Around Town

Watertown Cable Running Youth Film Camp this Summer

By |

The following announcement was provide by Watertown Cable Access TV:

WCA-TV is excited to announce their two week Youth Film Camp taking place this July! Aspiring directors, filmmakers, editors, and actors will learn the building blocks to create their own film project. Students will learn the planning, technical, and editing skills to create a project of their choice. This camp is free of charge to all students thanks to a generous grant from the Watertown Cultural Council. It is open to Watertown residents, or students enrolled at a school located in Watertown, between the ages 9-17.

Around Town

Hear About Funded Projects & How to Apply at Community Preservation Act Public Hearing

By |

The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

SAVE THE DATE for the Community Preservation Act (CPA) Annual Public Hearing, hosted by the Community Preservation Committee (CPC). Watertown City Hall in the Lower Hearing Room, Thursday, June 27, 2024, at 7 p.m.

Or join remotely via Zoom: https://watertown-ma.zoom.us/j/91525442843. Don’t miss this event for your chance to:

Hear more about the recently funded CPA Projects. Find out about the next steps for the Old Burying Ground and Common Street Cemeteries and the Commander’s Mansion Cultural Landscape projects. Tell us about your open space, outdoor recreation, community housing, and historic preservation priorities.

Around Town

LETTER: Watertown Business Coalition’s Asks for the Watertown Square Area Plan

By |

To Our Neighbors on the City Council & Planning Board,

We are writing to you today on behalf of the business community in and around Watertown Square. The Watertown Business Coalition (WBC) considers itself a community organization, so the thoughts presented herein are a balance between what is best for all stakeholders (residents, businesses, property owners, nonprofits and more …) in Watertown Square. The WBC has been actively engaged with the community since the Watertown Square Area Plan (WSAP) efforts began in Fall 2023, from holding WBC community events, kitchen table conversations, business roundtables, one-on-one meetings, and taking part in the several phases of planning run by the City. A myriad of ideas and suggestions have come from this process to lead us towards the proposed redesign and transformation of the Watertown Square Area. Two themes that continue to dominate conversation are traffic and housing.

Around Town

Marshall Home Fund Awards $75K in Grants to Help Older Adults in Watertown

By |

2024 Marshall Home Fund Grant recipients with current and former board members at the Grant Award Ceremony on May 23, 2024. The following information was provided by the Marshall Home Fund:

The Board of Directors of the Marshall Home Fund (MHF) is very pleased to announce the recipients of its latest round of program grant awards. This spring, the Board of Directors pledged $75,457 to local organizations for programs that will benefit residents of Watertown who are ages 55 and older. In awarding this latest round of grants, the MHF has reached a total of $1 million dollars awarded over a 19-year period for the benefit of older adults in Watertown. The 2024 grant recipients include:

Mass Assoc.

Government

Watertown Square Meeting Thursday Night, Kids Activities Available

By |

The City of Watertown provided the following information:

The Watertown Square Area Plan will be discussed at the upcoming Joint City Council and Planning Board Hearing on June 13 at 6 PM in the Watertown Middle School Auditorium. The Hearing will include a presentation from the Project Team, followed by an opportunity for public comment. You can access the full agenda for the Joint Hearing here. 

You can access the plan document on the project’s website or in the above agenda packet to learn about the Draft Plan. This Hearing is a hybrid meeting and you can give public comment either in-person or virtually. To join virtually, you can access the Hearing on June 13 by using this Zoom link, which can also be found on the project’s website and in the agenda above. The City of Watertown’s Recreation Department will also be hosting a “kids-space” during the Hearing for kids ages 5-12 in the Middle School Cafeteria to accommodate those attending! 

Printed copies of the Plan Document can be found at the Watertown Library and Senior Center. You can learn more about the project at the Watertown Square Area Plan website, where you can also reach out with any questions about the Joint Hearing.

Around Town

OP-ED: Watertown Square Redesign Lacks Public Transit Improvement Plan

By |

Watertown Square. (Photo by City of Watertown)

By Mark Pickering

Watertown stands at a crossroads – on two separate issues. What we do now will guide the city’s way into the future. One question is whether to continue to be a city that emphasizes the use of cars and ignores public transit. The other question is whether to allow the construction of taller buildings in the Square.

Around Town

LETTER: Resident Explains Withdrawal from Human Rights Commission

By |

To whom it may concern,

It is with a heavy heart and disappointment that I am submitting my resignation from the inaugural Watertown HRC Committee. For those of you who don’t know me, I’ve been a resident of Watertown since 2018. I credit Nicole Gardner for getting me looped into the community and caring about my neighbors. I’ve been an active moderator for the Facebook Buy Nothing Watertown South group for a few years and I was the 2023 recipient of the World in Watertown Social Justice Scholarship, so when Nicole reached out to me about applying for the HRC Committee, I jumped at the opportunity. I believed that with my multiple identities as a person of color, immigrant, and queer, I could give a voice to those underrepresented within our community.