Government

OP-ED: Mass. Senate Passes Act to Reduce Pedestrian/Bicycle Fatalities

By |

State Sen. Will Brownsberger released the following piece on legislation, of which he was the lead sponsor, to increase bicycle and pedestrian safety:

The Massachusetts State Senate voted Thursday, July 28, 2018 to pass legislation that aims to create safer streets for all road users. Developed in collaboration with a coalition of bicycle, pedestrian and transportation advocates, S.2570, An Act to reduce traffic fatalities, includes several measures to improve road safety, lessen the severity of crashes, and standardize the collection and analysis of crash data. The bill classifies several groups, including pedestrians, utility workers, first responders and cyclists, as “vulnerable road users,” and requires motor vehicles to apply a “safe passing distance” of at least three feet when traveling 30 miles per hour or less with an additional foot of clearance required for every 10 miles per hour over 30 miles per hour. Current law only requires motor vehicle operators to pass at “a safe distance and at a reasonable and proper speed.” The bill would further require a vehicle that is overtaking a vulnerable road user to use all or part of the adjacent lane, crossing the center line if necessary, when it cannot pass at a safe distance in the same lane and only when it is safe to do so. “We need to keep working year after year to achieve a future in which traffic fatalities get as close as possible to zero,” said Senator William N. Brownsberger (D-Belmont), lead sponsor of the bill in the Senate.

Food

See What’s Coming to the Watertown Farmers Market on Thursday

By |

The Watertown Farmers Market announced its guests for July 5. The Market is open form 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Arsenal on the Charles. Market organizers sent out the following information:

With sizzling temperatures this week, the market will have cool, tasty treats and plenty of items for the grill. Because why turn on the oven? Hooked Fish Shop has fresh fish for the grill and smoked fish for easy put together meals. We are thinking grilled salmon topped with Sa’s Homestyle Sauce!

Around Town

Historical Society Celebrates Treaty Day, First Reading of Declaration of Independence

By |

The Historical Society of Watertown will celebrate two major historical events that took place in town in 1776. 

The following information was provided by the Historical Society of Watertown:
Treaty Day 2018
July 14, 2018, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Edmund Fowle House, 28 Marshall St., Watertown, MA

Please join the Historical Society of Watertown in celebrating the commemoration of two important Watertown historical events in 1776. Come to this annual event marking the first time the Declaration of Independence was read to the citizens of Watertown on July 18, 1776. We will also celebrate the July 19, 1776 signing of the first treaty negotiated by our new nation with a foreign power, namely the St. John’s (a.k.a. Maliseet) and Mi’kmaq Tribes of Nova Scotia. Special presentations by invited guests will enlighten us on how the Treaty of Watertown relates to our current period.

Elections

Republican Senate Candidate Picks Up Endorsement of Head of Watertown Republicans

By |

The Geoff Diehl for Senate campaign sent out the following announcement:

Today Representative Geoff Diehl, the endorsed Republican candidate for U.S.
Senate, announced that he has received the endorsement Republican Town Committee Chairman John DiMascio.“I am proud to join the growing list of local Republican Committee Chairs endorsing Geoff Diehl for U.S. Senate. Washington needs more tenacious reform-minded leaders like Geoff. He sets a very high standard, holding himself and his colleagues to that standard. Transparency, lowering taxes, fiscal accountable, and servant leadership, have been his hallmark, since elected to the House, said
DiMascio. “We could use 100 Geoff Diehls in the US Senate.”

“I am honored to have received John DiMascio’s endorsement.

Around Town

Watertown Boys & Girls Club Awarded $100K Grant from Cummings Foundation

By |

Watertown Boys & Girls Club is one of 100 local nonprofits to receive grants of $100,000 each through Cummings Foundation’s “$100K for 100” program. The Watertown-based organization was chosen from a total of 597 applicants, during a competitive review process. Watertown Boys & Girls Club provides after-school and summer programming for youth ages 7-18 from Watertown and the surrounding communities. The mission of the Club is to inspire and enable all young people to reach their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens. Representing Watertown Boys & Girls Club, Renee Gaudette, the Club’s Executive Director, joined approximately 300 other guests at a reception at TradeCenter 128 in Woburn to celebrate the $10 million infusion into Greater Boston’s nonprofit sector.

