Around Town

Congrats to the 2022 Watertown High School Graduates

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Members of the Watertown High School Class of 2022 throw their caps in the air. Congratulations to the 149 members of Watertown High School’s Class of 2022! The seniors graduated at Victory Field Friday evening. The Class of 2022

(+ Cum Laude Society, # National Honor Society, * Seal of Biliteracy, % Seal of Biliteracy with Distinction)

Millicent Anne Abboud

Marc Abizeid Daou

Jasmine Amani Affany

Kawish Ahmad

Mahera Ahmed

Mashaim Ahmed *

Alishba Amin #

Mason Benjamin Andrade #

Mary Anoush Ashbahian #*

Ariana Rose Aufiero

Gabriel Avedis Avakian #

Yaren Basboga

Bailey O’Connell Beirne

Livia Freire Brandao %

Theresa Elizabeth Cabral

Karys Elizabeth Cafua

Colin Vincent Campbell

Margaret Ann Cavanaugh #

Jesse Francis Cavarretta #

Philip Richard Centola +#*

Paula Cepeda-Taco *

William Cohen Connolly

Lara Catherine Cordeiro #

Michael Thomas Cormier-Luce

May Gelband Cort

Joseph Rocco Cottone

Madison Lee Cummings #

Sadie Elizabeth Currier-Brown

Maria Vitoria Lima DaSilva *

Gregory Aram Davidian

Edgardo Raul De La Cruz Chambergo *

Emanuel Filipe de Oliveira Carvalho

Marcelo Candido de Oliveira

Walef Emanuel Soares De Paula

Ali Abbas Dia

Devin Vinicio Diaz

Matthew Steven DiDucca

Brenden Sean Donovan

Zineb Drouzi *

Ana Ruth Duarte Cordero

William Edward Dyszczyk

Antonia Grace Erickson

Melissa Nicole Escamilla Flores

Catherine Rose Penczar Fabian +#

Claire Elizabeth Penczar Fabian +#

Emma Lindsey Fallon #

Sean Francis Finn

Sophia Raquel Garapetian

Audrey Ann Oliva Garland

Merideth Pauline Green +#

Manka Mehmedova Hadzhieva *

Joseph Patrick Haggerty

Daniella Andrea Hagopian

Anas Mohammed Haloui

Benjamin Harrison Heep

Fathema Heidari

Mona Ali Houjazy +#*

Noah John Houjazy

Viktorya Hovhannisyan %

Deion Howe

The WHS seniors enter Victory Field for Friday’s graduation ceremony. Eleni Sarah Hum +#

Dayra Yecenia Jimon

Jenna Julianna-Brussell Johnson

William Anthony Jokic *

Jack Christopher Jones +#

Catherine Sauda Namudu Jumba %

Alize Jatuporn Kamkaew

Lena Marie Karaguesian #

Hirusha Akalanka Karunaratne

Eva Carter Kelleher

Teju Kim

Leah Evelyn Knipper-Davis +#

David Khachek Kostikian

Niv Amelie Krasnow +#

Pierre Paul Frederick Labossiere

Taylor Allyn Lambo +#

Anthony James Lampasona

Devlynne Alexandra Loder

Bianca Romina Lopez Polanco *

Sabrina Siomara Lopez +#%

Carly Morgan MacCormack +#

Malcolm Thomas MacDonald

Michael Andersen MacNeill #

Alejandro Harry Maguire

Rio Joseph Maguire

Tobias Christopher Magzelci

Ameir Hasan Mahmoud

Gianna Rose Mariano

Nathan Eli Master

Sean Anthony James McCusker

Maressa De Oliveira Meireles *

Mercy Daliana Mejia Pocon %

Anna Maria Michaelidis

Ellie Marie Monahan

Luiz Henrique Dos Santos Mota

Ngaatendwe T.G Moyo

Aryaman Narendra Nagaraj

Caio Negreli *

Isabella Joy Nitschke

Jared Thomas Norton

Patrick Kizito Nsubuga

Giancarlo Nunez

Kara Ann O’Neil

Da’jon G’Vonni Offutt

Melissa Elizeth Orosco Barrios *

Colin Paul Owens

Zachary Hiro Paquette

Ronak Mukesh Patel

Adam Christopher Patterson

Andrea Elizabeth Penalis

Camndon James Reed

Lameh Abdulkader Rifai

Beatriz Oliveira Rocha

Lucas Negrini Rogge *

Cristina Isabel Romero

Neythanial Rosario

Patrick Joseph Rourke

Isaac Lambert Russo

Rey Enrique Sanchez Soto

Yunel Yunior Sanchez Soto

Ramon Marshall Sara

Sargis Sedrakyan #

Ivy Rose Williams Seek +#

Shivani Sharma #

Lucy A Simonian

Joseph Scott Spinelli

Aram Shant Stepanian

Ari Steve Stepanian

Laura Elizabeth Terry

Watertown’s seniors gathered for the last time to get their diplomas on Friday evening.

