|
II. Yes, there really are still waterfront and waterview vacancies available!!!
Our annual list of vacancies for last-minute reservations will appear in late April, when some owners drop their rates as
well.
III. Condensed notes of earlier articles you might still want
to see.
|
| A Condominium Unit in North Eastham |
THE REBIRTH
OF THE COTTAGE COLONY
Way back in the '40s and '50s, they
were there on the highway to entice you as you drove past, or tucked away from it all, cuddled together
in the woods or near the beach. They winked at you with names like Salt
Away, Sea Shells, Pilgrim Acres, Nauset Haven. They may, at one time, have exceeded the number
of private beach homes and cottages available to stay in unless you "knew someone". For a period, they lost
their glory (and some of their polish) as the times and the economy changed.
Then, often driven by the seemingly exorbitant taxes on large hunks of land, the
owner/managers started dividing them up, but instead of fading away, many were reborn as condominium cottages, still
there, still renting, but now separately privately owned. And as people who have come to the
Cape for many years and love it here saw the price of Cape land increasing much faster than the
years between the present and retirement could count down, the new market item gave
them a real (and possibly final) shot at being a Cape Cod property owner. With ownership came a need for income,
and the "condo cottage" rental was born. Smaller than private cottages and summer
homes on lots sized by town zoning, they are their own little neighborhoods with companionship and children's playmates built
in, and often sport their own playground areas and/or recreation rooms. Some provide a common building with much
longed for washers and dryers, usually coin-operated, avoiding the "dreaded" time-consuming
trip to Orleans, the closest town with laundromats.
|
| Living space in an efficiency cabin |
There are nearly as many interiors as there are cottages; nothing
is "typical". Some of the more basic "camps" had no inside walls at all, and the 2x4s in the walls were used to make impromptu shelves for paperbacks and
seashells. Knotty pine was one of the cheapest building materials around and found its way into
many of the early cabins; now, of course, it is "retro" with a price to match. The
real rule of the day was "Keep it simple". A roof, running water, a working fridge, and electric
lights made the cottages a step up from camping; much more than that and there was no room for people.
|
| The work space in an efficiency |
Condo cottages typically have a livingroom/kitchen combination and
a small bathroom with a stall shower. The kitchen can be a combination unit, with a couple of stove burners, a
sink, and a bar-size refrigerator all contained in a cube-shaped unit, a fridge and a microwave and a toaster oven, or a full-fledged
kitchen of apartment proportions. The kitchen area in the picture boasts a dishwasher, but that is rare.
The rest of the cabin is for sleeping, and this can be as little as a pull-out sofa in a one-room efficiency or a sleeping
loft or one, two, or three real bedrooms. As with camping, the philosophy of the condo cottage is to spend most of your
time enjoying what's happening all around you, and not within your four walls. In fact, life in a condominium cottage
colony is much like the atmosphere in a well-run camping resort. People are close to each other and not afraid to be
friendly.
|
| Neat 2 BR in a cottage colony with a Rec Room |
><>
><> ><>
><> ><>
><>
NOTICES: When a special message on page one has
become out-dated but may still be of interest to someone, it will be moved here instead of deleted.
August 19, 2006: A couple of new notes.
WELLFLEET FIREWORKS *)||(* Saturday, Sept. 2nd at dusk. Watch from Mayo Beach
Holiday Beach Parking: This year, Wellfleet sold 3-day parking passes for
the first time to make it more convenient for our weekend visitors. The beach Sticker Office will not have special
holiday weekend passes for Labor Day, but if you are here over the weekend, you will need a sticker through the holiday,
so be sure to get the 3-day pass if you had a weekly or 2-week sticker.
Most important to all of you making fall plans, The northern
section of the CAPE COD RAIL TRAIL WILL BE CLOSED from September 15th until the end of June, 2007!!! Riders will
NOT be able to use the bike and hiking trail from Brewster to the northern end in South Wellfleet during that time period.
The southern end, from Dennis to Brewster, has already been upgraded and it is time for our end to get a much needed face-lift
and tree-root-tuck. When the work is complete, the trail will be 2 feet wider, resurfaced to its original smooth, bump-free
paving, and have barriers to prevent future root-intrusion. It will be inconvenient for those using it for transportation,
but Eastham and Wellfleet both have alternatives for pleasure riding. The Cape Cod National Seashore Visitors' Center
in Eastham has a trail among the cedar trees along Salt Pond, and Wellfleet offers a rather convoluted series of less-traveled
roads from LeCount Hollow along Ocean View Drive, across the Route 6 overpass into Wellfleet center and from there along the
"back road" through the moors of Truro. Keep all those fingers crossed that a mild winter will allow the work to proceed
so that it can reopen on schedule before the summer!!!
