Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/author/cbreitro/page/596/)
With the new term starting for the Town Council and School Committee, both boards elected their officers and announced committee assignments during their first meeting in January. The Town Council unanimously approved District C Councilor Vincent Piccirilli to another term as Vice President at the Jan. 9 meeting. On Jan. 8, the School Committee voted to appoint John Portz to another two years as Chairman.
The proposed project on a thin strip of land at 385-393 Pleasant Street ran into problems at the Watertown Planning Board, when board members had problems with the density of the project and particularly with how close some of the new buildings would be to houses behind the project.
The Planning Board voted last week to continue the discussion of the project at the intersection of Pleasant and Rosedale Road, which proposes to have 58 apartments, townhouses and 11,500 sq. ft. of commercial space. The design team for the developers – Amstel Heritage Watertown LLC – already appeared before the Planning Board in November and brought back an altered plan that removed one of the townhouse buildings on the east end of the site. The unites were moved on top of the existing warehouse building on the west side of the project.
For the 18th year in a row Watertown celebrated the life of Martin Luther King, Jr., and his legacy during the Unity Breakfast. During the event the keynote speaker talked about his work to make the conversation about race in America a positive and productive one through friendship and love, and the head of the Watertown Boys & Girls Club received the Unity Award. The morning also featured moving readings from the winner of the Watertown Middle School and High School MLK Essay Contest, and performances from singers and rappers. The event took place at the Hellenic Cultural Center on Monday and was sponsored by The World in Watertown. William “Smitty” Smith has some credentials in working to improve race relations in the United States.
Watertown Police are closing down Galen Street just outside Watertown Square due to a fire at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Newton Corner on Tuesday afternoon. Newton firefighters are fighting a two-alarm fire at the hotel, which is located above the Mass. Pike at Exit 17. Galen Street becomes Centre Street and heads right into the rotary that goes around the hotel. Just before 2 p.m., the Mass.
Watertown Police Chief Michael Lawn told those attending the Unity Breakfast Monday morning that this week the Watertown Police will release its policy for working with immigrants, and it will stress seeking to help and protect people regardless of citizenship. For the second year in a row, the event that celebrates the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr. was the forum for Lawn to address how police work with immigrants in Watertown. Last year, just before the inauguration of Donald Trump, Lawn assured immigrants that they should not be fearful of the Watertown Police. Monday, the chief repeated some of his words from last year. “What I want people to know is that we are here to help you in Watertown,” Lawn said, quoting his speech from last year.
The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests
Jan. 3, 8:51 a.m.: Police responded to a minor motor vehicle accident and when officers checked the licenses of the drivers involved they found that one of them had his license revoked and had a warrant for his arrest in Florida that had been issued in February 2017. The 26-year-old Allston man was arrested on a charge of driving with a revoked license and an out of state fugitive warrant from Florida for a probation violation. No one was injured in the accident.
Here are the five homes that sold this week in Watertown. $342,500 – 59 Grant Ave. Unit 59, 5 room, 2 bedroom, 1 full bathroom, Townhouse condo/townhouse
$584,025 – 122 Winsor Ave. Unit 122A, 9 room, 3 bedroom, 1 full & 1 half bathroom, 2/3 Family condo/townhouse
$720,000 – 22 Irving St. Unit 1, 13 room, 4 bedroom, 4 full bathroom, Low-Rise condo/townhouse
Sponsored by:
$650,000 – 178 Palfrey St., 8 room, 4 bedroom, 1 full bathroom, Bungalow single-family home
$460,000 – 8 Oakland St., 5 room, 3 bedroom, 1 full bathroom, Cape single-family home
Watertown native and Hollywood actress Eliza Dushku wrote about being sexually assaulted as a young actress on Facebook Saturday. According to the post Dushku was 12 years old when she was sexually molested by a “leading Hollywood stunt coordinator,” whom she names in the post. She said at the time she told only some of her family and some close friends, and has struggled about when and if she would go public about it. Dushku said she was grateful for those women and men who shared their stories before she did. See the post here
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1769957739689557&id=162172567134757