Late Winter News

There seems to be a lot going on here this week. 

A local fisherman has proposed to make an area at MacMillan Pier used as free tie-up for recreational boaters. There is 300 feet of space along the parking lot that can be used to house boats while their owners and guests spend money in restaurants and shops along Commercial Street. The cost to create the area is estimated at around $1700.

Provincetown School Superintendent Jessica Waugh will retire at the end of this school year. She started her career with the Provincetown school system as a reading teacher 29 years ago. She was promoted to Curriculum Coordinator, Professional Development Director and MCAS Coordinator in 2004. Waugh has also served as Principal since 2008. A search for a new superintendent and principal are underway.

Provincetown is still working to balance its municipal budget. The teacher’s union agreed to freeze wages and save the town roughly $81,000. This still leaves the town $79,000 in the red. Additional funds may be raised by freezing the salaries for department heads and union personnel. The Finance Committee is also working on closing the budget gap.

The annual town meeting for Provincetown will be held on Monday, April 6th at 6 pm.
Agenda items include the budget, town hall renovation, sewer expansion, town vehicle purchases including a fire truck and sweeper, new parking meters, zoning issues, the recent marijuana law and three animal control articles. Town Warrants are available for review prior to the meeting.

Three lots on Browne Street may become community gardens. The 2.29 acre site would be divided into 50 garden plots. The Land Bank would fund the purchase and fund the maintenance of the site. The gardens will be an article at the town meeting on April 6th and is being submitted by the Conservation Commission.

The renovations for town hall are on schedule. Besides a large amount of rot being discovered and removed, the project is on budget. In Early March, steel channels and supports arrived that will be installed to make the building sound. A heating and air conditioning unit is expected to be installed across Bradford Street behind the Bas Relief.

The town hall will also be painted its original color as part of the renovations. Paint samples were removed and analyzed by historic paint consultants. The trim will be a cream color, windows and doors a deep reddish blue and the building itself, sage.

If you are looking for things to do:

WOMR features “Winter Benefit Film Series” every Thursday at 7:30pm at The Schoolhouse.

Counter Productions at The Provincetown Theatre presents “The Effect on Gamma Rays on Man in the Moon Marigolds” through March 29th.

It’s “Sunday Salon” at The Provincetown Theatre hosted by John Thomas.
March 29th and April 12th at 2PM

Thanks for reading and check back next week for “Provincetown Monthly” video news. Play it safe and send me an email at mike.dubour@verizon.net if you have any questions.

Provincetown Update

Things to do in mid-March

In consideration of WOMR’s 27th birthday, The Schoolhouse Gallery, located in the same building as the radio station, is hosting a party March 20th from 6-8 PM. Artists are encouraged to submit artwork that is valued between $100-$1,000. 20% of all work sold will benefit WOMR. Visit www.womr.org for more details.

The Norman Mailer Writers Colony will open May 18th. Located in the late author’s Provincetown home, aspiring writers will be offered fellowships to attend special workshops and programs on location. Application deadline is March 20th. Visit www.nmwcolony.org for more information.

The Fine Arts Work Center will feature paintings by artist Jason Mones through March 11th. 

Cape End Inn features free movie nights. Movies are relatively new as they are not released to video, but no longer in theaters. Start time is 7 PM Monday-Thursday and 8 PM Friday-Sunday, free popcorn, full bar and pub fare.

Winter Reading Series at The Provincetown Theatre. Various material. $5 donation.

Monday nights at The Mews is open mic. Starting at 8PM.

Late Winter Report

March is right around the corner and that means spring is practically here.

The budget issue that Provincetown has been facing is now a little smaller. The Visitor Services Board will contribute $77,000 to the town, thus closing the overall budget deficit to $150,000. The rest of the cuts are expected to come from the School Department.

The Cape Cod Year Rounder’s Festival will not be held again until repairs to town hall are complete. This event is usually held the second Saturday in March and features arts, crafts, museums and the town’s various organizations. Renovations are expected to take up to two years. 

The sewer system may be extended to the Beach Point area. Based on a possible environmental benefit, the State Department of Environmental Protection and the Provincetown Health Agent have urged the town to get a sense of residents’ interest in a hook up. The extension of the sewer system to this far East End of Provincetown will also generate revenue for the town.

An increase in water bills for Provincetown homeowners is on tap. Selectmen and the Water and Sewer Board voted a 40% hike for the lowest water users and a 2% jump for large commercial properties. The proposed increase will be discussed at a public hearing on March 12th.

Provincetown’s finest now has a new sergeant. Officer Thomas Steele was promoted after serving eight years on the force. Steele will replace Sergeant Phil Suchecki who has retired. 

There is a strong chance that Provincetown will be the recipient of a $2 million grant which it will use to repave Commercial Street. The Board of Selectmen voted to hire and engineering firm to develop applications. The cost of this process is just over $16,000. The grant will be awarded in July. If Provincetown does receive the money, a test strip will be repaved this fall and main construction will start in 2011.