Also, the record-breaking heat and humidity are over for the time being,
and we all hope that time will continue being until the season is over. We've had an unprecedented problem with humidity
building up in unopened cottages and causing our Cape Cod mustiness to show itself more than usual and for our woodland
critters to come inside in search of moisture. It goes away when the cottages are opened up and cleaned for the
summer, but it's just something we didn't expect, and apologies to those of you who arrived first to our shores. A few
years ago it was rare to find fans in cottages, and after the heat wave of 2002, fans were added in just about every
place. Owners have taken note of this problem, too, and in the future will not expect a cottage to remain ready to move
into for several days or weeks after spring-cleaning!
But please, don't ask for A/C. We have one trunk line for our
power supply. All the way from the bridges to P-town, every town draws off the "power lines", and there's
just enough electricity to maintain the status quo. In fact, we have always had brown-outs in early August evenings
as people cook and use hot water to shower after the beach, and we do NOT want to have black-outs like some of the cities
this summer. The season is 100 days long, and maybe 10 of those exceed 85 degrees in a record-breaking, unusual year
such as 2006, but if people added A/C, it would be used for about 50 days...a convenience the Cape cannot deal with.
Remember that each of those hot days awoke at sun-up with a morning temperature of 67 to 70 degrees, and a quick
dip in a freshwater pond in the early evening before sunset (remember, no lifeguards) not only restores your "cool", but works
better on kids than a bedtime story. And outside showers will put you back in shape a lot better than the inside kind...you
can't cool off in a steamy bathroom like you can outside in the breezes.
The Flex bus is a huge success! People are riding these convenient,
regular full-sized buses for just about every reason. If you want to wander around Provincetown and do some souvenir
shopping, the Flex bus beats trying to get a parking space and hoofing it into town. If one person has to grocery shop,
don't tie up the family car, take the bus right into Orleans. Saving gas? The whole family can hop on board and
getoff near a miniature golf course.
June 9, 2006: Wednesday we set a record for rain on the Cape.
In places it was in excess of 6 inches. The storm took an unexpected tack and came on us in a pattern usually only seen
in a winter nor-easter. The good news is that much of the Cape's water table has been replenished. It went from
below normal for this time of year to about 3" above normal in a single day. The bad news is that most shellfish beds
are now closed as a precaution while the scientific guardians wait to see if a Red Tide bloom appears. To make things
worse, today we've had what will probably measure out at another 3" when the day is done and the calculators come out.
But Red Tide comes and goes; shellfish can purge themselves quickly once dry weather arrives, and soon it will be summer and
the water temperatures and weather conditions will no longer encourage algae growth until next year.
May 23rd For all of
those who voted for Katelyn and her dream of a ball field for Hoxie Elementary School in Sandwich,
MA, thank you! Katelyn won the Briggs & Stratton $20,000 grand prize to refurbish the field over the other 15 finalists!
It will be in tomorrow's newspaper and I'll include more details then on our "To Be Continued..." page. (Click News
Stories at the bottom of this page on Thursday.)
FLEX
, the new year-round transportation system for lower Cape Cod, is starting June 1st! In some ways, Flex will
be like the b-bus system. For instance, by making reservations in advance, the Flex compact bus will pick riders up
between designated stops (as long as it is a convenient location already along the bus route). But Flex is MUCH more.
It is for everyone: seniors, workers, youth, and visitors. It will take riders to local stops from Provincetown
to Harwich, including connections with such transportation as the Breeze (which stops at medical facilities in Hyannis along
its route) and to the Hyannis transporation Center where connections to Boston, including Logan Airport and the major
hospitals, are available.. It will run every half hour from 6 AM to 10 PM 7 days a week.
For more, go to www.TheFlex.org.
September Bridge Construction Warning!!
The Sagamore Bridge will only have one lane open for south-bound
cars (the ones coming onto the Cape) from 9 AM to 3 PM next Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, September
20th through 22nd. Starting the following Monday, September 26th, north-bound traffic (heading off-Cape)
will be reduced to a single lane from 8 PM to 6 AM for an undetermined length of time.
