News

News

Nip ban, school name to be voted on at Town Meeting

The warrant for the 2020 Fall Town Meeting is now officially closed, and voters will get the chance to weigh in on a variety of topics ranging from the name of the new elementary school, to a potential ban on alcohol nips, to a proposed bylaw change...

Selectmen stress importance of proper mask use

At Tuesday night’s Board of Selectmen meeting, town officials stressed the importance of continuing to wear masks when in public to limit the spread of coronavirus. Selectman Patrick Tropeano said that while wearing the masks may be unpleasant, it...

Town receives grant to improve Narrows Pump Station

The town of Wareham has been awarded a grant from the state in the amount of $233,720 to install a bypass connection at the Narrows Pump Station. The emergency sewer bypass will be installed to allow the station to continue to function even in the...

Planning Board against downtown rezoning proposal as-is

The Planning Board voted against endorsing the Redevelopment Authority’s plan to rezone Wareham Village to make it more appealing to investors at the board’s September 21 meeting. Although they supported the goals of the rezoning, which will be up...

South Coast athletes protest postponed season

Athletes and parents from Old Rochester, Dighton-Rehoboth and Somerset-Berkeley High Schools gathered at Wareham Crossing on Sept. 20 to protest the cancellation of fall sports by the South Coast Conference. The group, which fluctuated between 14-18...

Recycling Center welcomes back customers with new safety procedures

Wareham’s Recycling Center has been back open since August 1, with new safety procedures -- but Recycling Coordinator Marilyn Russell said there haven’t been too many customers. The center, located on Plymouth Road off Maple Springs Road, is open...

Growing together: Community gardeners share knowledge

On Tihonet Road, there is a small gravel parking lot marked by a diminutive sign for the Wareham Community Garden. Always a peaceful place, the garden has been a solace for the gardeners who cherish the community as much as the opportunity to grow...

Town Moderator talks Town Meeting logistics

Town Moderator Claire Smith spoke at the Tuesday night Selectmen’s Meeting to discuss plans for Town Meeting. The location for the Fall Town Meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. on Monday, October 26, is still undetermined. In the spring, Town Meeting was...

Selectmen set safety conditions for two dogs

Wareham Selectmen set safety conditions on two dogs at a meeting Tuesday night after hearing cases that the dogs may be dangerous following two incidents this summer. In both cases, there was some debate about the facts of the incident. On August 20...

Charter changes headed for votes at Town Meeting

The Charter Review Group held a public hearing on Monday night to discuss the warrant articles that will be up for votes at the Fall Town Meeting. The Town’s Charter is a legal document that outlines the structure of Wareham’s government and...

Proposed zoning changes for ‘Wareham Park’ now withdrawn

A proposed zoning change that would have created a Hospitality, Recreation, and Entertainment District in Wareham has now been withdrawn and will not be considered at the upcoming Town Meeting in October. The withdrawal was announced at the...

CYE, Staples free school supply giveaway

Community Youth Empowerment and Staples are giving away free school supplies for kids on Saturday, September 19, from noon to 2 p.m. The event is first come, first serve, and will be held at the Staples store at Wareham Crossing. For more...

Grandparents’ Day Parade at All American

The residents and staff at All American Assisted Living gathered in the late morning sunshine on Sunday for a parade of kids, grandkids, and even some All American staffers — one of the first activities planned for National Assisted Living Week...

Waste District talks trash fire

At the latest Carver Marion Wareham Waste District meeting, members discussed a fairly widespread fire that burned at the landfill in Carver, which is owned by the district and operated by Covanta-SEMASS. The fire took place on Sunday, August 22,...

Elks Club hosts belated Flag Day ceremony

The Elks Club held a belated Flag Day ceremony on Friday, September 11. The Elks are the only fraternal order mandated to honor Flag Day, but the coronavirus pandemic made a celebration closer to the holiday in June impossible. Instead, they held a...

School Committee studies evaluation protocol for superintendent

The School Committee met Thursday night to brush up on the procedure for evaluating the superintendent’s performance. It’s a process that is simultaneously tightly regulated by the state and the superintendent’s contract while also being fairly...

Residents make voices heard on main street rezoning, marijuana testing

Asked about proposed zoning changes that will appear at an Oct. 26 Town Meeting, Wareham residents voiced conflicting opinions on a proposed rezoning of Main Street and a potential marijuana testing facility next to John W. Decas Elementary School...