Trash collection in Provincetown may soon be curbed. Last month the Board of Selectmen put forth the idea that trash collection should be eliminated. Voters, however, overwhelmingly refused to change the current trash collection procedure last year.

A group of Eighth graders at Provincetown High School managed to raise over $3,000 to buy a new ladder fire truck for the town. Although this falls far short of the needed funds to purchase a new vehicle, the students planned and executed fundraising efforts themselves. 

That’s it for this week. I hope your winter is going well. If you have any questions, please email mike.dubour@verizon.net. Play it safe and come back next week.

Winter Recess

I’ll be back next week to provide more info about Provincetown. In the meantime, please enjoy the pictures from my February 19, 2009 ptown blog entry at michaeldubour.com.

Provincetown Monthly News February 2009

Cape Goes Red

Provincetown has turned its monument red. Not literally, but in time for Valentines Day weekend, the monument is awash in red spotlights. The illumination of the tower is actually being done for awareness of heart disease and The American Heart Association as part of the “Cape Goes Red.”

Outer Cape Health laid off eight employees in late January. Two part time nurses, the Human Resource Director and various administrative staff.

Guesthouses and hotels that are open year round are reporting that President’s Day Weekend is going to be busy. Occupancy is up and rooms have been booked for the holiday weekend.
A new police officer joined the force in late January. He moved from Western Mass and will be full time. He now resides in Provincetown.

There’s not much else happening here this week. Come back next week and check out the monthly video news blog “Provincetown Monthly” for February.

Have fun and play it safe. Send me an email at mike.dubour@verizon.net.

Budget Cuts, Brrr and Then Some

Wow. We’re already one month into the new year. That went fast. So Super Bowl Sunday is this weekend, who is playing anyhow?

It seems that Provincetown is not immune to budget deficits and recession issues. A $900,000 budget deficit was narrowed to $780,000 by conventional cuts and the town is seeking ways to balance the budget. The town is actively seeking creative ways to fill the gap. The Board of Selectmen have come up with ideas such as closing the Recreation Department, no longer offering free trash pickup in the winter, cutting the hours for the library for the winter or an unpaid furlough for town workers. The goal is to avoid layoffs during this recession.

If you live in Provincetown you may notice that your water bill has increased. As soon as this April, your water bill can increase anywhere from 10-13% from where it is now. The jump in the rate is due to a projected $266,000 deficit in the water enterprise fund. This fund is the entity that operates the finances for the water department.

The weather has been beyond cold so far this winter. In mid January, the combination of a frigid 12 degrees and wind gusts of 20 miles per hour, adjusted the wind chill to minus two degrees. This is colder than normal. A Providence Rhode Island weather station reported that there has been 18 inches more snow this year to date than last year.

The weather was so cold in fact, that it broke pipes at the administrative offices of the Provincetown Fire Station on Shank Painter Road. The ceiling and walls are damaged, bathrooms a mess and office equipment ruined. Repairs are being made.

The US Coast Guard would like to issue a warning to mariners due to the cold weather. Be sure to wear a wet suit, have proper safety equipment on board, and inform the coast guard of your trip. Always be sure to wear a life jacket and be warned that hypothermia sets in rather quickly if you are to fall in the cold water.

Penny for your thoughts? Well, you may not think a penny is worth saving these days but the students at Veterans Elementary School in Provincetown do. Through their efforts $650 worth of pennies were raised as part of “Pennies for Peace.” The pennies will be cashed in and money sent to schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan for supplies. All grades participated and students were encouraged to bring in their pennies from home. They started saving the copper in October.

Have you ever wanted to run for public office? Here’s your chance. Nomination papers are now available for Provincetown’s May Election. Positions open are Selectmen, Town Moderator, School Committee, Board of Library Trustees, Housing Authority and four positions on the Charter Enforcement Commission. All candidates must file nomination papers by 6pm March 17th with the town clerk. Good luck.

The $1.7 million dollar phase one repairs of town hall are moving along with no major snags. However, there have been areas of extreme rot and mold found and removed. These are unplanned repairs but according to town officials were expected and planned for.

Provincetown is looking to hire a new Tourism Director in the wake of the unexpected resignation of Lisa Bowden. The position was filled by Bowden in 2008 and she left citing personal reasons. So far, the town has received over 39 applications for the full time position which pays roughly $40,000 per year.

If you rent your home be sure to get your rental certificate from the Board of Health. Starting this year, there will be strict and high fines levied on any residential homeowner who rents and doesn’t have a certificate. The cost for the certificate and inspection is $150 for the first year and $60 each year thereafter for two years. The new fines are $100 for the first day, $200 second day and $300 for every day thereafter until the homeowner conforms.

You are now up to date for happenings in Provincetown. If you have a question, send me an email at mike.dubour@verizon.net. Play it safe.