Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/author/cbreitro/page/100/)
City Councilor John Gannon
As part of the changes to the Watertown Charter all City Councilors must have an annual meeting to meet with the public. City Councilor John Gannon, a Councilor at-large, announced dates for his constituent meeting. See info below. City Councilor John Gannon’s Annual Councilor Meeting is Wednesday Dec. 13, 2023 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the Lower Hearing Room in City Hall.
Check out this week’s Watertown open houses. 82 Hovey St. #82, $1,950,000, 4 bedroom 5 bathroom 5,100 sq. ft. Single Family, Open Houses: Saturday, Dec.
Residents look at the maps from the table work sessions in the Watertown Square Area Plan design charrette. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
After an intense two days of gathering input from the public and looking at different ways to improve how Watertown Square works, the City of Watertown’s consultants presented two ideas that would significantly change traffic patterns in the intersection, but would not have a rotary. The two main contenders for the new Watertown Square layout are known as “Four Corners” and “Mini Main Street.” Both ideas would significantly shrink the amount of space dedicated to roadways and would increase the size of the Delta and other green spaces, as well as provide parallel parking, wider sidewalks, bike accommodations, and easier bus connections, the consultants said Thursday night. On Wednesday, urban designer Jeff Speck presented three drawings, the Four Corners, Mini Main Street and also one known as the Deltabout, where traffic would flow counter clockwise around the Delta.
Some of the preliminary sketches for a redesigned Watertown Square prepared by the consultants. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
All day, Wednesday, hundreds of residents gave their opinions about what they want Watertown Square to look like when it is redesigned, and the City of Watertown’s consultants showed some first efforts at ways to improve traffic flow, as well as the pedestrian experience in the area. Urban Designer Jeff Speck showed a packed room several options for ways to change the design of roadways in Watertown Square. Some included roundabouts, some opened the roadway around the Delta to all traffic (not just buses as it is now), and many altered the roadways leading into the Square. By eliminating some of the spokes going into the main intersection would make traffic lights simpler, said Ralph DeNisco, a traffic engineer from VHB.
Watertown’s three-day design charrette will tackle a big, tangled set of issues known as Watertown Square. The consultants hired by the City of Watertown have invited the public to come discuss what hey would like to see changed in the Square, and beyond, what they want to keep, and at the end of the three days will present some ideas for what the new square will look like. Hundreds of people showed up at the former Sasaki building, 64 Pleasant St., for the opening meeting Tuesday night. The Design Charrette continues there Nov. 29 and 30.
Watertown City Hall
The City Council finalized Watertown’s budget priorities for the next fiscal year which include focuses on small business, implementing the Comprehensive Plan and Watertown Square Area Plan, the City’s shuttle bus program, and more. Many of the same guidelines returned from the 2024 Budget Policy Guidelines, including street and sidewalk repair, a 3.5 percent increase in the education budget, rodent control, launching the 311 constituent services system, and reusing the former North Branch Library
Among the guidelines are the long-standing effort to seek economic development and this year it includes a new focus on “small business, retail corridors, and emerging industry clusters.” The guidelines also include a priority to implement the updates recommended in the Comprehensive Plan update, as well as the ongoing redesign in the Watertown Square Area Plan. That plan includes redesigning the intersection, increasing housing density, strategies for small business, and better use of City owned land. This would be done, in part, by enhancing “the capabilities of the Department of Community Development and Planning by adding resources and/or redeploying existing resources to achieve the goals of the Plans.”
Noah Kahan will perform on Saturday Night Live this week. His music is inspired by his home state of Vermont, but now resides in Watertown. (Photo courtesy of NoahKahan.com)
Having just wrapped up his 2023 tour, singer Noah Kahan will have one more stop: New York to appear on Saturday Night Live. Kahan, who grew up in Vermont and now resides in Watertown, announced the appearance on social media. This year, Kahan has been nominated for a Best New Artist Grammy; was nominated for Best Rock Artist and Best Rock Album by Billboard; played major music festivals including Boston Calling, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza; and had a world tour (and another world tour planned for 2024 ending at Fenway Park).
Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, is Giving Tuesday. Here are some ideas for places in Watertown to support. Watertown Boy’s & Girls Club serves hundreds of children across the community. It also provides swim lessons and hosts some of the Cops and Rec programs with the Watertown Police and the Watertown Recreation Department.