Orleans Committee Seeks Task Force on Town Cove Property Purchased in 2024

ORLEANS — February 17, 2026 — Orleans shellfish panel authorizes letter demanding task force on $2.5 million Town Cove property. The Orleans Shellfish and Waterways Advisory Committee gave verbal authorization at its February 17 meeting for a member to draft a letter to the Select Board requesting appointment of a task force to determine the future use of 72 Tonset Road, a slightly more than two-acre parcel on Town Cove purchased with free cash at the October 2024 special town meeting. The member said 85 to 90 percent of comment at that meeting supported water access as the primary use, but the committee has received no communication from town officials since. The committee also heard that the Herring Brook restoration project — backed by two federal grants totaling $2 million — has reached 30 percent design and will begin the permitting process, with sediment core sampling planned for this month. Natural Resources staff reported that Rock Harbor's concrete deck cap pour awaits a weather window and that the Goose Hummock boat ramp project is expected to wrap around April 15.