Harwich Select Board Unanimously Approves Herring River Aquaculture Moorings and Allen Harbor Dredge

HARWICH — May 18, 2026 — Harwich Select Board approved a Herring River mooring amendment and a $220,092 harbor dredge contract at its May 18 meeting. The board unanimously amended the Harbor Management Plan to add four working moorings for the Aquacultural Research Corporation's floating upweller shellfish system on the Herring River, completing permitting for the project; Harbormaster John Harker confirmed the floats would not intrude into the navigable channel. The board also authorized an inter-municipal agreement with Barnstable County to dredge Allen Harbor's entrance channel at a cost not to exceed $220,092, with operations delayed from Monday to Thursday due to offshore weather. Engineering firm Environmental Design and Research presented the first phase of a Main Street corridor improvement study, estimating design costs at $50,000 to $100,000 and construction at $1 million to $5 million, with the town pursuing Transportation Improvement Program grant funding. Town Administrator Jay reported that Harwich is on track to apply for a two-year Chapter 40B safe harbor certification contingent on ZBA approval of the Penrose affordable housing project, noting the town stands at 9.7 percent of its housing stock on the Subsidized Housing Inventory against a 10 percent threshold for permanent safe harbor.