Development

Changes Pleasant Street Area Zoning Moving Along

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Efforts to prevent more large housing project coming into the Pleasant Street areas moved a step closer Monday night. The Economic Development and Planning subcommittee voted to have the proposed changes go to the Town Council during the May 27 meeting, which would essentially put the new zoning into effect at that point. The Town Council seeks to draw development that includes retail, office and some light industrial in the West End of town. Three types of zoning will be created in the Pleasant Street Corridor – one where at least 25 percent of projects is commercial; a second where no retail is allowed – only retail, commercial and light industrial; and one where anything fitting the Pleasant Street Corridor rules can be built.

Councilors also want to prevent “canyon-ization” when multi-story building are built close to the street. To prevent this, buildings will have to be “stepped back” –  so floors above the second must be pushed 15 feet back from the front facade, and floors above the sixth must be pushed back 25 feet from the front facade.

Government

See if Your Road be Repaired This Summer

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(NOTE: The list of roads to be repaired in the summer of 2014 has been changed. See the new list by clicking here.)

The Town Council has plans to repair a number of roads over the summer, see if your street made the list. The Fiscal 2015 budget, which will be approved on June 10, includes a capital improvement plan that calls for the repair of 12 streets, and money for smaller repairs around town. The streets due to be repaired are:

Fifield Street from Irving Street to Perkins School
Avon Road from the Belmont line to the dead end
Alden Road from the Belmont line to the dead end
Salisbury Road from Maplewood Street to Edgecliffe Road
Priest Road from Charles River Road to Riverside Street
Loomis Avenue from Orchard Street to Downey Street
Duff Street from Madison Avenue to Belmont Street
Barnard Avenue from Columbia Street to Bellevue Road
Lincoln Street from Mount Auburn Street to Spruce Street and the section extending to Walnut Street
Dexter Avenue from Willow Park to Mount Auburn Street
Katherine Road from Common Street to Church Street
Cushman Street from Oak Place to Fayette Street

Work on Salisbury, Loomis, Duff and Barnard from Columbia Street to Orchard Street will be repaired using the mill and overlay method, which scrapes down the top layer or layers of asphalt and then lays down a new layer. The other work will involve full reclamation of the road – in which the roadway is totally replaced.

Business

Watertown Handyman Tackles Jobs Big and Small

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For more than two decades, Watertown’s Mike Vick has been working on home improvement projects, from small repairs and upgrades to remodeling a bathroom or installing a deck. Vick runs MNM Handyman Services, and has been working in Watertown for a dozen years. He works with a licensed electrician and a licensed plumber, so Vick is confident about getting the job done. “If I can’t do it personally, I can have someone come by to do it,” Vick said. Recently MNM Handyman Services did some work at Alainn hair salon on Louise Street.

Police/Fire

Police Warn of Driveway Repaving Scam

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Area police warn residents to be wary of a scam involving people going door to door offering to repave their driveway at a discount rate. The Waltham Police Department put out the warning this week on their Twitter account (see the post here). In the scam, the paver uses high pressure tactics and when the homeowner agrees a work crew shows up quickly to begin work. In the middle of the work, however, they inform the homeowner that a mistake has been made and the person owes the pavers thousands of dollars and ask for a check, which is cashed before the homeowner realizes he or she has been scammed. “Paving scams like these occur regularly in Massachusetts and increase over the spring and summer.

Entertainment

Attention Fans of Batman and Eliza Dushku!

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While you won’t see Eliza Dushku’s face in the latest Batman movie, she did lend her voice to the newest animated movie about the Dark Knight. “Batman: Assault on Arkham” will be released on video in August, but you can pre-order your disc now, according to Blu-ray.com. Kevin Conroy provides the voice of Batman, while Watertown-native Eliza Dushku is the voice of Killer Frost. In the original animated movie, the government makes group of super villains break into Arkham Asylum to retrieve top secret information that the Riddler had stolen, but when they get inside they free Joker. Batman must foil their plot to blow up the asylum and Gotham City, according to Blu-ray.com (read the entire story here). The movie is based on the Arkham video game series by Rocksteady Studios. See the trailer above.

Police/Fire

Police Log: Man Crashes into 2 Cars, Car Stolen from Lexus

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests

April 29, 9:35 a.m.: Police went to Boylston Street to arrest a 49-year-old Watertown man on a bench warrant. April 30, 6:18 p.m.: Target security spotted a man taking a cell phone and leave the store. Police located the man and found a phone worth $234.99. The 23-year-old Fall River man was arrested on a charge of shoplifting of over $100.

Around Town

Affordable Housing Available in New Apartment Complex

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A lottery will be held for apartments in the new Watertown Mews complex. Families making below 80 percent of the Area Median Income are eligible to join the lottery for 32 of the 206 units at the complex off Pleasant Street at 1 Repton Place (across from Russo’s). Units include a gourmet kitchen, a full-size washer and dryer and a walk in closet. The complex features include a fitness room, a yoga studio, a multi-media game room, a pet spa  and a pool. (See photos and more by clicking here.)

The income limits are: one person – $47,450, two people – $54,200, three people – $61,000, four people – $67,750, five people – $73,200, six people – $78,600.

Police/Fire

Gun Shown During Watertown Road Rage Incident

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A man flashed a hand gun during a road rage incident in Watertown Thursday afternoon, according to police. The incident began around 2 p.m. near the Mount Auburn Cemetery and ended on Edgecliff Road. A man driving a large white SUV got out of his car and showed a hand gun to the other driver, said Watertown Police Lt. Michael Lawn. The suspect described as a black man, about 5-foot-8, over 200 pounds and wore a baggy pastel colored polo shirt, Lawn said. He left heading eastbound on Belmont Street.