Marion tweaks proposal to please Wareham, Carver

The members of the Wareham Carver Marion Regional Refuse Disposal District Committee met on Thursday, and were able to come to a consensus on the terms of the “Plan B” devised by Marion in case the new district contract is not approved by Wareham...

Queen Banda looks back over four years at WCTV

After four years with WCTV, Wareham’s community TV station, reporter Queen Banda will be moving south to Channel 12 WPRI, based in East Providence. Banda talked with Wareham Week about her tenure in town, and about her life before Wareham. Before...

Head Start in Wareham to increase enrollment

Editor’s note: This article previously misstated the number of children who will be attending Head Start. The Head Start program in Wareham will be more than doubling its enrollment later this fall thanks to a $1.18 million dollar...

Delinquent property owner may be taken to court

Town Counsel Richard Bowen is ready and willing to file a complaint against a delinquent home owner in Plymouth County Superior Court. Bowen said during Tuesday night’s Board of Selectmen meeting that Donald McMullin, who owns two homes on adjacent...

Cranberry Highway contractors clean up their act

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is taking citizens’ complaints about the state of Cranberry Highway seriously, reported Selectman Alan Slavin at Tuesday night’s Board of Selectmen meeting. Residents and business owners have complained...

Lopes Playground to get accessible merry-go-round as work continues

Work continues at Lopes Playground, as Wareham CORE spruces up the park with help from volunteers, the town, and local business people. Recently, Bill Guenette power-washed and painted the wooden structures at the park and the gazebo. Guy Camphina...

Wareham student selected for leadership seminar

Marissa Coryer, a junior at Wareham High School, was selected to attend the MA HOBY Leadership Seminar in August. Each year, the Massachusetts Hugh O’Brian Youth (MA HOBY) Leadership Seminar convenes for a weekend to recognize the leadership talents...

Garden Club kicks up community service with “Weeding Wednesdays”

The Wareham Garden Club is stepping up its community service this summer with “Weeding Wednesdays.” Each week, members gather around town, decked out in bright yellow safety vests and armed with rakes, pruners, trimmers, shovels, and brooms, to...

Weigh in on Town Meeting Articles

The Planning Board and Charter Review Group will be holding public hearings over the next two weeks about articles for the Town Meeting warrant. On September 10, the Planning Board will discuss most of the articles it hopes to add to the agenda at 6...

Work begins on Tobey Hospital expansion

Construction of the new emergency room at Tobey Hospital has begun in earnest, and the project is set to be complete in the fall of 2021. The emergency room expansion will dramatically increase the capacity of the department, which currently sees...

Three Wareham men arrested for armed robbery

MATTAPOISETT - Three men from Wareham have been arrested and charged with armed robbery following a car chase through two South Coast towns on Sept. 1. Spencer Ellenwood, 22, Enrique Gomes, 28, and Saveion Brandon, 22 — all of Wareham — were taken...

Selectmen talk trash disposal plans for 2021

The town has two options for disposing of residents’ trash and recycling next year: Operating the Route 28 transfer station or hiring a company for town-wide curbside trash and recycling pick-up. Both options will be far more expensive than the...

Wareham voters favor Kennedy, in contrast to state

About 31 percent of Wareham’s voters participated in the September 1 primary election. The only contested races on the ballot were for the nominees for senator. In 2018, only 17 percent of Wareham voters participated in the State Primary. Perhaps...

The show goes on: Flagship Cinemas reopens in Wareham

For the first time in months, movie goers are being treated to shows on the big screen while eating their snacks of choice at Flagship Cinemas in Wareham. “I like to think of it as a long intermission [rather than a shutdown]” said Janete Oprendek,...

Survivor raises awareness of ovarian cancer

A Wareham woman is working to raise awareness of ovarian cancer this month. Susan Grebber is herself a survivor of ovarian cancer, a disease she said nearly killed her. “I was lucky to survive it, I really was,” she said. Grebber was diagnosed with...

Vote today!

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today for the primary election in which registered voters choose the candidates each party will put forward in several races on November 3. New election rules requiring coronavirus safety measures at polling...

