A Word from Jay...

In just two days, we will hold what is arguably one of the most consequential elections in our nation’s history. And for the past year, I have found it difficult to stay focused on the challenges right in front of me and not get pulled into the negativity of national campaigns on social media and cable news.

I don’t mean to suggest that what happens on November 3^rd will not have profound consequences for the work we do at the CDP – it most certainly will. But regardless of the outcome, the critical issues confronting our towns on the Lower and Outer Cape remain. Rather than be distracted, I pour my energy into local debates and focus on the opportunity to make a difference in my own back yard.

For the past three years, the CDP has joined forces with local housing advocates and helped push through unprecedented changes in zoning and new resources to help solve our housing affordability challenges. The latest round of Annual Town Meetings approved all 29 housing related articles introduced this year totaling $4,778,717 in local funding for housing. Since the inception of our Lower Cape Housing Institute, Towns have approved over $20 million in local funds for housing initiatives.

While our representatives in Washington delay the passage of another stimulus package, we are working hard to move over $400,000 in forgivable loans to local small businesses that have been impacted by the COVID public health and economic crisis.

I believe in the motto “Think globally, act locally” and no matter what happens on November 3^rd we will continue to lead the Lower Cape in building a diverse year-round community of people who can afford to live, work and thrive here by working for change right here in our community. Thanks for helping us bring about this change.

As the owner of a restaurant, Trudy Vermehren faced numerous challenges this year in the wake of the pandemic. Resourcefulness combined with a love for and a desire to help the community yielded success in ways she had not anticipated.

Trudy opened the Fox & Crow in 2018. She had spent much of her life working front of house restaurant jobs, before starting her own landscaping business. Originally, she wanted to open a small coffee shop and create a space for people in the community to gather, but the location she was looking at fell through. Eventually she found the perfect spot in Wellfleet. As it was much bigger than the first location Trudy adjusted her business plan to open a full restaurant, serving fresh and organic food.

One of the biggest challenges facing the Lower Cape is keeping families from leaving. The lack of affordable housing is a major barrier for those who would love to continue living in our community.

Since 2000, as housing prices have skyrocketed, the share of young adults and families has drastically decreased. Cara, who lives at Thankful Chases Pathway with her twelve-year-old daughter, is an example of this trend as she was forced to leave the Cape after graduating high school due to a lack of affordable housing.

Cara had been living in Florida for a few years, but after her daughter was born she moved back to the Cape where her parents and brothers were still living. When she returned, however, she was unable to find a stable and affordable living arrangement. Even though she was working full time at a salon, finding an apartment within her budget was extremely difficult. The two bounced around from place to place, at times living with Cara’s parents. “I was leaving my boyfriend at the time and I wanted to move closer to family,” she recalls. However, living with her parents was not an ideal situation, as she and her daughter had to live out of one room.

Kyle Takakjian

CDP Advisory Council Member

CDP supporter and Advisory Council member Kyle Takakjian’s deep appreciation of both the challenges and beauty of the Lower Cape are connected to his life of service to the community.

As a child, Kyle’s parents would bring him and his older brother Eric to Brewster every summer where they rented a small cottage. Some of Kyle’s most vivid memories are those of watching jets fire upon the USS James Longstreet, a World War II Liberty ship, which had been sunk for target practice off First Encounter Beach. Another was fishing on the charter boat Columbia out of Rock Harbor in Orleans.

Perhaps it was watching jets fire on the Liberty ship, or the influence of his uncle who served in World War II, that Kyle decided he would become an Air Force pilot. His need for eyeglasses dashed that dream but today he works at Chatham Airport, flying bi-planes in the summer for people who want a breathtaking tour of the Lower Cape, and working as a mechanic in the winter. His love of military history and flying has also led him to co-piloting antique World War II planes, specifically the B25 Mitchell bomber.

If you own a business in one of the eight Lower Cape towns (Brewster, Harwich, Chatham, Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro, Provincetown), you might qualify for a forgivable loan up to $10,000.

The Town of Truro has been awarded a regional grant of $400,000 to be administered by the CDP to micro-enterprises on the Lower and Outer Cape. This program is funded by Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds administered by the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD).

Applicants must meet the following criteria to apply:

Applications will be reviewed on a first come first serve basis. Funds are limited so apply as soon as possible. If you have any questions email pam@capecdp.org.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has made $50.8 million in grants available to support small businesses, micro-enterprises, and their employees, families and communities. Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation (MGCC) will be administering these funds for businesses experiencing economic hardships and a loss of income due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grant funding is intended to help businesses adversely impacted by the pandemic. Preference will be given to small businesses whose owners are women, minorities, veterans, members of other underrepresented groups, those who are focused on serving the Gateway Cities of Massachusetts, and those most negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Preference will also be given to applicants that have not been able to receive aid from other federal programs related to COVID-19.

There are two grant programs available, one for businesses with 5 or fewer employees AND one for businesses with 50 or fewer employees.

This program is NOT first come first serve. Please submit your full application prior to November 12th, through the online portal.

This was one of the most unique town meeting seasons in recent memory. The ongoing pandemic forced towns to be creative to allow everyone's voice to be heard while keeping people safe.

From parking lots to football fields residents flocked to town meetings to show support for the causes they care about. It was a great year for housing related causes. Between the eight Lower and Outer Cape towns, voters passed 29 different housing articles totaling $4,711,217. Some of the articles passed include:

To see a more detailed description of all 29 articles passed, click here.

This September the CDP participated in the GASP virtual bike ride. Instead of a one day full-team ride, staff and supporters across the Cape got on their bikes and rode 62 miles through their neighborhoods over the course of a week.

This year we raised just under $10,000 to support small businesses and families on the Lower and Outer Cape. Thank you to our riders, all who donated and special thanks to our generous sponsors:

See you next year!

We are also thankful to the following foundations for their generous support of our programs and mission. We would be unable to do the work we do without you.

In the past month we received grants from the following foundations:

The CDP continues to offer all trainings, workshops, technical assistance sessions, and appointments virtually.

We remain committed to serving our business clients and our community. Staff is working both remotely and from the office. While we are not taking in-person meetings at this time, we will continue to meet with clients via phone or zoom.

Time: 5:00 - 6:30 PM on specified date

Where: Remote via Zoom

Cost: $25 for three sessions

Join us on November 5 for our last session in the workshop series Digital Pivots.

In the age of coronavirus, many businesses have adapted some or all of their business online. With so many different options out there it can be difficult to know what is best for you. The CDP has partnered with Narrow Land to help give you the resources you need!

Join us for our final workshop session:

Time: 5:00 - 6:15 PM on specified date

Where: Remote via Zoom

Cost: $10 per session, $25 if you signed up for all three, scholarships available

We partner with the Cape Light Compact to share their expertise about how to reduce energy consumption. The workshop will also layout steps to take to become Cape & Islands Green verified. 

Date: November 12

Time: 5:00 - 7:00 PM

Where: Remote via Zoom

Cost: $75 for businesses with 10 or fewer employees

Attorney Melanie O'Keefe from the law firm La Tanzi, Spaulding and Landreth will be hosting free 30-minute consultations to answer questions related to small business law including:

Dates: November 10

Time: 9:30 AM - 11:30 AM

Where: Via phone call

To book your FREE 30-minute consultation call or email Marina at

WE CAN - 508-430-8111 or marina@wecancenter.org

If you or someone you know is interested in receiving weekly updates from our Business and Credit Program that are targeted to small businesses, please sign up for our Inside Scoop.

Thank you for supporting our efforts to support the Lower Cape community during this crisis.