Around Town

Perkins School Appoints New President

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Perkins School for the Blind has a new president and chief executive officer. The school’s Board of Trustees chose Dave Power of Newton to be the school’s new leader. He comes to the school from Power Strategy Inc., a company he founded and where he served as president, according to the announcement from Frederic M. Clifford, chairman of the Board of Trustees. “This is a period of growth for Perkins, and Dave’s business acumen, strategic leadership abilities, and experience with the blindness community are precisely what the organization needs as we continue to diversify and extend our reach here and around the globe,” Clifford wrote in the letter announcing Power’s appointment. Power’s experience in the world of technology will help Perkins.

Police/Fire

See Why Dunkin Donuts was Closed Off

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A man stopped to get some coffee at Dunkin Donuts on Mt. Auburn Street, but he the stop ended up being longer than he anticipated. Richard Corbett told WHDH Channel 7 that a woman rear ended his car, sending it into the Dunkin Donuts store on Thursday morning. The car and store suffered damages, but no body was injured. See more details and video from WHDH by clicking here.

Business

Watertown Company Helps Keep the Lights On

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The electricity keeps running smoothly through your power lines, and more than 90 percent of power lines in the United States, thanks to the help of Watertown’s Doble Engineering. The Boston Globe featured the company, located on Walnut Street, in Thursday’s edition. The company was founded nearly a century ago and now provides technology, analysis and expertise to power providers, including NStar and National Grid, according to the Globe article. The report also includes details about the company’s history and some of it’s major inventions. Click here to read the Globe article.

Government

Watertown Police Chief Testified Before Congress

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Congress wanted to hear from someone with first hand experience dealing with a terrorist attack, so Watertown Police Chief Edward Deveau went to Washington Wednesday. Deveau shared the lessons he and his department learned from the events of April 19, when officers faced off with the Boston Marathon Bombing suspects and ultimately caught the second suspect after a multi-hour manhunt. When an event like the one faced in Watertown last year, Deveau told the House Homeland Security Committee, the local law enforcement needs to “have access to the table” with the terrorism task force and right away, according to an Associated Press. See the report on Houston Chronicle site by clicking here. Deveau was joined by Watertown Police Sgt.

Business

Plans for New Hotel in Watertown Coming into Focus

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Details about the proposal to build a hotel on the former Charles River Saab site are emerging and residents will have the chance to sound off on the project. The new owners of the Arsenal Mall (now known as the Arsenal Project), Boyslton Properties, also purchased the former car dealership, across Arsenal Street from the mall. The new hotel will be a Marriott, according to a report in the Watertown Tab, and will be designed by the same architecture firm behind the Marriott in the Fenway neighborhood of Boston. (Read more details by clicking here). A proposal to change the zoning for the areas including the property where the hotel is planned, would allow a building as high as 79 feet tall or six stories.

Government

See How Much the School Committee Approved for the School Budget

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Watertown Superintendent Jean Fitzgerald asked for a bigger budget, and she got what she asked for. Now school officials and parents will have to wait to see if they get the funding. Last week Fitzgerald said the schools need $46 million in Fiscal 2015 to provide the type of education that school officials believe Watertown’s children need. That would require a $42 million appropriation from the town. The amount is $6 million and 16 percent higher than Fiscal 2014 (the current year).

Police/Fire

Woman, 2 Teens Arrested for Shoplifting at Watertown Target

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A South Boston woman faces charge of shoplifting and coaxing two teens into taking items from Target in Watertown, according to police. Store security spotted Tara P. Mannion, 29, of South Boston, along with two girls -one 12 and one 14 – shoplifting on the night of April 6. “They were placing clothing and jewelry into a reusable bag,” said Watertown Police Lt. Michael Lawn. “The older female was instructing the other females what to place into the bags.” When they attempted to leave the store, security stopped them.

Government

Report Investigated Response to Bomber Manhunt in Watertown

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When the Boston Marathon Bombing suspects came to Watertown law enforcement and emergency personnel leapt into action and ultimately stopped the pair. A report recently published by Harvard University researchers examined how well agencies responded. The report, called “Why Was Boston Strong?: Lessons from the Boston Marathon Bombing” was produced by the Kennedy of School of Government’s Program on Crisis Leadership. Researchers used interviews with more than 100 people involved in the response to the bombing at the Marathon finish line as well as the shootout and manhunt in Watertown. The report concluded that the response at the finish line worked well in part because of the large presence of first responders already in place for the race, and because of good coordination.