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SECTION 3. COMMUNITY SETTING
A. Regional Context
Brewster is a Massachusetts town located within what is referred to as “lower Cape Cod” (Figure
3-1). The approximately 22.55 -square-mile coastal town within Barnstable County is bordered to
the north by Cape Cod Bay, to the east by the Town of Orleans, to the west by the Town of Dennis
and to the south by the Town of Harwich. Brewster has an abundance of natural resources and
miles of both coastal and freshwater shoreline. The town has been committed to the protection of
its valuable natural resources for decades, and established the groundwork for the acquisition of
dedicated open space with its purchase of large expanses of coastal wetlands in the 1960s. Brewster
has largely retained its physical natural beauty and serenity, to which the residents of the town
have added a strong sense of historical continuity and present-day community.
Brewster lies within the Cape Cod Watershed, which extends 70 miles into the Atlantic Ocean,
and is surrounded by Buzzards Bay, Cape Cod Bay, the Atlantic Ocean, and Nantucket Sound.
The watershed encompasses a drainage area of approximately 440 square miles and includes 559
miles of coastline, 360 ponds, 145 public water supply wells, eight Areas of Critical Environmental
Concern, numerous rare and endangered species, approximately 116 square miles of protected
open space, and 52 separate embayment watersheds (EEA, 2013). The Town of Brewster
encompasses six of these embayment watersheds, which it shares with neighboring jurisdictions,
including Cape Cod Bay, Herring River, Namskaket Creek, Pleasant Bay, Quivett Creek, and
Stony Brook watersheds. Brewster also contains a very small portion of the Bass River watershed.
Cape Cod was formed by glaciers approximately 20,000 years ago and is comprised of a series of
interconnected broad, glacial outwash plains and hilly moraines. There are 15 towns in the Cape
Cod Watershed that comprise Barnstable County. Many of the towns on the Cape are divided into
villages, each with its own unique personality. The watershed supports a year-round population of
approximately 250,000 people and a peak summertime population of approximately 500,000
people. In 1961, 70 square miles - or approximately half of the Outer Cape - was granted National
Park status and named the Cape Cod National Seashore, which currently receives 5 million visitors
a year.
Residents and visitors make heavy use of the natural resources in Brewster and across Cape Cod.
The beaches and ponds provide places to sunbathe and swim, picnic, and relax. Salt marshes,
teeming with life, provide inspiration for artists, opportunities for canoeing, kayaking and
shellfishing, and salt hay for gardens. These resources draw visitors to Brewster and provide
refuges for wildlife and plant species.
In an effort to protect and conserve natural resources, Cape Cod’s regional planning agency, the
Cape Cod Commission is in the process of developing a Regional Open Space Plan. The Plan will
include a web-based mapping tool to identify and aid the protection of green infrastructure. By
providing a means to analyze the interrelationships between natural resources (for example, rare
species habitat, wetlands, wellhead protection areas), the Regional Open Space Plan may help
identify significant ecological systems at the landscape scale. The mapping tool and plan are
anticipated to help towns and land trusts to set priorities for open space acquisition that will protect
and connect Cape Cod’s most sensitive natural resources.
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Brewster shares many of its resources with neighboring communities (Table 3-1). As such,
protection and maintenance of these resources often requires regional collaboration.
Table 3-1. Brewster’s Shared/Abutting Resources
Resource Communities/Regions/State
Cape Cod Bay Bourne, Sandwich, Barnstable,
Yarmouth, Dennis, Orleans,
Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro,
Provincetown, State of
Massachusetts
Pleasant Bay Orleans, Chatham, Harwich
Long Pond Harwich, State of Massachusetts
Quivett Creek Dennis
Paine’s Creek Dennis
Namskaket Creek Orleans
Inner Cape Cod Bay Area of Critical Environmental
Concern
Brewster, Orleans
Diadramous Fish Run Harwich
Coastal Plain Pond Shores and Priority Habitat (Cahoon
Pond, Mill Pond, Grassy Pond, Mud Pond, Black Pond,
Seymour Pond, Round Pond)
Harwich
Bakers Pond - Coastal Plain Pond Shores and Priority
Habitat
Orleans
Bakers Pond Conservation Area Within Orleans Zone II
SE Brewster Reed Kingsbury Conservation Area Within Orleans Zone II
Sandwich Moraine Outwash Plain Bourne, Sandwich, Barnstable,
Yarmouth, Dennis, Harwich,
Orleans
Monomoy Lens (Zone II Groundwater Protection Districts) Dennis, Harwich, Orleans,
Chatham
SW Brewster Punkhorn Parklands Conservation Area Abuts Harwich Wellfields
SW Brewster Conservation Lands: Mother’s Bog,
Meetinghouse Road, Windrift Conservation Areas
Abut Dennis Water District
Wellfields
Cape Cod Rail Trail Dennis, Harwich, Orleans,
Eastham Wellfleet
Cape Cod Pathways Trail All Cape Cod Towns, Barnstable
County
B. History of the Community
John Hay, well-known Brewster author, conservationist and educator, once wrote: We have "to
turn back to the lessons of the past, in hopes of saving the future" (Hay, 1979). To understand
Brewster today, one has to look to its past. The very early history of Brewster has been described
by Dr. Fred Dunford, past staff archaeologist at the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, in
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excerpts from the book, Secrets In The Sand by Dr. Dunford and Greg O'Brien.
The record of human activity on the Cape is rich and diverse, covering almost 8,000 years of
Native American pre-historic use, followed by 500 years of European involvement. "When Native
Americans arrived at Cape Cod some 10,500 years ago, they found an environment entirely
different from that of today. Cape Cod was a foothill at one end of a vast plain that stretched as
far eastward as George's Bank.”
