*By Dan Gessen*
Good morning Cape Cod,
Over the past few months, I’ve written to you about the scale of our housing crisis and the urgent need for regional action. **Now,** **we have an opportunity to take action**, but it’s going to take strong community support to make it a reality.
In the coming weeks, the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates will consider a major proposal to create dedicated funding for affordable and year-round housing.
The idea is **a 2% real estate transfer fee on luxury home sales over $2 million.** Here's how it would work:
-
Towns opt in with a simple Town Meeting vote—no special legislation required.
-
The County collects the fee and distributes the funds directly to each participating town’s housing trust.
-
Revenue supports local solutions—from mortgage assistance and home repairs to workforce housing and municipal projects.
Modeled after the Cape & Islands Water Protection Fund, this proposal could **generate up to $56 million annually**—including **$7.8 million for Falmouth alone**. And it aligns the source of the problem with the solution: if high-end real estate is pricing people out, a small fee on those sales should help fund the programs that keep our communities livable.
The Assembly will hold public hearings on August 20 and September 3. **If you believe Cape Cod should remain a place where working families, seniors, and young people can afford to live, now is the time to speak up.**
**August 20 & September 3 at 4:00 PM**Mary Pat Flynn Conference Center — 3195 Main Street, Barnstable
August 20th Teams Link: [[link removed]]([link removed])
September 3rd Teams Link:[[link removed]]([link removed])
Local government is shaped by those who show up. With your voice, we can take a real step toward solving this crisis. Without it, we risk letting another opportunity slip by.
Wishing you a great road race weekend,
**Dan Gessen
==========***Deputy Speaker
Falmouth Delegate
Barnstable County Assembly*
**WASHINGTON WHIPLASH**
**— “Medicaid cuts could cost Mass. $1 billion, strain community health care,” by Tribekah Jordan, *Cape & Islands NPR (CAI)*******:****Outer Cape Health Services CEO Dr. Damian Archer warns, “We are concerned about what may be coming down the pike” amid federal funding cuts. He notes social services are especially vulnerable, since “supportive social services are at significant risk when there are income challenges because most of those services are not compensated for at the rate it costs to provide them.”
**— “Lobstermen Seek Injunction to Fight a New Rule,” by Parker Mumford, *Provincetown Independent":***** **Outer Cape lobstermen say the new rule forcing them to adhere to a stricter 1/8‑inch V‑notch standard means “complying… has forced them to toss back about a fourth of what they catch.” Now, they're pursuing a federal injunction, arguing the change violates a 2000 settlement.
**VITAL SIGNS**
**— “Seeking fair contract, Cape Cod nurses are prepared to strike,” by Gilda Geist, *****Cape & Islands NPR (CAI):*******Laurie Parker of the Massachusetts Nurses Association says, “I think on both sides, nobody wants to strike. We hope to reach a deal… We all love our hospital and our patients, and we want to keep everybody safe.” The union voted overwhelmingly to authorize a three-day strike as bargaining continues this month.
**— “Declining birth rates and housing crisis strain family planning on Cape Cod,” by Tribekah Jordan, *Cape & Islands NPR (CAI)********:******* **"Our internal newborn birth rates have been declining slowly but steadily over the last five to six years,” says Gretchen Eckel of Outer Cape Health Services. She notes younger residents “choose contraception over family planning” and are co-habiting to stay housed—adding that “families move either because they can’t afford to find a home on the Outer Cape or because they don’t have affordable childcare.”
**— ****“Tests of Illicit Drugs Available on Cape Cod to Prevent Overdoses,” by Susan Vaughn, *Cape Cod Times********:******* **“The drug supply now is extremely variable,” said Traci Green, founder of the Massachusetts Drug Supply Data Stream (MADDS). “There are many, many, many additives now… it used to be only fentanyl. Now there is only a little fentanyl.” The Hyannis-based testing site is one of 20 across the state analyzing street drugs and helping connect users with harm reduction resources.
**PASSING THE TORCH?**
**— “Licensing Commission: Is the Select Board Ready to Cede Some Control?” by Lin Lin Hutchinson, *Falmouth Enterprise******: ***“I am not yet… [in] full support of a licensing commission,” said Select Board chair Robert P. Mascali, citing concerns about losing local control over appeals. Town counsel Maura O’Keefe argued the existing state appeals system is already robust, and warned that trying to retain local appellate power could jeopardize the proposal. The draft would establish a five-member commission appointed by the Select Board, tasked with issuing and regulating alcohol and food-related licenses.
**— “New Principal Hired For Mullen-Hall,” by Katie Nelson, *Falmouth Enterprise********:******* **“My top priority will be to build trusting relationships with staff, students and families,” said Shannon Carlson, who was recently named principal of Mullen-Hall Elementary. A former assistant principal in Dennis-Yarmouth, Carlson emphasized an “approachable and accessible” leadership style focused on the whole child—including academic, social, and emotional needs.
**— “GBH Will Require WCAI to Leave Woods Hole Home,” by Samuel A. Church, *Provincetown Independent********:******* **“Those of us who were in the building up at WGBH in Boston, we knew about it before they did, and we were surprised,” said Alecia Orsini Lebeda, a longtime WCAI producer. Despite a local nonprofit purchasing WCAI’s historic station building—and offering five years of free rent—GBH is shutting down operations there this fall and relocating to a newly renovated space on Cape Symphony’s Falmouth campus.