County Commissioners cut check for nearly $130k to Wareham

The Plymouth County Commissioners presented Wareham officials with a check for exactly $128,646.99 on Monday afternoon to reimburse the town for coronavirus-related expenditures. The payment was the first the town has received from the federal CARES...

Onset native reflects on 24 years in the Air Force

An Onset native, Eric Behring joined the Air Force because he wanted to see the world beyond the South Coast. After 24 years, and visits to 14 foreign countries and 36 states, Behring has retired from service and took time to reflect on his career...

Animal Control reunites ferret and family

Wareham Animal Control has successfully returned a crafty ferret to its owners after the little animal was caught sneaking into a home in search of a snack on Saturday. The critter strolled into a home in the Indian Mound Beach area alongside the...

Wareham Fire receives two grants for new equipment

The Wareham Fire District has received two grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency that will help firefighters breath fresh air and purchase a new apparatus. The first grant, in the amount of $5,000, will be used to retrofit two self-...

Wareham Fire not interested in Minot Ave. Public Safety Complex

The Wareham Fire District would not be interested in being part of a public safety complex on Minot Avenue, but one at the Decas School site is a possibility, Fire Chief Matt Rowley said at a meeting with the Public Safety Complex Committee meeting...

CYE shows ‘Space Jam’ on the big screen

Community Youth Empowerment hosted a drive-in showing of Space Jam, the 90s animated classic, to a socially distanced crowd at the VFW on Thursday night. The group came up with the idea for a drive-in movie while brainstorming family-friendly,...

Back in South Wareham: Natives of the forgotten village share their stories

In the middle of the last century, back before Route 195 cut through town and long before Wareham Crossing and Walmart were constructed, there was a little neighborhood known as South Wareham. The neighborhood, located around the site of the current...

Marion’s Waste District proposal rankles Wareham, Carver

Tensions rose at a Wednesday night meeting of the Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District Meeting as Marion representatives proposed withdrawing from the district, leaving the other towns with the liability if anything were to go...

Covid-19 cases low, reports town administrator

Wareham currently has only three active cases of covid-19, Town Hall has been reopened to the public, and schools are well positioned for remote learning in September. Those were the upbeat highlights of Town Administrator Derek Sullivan’s Aug. 25...

Free meals for kids to resume Aug. 31

Free meal distribution for all kids 18 years old and younger will resume from Monday, August 31, through Tuesday, September 15. The meal program will be identical to the one run by Wareham Public Schools from March 16 through August 14. During that...

Neighbors speak out against proposed Master Millwork expansion

At least seven neighbors gathered at Monday night’s Planning Board meeting to express concern about the proposed expansion at Master Millwork. Master Millwork, a company that produces custom cabinetry and other woodwork, is located at 55 Charlotte...

Members wanted for town boards and committees

There are a number of positions open on Wareham’s boards and committees, both for full-time and associate members. Affordable Housing Trust Beach and Tourism Board of Health-Associate Member Cemetery Commissioners Conservation Commission Council on...

Hazardous waste day goes off without a hitch

More than 500 people made use of Saturday’s Household Hazardous Materials Waste Day, held both in Wareham and Marion by the Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District. Last summer, the event was held only in Wareham, and traffic was...

Ballot drop-box in place, early voting begins Saturday

A designated drop-box for mail-in ballots is now in place at the entrance to Town Hall, 54 Marion Rd. Early voting for the state primary begins on Saturday, August 22, at Town Hall. The Town Hall auditorium will be open for early voting from 9 a.m...

Growers predict bountiful cranberry harvest

This year’s cranberry harvest in Wareham and across Massachusetts is predicted to be slightly larger than last year’s, as growers report their crops are in “good to excellent” condition. The Cape Cod Cranberry Growers’ Association’s leadership...

Bench honors Swifts Beach stalwarts

A new bench at Swifts Beach pays tribute to Robert “Bumpa” James and Joseph “Dr. Joe” Goggin -- two men who spent decades-worth of summers at Swifts Beach with their families. The bench was requested by James’ daughters, Cathi James Maurice and...

Selectmen monitoring Cranberry Highway

Last week, the Board of Selectmen voted to send a letter to MassDOT and the Onset Fire District to say that the conditions on Cranberry Highway were unacceptable. MassDot and the Onset District have hired P.A. Landers to do extensive work on the...

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