As European settlers began to arrive, the area now known as Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, Truro
and Provincetown were purchased from the Native Americans in 1644 and incorporated as Nauset
in 1646. The area which became Harwich and Brewster was originally a lower cape territory which
included Native American land and land known as “Purchases of Old Comers Reserve.” One of
the first settlers in the “Brewster” area, known as the North Parish of Harwich, was John Wing in
1658. The Parishes of Harwich were incorporated through the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1864.
Harwich remained intact until 1772, when the southeastern part separated off to become Eastham.
Then, in 1803, after a bitter struggle, the north and south parishes separated into the Towns of
Brewster and Harwich. Brewster’s population was only 1,111 in 1810
As the North Parish had developed, the Stony Brook Herring Run was an important fishery for the
settlers, most of whom were farmers. As the forests were cleared for farming, the lumber was used
for houses, boat building and salt works.
Many sections of Brewster were originally divided into a series of long narrow parcels, forming
the familiar "Long Lots." Looking at Brewster town assessor’s maps today, one still sees many of
these long narrow wood lots. Early agricultural practices and the demand for hardwoods such as
oak to build homes and Atlantic white cedar for ships led to rapid deforestation. Once the forests
were gone, the soil quickly dried out and blew away in the ever-prevalent winds. Anything that
did grow was soon grazed off by sheep, 10,000 of which were reported in Barnstable alone in the
late 1600s. As the soil was exhausted, farmers took to the sea. By 1676 with much of the vast
forests gone, some towns had bylaws that exacted fines for wasting wood or letting it rot. By 1800,
there had been a total clearing of more than 31,000 acres on Cape Cod and lumber had to be
imported.
Brewster's early economy remained centered on Stony Brook. The first grist mill was built there
before 1662. The establishment of other small enterprises in what was known as "Factory Village"
brought customers from afar to purchase cloth, boots and food during the late 18th and early 19th
centuries.
The salt marshes also played an important part in the lives of early colonists. Livestock was
pastured on them and salt hay was cut for fodder. By the late 1600's, many of the resource areas
were overused and depleted. In the early 1700's, colonists were actively trying to prevent erosion
of the beaches, thereby protecting the marshes. In 1732 they banned livestock from some beaches,
except for oxen that were still used in the fishing industry. Beach areas were extensively used for
the production of salt, becoming a big business for Brewster. In 1802 there were twenty-one salt
works in the town. By 1831 the number of salt work had climbed to seventy-six scattered
along the Brewster shore with an annual capacity of 104,717 feet representing one tenth of
Cape Cod’s 1.4 million feet of salt works. Salt production and repair of the wooden works
provided many jobs to Brewster residents, bringing badly-needed income to local farmers.
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When salt became less expensive to produce elsewhere, the salt works were gradually dismantled
and the lumber reused in buildings that are still in use today
Based on 1831 maps, cranberry bogs in the freshwater wetlands, together with the related ditches,
were a predominant feature of the landscape. The ditches were installed to drain standing water
from the cranberry bogs, once it was no longer needed. Many of these ditches remain to this day.
Early attempts at resource protection were too little and too late. Clear-cutting and neglectful
agricultural methods took their toll. When Henry David Thoreau visited the Cape between 1849
and 1855 he described "singular barren hills, all stricken with poverty grass, desolate, with soil
no farmer would think of cultivating. It was hard to distinguish soil from sand.”
Yet Brewster still prospered towards midcentury as the population rose to 1586 by 1850. With
limited economic opportunities in Brewster many local sons turned to the sea starting in the early
1800’s. Some turned to fishing, although Brewster had no port, and some were involved in the
packet ships that brought goods from Boston to the Cape. While Brewster built a pier for the packet
ships making it a transportation hub of the area, the building of the Cape Cod Rail Road in the
1860s and through to Orleans by 1865 spelled the end of the Packet ship era. Other young men
signed on to sailing ships that plied the oceans from port to port, their captains arranging cargoes
for delivery to other ports. This process might keep them at sea for several years. A tally by the
late1800’s listed over a hundred ships captains and officers buried in Brewster’s cemeteries. The
captains and crews of these ships shared in the profits of these voyages. Returning to Brewster
with their riches ship captains often used their gains to build mansions for their families along 6A.
Their travels, often dangerous and sometimes deadly are well documented in books by several
authors. The days of entrepreneurial sailing ship captains faded in the second half of the 1800’s
with the end of the cotton trade and the rise of subsidized and scheduled British steam shipping.
Thus many young Brewster men shifted their sights seeking riches in the frontier town of the West,
Chicago. Some later returned to Brewster towards the end of the century with their riches to build
great stately mansions. Nickerson and Crosby are two whose legacy homes still grace Brewster
today.
Coastal residents also had other means of making a living: “In the mid-1850s shipwrecks
occasionally occurred off the beaches. Many of these so-called shipwrecks were really instances
of ships running aground on the Brewster Flats, since many sea captains were unaware of the
areas’ extremely low tides. Moreover, residents often hung lighted oil lamps from the necks of
mules and walked the animals along the beaches at night, hoping to trick ships into mistaking the
mules for lighthouses, thereby causing wrecks from which residents could scavenge cargo” (Saint,
1996).
An insight into the economies of the time can be obtained by looking at real estate valuation lists
of this period. Brewster resident Paul F. Saint in his book, The Saints of Brewster, reports that “in
1862 Saint’s Rest had an assessed value of only $20, while the cow of the Saints had an assessed
valued of $30 as it was considered ‘income producing’ property” (Saint, 1996). Brewster, during
this time, was primarily a rural pocket along the "King's Highway" between Barnstable and the
developing Eastham-Orleans centers. By the late 1800s, after much of Brewster’s original
woodlands had been cut, second-growth pine/oak forests started covering the area. With limited
commerce, only some farming and cranberries, there was little to keep the younger adults from
moving to the more prosperous cities. Thus the year round population shrank to 631 by 1910, only
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40% of the 1850 level.