SPEAKING OF DATES
Here in Eastham: The Nauset Light Preservation Society,
a group of dedicated private citizens, both local and wide-spread, is getting ready to paint the
old gal and make some needed repairs. She won't be looking her best during the 3-week project,
but she will still be accessible and the Sunday tours from 1 to 4 PM will still be held.
And next Saturday, September 24th, The
Cape Cod National Seashore will participate in "National Public Lands Day" (www.npld.com). On that date, all national public lands groups such as the National Park Service will waive entry fees across the
country. Here on the Cape, that's $15 saved, and a chance for locals and
visitors to see what's been happening over the last forty-something years. 7:12 am edt
Come Celebrate Labor Day Weekend
Friday, Sept.2nd: Special Wellfleet
beach stickers went on sale today at the Beach Sticker Office at the town pier. They go through
Monday, Labor Day, the last day that stickers are needed at Wellfleet town beaches and sell for just $15.
FIREW ORKS This Sunday, Sept. 4th at dusk. Watch from
Mayo Beach 5:17 am edt
In Addition to Tradition...
Cape Cod is adding a new element to the traditional forms of lodging available
for summer (and not-so-summer) visitors. In recent years, more and more
owners of "cottage colonies", those little clusters of miniature housing, have been subdividing them under condominium ownership,
where each owns a building and all are stewards of the common land. For people who are looking
for a more economical price, the comfort of nearby companionship, the possibility of neighboring children for kids to play
with, or just less property to maintain during their vacation, the increasing number of "condo cottages" is creating a type
of rental accommodation worthy of its own classification. See "Special Notices" for more information. 6:13 pm edt
UP-COMING EVENTS TO KEEP IN MIND
Here is an event that might interest locals and
visitors alike:
Just plan to be up way too early for human comfort (like 2
AM to dawn) and look ahead to be sure you have someplace where there's a break in the trees so
you can see the sky facing east pretty much down to the skyline. 10:51 pm edt
UPDATES:
July 21st: Two lots for
sale in Eastham, side by side!!! Unusual to find two buildable lots together at the same
time! Under a mile to a salt water beach. Under a mile to a popular pond beach. Right across the
street (deeded rights) to a path that makes Eastham's Great Pond accessible for fishing or kyaking. See inside for details.
July 17th: Good news and bad news:
The good news is that a date has been set for the fireworks.
They are now the "Fourth of September Fireworks" and will light up the town pier at dusk on Sunday,
September 4th, to celebrate Labor Day. What the heck, it's a three-day weekend!
The bad news is that a small diesel spill washed into parts of Mayo
Beach and over to Indian Neck, closing some (but not all) of Wellfleet's shellfish grants only a few
days after they reopened following the Red Tide event. Again, this is NOT a health hazard, but it is a further financial
blow to the shellfishermen who make their living on our shores. Funds are being collected for their relief at any branch
of the Cape Cod Five. (Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank, Wellfleet, 02667) 5:48 pm edt
HEAR YE! HEAR YE!
JULY 8th: WELLFLEET HAS
CANCELLED ITS FIREWORKS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. THE TAIL END OF THE HURRICANE HAS WASHED THEM OUT...BUT AREN'T WE GLAD
THAT'S ALL THE STORM DID TO US???
JULY 1st: WELLFLEET HAS POSTPONED ITS
FIREWORKS until Friday, July 8th, because tonight is drizzly and foggy and they
would disappear into the clouds and make pink fuzzy glows and little popping noises!!!
Worried about holiday traffic? Vacation log jams? You're not
the only one. See "Tips" for more info and some ratings taken from the July 1st Cape
Cod Times. 6:38 pm edt
Bits and Pieces
Just a couple of notes that may apply to some tenants: First, please
don't send your balance check until it is requested. We send a letter three weeks before you are due to arrive with
all the info you'll need, including the phone number at the cottage, bed sizes, local post office addresses, and
more, INCLUDING HOW YOUR BALANCE CHECK IS TO BE MADE OUT. In almost all cases, the check should be a cashier's check
or money order payable to the property owner.
