LETTER: 2024 New Year’s Resolutions For the City of Watertown, Part 3: And on the Bright Side

My 2023 Thank You’s to Our City Council.

Thank you, Council President Mark Sideris for your availability to residents and for standing up for the integrity of Watertown Square.

Thank you Councilor Gardner for your work on the ARPA funding process.

Thank you Councilor Palomba for your advocacy regarding developer linkage fees for affordable
housing.

Thank you Councilor Feltner for supporting the need for more resident involvement in the development planning process and raising the bar on planning for our City parks.

Thank you Councilor Izzo for tirelessly handing out informational leaflets and for ushering in a
successful home rule tax relief petition for Watertown.

Thank you Councilor Bays for your support of a better planning process for Casey Park and support for the neighbors surrounding that park.

Thank you, Councilor Gannon for your concern for the neighbors that would be affected by
Short-Term Rentals.

Thank you Councilor Piccirilli for your meticulous work on the ARPA funding process.

Thank you, Councilor Airasian for your work on the successful home rule tax relief petition for
Watertown.

More Shout outs:

To City Manager George Proakis, broken foot and all, going on a walking and listening tour with
residents. To Abbey Myers, Interim Health Director, for all of the improvements that she’s made in such a short period of time to the Department of Health.

To Mike Micieli, our new Forestry Supervisor/Tree Warden, who rewrote the DPW’s tree planting contract so that the City could hire a better tree planting contractor, oversaw the Watertown tree inventory initiated by the DPW and increased the watering schedule for newly planted trees. A note from Libby Shaw: Good record keeping and community outreach are both vitally important to maintaining a healthy urban forest. The daily attention required in both of these areas on top of other full-time forestry responsibilities amounts to much more than a one person job. Mike is terrific, but he needs trained assistance.

I have left out many more excellent public servants from this list. I apologize for this. Excellence needs to be spotlighted!

And finally, one wish for Watertown in this New Year:

As one of our most famous residents, Helen Keller, once said, “Alone we can do so little. Together we can do so much.”

I wish you all a happy and healthy new year with a continued interest in Watertown’s future and a willingness and strength to stand up for it.

Here is a City Contact sheet. Feel free to add these to your address book, hang on your fridge, or do whatever you do with your important numbers these days. Use it often. Let your councilors and City Manager know your concerns. It’s that important! And if the “spirit moves you,” why not drop them a line or call about our Post Office? It couldn’t hurt. Attendance at City meetings in person or on Zoom is also extremely helpful.

City Contacts

Mark S. Sideris msideris@watertown-ma.gov
Council President
617-924-2699

Nicole Gardner ngardner@watertown-ma.gov
District A Councilor
617-835-4364

Lisa J. Feltner lfeltner@watertown-ma.gov
District B Councilor
617-926-5344

Vincent J. Piccirilli vpiccirilli@watertown-ma.gov
District C Councilor
617-924-0665

Emily Izzo eizzo@watertown-ma.gov
District D Councilor
617-894-6042

John Airasian jairasian@watertown-ma.gov
District A Councilor Councilor-At-Large
617-835-4364 617-308-4437

Caroline Bays cbays@watertown-ma.gov
Councilor-At-Large
617-894-0045

John G. Gannon jgannon@watertown-ma.gov
Councilor-At-Large
617-393-9877

Anthony Palomba apalomba@watertown-ma.gov
Councilor-At-Large
781-664-3525

E-mail to All City Councilors: citycouncilors@watertown-ma.gov

City Manager George Proakis: citymgr@watertown-ma.gov
617-972-6465