Although Brewster was still a quiet town, at the turn of the 20th century the beaches slowly grew
more active as summer vacation communities were built along the shores of Cape Cod Bay. During
prohibition residents kept up their beach “activities”, now scavenging for whiskey. Walkers on the
flats would often come upon cases of alcohol tossed overboard by rumrunners attempting to evade
arrest by federal prohibition officers. While there was little industry the town folk still suffered
during the Depression. There was not starvation with food from the garden; clams and fish from
the sea. But many of the old sea captain homes were boarded up and most children dropped out of
high school before graduation to find work to help feed their families. Oral histories from residents
who grew up here in the 1920’s and 30’s talk about working in family cranberry bogs, picking
beach plums, harvesting fish from the numerous fish weirs, and hunting local woodlands as ways
to supplement meager incomes and put food on the table
A major event during this time period was the establishment of the 14,000 acre Nickerson State
Park in the 1930's, a gift of the Nickerson family’s hunting and fishing preserve. This acquisition,
along with the expansion of summer camps and cottage colonies along the beaches increased the
use of the Cape and especially Brewster as a "summer escape" destination. After World War II the
Cape started to grow more rapidly. More people summered here, but Brewster’s year-round
population remained very low, at 827 in 1940. In the 1950's the new Route 6 was created,
connecting eastern portions of the Cape to the bridges over the Cape Cod Canal. By 1970
Brewster’s population had finally inched above the previous peak of 1850 to 1790 souls. As
Brewster became a summer recreation destination the era of “Second Homes” commenced. With
it came a boom in the year round population to ten thousand by the turn of the twenty first century.
Fortunately in the 70’s and 80’s the Brewster joined other towns along Route 6A in creating a
historic district; the core of Brewster along 6A was designated a national historic district. This
action helped maintain the historic nature of Brewster’s village core to this day.
Furthermore, in the 1960's, Brewster had initiated acquisition and control of sensitive wetlands,
marshes and ponds as well as established Cape Cod Bay access points. Large residential
subdivisions were developed, however increasingly restrictive zoning law limited densities. The
Town attempted to balance this growth by acquiring land with additions such as the Punkhorn
Parklands and other significant parcels. The Town’s continued process of land acquisition and
restrictive zoning have helped maintain the quiet, rural atmosphere valued by residents and visitors
alike.
The Brewster Historical Society, established in 1964, collects and preserves the artifacts and
history of Brewster to ensure their future accessibility. At Windmill Meadow, adjacent to the Town
Drummer Boy Park, the Society has the restored 18th century Higgins Farm Windmill, the circa
1795 Harris Black House and the working Hopkins Blacksmith Shop circa 1867.
Recently, the Society restored the circa 1799 Captain Elijah Cobb House, gardens and
outbuildings. The House, now a museum, also functions as the Society’s headquarters. The
Museum holds five permanent galleries and an extensive documents research area accessible by
appointment.
The Town leases an historic site, the Crosby Estate from the state. The 1888 eclectic 35-room
Crosby Mansion is the centerpiece of Albert Crosby’s seaside estate. The mansion, named
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“Tawasentha” was built around Crosby’s childhood home, an early 19th century Cape Cod-style
house. Following the death of Crosby’s widow Matilda in 1930, the mansion was used as a hotel,
a school for the arts, and in 1959, became Camp Seascape for Girls. In 1985, the Division of
Conservation & Recreation (DCR) purchased the mansion, several outbuildings, and some
cottages once connected to the Nickerson family estate, as well as the former Camp Monomoy. In
1999, legislation designated the Town of Brewster, in partnership with the Friends of Crosby
Mansion, as lessees for the Mansion, the Crosby Cottage and Garage, and two seaside cottages
(i.e., Sully and Graham). A 25- year lease was executed in 2003, which is managed through the
DCR’s Historic Curatorship Program. The Friends now rent the three cottages and use revenues
generated to rehabilitate the mansion. Since the lease began in 2003, the Town of Brewster and
Friends of the Crosby Mansion “have invested over to $500,000 and thousands of dollars in
volunteer labor and donated materials” into the rehabilitation, management and maintenance of
the property as a house museum and event center (Foley 2015). The Friends offer six open
houses annually and rent the mansion for weddings and other functions.
The state also leases the former Camp Monomoy to the Cape Repertory Theatre. Robert J. “Captain
Del” Delahanty founded the boys’ camp in 1922, started Camp Wono for Girls in 1939, and added
a day camping program in the 1960s, forming the Cape Cod Sea Camps. The camp was purchased
by the state in 1983 and added to Nickerson. In 1991, the Cape Rep was named lessee of some of
the camp buildings as well as the Cape House and Barn through special legislation. Under the 25-
year lease agreement, the non-profit theater uses the properties for theatrical programs and
performances. The buildings include the 1790 expanded Cape Cod style residence that is used as
offices, the late 19th century barn, which is used for storage, the mid-20th century outdoor theater,
which was an outdoor chapel at Camp Monomoy, and the former Camp Monomoy dining hall
which is used as an indoor theater. The Cape Rep has restored and rehabilitated a number of the
buildings over the years, with the help of donations, grants and town funds. The Cape Rep
maintains buildings and grounds within their control and offers six to eight plays per year.
Please see Appendix C for a complete history of the town’s open space accomplishments.
C. Population Characteristics
1. Population Growth/Trends
Cape Cod has experienced some of the state’s highest population growth over the last century.