Second, the DO NOT FAX (or "Junk Fax") LAW has been put off until
January 9th of next year. When it does go into effect, virtually all transactions between Realtors and
clients will be exempted in both directions. This sounds petty to bring to your attention here, but at least in the
case of our office, I take it to mean also that those of you who have needed to receive business or personal faxes through
our office while on vacation may continue to do so, and if anyone is unaware of the extension, just
tell them it's OK and the new version of the law will state that verbal permission, which includes giving
out the fax number, is an acceptable practice. 1:37 pm edt
IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO BOATERS:
The town of Wellfleet is adding a new
twist to boaters' summer plans. Beginning on July 12th and going through the rest of the season,
the launching ramp at Wellfleet Harbor will be CLOSED. Through no fault of the town, the bidding
and scheduling process for repairs to the ramp left them with this schedule. Pamet in Truro and Rock Harbor in Orleans have ramps, but expect the competition to use them to be tough. Moorings
will be more difficult to get since people will no longer launch and retrieve after boating trips.
Click "Boating Snafu" at the bottom of this page for the full text of the Cape Cod Times' June 25th article and
any further info I find out. 12:32 pm edt
WHAT'S LEFT AT THE BEACH: To see a list of cottages and summer homes that are on the water or have a water view, click on "Special Notices" at the bottom of the
page. 7:27 pm edt | | Posted
on: April 1, 2005 5:37 PM
RED TIDE POSES NO HEALTH THREAT: Due to the care and diligence of shellfish officials and scientists, the Red Tide does NOT
pose a health threat. All fish and shellfish purchased retail in seafood markets or restaurants are safe.
Digging your own is not safe or permissible, and the major problem is the economic
devastation of the shellfish industry. Click "SPECIAL NOTICES" at the
bottom of the page. UPDATE: June 26th: According to the
state's head shellfish biologist, the concentration of Red Tide organisms has dropped dramatically in
some areas and the amount of toxin in the shellfish themselves has also dropped
quickly, leading him to believe that areas south of Boston may be open for the safe harvesting
of local seafood as soon as July 1st. There has never been any danger to human health during the
"bloom" because of strict quarantines, but re-opening local flats means restoring recreational shellfishing as well
as eventually lowering prices in restaurants and fish markets. UPDATE: July 1st:
Looks like tidal waters in Wellfleet and parts of Chatham may reopen in time for the holiday weekend,
according to the state Department of Fish and Game, as reported in today's Cape Cod Times. For
fishermen and aquaculturists, that means a return to work after weeks of forced unemployment and financial crisis at
seed-buying season. (Wellfleet and Chatham each bring in approximately $3 million a week in seafood and related revenue.)
For seafood lovers, it may begin to show up on price boards and menus as local seafood replaces that which has been imported.
THERE HAS BEEN NO WORD YET ON THE SAFETY OF NON-COMMERCIAL SHELLFISH, so if you hold or are planning
to buy a shellfish license, be sure to check with the town where you are staying.
Posted on: June 11, 2005 5:19 PM
RED TIDE WILL AFFECT YOUR WALLET, BUT WHAT YOU EAT
WILL BE SAFE!!!
First, the bloom came about because of a particular
combination of natural events involving unusually heavy rains that diluted the salinity of the ocean in some locations and the final return of sunlight and warm temperatures to
our area after a particularly nasty winter. (As they say, "Be careful what you pray for; you might get it!) The warm, less salty water allowed these microscopic plants, which are always present, to come out of dormancy
in a rather sudden and overwhelming manner, i.e. bloom. Like all living things, they (the red
tide algae) require nourishment, and when water conditions return to "normal", their food supply will be depleted and they
will essentially encapsulate themselves, sink to the bottom of the ocean, and
once again become dormant. (They themselves are not harmful; swimmers who get a mouthful of water
cannot become ill. The toxins they create have to be concentrated in order to affect the human body.) Once they become dormant, it will take several days, up to 2 weeks, for the
affected shellfish to purge themselves. Everything--water and seafood--is being tested in numerous locations, and as
each area and its product is determined to be toxin-free, it will be declared safe. With luck, this will happen within
a few more days (knock on wood) and the fishermen will again be allowed out on the
flats.
