Detailed Plans for Watertown Square Project to be Presented at Open House

Save the date for the Open House on Watertown Square Implementation on May 20, 2026, from 3-8 p.m. at 9 Galen St. See more details in the announcement from the City of Watertown, below. Join the Open House! The City of Watertown invites you on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, between 3-8 PM to 9 Galen Street for the Watertown Square Implementation Open House!Stop in anytime between 3-8 PM to visit stations that will inform you more about the Demonstration Project and the Urban Revitalization Plan. 

Topics that you can engage with at the Open House include:

A detailed outline of the drafted Demonstration Project Plan, as presented by City Manager Proakis in April. Guided tours of Demonstration Project area with members of the project team.

Watertown Historical Society Event Focuses on True Crime Story from Colonial Times

The Historical Society of Watertown will host a talk about a historical true crime, and host its annual meeting on Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 2 p.m. at the Watertown Library. See more information provided by the Historical Society, below. Annual Members Meeting with Election of Board Members Immediately following slide show and talk by historian Marie Daly: “Incident at Rock Meadow — True Crime Story of Ruth Sawtell & Thomas Loveran.”

Location: Watertown Free Public LibraryWatertown Savings Bank Meeting Room123 Main Street, Watertown, MA 02472

In 17th century Watertown, Zachariah Smith fled charges of unlawful relations with neighbor Ruth Sawtell. The ensuing repercussions of his subsequent murder contributed to the outbreak of King Philip’s War. Three years later, an assignation with another neighbor made Ruth Sawtell a repeat offender, and the scene of their crime was the “Great Rock” in Rock Meadow.

Group from Watertown Joining the Mother’s Day Walk for Peace

The following announcement was provided by Watertown Walks for Peace:

Join the Watertown Walks for Peace Team on Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 10th, and support the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute’s Mother’s Day Walk for Peace in Dorchester. This year is the 12th consecutive year that the Watertown team will participate in the 5K Walk for Peace. For those who would like to walk with us, there will be a bus leaving Watertown at 7:30 a.m. and returning to Watertown by noon. Sign up here to walk, donate, or take the bus to Dorchester.  

–> Sign up to walk, or donate. –> Sign up for a free bus which will depart from First Parish in Watertown at 7:30 a.m. (returning by noon), or meet us at Fields Corner at 8am. Whether you walk, donate, or both, you’ll be part of a strong, hopeful community working for peace. 

The Peace Institute was founded by Chaplain Clementina Chery, the mother of Louis D. Brown, after her son was shot and killed in 1993 by random gunfire. The Peace Institute has become an inspiration and model for breaking the cycle of violence for all of those affected by gun violence in Boston and beyond. A donation to the Peace Institute helps to provide vital services to families and communities affected by murder and trauma with dignity and compassion. 

The Peace institute and its partnership with the city of Boston has helped to make Boston one of the safest cities in the U.S. and is a model around the world. It embodies the hopes we all have for a better future for all. To learn more: https://ldbpeaceinstitute.org/

Come be inspired by the words of Massachusetts leaders, join a welcoming community of supporters, and help the Watertown team surpass its past fundraising success in raising over $6,000.

School Committee Update: Budget, Fees, Cell Phones in Schools, Special Ed Strategy

By Kendra FoleyChair, Watertown School Committee

The Watertown School Committee has been busy over the last two months tackling budget decisions, discussing policy changes, and reviewing educational data that affects our school community. After three budget meetings, deliberations, and hours of work from school administrators, the Committee approved the Superintendent’s Recommended FY27 Budget at the end of March. This year was the most challenging budget process in Watertown in more than a decade, requiring us to close a $2.5 million budget shortfall. This gap was caused in large part by a significant increase in out-of-district placements and tuition costs. Administrators took a number of steps to balance the budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

Parts of School Street Closed This Week as Part of Mt. Auburn Street Project

This week drivers can expect detours and lane closures along Mt. Auburn Street, including a complete closure of a block of School Street. See more information provided by the City of Watertown, below. Milling and Paving

Milling (removal of the top layer of pavement) and paving will occur on Mount Auburn Street between Boylston Street and Chauncy Street and on School Street between Porter Street and Adams Avenue. Detours will be in place for this work.