Table 3-2 shows that population growth in the region has always been high, ranking in the top
three regions across the state. The exception is in the last two decades (2000 – 2019), where
Barnstable County had the lowest population growth among the State’s 14 counties.
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Table 3-2. Cape Cod Population Growth Rate, 1920-2019 (sources: Cape Cod Commission;
US Census 2010,)
Years Rank Among
All MA
Counties
Growth/
Decline (%)
Population
(in latter year)
Gain/Loss in
Decade
1920–1930 3 21.10 32,305 5,635
1930–1940 1 15.4 37,295 4,990
1940–1950 1 25.5 46,805 9,510
1950–1960 1 50.2 70,286 23,481
1960–1970 1 37.5 96,656 26,370
1970–1980 1 53 147,925 51,269
1980–1990 2 26.1 186,605 38,680
1990–2000 3 19.1 222,230 35,625
2000–2010 14 -2.9 215,888 -6,342
2010-2019 -1.34 212,990 -2,898
Brewster’s growth rate has been variable over the same period, but the town experienced a similar
trend from 2000 – 2020 with a decrease in total population. Table 3-3 shows Brewster's growth
rate between 1920 and 2020. In the 1960's, Brewster had a 44.8% growth rate, moderately higher
than the county's 37.5%. From 1970 to 1980 the town experienced a significant population
increase from 1,790 to 5,226 year-round residents, a 192% increase. This was the largest
population increase of any town on the Cape. Over the next decade the town’s population
increased to 8,440, a 61.5% increase, the third highest increase on the Cape. The town’s population
still increased, but a bit more slowly (19.6%) between 1990 and 2000 to 10,094 year-round
residents in 2000.
Table 3-3. Brewster Population Growth Rate, 1920-2020 (sources: Cape Cod Commission;
US Census 2010, Brewster Town Clerk, 6-2020)
Years Growth/
Decline
(%)
Population
(in latter year)
Gain/Loss in
Decade
1920–1930 769
1930–1940 7.5 827 58
1940–1950 19.3 987 160
1950–1960 25.2 1,236 249
1960–1970 44.8 1,790 554
1970–1980 192 5,226 3,436
1980-1990 61.5 8,440 3,214
1990-2000 19.6 10,094 1,654
2000-2010 -2.71 9,820 -274
2010-2020 -4.79 9,349 -471
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Brewster has experienced a 2.71% population decrease between 2000 and 2010, a 4.79% decrease
between 2010 and 2020. The current population is estimated to be about 9,349 year-round
residents. Population growth rates are affected by many factors including economic trends,
employment opportunities, real estate costs, and the availability of buildable land. The reasons for
Brewster’s slowing growth rate are unclear; possible factors include the relatively sluggish
economy, an increase in second home purchases, high real estate prices and the decrease in
developable lots.
Like most of Barnstable County, Brewster has a large proportion of seasonal housing stock and
experiences substantial population fluctuations due to its summer resort/retirement community
status. Currently, the population more than triples in the summer, from a year-round population
of about 9,349 to an estimated 35,000 people during the summer season (Brewster, 2019). This
large influx of seasonal residents places added stress on the town’s natural resources as well as its
open space and recreational facilities. The likelihood that many second homeowners will
transition to year-round residents is also an important consideration for long-range planning.
2. Population Density
The approximately 23 square mile town has a year-round population density of about 406 people
per square mile. Seasonally, the population density in Brewster increases to 1,521 people per
square mile. This increased density, which is experienced across Cape Cod places stress not only
on the town’s natural resources and recreation facilities, but also infrastructure, such as roads and
public water and wastewater infrastructure.
3. Age
The demographics on Cape Cod, particularly as they relate to age, have shifted considerably in
recent years. The flight of youth raised on Cape Cod (that don’t return) combined with the
increasing retirement population, has led to this dramatic shift, which was evident in the 2010 US
Census. The number of school-age children in Brewster decreased by about 25%, between 2000
and 2010. This decrease in school-age children is of critical importance in planning educational
services for the town. In addition, the 20-44 age group, those of prime child-bearing years,
experienced a 26% decrease from 2000–2010. The number of people aged 65 and over increased
by 4.2%, and those aged 60 to 64 increased by over 100%. The median age also increased between
2000 and 2010 from 46.9 to 53.5, a 14% increase.
This decline continued through the next ten years. By 2020, the number of school aged children
declined to x, a x% decrease. The 20-44 year age group declines to x, a x% decrease. This data
supports what has been evident to Brewster residents and reflected in decreasing elementary school
enrollment: the town is losing its young adults and young families. The decrease in the young
professional population is also thought to have had large impacts on the local economy, job market,
and public transportation opportunities.
The number of 44-64 year old adults has also x, by x%. While the population of 64 and older
increased to 3,729, a dramatic 35.2% increase, with the median age increasing from 53.5 to 57, a
6.5 % increase.
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Table 3-4. Brewster Age Profile (source: U.S. Census 2000 and 2010, Brewster Town Clerk 6-2020)
Age Group 2010 2020 Percent Change
Total population 9,820 9,349 4.7% decline
Under 5 years 345
5 to 19 years 1,451
20 to 44 years 1,803
45 to 64 years 3,463
65 and over 2,758 3,729 35.2% increase
Median age (years) 53.5 57 6.5% increase
These age trends have impacts on needs related to open space and recreation resources also. For
example, there may be more of a need currently for passive recreation opportunities for the town’s
senior population; whereas opportunities for school-age children may be experiencing a lack of
enrollment and/or interest. Brewster and the Cape in general, are experiencing a shift in
demographics, with a decreasing young professional population and increasing senior population.
