The role of the town of Wellfleet in planning and managing the Herring River Restoration Project has never been clearly articulated. But the following seems clear:
- A major driving force behind the project is the Cape Cod National Seashore's mandate to clean up the Herring River. .
- The Friends of Herring River is the principal manager of the Herring River Restoration Project.
- The town's role has been largely to receive grant awards from funding agencies and then disburse them to the Friends of Herring River to pay contractors for work on the project.
- Two attorneys have provided legal opinions stating that the town of Wellfleet is financially liable for harm resulting from the project: Town counsel Gregg J. Corbo (2014) and William Henchy (2017).
- The town has no liability insurance to protect it from large financial outlays if parties successfully sue the town for harm caused by the project.
The above facts suggest that the town of Wellfleet is a mostly passive partner in the Herring River Restoration Project. Although it bears considerable financial liability, it has insufficient control over the project to protect the interests of its taxpayers.
See Friends of Herring River
See Cape Cod National Seashore
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