Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/author/cbreitro/page/736/)
There are 10 open houses to check out this week around town. $899,000 – 111 Watertown St. Unit 111, 9 room, 4 bed, 3.5 bath townhouse, Open Houses: Saturday 12-2 Sunday 11:30-1:30
$519,900 – 5 Repton Cir. Unit 5415, 4 room, 2 bed, 2 bath mid-rise, Open Houses: Saturday 12-2 Sunday 12-2
$419,000 – 91 Spring St. Unit 11, 5 room, 2 bed, 2 bath low-rise, Open House: Sunday 12-2
$699,000 – 792 Belmont St.
The School District’s consultants wrapped up the third and final community forum looking at the future of Watertown Public Schools facilities Wednesday night, but some at the meeting said they think the master plan has been rushed and needs more work. Michael van Hamel, an architect with SMMA, presented the costs for three options for upgrading Watertown’s schools: 1) a basic renovation, 2) a renovation with reconfigured layouts designed for 21st century teaching and learning, or 3) a brand new school. In new construction, state official have more say over what can be included, and for instance van Hamel said usually they do not allow auditoriums in elementary school. This is a feature at each of the Watertown elementary schools. At the Hosmer School, the district is considering moving all the Pre-K classes in the district into a wing of the school, or possibly adding a universal Pre-K program, which would need space for an estimated 400 students in the Universal Early Learning Center.
We wanted to share with you the Concerned Watertown Homeowners Association position statement on the Community Preservation Act (CPA) initiative. Let’s all try and remember-this is a TAX. We have heard from many about door knocking campaigns to obtain the required signatures to put the question on the ballot in November. Please find our reasons for opposing the CPA Tax. Reasons to Reject the Community Preservation Act (CPA):
1 – The School Committee reported that we are out of classroom space in our schools, and that means we have a high probability of having to raise taxes to meet that NEED.
When Harvard University researchers wanted a good example of a public library that fosters family engagement, it looked to the Watertown Free Public Library.
The town’s library was one studied for the Harvard Family Research Project’s paper, Public Libraries: A Vital Space for Family Engagement by M. Elena Lopez, Margaret Caspe and Lorette McWilliams. The study looks at ways that libraries can promote family engagement which in turn promotes learning for children. For the study, Harvard partnered with the Public Library Association (PLA). They surveyed library directors around the country about their family engagement practices, met monthly with a learning community of nearly 20 librarians interested in family engagement, according to the paper. Watertown Library Director Leone Cole told the Town Council recently that she and her staff were pleased to contribute to Harvard Family Research Project’s study.
The Watertown Public Schools and the Town of Watertown announced the final community forum in the School Facilities Master Plan process. They sent out the following announcement:
This summer the Watertown Public Schools and the Watertown community are working with the Cambridge architectural firm SMMA (Symmes Maini & McKee Associates) to develop a School Facilities Master Plan. This is the first important step to review and assess the capacity of our school buildings to support the teaching and learning needs of the district. The limitations of the school district’s current buildings have become increasingly apparent with the need for special program spaces, pressure from increasing enrollments, and a goal of maintaining appropriate class sizes. Watertown’s current school buildings are at least sixty years old and were designed for a time with very different educational needs than the present.
Coming off one of the most successful seasons in years, the Watertown High School football team is nearly ready to kick off the season – well the preseason, anyway. Last year the Raiders lost in the section final to league-rival Stoneham, but defeated Belmont on a last-minute field goal. The first scrimmage for the 2016 squad will be held Saturday, Aug. 27 at 10 a.m. at Victory Field. After a second scrimmage at Newburyport, Watertown plays its first official game on Saturday, Sept.
The work of local artist John Cocke will be on display at the Watertown Free Public Library and you can even talk to the artist about his artwork. Cocke’s exhibit will run from Sept. 1 to Sept. 30 at the library, located at 123 Main St. in Watertown.
After the furor over the recent announcement that the Extended Day program would not be available on some early release days, Watertown school officials will put together a group of parents to look at solutions for covering the program on those days. At last week’s School Committee meeting, Human Resources Director Craig Hardimon said he attended a meeting last Tuesday with other school administrators to hear from parents. “I need to be clear that we heard loud and clear that parents and guardians are upset with the decision to close the extended day program for the professional days, the timing of the announcement and the overall theme of communication,” Hardimon said. “Please accept our apology. If we could do it over again, we would have handled it differently.”