As to the product involved, it ONLY includes
ground-feeding animals, and not most fin-fish. AND, it only involves the parts of those ground-feeders
in which the toxin can be concentrated. For example, when they talk about mercury affecting
fish, they advise people to go easy on those species, because the chemical is contained throughout the body. Not so with red tide, which is why a few days of clear ocean water will flush it from the bodies of the shellfish. So you can eat scallops, because
the only part that is eaten is the adductor muscle, the
thing that holds the two shells shut. (The body itself, which roughly resembles
an oyster body, is discarded.) You can eat crabs, shrimp, and all of the white meat of a lobster
(no "tomalley", that green stuff inside which is a lobster's liver). What you cannot eat, right now, straight
off the flats, are clams (all hardshelled or quahogs, which go by various names according to size:
cherrystones, littlenecks, chowders, sea clams, and softshells, as steamers, fried clams, etc.), oysters, mussels, and the less utilized species, such as moonsnails, whelks, and razorfish.
And, of course, only the
product from closed areas is affected. The state has a meticulous accounting method right
from the time a bag of collected shellfish leaves the flats, through wholesale
and retail marketing, and into restaurants. If they wanted to, they could tell you pretty much where your fried clams
came from, which fisherman harvested them, and on what date. So the greatest
effect will be on your wallet...it simply costs more to import them from Canada and ther places,
as we are doing now. So at any rate, everything you eat is safe now and when you get here, whether or not it is local
produce. But a few days ago, a gallon of frying clams had gone from $80 to $130, and I have no idea how much
they are now!
UP-COMING EVENTS TO KEEP IN MIND
Here are a couple of happenings that might interest locals and visitors
alike:
CLAMBAKE On Saturday,
August 13th, the Orleans-Eastham Elks will hold their annual Lobster Clambake (with steak available
for land-grubbers and hamburgers and hot dogs for kids). This is one of the larger fund-raisers
for the club every year; proceeds go to scholarships and to assist families in need. Cooking
is done in a traditional pit with seaweed hauled in from the rocks that line the
Cape Cod Canal, and the food is usually ready to eat by about 5 PM. The
menu includes lobster (or steak), steamers, mussels, hot and sweet sausage, white and sweet potatoes, corn on the cob, onions, and a cash bar at the pavilion next to the
lodge on McKoy Rd. in North Eastham. Lobster meal $30; steak meal $25. Tickets are available at the
club (508 240-5826).
TAX BREAK Been going back
and forth...to buy or not to buy...spend it or save it? This Saturday and Sunday, August 13th and 14th, is Massachusetts'
No Sales Tax Weekend. Any item under $2500 purchased for home use will be tax-free. Some non-motorized boats (like
canoes) may also be bought tax-free if they meet the price restriction. This does not apply to
Meals Tax, Room Occupancy Tax, motor vehicles, or tobacco. Stores and merchants have complete rules on hand; this
notice serves to announce the event, but we are not responsible for errors or omissions.
Red tide is back in the news after
slumbering for the winter off-shore in northern New England. For those of you who didn't learn more than they wanted
to know last year, "red tide" is ocean water that contains a specific algae called Alexandrum. In sufficient quantities,
called a "bloom", this algae, which affects certain shellfish, can give the sea water a distinct red tinge. Its presence is
not always heralded by a change in water color, so marine biologists have begun the annual testing to track the development
and measure quantities along the coast. Encapsulated spores if the algae, which have laid dormant, rise from the
bed of the ocean in the spring,, break open, and release the plant life, which then multiplies rapidly, depending on such
things as temperatures and the salinity of the water. Wind plays an important factor in where and how far the algae-carrying
sea water will spread. Heavy rains can dilute sea water, and Alexandrum thrives in the less salty conditions.
Last year's melting of heavy snow and abundant spring rains, accompanied by two Nor'easters, brought an unusually heavy
bloom south to Cape Cod and beyond and forced the closing of shellfish beds for several weeks, creating a dearth of fresh
local seafood and causing severe financial hardship for our shellfishermen. Alexandrium does not affect the shellfish
which eat it, but when they are in turn eaten by humans, paralytic shellfish poinsoning can result. According to an
article in today's Cape Cod Times (May 11, 2006), there are indications...and hopes...that this year's hatching will be less
far-reaching and less intense. To be continued...
May 16, 2006: The torrential, record-setting rains of the last few
days have drastically altered the outlook for our coastline, bays, and estuaries. The heavy rainfall has diluted
the salinity of the ocean water and could encourage heavy growth of the Alexandrum algae responsible for
"Red Tide". Severe flooding in the rivers to our north will add the potential for contamination from animal
wastes and a broken sewage line flowing into the ocean. Scientists are watching to see what the effect of the rain and
flooded rivers will actually be, but already shellfish beds have been closed along the coastline, including parts of Cape
Cape Cod, as a precaution. The good news is that this year the water temperature, one of the several critical factors
in determining the extent of an algae bloom, is warmer than last year and may not be as amenable to its rapid growth.