(Table 3-4)
This shift is anticipated to have impacts on the socioeconomics of the region and may be one of
the causes for the trend observed in Table 3-5. This is important to note since a decrease in overall
socioeconomic conditions in the town could have impacts on the community’s tax base and ability
to purchase and maintain open space and recreation resources.
These age trends are something that is being experienced across Cape Cod, and the town will be
working with neighboring communities and the region to help identify ways to address the
associated challenges with the region’s changing demographics.
4. Income and Employment
There has been a national downward trend in median household income and employment over the
last decade as a result of the national recession, housing crisis, and related factors. As can be seen
in Table 3-5, these trends have trickled down to the state, county and town. Unemployment rates
have more than doubled at the state and county level, and have more than tripled in the Town of
Brewster over the last decade, although Brewster’s unemployment rate (5.0%) is still lower than
both the state (7.4%) and county (6.2%) average.
Despite recent projections that the national economic conditions are improving, the higher
unemployment rates experienced in Brewster and across the country have had important
repercussions in all sectors of the economy and society over the last decade, including those related
to open space and recreation. For example, high unemployment rates lower the economic well-
being of the public and its ability to pay for goods and services, such as recreation fees and tourism-
related expenses. (Table 3-5)
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Table 3-5. An Overview of Brewster, MA data from American Community Survey 5-Year
Estimates, STATSCapeCod and Cape Cod Commission BART (Barnstable Area Regional
Trends) Data, 2018
Brewster town, MA Overview
Located in Barnstable Co.MA - Part of Barnstable Town MA Metropolitan Area
People & Housing Employment & Income
Population Estimate (2018) 9,868 Labor Force (persons working in the
area) (2018) 4,860
H.S. Diploma or More - % of
Adults 25+ (2018) 97.20% Unemployment Rate (2018) 3.3
Bachelor's Deg. or More - % of
Adults 25+ (2018) 50.90% Avg. Wage per Job N/A
Households (2018) 4,282 Median Household Income (2018) $73,765
Total Housing Units (2018) 7,993 % Derived from Earnings (2018) 48.90%
% of Total Units Vacant for
Seasonal or Recreational Use
(2018)
43.40% Median Family Income (2018) $85,591
Median Value of Owner
Occupied Housing (2018) $428,000 Poverty Rate (2018) 5.0%
Total Building Permits Issued N/A Mean Travel Time to Work
(minutes) (2018) 21.2
* American Community Survey 5-year estimates Like most other Cape Cod communities, Brewster maintains a generally high socioeconomic
status, particularly when considering the seasonal population. However, Brewster’s year-round
population has been experiencing a slight decrease in socioeconomic conditions when compared
to the State and County for median household income and poverty status; the town currently has a
slightly lower median household income and poverty rate than the county (Table 3-6).
Table 3-6. Median Household Income and Poverty Status for Town of Brewster, Barnstable Co., and
MA in 2010 and 2018/20(sources: US Census 2006 - 2010 American Community Survey,
STATSCapeCod, Cape Cod Commission BART (Barnstable Area Regional Trends) Data, 2018)
State of Massachusetts Barnstable County Town of Brewster
2010 2018 2010 2018 2010 2018
Median Household
Income
$64,509
$77,378
$60,317
$69,001
$58,374
$73,765
Poverty Status – All
Families
7.5%
11.1%
5.0%
7.5%
5.5%
5.0%
As can be seen in Table 3-7, the percentage of people employed within the service industry
(including food and retail service) and construction industry within the Town of Brewster and
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Barnstable County is higher than the Massachusetts average. This is typical for a tourist
destination such as Cape Cod. However, slow growth and decreased economic conditions, which
have impacted the tourism industry that Cape Cod depends on, have affected these tourism-
dependent sectors as well, likely exacerbating the increase in unemployment rates, decrease in
median household incomes, and increase in the poverty rate experienced in Brewster.
Table 3-7. Income and Employment for Town of Brewster, Barnstable County, and State of
Massachusetts in 2000 and 2010 (sources: US Census 2000; US Census 2006 - 2010 American
Community Survey)
Subject State of Massachusetts Barnstable County Town of Brewster
2000 2010 2000 2010 2000 2010
Percent Unemployed 3.0% 7.4% 3.0% 6.2% 1.4% 5.0%
OCCUPATION
Management, business, science,
and arts occupations 41.1% 42.8% 35.1% 37.5% 37.2% 36.2%
Service occupations 14.1% 16.6% 18.2% 19.3% 17.6% 18.6%
Sales and office occupations 25.9% 24.2% 27.5% 24.9% 27.7% 27.4%
Natural resources, construction,
and maintenance occupations 7.7% 7.4% 11.7% 11.5% 11.0% 11.7%
Production, transportation, and
material moving occupations 11.3% 9.1% 7.5% 6.7% 6.5% 6.0%
INDUSTRY
Agriculture, forestry, fishing
and hunting, and mining 0.4% 0.4% 0.9% 0.8% 0.6% 0.0%
Construction 5.5% 5.9% 9.7% 10.0% 10.7% 9.8%
Manufacturing 12.8% 9.9% 4.8% 4.3% 3.3% 4.0%
Wholesale trade 3.3% 2.7% 2.2% 2.1% 1.4% 1.4%
Retail trade 11.2% 10.7% 14.9% 12.7% 16.1% 17.7%
Transportation and
warehousing, and utilities 4.2% 3.8% 4.3% 4.1% 3.7% 2.5%
Information 3.7% 2.7% 2.6% 2.3% 2.4% 2.0%
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Finance and insurance, and real
estate and rental and leasing 8.2% 8.1% 6.6% 6.5% 6.4% 6.6%
Professional, scientific, and
management, and
administrative and waste
management services 11.6% 12.7% 10.1% 11.6% 10.8% 8.8%
Educational services, and health
care and social assistance 23.7% 26.7% 22.6% 23.9% 22.2% 24.8%
Arts, entertainment, and
recreation, and accommodation
and food services 6.8% 8.0% 11.3% 11.1% 12.5% 12.5%
Other services, except public
administration 4.4% 4.5% 5.1% 5.5% 5.8% 6.4%
Public administration 4.3% 4.1% 5.0% 5.1% 4.0% 3.5%
Median household income
(dollars) $50,502 $64,509 $45,933 $60,317 $49,276 $58,374
Percentage of families below the
poverty limit 6.7% 7.5% 4.6% 5.0% 1.6% 5.5%
5. Environmental Equity/Justice Population’s
Brewster does not have significant populations meeting the income and minority criteria used by the 2010
MassGIS work that identifies and maps environmental justice populations for all communities in
Massachusetts. The criteria used for identifying environmental justice populations include:
• Income – households earn 65% or less of the statewide median income;
• Minority – 25% or more of residents are minority;
• Foreign Born – 25% or more of residents are foreign born;
• Lacking English Proficiency – 25% or more residents are lacking in English proficiency.
