Yarmouth business leaders, town staff begin three‑part planning series on reuse of former middle‑school site

Assistant Town Administrator William Scott opened a Town of Yarmouth workshop on reuse of the roughly 70‑acre former middle‑school site, saying the purpose of the meetings is “to determine the reuse of the Mattaque's, middle school site.”

The meeting brought together about two dozen business owners, nonprofit leaders and town staff to begin a three‑meeting process led by the Chamber and the Community and Economic Development Committee (CEDC) and supported by consultants from Barrett Planning Group. Alexis Benzolata of Barrett Planning Group told attendees, “This is a series of 3 meetings, and the whole point of today's meeting is to really keep things as broad as you want,” and asked participants to propose ideas unconstrained by existing zoning or infrastructure.

Why it matters: The site sits near Route 6 and contains an auditorium and gym that the town currently uses for recreation programs, athletic fields and a ground‑mounted solar array. Participants said a successful reuse could grow the town's commercial tax base, extend Cape Cod's shoulder seasons, and address local needs such as year‑round and seasonal workforce housing.

Discussion highlights: Recreation and athletics figured prominently. A town recreation staff member outlined existing programming at the building — preschool through adult basketball, indoor soccer, pickleball, school vacation programs, paint nights and partners such as Skate Cape Cod — and reported seasonal participation counts for the building in 2024 (spring 245, summer 72, fall 275, winter 485). Local sports organizers said the site could capture tournaments and regular game traffic now going off‑Cape: Mike Barry representing the Cape Cod Senior Softball League said the region lacks “tournament quality” 300‑foot fields and described an annual September tournament that brings 64 teams and roughly 1,200 visitors; the Cape‑based soccer club noted it stages more than 200 home games a year across the Cape but runs none in Yarmouth.

Many business owners and chamber leaders urged uses that would produce year‑round visitation and hotel stays: Paul Nizwicki, CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, said a flexible indoor sports or event facility could keep hotels occupied outside peak months and increase local revenue that, in turn, supports town projects such as wastewater improvements. Several attendees suggested a multi‑use complex combining indoor courts/fields, meeting and convention space, and outdoor tournament fields. Participants also proposed dormitory‑style seasonal housing geared toward J‑1 and H‑2B workers and short‑term athlete housing tied to tournaments.

Constraints and process: Consultants and staff emphasized environmental and utility constraints that will shape options. Benzolata and town staff noted wetlands and priority habitat areas exist on parts of the parcel, and the site lies within well‑protection zones that may require sewer extensions to protect drinking water. The property is currently zoned R‑40, which limits commercial uses; the meeting referenced potential regulatory tools such as Chapter 40B and Chapter 40R as possible pathways but did not decide zoning changes.

Next steps and timeline: The CEDC will hold a similar public meeting on February 24 at the police department hearing room (5:00 p.m.), the combined economic development / Chamber meeting is scheduled for March 31, and consultants will use input from the three series meetings to draft three alternative proposals for the Mattakee's site. Staff said those alternatives will be refined into a preferred program for public review and used to inform requests for information or proposals to private developers and potential public‑private partnerships.

No formal votes were taken at the workshop. Town Administrator Bob Ridenour closed by thanking attendees for the business community's involvement and encouraged continued participation as the planning process advances.

The town will distribute meeting slides and collected idea forms to participants and post future meeting notices on the municipal website.