Daily Current, Saturday, October 17

Transcript

Good morning. It's Saturday, October 17. This is the Daily Current, free public information for Cape Ann from the Cape Ann Current. I'm Kerry Jane. In sports, Gloucester field hockey and football both picked up wins last night. Plus, a look at what Cape Ann pays for its libraries, and how Gloucester's rebuilt library is changing.

We start with Friday high school sports. Gloucester field hockey won 1 to 0 at Masconomet. Gloucester football beat Swampscott 17 to 7. In boys soccer, Gloucester beat Danvers 2 to 1. In girls soccer, Marblehead beat Manchester Essex 1 to 0. Tomorrow, Gloucester competitive cheer is at Wilmington High School at 11:45 a.m. On Monday, Gloucester boys soccer hosts Peabody, Manchester Essex visits Mystic Valley, Gloucester girls soccer is at Peabody, Gloucester volleyball hosts Georgetown, and Rockport field hockey plays at Amesbury.

Here are a few things to do this weekend. Today in Gloucester, the Sawyer Free Library holds a Tech Expo from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. In Rockport, the Harvest Fest runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. downtown, and the Shalin Liu Performance Center shows the Metropolitan Opera's Macbeth at 1 p.m. Tomorrow, a historic walking tour of Dogtown leaves from the Babson Boulder parking lot in Gloucester at 10 a.m.

State records show the four Cape Ann towns spend about 62 dollars a person each year on their public libraries. The Cape Ann Current reviewed the data after a reader asked why towns still fund libraries when the internet exists. Records show libraries rent electronic books from publishers, often at several times the consumer price, and the licenses run out. A digital only library would also leave out the roughly 1 in 11 Gloucester homes that the Census Bureau estimates have no internet subscription. Last year, Cape Ann library cards were used for more than 105,000 digital loans.

In Gloucester, the Sawyer Free Library shows how the buildings are changing. A year after it reopened on September 5, 2025, from a 27.5 million dollar renovation, the library director reported borrowing and visits were up about 30 percent. The project added a new wing and joined it to the 1764 Saunders House. The library now has a teen room, an early learning center, and a digital learning lab with podcast studios. The library has just over 11,000 card holders, about 2,000 more than a year ago.

In Essex, the School Building Committee voted 10 to 0 on Tuesday, October 13, to send the schematic design for the new Essex Elementary School to the state. The total project cost is about 95.4 million dollars. The state is expected to pay back about 20.8 million dollars. On Thursday, the Manchester Finance Committee voted to recommend Manchester's share of the remaining cost, which is about 49.9 million dollars. Town meetings in Essex and Manchester will vote on the money November 16, followed by ballot votes on December 10.

In Rockport, the Planning Board is pushing back on state guidelines for tiny houses. At a meeting Thursday, members reviewed a state model that suggests allowing tiny houses on lots of 10,000 square feet. Members said that is a typical lot size in Rockport, not a tiny one. The board discussed setting the minimum at 3,000 to 5,000 square feet instead. The board will hold a public hearing before any zoning change goes to voters.

In Gloucester, the city has won a 124,300 dollar state grant to write a smart growth zone for the Railroad Avenue corridor. The Planning Board's housing subcommittee heard Thursday that the plan aims to allow housing above a smaller grocery store by right. The City Council still has to accept the grant.

The National Weather Service expects a cool and windy Saturday, with partly sunny skies and a high near 49. Northwest winds are expected to be around 24 miles per hour. Tonight is forecast to be mostly clear, with a low around 34 and patchy frost. Sunday is expected to bring sunny skies and a high near 53. A small craft advisory is in effect for local bays until 2 a.m. Sunday. High tide in Gloucester Harbor is at 4:33 p.m. today, and 5:29 p.m. Sunday.

That's the Daily Current for Saturday. Everything you heard, with its sources, is at capeanncurrent dot com, along with short editions for each town. I'm Kerry Jane, the Cape Ann Current's host. Everything we share is free public information from public records and government data, and every source is listed on our website. Catch the Daily Current again tomorrow. Keeping Cape Ann current.

Stories in this episode

• Cape Ann's best deal: 400,000 books, movies and more for about $62 a person
• The new Sawyer Free Library: what Gloucester got for $27.5 million, and how it is changing
• Gloucester starts on Railroad Avenue housing zoning, with a $124,300 state grant and a target of next August
• Manchester Finance Committee backs fire engine money and the Essex school, holds off on the senior center
• Rockport tiny house zoning: planners say state's lots are too big
• Essex school building committee sends its $95.4 million design to the state, 10 to 0
• Cooler and windy Saturday near 49, patchy frost possible early Sunday, small craft advisory on the bays
• Scoreboard: Gloucester field hockey wins 1 to 0 at Masconomet, Gloucester football beats Swampscott

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