Entertainment

Celebration of Crafts, Culture and Food of Uzbekistan Coming to the Watertown Library

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(The following event was snowed out on March 13 and has been rescheduled)

A celebration of the crafts, food, music and dance of Uzbekistan will be held at the Watertown Free Public Library to mark the Uzbek national holiday of Navruz or New Day. 

The free event is being organized by Zilola Ashurova, who is originally from Uzbekistan and wanted to introduce the people of the Boston area to the Uzbek culture. The event, which will be held Friday, March 23 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Watertown Library, 123 Main St., Watertown. During the event there will be an exhibition of handmade embroidery and a workshops on needle-work. There will also be Uzbek music and dance and attendees can sample Uzbek food. There will also be travel videos showing highlights of Uzbekistan.

Around Town

Snow Emergency Declared in Watertown for Wednesday’s Snow Storm & Beyond

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The Watertown Department of Public Works has declared a Snow Emergency, meaning on-street parking will be banned. The Snow Emergency begins at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 7, 2018 and is in effect until further notice. Cars will not be allowed to be parked on the streets of Watertown at any time, and those on the street are subject to towing. See options for parking your car if you do not have off-street parking and more information about the snow emergency below in the announcement from the Watertown DPW:

A winter weather event is predicted with high winds and between 3 to 6 inches of snow accumulation and potentially 8 to 10 inches depending upon where the storm’s rain/snow line forms. The Superintendent of Public Works has declared a snow emergency effective 7:00 p.m. Wednesday, March 7, 2018 and will remain in effect until further notice. Parking Ban – On street parking will be banned and any motor vehicle left on the street will be subject to towing until further notice.

Around Town

Utilities: Combination of Factors Brought Down Utility Poles on Arsenal St.

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A mix of strong winds and the force of one pole falling led to the failure of several poles on Arsenal Street during last week’s Nor’easter, according to the utilities. The utility poles along Arsenal Street are co-owned by Verizon and Eversource, said Howard Waterman, from Verizon Corporate Communications. “We jointly own those poles with Eversource, and we worked quickly with them and others attached to the poles to clear the area and restore Verizon service to those impacted,” Waterman said. Eversource spokesman Michael Durand said that a combination of factors led to the multiple broken poles. “The damage was storm related, with strong wind gusts initially snapping one pole that had four transformers on it,” Durand said.

Around Town

Group Invites Public to Learn About Effort to Create an Effective Dialogue on Issues Facing the Community

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The organizers of a new effort to have creating effective community dialogue about some of the more difficult issues that face Watertown will host an informational evening on what Community Conversations are about. 

The session builds on successful programs in use by cities and towns nationwide to help community leaders, residents, and other stakeholders engage with one another in inclusive ways that lead to more widely supported decisions, according to the announcement. • Learn about what other communities are doing;
• Experience effective methods of engaging in dialogue about complex, emerging or controversial local issues;
• Identify interest in promoting more effective dialogue in our community. • Identify topics and issues in our community that may benefit from such community discussions. The Community Conversations group met with about 25 community leaders last year, and now have received funding from the Watertown Community Foundation to run the program in Watertown, said former Town Councilor Cecilia Lenk, who is working with the group. The group will hold another program focusing on Facilitator Training in the late spring or early fall, Lenk said.

Basketball

Watertown Cruises Past Pentucket to Win North Section Semifinal

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WAKEFIELD – Watertown High School’s boys basketball team will return to the North Section final for the 11th time under Head Coach Steve Harrington after beating Pentucket 55-33 Tuesday night. The Raiders hit from inside and out and hounded the Sachems on defense. Watertown’s top scorer Tuesday, senior center John Korte, said that offensive game plan unfolded like they practiced. He scored 25 points with hoops from in close, as well as from behind the three point line. “We knew that their were holes in their zone and a lot of easy driving lanes,” Korte said.

School Committee

School Committee Passes Resolution Calling for Gun Safety, More Mental Health Services

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In the wake of the recent school shooting in Parkland, Fla., the Watertown School Committee passed a resolution asking for strengthening gun control laws and improving mental health services for students. Also, some students at the high school will have their own response to the shootings. 

The School Committee began its meeting Monday with a moment of silence for the 17 people killed during the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida on Feb. 14, 2018. Later in the evening, the School Committee unanimously passed the resolution at Monday night’s meeting. The resolution calls for State and Federal lawmakers to support laws and regulations that:

Insure thorough background checks and waiting periods before adults can purchase or own guns
Prohibit the presence of guns on school property, unless by a law enforcement officer
Ban the sale of semi-automatic, assault-style weapons as well as high-capacity
magazines or clips
Strengthen counseling and mental health services for students

School Committee member Lindsay Mosca said she thinks that the resolution was the right step for the board to take, and said that she does not see it as a political issue but one of concern for students’ safety.

Police/Fire

Two Suspects Arrested for Shooting a Man in Watertown in February

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Police arrested Boston man and a Randolph man who are suspected of being involved in the shooting of a man in Watertown in late February. Police were alerted to the shooting by Mount Auburn Hospital, which reported that a man who had been shot multiple times had been dropped of at the hospital on the night of Feb. 24, 2018. The victim is expected to survive, according to the Middlesex District Attorney’s office. Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Watertown Chief of Police Michael Lawn announced that on Monday Watertown Police arrested Carlos Castillo, 19, of Boston, and Randall Glenn, 21, of Randolph, in a joint operation with the Massachusetts State Police, the Boston Police and Randolph Police.

Entertainment

Concert at Watertown Church Features Two Singer-Songwriters

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Friday night’s Tremedal Concert in Watertown features singer-songwriters Don White and Maria Sangiolo. The performance will be on March 9, 2018 at 8 p.m. at First Parish Unitarian Church of Watertown, 35 Church St., Watertown. White is described as a “storyteller-comedian-author-troubadour-folk singer-songwriter,” and Sangiolo’s latest album features 19 environmentally-themed songs. Tickets are $20 at the door and can be purchased online by clicking here. For more information go to tremedal.org.