue for Truro,” she said. “These are our neighbors and we need to support them.”
The letter, signed by all the members of the select board, is a reaction to the fee increases recently announced by the Pier Corp., which over two years will just about double the dock fees on MacMillan Pier.
Fees for large fishing boats will go from $44 to $85 per foot by 2023, and the fee for smaller vessels will go from $61 to $120 per foot by that year.
The Truro Select Board is also asking the Provincetown Pier Corp. to include Truro residents in the definition of Provincetown-based vessels. Under the pier’s new rules, everyone who uses the pier is grandfathered to have a slip, but when a space opens up, Provincetown residents would have priority for renting it. The argument for the local preference, according to Pier Corp. member Scott Fraser, is that Provincetown taxpayers already pay millions to repair and improve the pier, so they should have some advantage.
Worthington’s letter asks that Truro residents be represented on the Pier Corp. board. In fact, they already are allowed to be on the board, as are other nonresidents. The current application pool for two open spots on the Pier Corp. includes one Truro resident, one Eastham resident, and both a resident and a second-home owner from Provincetown.
The Provincetown Select Board will choose new Pier Corp. members in the coming weeks.
The Truro Select Board unanimously approved Worthington’s letter on March 9.
“The fishing community cannot live with this,” said Worthington of the increased fees. “This is not the time to put this kind of burden on them.” —K.C. Myers