To be continued...
May 18, 2006: In a brief discussion on Channel 4's noon
news, someone was shown holding what appeared to be scallop meat. Even if the Red Tide should overcome our local waters
as it did in 2005, fin fish and certain shellfish, including scallops, are NOT affected! For more, see last year's discussion
of Red Tide which we archived in our "Special Notices". Just click that page name at the bottom of this page.
May 27th: I hesitate to add news on this subject because it keeps
changing. Last weekend's rainfall meant less salinity again, and the potential for a heavy bloom, according to tests
done at the beginnig of the week. But later reports indicate that it may still be carried away by the tides, or that
other factors could keep it in check. Right now, some places are still closed due to possible pollution from the river
run-off during the flooding, and some places are closed due to the potential for a red tide bloom. But others are still
open or have opened again, and as the situation depends on the results of every water test made, the best thing is to ask
locally where you can go to harvest shellfish. Ask at the town hall or wherever shellfish permits are sold in each
town. There are NO market or restaurant restrictions as there is still plenty of seafood avalable from waters that have
been tested and certified clear.
March 2006:
PETERS REAL ESTATE has a new web site. For all of you looking for a 2006 summer vacation, go to http://petersrealestate.capecodisland.com . It's under construction too, and this summer we hope to hire the best photographers we know...YOU! We'll be
passing out single-use cameras to willing volunteers (not everyone, just one family per cottage) and hope you can get us bright
summery pictures of the outside, nice representative pictures of the inside, and maybe a picture or two of your favorite activities
and places to see.
By the way, have you noticed that there's less traffic on the Cape in the summer? It's true, and
finally verified by comparing results with a national study. (Cape Cod Times, March 15, 2006). According
to figures for a motel room revenue average (which pretty well fits private property rentals also), revenue rose steadily
and peaked in the year 2000, then dropped nearly 20% in 2001. Now since we earn the majority of our income in July
and August, and the tragedy of 9/11 didn't happen until September, I find it to buy that newspaper's explanation that the
drop in revenue was a direct result. Could it just possibly be that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts cut the budget
for the Department of Travel and Tourism by $10 million right about then? Or that the Internet really took off
with its national and international destination vacation packages just about then? Well, the bottom line is that
our revenues have increased somewhat, but have hovered at around 87% of the 2000 figure. And that means less traffic,
more room at the beach, fewer lines. So come on down!!!
January, 2006 NEW ADDITIONS:
I've been trying to add information on articles of ongoing interest, but there never seemed to be a right place
to put them. Now they will have their own page, "TO BE CONTINUED..." , where I will precis news articles or other events
and ideas in order to add follow-ups and keep a running track. Don't expect too much too often; this is winter on Cape
Cod, after all.
We are (slowly) adding paragraphs to the descriptions of our rental properties. These may be slanted in
my opinion a bit, though I try to be neutral, but I hope they will give you some feeling for the ambiance of each property
and whether it is the right place for you to consider for your vacation. The hardest part of the writing was to keep
each description independent and at the same time convey a sense of where they would be in a scale rating of all the properties.
Therefore, the nicest little vintage cottage may not earn the same superlatives as a modern home, but neither will it
share the same price (disregarding location).
Katelyn's Hope: Katelyn is
a little girl with a BIG dream of a getting a diamond...and benches and dugouts and a backstop. Just 8 years old, she
entered the Briggs and Stratton "Diamonds in the Rough" essay contest, and was one of 32 nationwide winners of $5000 to use
toward repairing her elementary school's baseball field, which from the description in the 'Times' is apparently
just a space where generations of small sneakers have worn away the soil, scuffed potholes, and made do with the least
of amenities. Cape Codders of all ages take pride in their baseball (many a major leaguer was scouted and discovered
while playing summer baseball in the Cape Cod League) and Katelyn is no exception. In addition to the $5000 she has already
won, she was chosen as one of 16 finalists who have the opportunity to win one additional $20,000 prize for field improvements.
The winner will be chosen strictly from the number of on-line votes received, and all of Cape Cod is smaller than some urban
areas, so if you believe in little girls' dreams, or family-oriented fun, or going beyond a school's limited budget, the address
to vote is www.briggsdiamondsintherough.com and the deadline is May 21st. To be continued...
