Confirmed bird sightings on the Outer Cape in the week preceding the Independent’s deadline on Tuesday, Sept. 24 included the following, based on a report prepared by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet […]
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PROVINCETOWN: THIS WEEK'S CURRENTS
Joint Water Meeting
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
RTE Bumped to 35 Percent
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, Sept. […]
WELLFLEET: THIS WEEK'S CURRENTS
Harbormaster Update
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
A Leaky Library
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 […]
ON THE WATERFRONT
Inside a Vestige of Provincetown’s Mercantile Past
The Old Reliable Fish House and Colonial Cold Storage buildings have stories to tell
PROVINCETOWN — The large, decaying buildings that formerly housed fish-processing businesses, an industrial freezer, a pair of restaurants, and several apartments at 227, 227R, and 229 Commercial St. are mostly […]
PUBLIC HEALTH
Kindergarten Vaccination Rates Fall Short
Lack of ‘herd immunity’ risks outbreak of preventable diseases
The immunization of children entering kindergarten against preventable diseases in all four towns on Outer Cape Cod lags far behind statewide averages. In both Truro and Provincetown, less than 80 […]
REGULATION
Short-Term Rentals: an Industry of Ones and Twos
Only 10 percent of P’town rentals belong to owners of three or more units
PROVINCETOWN — Almost a year ago, town meeting voters endorsed two measures to regulate the ownership of short-term rental properties here and prevent consolidation of the industry in the hands […]
WELLFLEET HARBOR
Fire Chief Orders Heavy Trucks Off the L-Pier
The badly deteriorated structure will need to be replaced, says interim harbormaster
WELLFLEET — Fire Chief Joseph Capello issued a cease-and-desist order on Sept. 17 to prevent fuel delivery trucks and water tankers from driving onto the commercial L-pier at the town’s […]
LOCATION, LOCATION
Shellfish Dept. Answers Fears With Positive Harvest Data
After boom years, and with more pickers, wild oyster numbers ‘head back to normal’
WELLFLEET — At select board meetings throughout the summer, wild oyster harvesters used the public comment period as a platform to decry the state of the town’s wild fishery. “I […]
ENVIRONMENT
Against the Wind: Questions About BOEM’s Fisheries Analysis
Maine-based anti-wind advocate Jerry Leeman leads a forum at the Truro library
TRURO — The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced the final sale notice for the Gulf of Maine offshore wind project lease areas on Sept. 16. The agency shrunk […]
WELLFLEET HARBOR
Turning the Tables on Mayo Beach
A lease agreement with Mac’s highlights inconsistencies in procurement procedure
WELLFLEET — The select board on Sept. 10 reviewed the only bid received for the leasing in 2025 of the town-owned sandy lot at 255 Commercial St. between Mac’s on […]
ECONOMY
Obscure Regulation Limits What Employers Can Charge Staff for Housing
The rule hasn’t been updated in 20 years and affects all minimum-wage workers
PROVINCETOWN — As the cost of living has become increasingly untenable for workers on Cape Cod, many local businesses have had to sign leases on rental properties, or buy properties […]
STRANDINGS
Rescue Operation
THE SCUTTLEBUTT
A Fall Bass Run
There’s Wicked Tuna and then there’s real-life tuna fishing
A fall bass run has evaded us for about six years, but this week there was clear evidence that one is underway. As everybody out here knows, the weather has been […]