There are no populations identified based on either minority classification or based on the income data
layer. However there are certainly populations in Brewster whose income is at poverty level, 10.9% as of
2011 per STATS Cape Cod. According to a report entitled Monitoring the Human Condition 2009 prepared
by the Barnstable County Department of Human Services, the following populations of need are found in
the County, and in Brewster:
• Low-income young households with one to two children who rent their home and may receive
some financial assistance;
• Low-income young to middle-age households with at most one child who rent, are homeless or live
in a group home; and
• Low-income young to middle-age households with no more than one child who rent, are homeless
or live in a group home. These households also may be cultural minorities, receiving financial
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assistance, or chronically ill. This group is considered by the report as the most needy among Cape
Cod households.
There do not appear to be specific low economic population pockets, but populations may be spread in all
areas of town. In setting priorities and allocating resources for open space and recreation facilities and
programs the town has made sure that adequate open space and recreation areas are spread throughout the
town. Since the 1984 OSRP was first developed, there has been community involvement in planning and
environmental decision-making to maintain and/or enhance the environmental quality of all neighborhoods.
Location of Conservation & Recreations Areas throughout Brewster:
• North West Brewster –Quivett Marsh Vista, Drummer Boy Park & Recreation area,
• South West Brewster – Mother’s Bog and Meetinghouse Road Conservation Areas, Punkhorn
Parklands
• Central Brewster – Sheep Pond Woodlands, Long Pond Woodlands Conservation Area, Stony
Brook and Eddy Elementary Schools Fields and Tennis Courts & Town Hall recreation fields
• North East Brewster – Bakers Pond Conservation Area
• East Brewster – Nickerson State Park
• South East Brewster - Reed Kingsbury Conservation Area & Freeman’s Way Recreations fields
5. Patterns and Trends:
While Brewster retains many of its small town, rural qualities, many areas are characterized by
single-family, residential development with areas of commercial development concentrated along
Route 6A as well as along Underpass Road and at the Route 137/Millstone Road intersection.
There is also an industrial district in the southeastern section of town.
Through the later part of the twentieth century, Brewster’s permanent population steadily grew.
In the 1980s and 1990s, new residential development concentrated south of Route 6A, which
moved from west to east until it abutted the border of Nickerson State Park. These subdivisions
were designed with lots ranging from ¼ to ½ acre in size. Larger lots were developed around the
town’s ponds.
The Town has constructed two elementary schools. In 1973, the Town had built the Stony Brook
Elementary School off Underpass Road. In 1999, a second school, the Eddy Elementary School
was constructed on Main Street to meet increased student enrollment and projections.
In the late 1980’s the town approved Ocean Edge, a large planned unit development in east central
Brewster near Nickerson State Park that covered 390 acres and was planned to have more than
1,200 units. This development was large for Brewster, and its effects on traffic and service needs
are still being felt today.
Dealing with the complexities of Ocean Edge and the increased pressure of new residential
development required the town to revisit its approach to future development. It became necessary
to consider where development would be located in relation to the town’s natural resources, and
how anticipated future impacts would be mitigated. Further, visitors to the area nearly triple the
town’s population during the summer months. These visitors are staying in either newly
constructed seasonal homes or camping in Nickerson State Park and other sites. Most are drawn
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to the area for its outdoor recreational opportunities, and it is anticipated that this seasonal influx
will not wane.
The demands for open space and recreational resources are driven by both year-round residents,
which are increasing in age, and seasonal visitors, which have a wide range of ages, from young
families to retirees. Meeting these demands while maintaining and enhancing the integrity of the
town’s natural features will need to be balanced.
2.Infrastructure:
Describe the existing infrastructure and the effects it has had on development patterns. The intent
is to understand the effects of the community’s “gray” infrastructure on its “green” infrastructure,
or open space, and to help define and preserve the community’s character.
a. Transportation
Brewster is located midway on Cape Cod and is accessible by major highways (Route 6, 6A, 124
and 137). Route 6A extends the length of Brewster and is Brewster's Main Street. It is synonymous
with the scenic, aesthetic, historic, economic and rural character of the town. It is a designated
scenic road and also registered as the Old King's Highway National Register District to further
protect it from pressure to accommodate increased traffic that would extinguish the roadway's
historically valuable character.