May 27th: Yes, Katelyn DID win
the $20,000 Briggs and Stratton Grand Prize to upgrade her local elementary school baseball field(sounds more like start from
scratch!), getting the most votes of the 16 finalists. The newspaper did not say how many votes she got, only that there
were more than 92,000 votes cast. The adult who has been charged with making the field a reality says that it will have
a new backstop, dugouts, wire screening, and a totally rehabbed playing field, which might have a sprinkler system.
May 12, 2006: Good
News/?/Bad News: Red tide and gas prices are in the news these days. See our continuing stories
page, "To Be Continued..." for more. Click 'News Stories' at the bottom of this page. Use "Control End" to get
there; an elevator beats a set of stairs and jumping beats scrolling.
GETTING CLOSER; CENTRAL PARK
When Fred LaPiana created our little shopping center many years ago, he called it the "TOWN CENTER", and
his own shop was the Town Center Package Store. Our official address is PETERS REAL ESTATE, 4550 Town Center Plaza,
North Eastham. Way ahead of his time, Fred saw more potential and room for
expansion in North Eastham than in the older areas of town. PETERS REAL ESTATE has continually
increased its efforts to meet the new needs of our owners and tenants in the shrinking world of cybergrowth,
adding the latest ideas and keeping the older charm of the Cape that brings people back year after year.
Keep watching as our little office and the grassy park hidden behind us for your summer relief from
the sun work to make the dual world we live in just a little easier for all of our clients. 11:16 am est
|
 |
| 2005.09.01 | 2005.08.01 | 2005.07.01 | 2005.06.01 | 2005.04.01 | 2005.03.01 |
This site is under construction. Keep in touch for more photos and quotes to set your Cape
Cod mood. I'll try to include handy items like tide charts, traffic conditions, bike trails, and
anything you ask for that will be of general interest in planning your Cape vacation with PETERS REAL ESTATE. Suggestions
welcome!!! Let me know before your vacation if you want links to special Cape concessions, transportation, etc.
Several web sites are mentioned on various pages that have been useful to me or to other people who have suggested them
to me. Some are "freeware". I have no control over the hidden content of these informational sites and
suggest that you click nothing you are unfamiliar with unless your computer is protected against malicious inserts.
MTC
THE BEST TIME TO REACH ME: If you are looking for a summer rental, the
best time to reach me directly by phone at the office is my "quiet hours" between 3:30 PM and 5 PM.
The office is open from 9 AM to 4:00 PM weekdays, except Tuesday when we close at noon. On Saturdays
we close at 5 PM, but I am often there much later in-season, and there is almost always one person in the office during
these hours except for quick trips to the post office or other local errands.
I try to answer emails in the morning and evening. If you have questions and want to Internet
Message them, it is best to email me first and I'll arrange a time when it's convenient for both without interruptions.
If you need to be reached by phone and can only talk in the morning, call my office and leave a number
and request that I call you by a certain time. If I am available, I will make every effort to return your call.
I return calls at least twice, including busy signals, no answer, and recorded messages. Many of my notes say NANR
(no answer, no recording)...but I did try to reach you. If you call on Sunday or during the evening,
please do not leave your home phone unless that is where you can be reached during business hours.
Martie
rentals 508 255-2329 sales 508 255-9016 (leave a message)
our web site: http://petersrealestate.capecodisland.com
our email: petersre@capecod.net
our IM is " "ccseatowns" on MSN, and "jettywatch" on Yahoo! Available whenever I
can be on line. If you can't reach me, send an email and I'll contact you about a time for Instant
Messaging.
I should have Skype soon after Labor Day. More on that when it's set up and running.
May 15th: The new website is DONE...for awhile. After the summer, we'll
be adding inside pictures to each listing, and who knows what else. But it took its first published breath at 3:14 PM
on March 14th, and at 1:22 AM today it became a fully grown tool.
November, 2005: This web booklet has become something of a hobby, trying to stay ahead of the local news and things
that might be of interest or importance to travelers, such as local dial up numbers for your computers and the blizzard that
paralyzed the Cape in January. Unfortunately, it took a trip of its own to the "black hole" of the Internet universe
and I am rebuilding it page by page. When it is done, I will again start to write and revise and make additions.
Please be patient, and if you do follow what I have been writing, please email me to let me know...it might help
me work a little faster.
To go directly to our website, click here, or use the links below to continue your reading.
|