Development

City Hosting Walks & Bikes with Staff to Get Input to Shape Watertown’s Future

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Residents can join City staff on walks and bike rides around Watertown to take a look at the City’s major business areas, and get input about what they should look like in the future. The information gathered will be used in the process to update Watertown’s Comprehensive Plan. The series covers a number of areas where development has and will continue to occur, including Watertown Square, Pleasant Street, Coolidge Square, and the bike path near Arsenal Street that runs through East Watertown to Fresh Pond. Assistant Director of Planning Gideon Schreiber said the tours provide another way for people to give input on the Comprehensive Plan. “I’ve been on the Live Well Watertown committee for 10 years, and we’ve done these walks and often times when I’m doing the walk with residents they have questions, they have ideas, they have thoughts, and we thought that it would be a good opportunity to mix it up and do something different,” Schreiber said.

Around Town

Project Proposed for Russo’s Site to be Discussed at Community Meeting

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JacobsA view of the four-story life science center proposed for the former Russo’s site at 560 Pleasant St. A community meeting will be held about the proposed project on the former Russo’s & Sons site on Pleasant Street on June 9. The plans for the property, at 532-560 Pleasant St. include a lab/office building, retail space, a parking garage, with publicly-accessible open space in between. The full proposal is located online and can be found here. 

Developers sent out the following meeting announcement:

BDPF Pleasant Street Owner, LLC, the owner of the properties located at 532 and 560 PleasantStreet would like to introduce itself and cordially invite you to a presentation of its plans to transform the site into a vibrant Office Research and Development/Lab Life Sciences Campus incorporating a complementary and inviting retail component, publicly accessible open space, river and community path connections, streetscape enhancements and other public realm enhancements while promoting the goals of the Pleasant Street Corridor. https://www.watertownmanews.com/2022/04/19/see-what-developers-may-do-on-former-russos-site/

We will be hosting an interactive meeting on Thursday, June 9, 2022, at 6:30pm.

Around Town

New Food Co-op Looks to Fill Void of Russo’s Closing, Offering Shares

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The following information was provided by the Charles River Co-op:

The Charles River Food Co-op is announcing that we will soon be accepting members! As a reminder, the impetus to create the Charles River Food Co-op was the closing of Russo’s in Watertown. We are excited about our mission and vision for this new store, which includes replicating Russo’s fresh produce and food diversity, in addition to a focus on sustainability and community. While we don’t have a store for you to shop in yet, buying a member-owner share now allows us to build the financial foundation we need to fuel the next stage of our growth and fund the eventual store opening. You are investing in the future of the Charles River Co-op and enabling us to take the next step to reach our vision. 

Our share price will be $200 – which can be paid up-front or over 8 months in increments of $25.

Around Town

Summer at Arsenal Yards: Picnic in the Park, Fitness Classes and a Biergarten

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Arsenal Yards has plenty planned this summer. The following information was provided by Arsenal Yards:

With summer just around the corner, Arsenal Yards, the thriving new neighborhood in Watertown, invites area residents and visitors to get outside and enjoy the weather in a beautiful setting this season. Guests, local employees, and residents alike can enjoy the return of the popular Picnic in the Park series, a series of complimentary fitness classes, and the brand new Mighty Squirrel Brewing Co. pop-up outdoor biergarten! 

“With the return of both our summer picnic series and popular outdoor fitness classes, and the exciting addition of the Mighty Squirrel biergarten, we’re thrilled to invite the Watertown community back for a fun-filled, jam-packed schedule of events this season,” said Jessica Reed, Marketing Director at Arsenal Yards. “This year, we’re bringing back Picnic in the Park better than ever, bringing in popular acts such as Couch and Fish House, local bands with loyal followings that we think our neighborhood will love. And, as many are eager to get back outside and spend time with friends and family again, there’s no better time for our residents and visitors to enjoy notable new openings at Arsenal Yards, including the recently opened Tori Jiro, Condesa Restaurante & Tequila Bar, and Kura Sushi, plus soon-to-open additions like Vitality Bowls and Taffer’s Tavern, while experiencing everything that Arsenal Yards has to offer all summer long.”

Guests and residents are invited to munch and move their way through summer with Picnic in the Park, a monthly outdoor event series featuring a schedule packed with a variety of entertainment, including Peter Gross, Magic & Other Suspect Activities, Fish House, and Couch.

Around Town

Watertown Farmers Market Returning in June With Several New Vendors

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Anaïs MarkwoodThe Watertown Farmers Market returns to Saltonstall Park on June 15. The Watertown Farmers Market will return on June 15 with four produce booths, and several new vendors including some familiar local names. The Farmers Market takes place Wednesdays from 2:30-6:30 p.m., rain or shine, at Saltonstall Park (next to City Hall, 149 Main St.). It runs from June 15 to Oct. 19, 2022.

Around Town

Watertown Memorial Day Parade Returns, Ceremony Honors Lost Veterans

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Charlie BreitroseWatertown Veterans salute during the National Anthem during the 2022 Memorial Day ceremony at Victory Field. Three years after the last in-person celebration of Memorial Day, Watertown’s streets were filled with music, marchers, and military vehicles for the 2022 Memorial Day Parade on Monday. Following the procession, a ceremony was held to mark 100 years of Victory Field, as well as to honor those for whom the day holiday was founded: the veterans who have been lost. The parade took a different route from previous ones, leaving from near City Hall, heading past Watertown Middle School and ending at Victory Field (See photos from the parade here). The move was made due to the construction on they typical route, on Mt.