Pressure increases each year to expand the roadway in order to accommodate bike traffic, and
reconfigure some intersections where left hand turns cause back-ups in traffic. Attempts to expand
the paved width of roads in order to accommodate pedestrian, bike and skate traffic have been met
with strong opposition from abutters to the roads. Only three roads have sidewalks, albeit
incomplete ones. Many pedestrian paths run along portions of these roads. Shoulders tend to be
narrow and somewhat steep, with utility poles, trees and smaller vegetation interrupting the
shoulders, pathways and sidewalks. Despite the impediments, bike traffic along Route 6A is
encouraged to travel on the sidewalk or on the unpaved shoulders, instead of in the vehicular lanes.
Residents and visitors also have use of the Flex Bus Service which will drop people off at the
beaches. 6,700 riders boarded buses in Brewster in 2011.
The 22-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail (CCRT) provides passage through the Town from Dennis to
South Wellfleet. About six miles long in Brewster, it is the only designated bike path in town.
This trail is heavily used by cyclists, roller-skaters, roller-bladers, skate-boarders, cross-country
skiers, walkers and occasionally equestrians. It is a major step toward promoting alternative types
of transportation. It serves as a primary corridor, allowing the town to bring bicyclists, horseback
riders and walkers to interesting destinations with connector trails. Thousands of bicyclists, hikers
and riders use the trail each year. Nickerson State Park also has an eight mile bike path, which
connects to the CCRT. Bikes are also ridden along local roads using non-delineated trails. This is
dangerous and illustrates a serious need for local and roadside bike lanes.
The Brewster Bikeways Committee has coordinated an effort to place “Share the Road” signs on
all beach roads throughout town, as well as sticker all Brewster patrol cars with the same bike
safety message. A number of trail directional signs have been erected along the CCRT as well as
message board signs along the Brewster section. The Committee is working with neighboring
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towns to coordinate activities, creating the Lower Cape Bikeways Coalition. There is also now a
“Bike Brewster” Facebook page.
As part of the Cape Cod Pathways Program, Brewster Pathways has a goal of a walking path from
Dennis to Orleans, with connections to Harwich and "fingers" extending into various parts of town.
Pathways through Nickerson State Park and on to Orleans have been dedicated, as well as a
pathway connection routed through the Punkhorn Parklands. This trail is now complete except for
a few connecting sections in the middle of Brewster. The Committee has been negotiating with
private property owners/associations, but has been unable to plot the trail along property edges to
connect open space parcels. A seven-mile section from the Dennis town line to Route 137 has been
plotted with GPS, and has been marked with trail signs.
Brewster has four walking trails as well as many informal walkways throughout its many acres of
conservation land. The majority of walkways and pathways in Brewster are useful mainly for
recreational purposes. It is not likely that these pathways will provide alternative means of
transportation, because most of them do not lead to destination points, or conveniently connect
with other links or modes of transportation. By linking recreational resources and facilities with
safe bike or pedestrian paths, a significant amount of vehicular traffic could be eliminated in the
future.
b) Water Supply System
Drinking water in Brewster comes from the Cape Cod Aquifer, a sole source aquifer, through
public wells owned and operated by the Brewster Water Department, and a number of private
wells, owned and operated by individual homeowners as well as businesses. The Cape Cod
Aquifer is comprised of six lenses, including the Monomoy Lens, the second largest of the Cape
Cod groundwater lenses. The Monomoy Lens is 66 square miles with a maximum elevation of 30
feet, and provides water to the Town of Brewster, but also to the towns of Dennis, Harwich,
Chatham, and Orleans.
The Brewster Water Department currently operates five public water wells connected to its
distribution system, with a sixth that could be developed into a full production well in the future.
The first two wells (well #1, and well #2) initially became operational in 1972, followed by well
#3 in 1986. All three of these wells are located off of Freeman's Way. Well #4, located within the
Punkhorn Parklands, went into operation in 1992. Well #5, also located within the Punkhorn
Parklands, was drilled in 2012 with the Water Department building a pump house and water
treatment system to adjust the pH of the water. Well #6 was approved to be put online and fully
operational by DEP in January of 2014.
The Cape Cod aquifer has a high vulnerability to contamination due to the absence of
hydrogeologic barriers (i.e. clay) that can prevent contaminant migration. As such, the town has
implemented wellhead protection regulations and a Groundwater Protection District, as well as the
District of Critical Planning Concern (DCPC) to oversee land use within that District. Brewster’s
Zone II areas are dominated by forests with smaller areas of residential use (7%) and a very small
percentage of commercial and industrial land use” (Brewster, 2011). The vast acreage surrounding
Brewster’s wellfields also provides for ample passive recreation areas with miles of trails for
walking, hiking, birdwatching, dog walking, biking and horseback-riding.
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a) Wastewater System
Wastewater discharges in Brewster are mostly from individual onsite septic systems. Brewster is
not served with public sewers or private sewage treatment facilities. The Tri-Town Sewage
Treatment Facility in Orleans used to provide a receiving facility for the disposal of septage from
Brewster, Orleans and Eastham. This facility has now been closed and the buildings have been
demolished. It is uncertain whether a new facility will be built in the future.
Managing the impacts of wastewater-associated pollutants, primarily nutrients, on groundwater
and surface water resources is a major priority in Brewster. To address these impacts, the town
has been involved in a multi-phase Integrated Water Resource Management Plan (IWRMP), which
is currently in Phase III. During Phase II, the town commissioned a comprehensive assessment of
wastewater management alternatives in Brewster. Phase III will include further examination and
prioritization of these alternatives.
7. Long-Term Development Patterns:
a. Zoning
The town has implemented specific land use controls to minimize the impacts of future
development on natural resources. Table 3-7 outlines the town’s current zoning districts, and
Figure 3-3 shows the town’s zoning districts geographically. Specific overlay and floating districts
and bylaws are used by the town to minimize impacts to natural features and gain protected open
space and recreational resources.