Canobie Lake Park

Fourth of July Celebration at Victory Field, Canobie Lake Park Trip on the Fifth

By |

The Watertown Recreation Department Announced it will host a Fourth of July Celebration at Victory Field on Wednesday, July 4th, 2018. The next day the Rec Department is taking kids to Canobie Lake Park. Fourth of July Celebration
All Day Activities: Face Painting, Arts & Crafts and Waterslides. There will be hot dogs, burgers and refreshments served free of charge between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Please park in the Department of Public Works lot at 124 Orchard St. Schedule of Events

10:00-10:50 a.m.: Soccer Game: (ages 7 and under)
Obstacle Course: (ages 8-10)
3 on 3 Basketball: (ages 11 and older)
Wet and Wild Waterslide: (all ages)

11:00 a.m.-12:00 pm: Obstacle Course: (Ages 7 and under)
Dodgeball: (ages 8-10)
Flag football : (ages 11 and older)
Baseball – Softball Pickup (ages 9 – 12)
Wet and Wild Waterslide: (all ages)

12:30-1:30 p.m.: Parachute Game (ages 7 and under)
Obstacle Course: (ages 8-10)
Dodgeball: (Ages 11 and older)
Wet and Wild Waterslide: (all ages)

1:30-2:00 p.m.: Water Balloon Toss: (all ages)
Group Games: (all ages)
Wiffleball Homerun Derby: (all ages)
Wet and Wild Waterslide: (all ages)
Canobie Lake Park Trip
The Watertown Recreation Department will be taking a bus load of children one of New England’s summertime favorite destinations: Canobie Lake Park.

Schools

Comcast Awards Watertown Grad Scholarship for Academics, Community Service

By |

The following release was provided by Comcast:

Watertown’s Kaitlin Tracy was one of 103 Massachusetts students to receive a 2018 Leaders and Achievers Scholarship. The program, funded by the Comcast Foundation, is a one-time, $1,000 scholarship awarded to the best and brightest high school seniors for their community service, academic performance and leadership skills. Since 2001, more than $28 million has been awarded to nearly 27,000 high school seniors across the country as part of the Leaders and Achievers Program. “Our Leaders and Achievers Scholarship winners are exceptional students who are committed to academic excellence and community service,” said Tracy Pitcher, Senior Vice President of Comcast’s Greater Boston Region. “We are honored to recognize their achievements and excited to support them as they continue their educational journeys.”

Comcast, joined by Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, recognized the students at a special event held at the Massachusetts State House today. Added Lt. Governor Polito, “Our administration is committed to helping students across the Commonwealth receive a quality, affordable education and we are pleased to have partners like Comcast assist in those efforts. We are proud of this year’s Leaders & Achievers Scholarship recipients for their community service, academic performance and leadership skills and look forward to their future growth and successes.”

The Comcast Leaders and Achievers Scholarship Program provides scholarships to students who strive to achieve their full potential, who are catalysts for positive change in their communities, who are involved in their schools, and who serve as models for their fellow students.

Entertainment

Fifth of July Concert Honors Town’s Veterans, Feature Hal McIntyre Big Band

By |

Watertown will host the Fifth of July Concert: A Salute to Our Veterans featuring the Hal McIntyre Big Band. The concert is in memory of two recently lost veterans, Watertown Building Inspector Ken Thompson and Watertown resident James Dorsi. The Hal McIntyre Big Band is conducted by Watertown-native Don Pentleton. The concert will be held at Saltonstall Park (next to Town Hall) from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on July 5, 2018.