Japanese A-bomb Survivors Appearing in Watertown During Visit to the Boston Area

The following announcement was provided by Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice, and the Environment:

Japanese A-bomb survivors, who have transformed their excruciating physical and emotional wounds into the world’s strongest force for nuclear weapons abolition, are coming to the Boston area to help us reinvigorate our movement. The delegation, which includes Hiroshi Kanamoto, Yoshinori Ohmura, and Yayoi Tsuchida, will have recently participated in meetings for the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference at the United Nations. 

We face unprecedented times on the world stage with the risk of the use of nuclear weapons and the potential for a nuclear accident increasing daily. With the end of long-established nuclear treaties between the U.S. and Russia, the absence of any confidence building dialogues among the nine nuclear nations, and the consideration of non-nuclear nations to acquire nuclear capability, we must do whatever we can to move the goal of nuclear disarmament forward. 

Come learn from those who have experienced the nuclear attack on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 and its consequences and those who are leading the nuclear disarmament efforts in Japan. Our guests are Hirosi Kanamoto the Assistant Secretary General of Nihon Hidankyo, the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize recipient organization, Yoshinori Ohmura a second generation Hibakusha and a leading figure in Nihon Hidankyo, and Yayoi Tsuchida the Assistant Secretary General of Gensuikyo, the Japan Council against A- & H-Bombs. Organized by Dr. Joseph Gerson, a long-time resident of Watertown and the Executive Director of the Campaign for Peace, Disarmament and Common Security, the delegation will join nuclear disarmament activists at events in Cambridge on May 3, in Bridgewater on May 4, and in Worcester on May 5. Special note about the Cambridge event: People will be welcome at 1991 Massachusetts Avenue beginning at 2 p.m. You can register for any of the three events at https://cpdcs.org/events/join-japanese-a-bomb-survivors-massachusetts-disarmament-activists/

Intimate Gathering with the Delegation

There will be a special gathering with the delegation in Watertown on Sunday, May 3 at 11 a.m. at the home of Dr. Joseph Gerson and Lani Gerson at 4 Washburn Street in Watertown Please RSVP to watertowncitizens.org. 

This event is being sponsored by the Nuclear Disarmament Committee of Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment. We hope that you will join us for an intimate opportunity to learn from and share with the members of the delegation. The Nuclear Disarmament Committee organized the Citizen Petition in support of a Nuclear Disarmament Resolution to the City Council in February. While the Council defeated the Resolution 4-5, organizing the effort provided an important opportunity engage with Watertown Citizens about the dangers of nuclear war and the need for nuclear disarmament. 

See the Latest Adventures of Small Saves in This Week’s Comic

James DeMarco grew up in Watertown and became a goaltender at age 5. It’s his life’s passion to stand between the pipes and keep the puck out of the net. Combining this with the love of cartooning Small Saves emerged in 1991 and took on a life of his own. “To play goal – then come home and draw Small Saves — is my ideal definition of a good day.”

More Than 400 Volunteer Opportunities During 12th Annual Watertown Helps Out

Watertown Helps Out starts soon and there are hundreds of ways to give back to the community. See more information in the announcement provided by the Watertown Community Foundation, below. The Watertown Community Foundation, with the support of local company sponsors and the City of Watertown, is kicking off the 12th Annual Watertown Helps Out (WHO), a month of community service, taking place throughout the month of May. This year’s corporate sponsors include ButcherBox and Enanta Pharmaceuticals, Arsenal Yards Life Sciences, C4 Therapeutics, Kymera Therapeutics and Watertown Savings Bank. From May 2 through May 31, the Watertown Community Foundation invites residents, businesses, schools and neighborhoods to come together and volunteer to make a positive impact across the city.