The Wetland Conservancy District (§179-6) is intended to preserve and maintain the surface water
and groundwater that support public water supplies, as well as natural habitats. Lands within the
districts include those that border vegetated wetlands, freshwater banks, land subject to flooding,
land under a freshwater body, land under the ocean, coastal beaches, barrier beaches, rocky
intertidal shores, land under salt ponds, fish runs, coastal dunes, coastal banks, salt marshes and
land containing shellfish which are subject to the jurisdiction of the Wetlands Protection Act, MGL
c.131, § 40, as amended. They also include specific soil types identified in the bylaw. Uses allowed
in Wetland Conservancy Districts are those associated with outdoor activities, such as fishing,
hiking, and boating, among other uses that promote and maintain the natural features in these areas.
Table 3-7. Brewster Zoning Districts and Bylaws
District
Minimum Lot
Size
(square feet)
Residential Rural (R-R) 100,000
Residential Low Density (R-L) 60,000
Residential Medium Density (R-M) 60,000
Commercial High Density (C-H) 15,000
Village Business (V-B) 15,000
Industrial (I) 20,000
Overlay Districts
Wetland Conservancy District (WCD) -
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Water Quality Protection Bylaw -
Groundwater Protection District (GWPD) -
Flood Plain District (FPD) -
Site Plan Review –replaced Corridor
Overlay Protection District (COPD)
-
Personal Wireless Services
Communications (PWSC)
-
Facilities Overlay District (CT) -
Cluster Residential Development
Natural Resource Protection Design
Planned Residential Development
The Water Quality Protection Bylaw (Article XI) is an overlay district encompassing the entire
Town of Brewster. The intent of this bylaw is to establish specific requirements for land uses and
activities within those portions of town mapped and identified on the Brewster Zoning Map as the
District of Critical Planning Concern (DCPC) entitled “Brewster Water Protection District.” The
DCPC includes areas designated as Zone I and Zone II as well as the Groundwater Protection
District and the Pleasant Bay Watershed. The bylaw outlines uses that will be exempt from its
oversight, but specifically calls out uses that are prohibited town-wide as well as those prohibited
in Zone I, Zone II, and/or the DCPC. Performance standards are provided.
While not mandatory, cluster development is promoted in Brewster to allow for more flexible
residential subdivision design in order to preserve natural features of a property. Under the Cluster
Residential Development Bylaw (§179-35) any parcel of at least 10 acres in size in the R-R, R-L
and R-M Districts may use cluster development design. The bylaw requires at least 60% of a site
be set aside as open space, which must be permanently protected for passive recreational purposes
such as walking or riding trails or wildlife corridors and habitats.
Cluster development that occurs in DCPC Zone II areas and the Pleasant Bay Watershed is
encouraged to follow specified design and layout standards based on the town’s Natural Resource
Protection Design (NRPD) Bylaw (Article XIII). The NRPD Bylaw requires applicants for the
subdivision of land to conduct a natural resource analysis and development impact statement,
which assesses how the proposed development may impact the natural environment, including air
quality, water resources, soils, plants and wildlife. Guidance on conducting the analysis and
impact statement is provided in Subsection B.3 of Section 290-10 of the Brewster Subdivision
Rules and Regulations. The NRPD Bylaw also dictates minimum requirements for dedicated open
space acreage, as follows:
• R-R District: minimum of 80%
• R-L District: minimum of 65%
• R-M District: minimum of 65%
Among other performance standards and requirements, the bylaw outlines how the maximum
number of residential units is calculated. The town also provides density bonuses for projects that
include, for example, wastewater treatment for properties outside of the project area that are using
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Title 5 systems, providing open space greater than the minimum percentage or if the applicant
deeds public access to the open space portion of the project.
b) Buildout
As experienced across the region, the 2010 U.S. Census indicated that Brewster’s population was
stagnant, and it had slightly decreased from 2000. Whether declining population is a new trend or
a reaction to the 2008 economic and housing market downturn remains to be seen, but the town
must consider how much new development will actually occur and at what rate. A build-out
analysis was conducted in 2012 for the town as part of the Brewster Integrated Water Resource
Management Plan. It looked at two scenarios: a baseline scenario, which was considered “worse
case” and assumed development would occur under current zoning regulations, and a Smart
Growth scenario, which assumed that development would occur using the town’s cluster
development bylaw. The analysis indicated that at full buildout, between 765 and 800 new housing
units could be built on existing vacant or underutilized parcels and between 330 and 460 acres of
open space could be protected. Under the Smart Growth scenario, more conservation could be
achieved around Brewster’s ponds. Table 3-8 summarizes the build-out analysis.
The town does not have updated buildout numbers. The Local Comprehensive Plan process is
tasked with developing that data and it is in the initial stages.
Table 3-8. Summary of Brewster Buildout Analysis (Source: Town of Brewster Buildout
Analysis, Prepared by Horsley Witten Group, Inc., 2012)
Scenario Number of New
Residential
Units
Acres of
Preserved Open
Space
Acres of
Commercial
Development
Acres of
Industrial
Development
Baseline Scenario 765 329.5 11.3 49.8
Smart Growth
Scenario
801 458.6 11.3 49.8
The study also examined the impact of the additional growth, and included an analysis of
impervious surface. The findings indicated little difference between the two scenarios. Under the
baseline scenario, impervious cover was estimated to be an additional 129.8 acres, and the Smart
Growth scenario could add an additional 131.4 acres. The use of stormwater best management
practices can help mitigate the impacts.
It is ultimately uncertain as to when the town will experience full buildout considering the slow
economic recovery in the region. While local development interest has increased, it is anticipated
the outlook for future development will fluctuate and the town will have to reevaluate growth
expectancy periodically.