Government

Town Manager Presenting Budget Monday, Council Voting on School Project Funding Tuesday

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The Town Council will consider approving the funds to build the new Hosmer and Cunniff elementary schools Tuesday night. Here is a rendering of what the new Hosmer will look like. The Watertown Town Council will have back-to-back meetings this week, beginning with the presentation of next year’s Town Budget on Monday, and then councilors will hear a presentation about and are expected to vote on the funding for the construction of the new Hosmer and Cunniff elementary schools. Budget Presentation

Town Manager Michael Driscoll will present the Fiscal Year 2021 Town Budget Monday at a special Town Council meeting that will begin at 6 p.m.

The budget had been scheduled to be presented in April, but was delayed due to the uncertainty of some of the Town’s revenue due to the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The budget meeting will be conducted online, and the public watch and participate in a number of ways:

Join the virtual meeting online at: https://watertown-ma.zoom.us/j/91777824276Join in audio-only mode on the phone — 877 853 5257 (TollFree) or 888 475 4499 (Toll Free) and enter Webinar ID: 917 7782 4276#Watch the meeting on WCATV (Watertown Cable AccessTelevision) on the air at Comcast Channel 99 or RCN Channel 13, and online at https://wcatv.org/government-channel/

Council Discusses School Projects

The $103.45 million in funding for to construct new schools at Cunniff and Hosmer elementary schools will be the main agenda item at Tuesday’s Town Council meeting.

Business

Gov. Baker Approves Phase 2 of Reopening Which Includes Restaurants, Retail & Childcare

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Gov. Charlie Baker, with Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito. Beginning Monday, June 8, Massachusetts restaurants can begin to offer outdoor dining and retail store will be able to open for shoppers. They are part of Phase 2 of the state’s COVID-19 re-opening plan, along with childcare, and additional recreation facilities and medical services. Gov. Charlie Baker made the announcement of the beginning of Phase 2 on Saturday afternoon. There will be two steps of Phase 2, with the first one including outdoor dining at restaurants, retailers stores opening, childcare, day camps, lodging and youth sports.

Arsenal Park

Meetings Wednesday on High School Project, Renovation of Arsenal Park

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An illustration presented in February of how Watertown High School could be built on both sides of Common Street. Two meetings will be held via Zoom on Wednesday, June 3. The Watertown School Building Committee (starting at 6 p.m) will hear a presentation about the latest design possibilities for the new Watertown High School, while the Conservation Commission (beginning at 7 p.m.) will hear about the second phase of the Arsenal Park renovation. High School Meeting

The School Building Committee will hear from architects from Ai3 about the progress of designs for the project, which could either go on the current site or on part of the Victory Field complex. They will also discuss upcoming forums about the project.

Around Town

See the Rules for Using Watertown’s Parks, Fields and Track After COVID-19 Reopening

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Watertown’s Casey Park on Watertown Street. Some of Watertown’s recreational facilities will open for public use Wednesday, June 3, as part of the State’s COVID-19 reopening plan. However, there will be some rules and restrictions. Some of the rules include mandatory wearing of face masks, keeping at least 6 feet part and the facilities are only open to Watertown residents. Failure to follow the rules may result in the closing of facilities to all users.

10th Middlesex

Candidates for 2 State Rep. Seats Appearing in Online Forum

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Watertown is part of two districts in the House of Representatives and both have contested races in 2020. The candidates will appear on an online video forum hosted by Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment. The forum will be held on Zoom and will take place on Sunday, June 7 from 1:45 p.m. to 4 p.m. A link to join the forum will be posted on the group’s website: http://watertowncitizens.org/

“We invite all to join us to hear from the candidates for State Representative as they share their perspectives on Peace, Justice and the Environment,” the announcement from the Watertown Citizens group said. Most of the town, 9 of 12 precincts, is located in the 29th Middlesex District, which also includes parts of Cambridge. State Rep. Jonathan Hecht has announced he is stepping down.

Courts

Recreation Department Releases Complete List of Closed Facilities

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The tot lot installed at the 552 Main Street Park. Some Watertown recreation department facilities, such as parks and fields, will reopen for passive use next week, but many other amenities will remain closed. In Phase 1 of Gov. Baker’s reopening plan, Watertown parks and playing fields will be reopening on June 3 only to Watertown residents, but no congregating, group activities or games will be allowed. Recreation Department Director Peter Centola said that the following Recreation Department amenities will remain closed and will be considered for reopening when the Commonwealth of Massachusetts enters Phase 2 of the Reopening Plan:

basketball courtstennis courtsdog parkspicnic tables and areas playgrounds/tot lotsmultipurpose courtsskateboard parkthe turf field at Victory Field

Around Town

Watertown Parks Opening Next Week; Library, Senior Center Remain Closed

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Filippello Park’s two athletic fields, picnic area, playground and more draw lots of visitors. Watertown’s parks will reopen next week after the COVID-19 shutdown, but the playgrounds, courts, the library and the Senior Center will remain closed. Town Manager Michael Driscoll announced the latest openings in his weekly COVID-19 update. He also updated the Town’s Coronavirus statistics, and there were no COVID-19 related deaths of residents since last Friday. There were 10 more confirmed positive cases, bringing the total to 383, and the total number of people who have recovered is 301 (47 more than last week).

Development

Zoning Board OKs Landscaping Business on Mt. Auburn St.

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A drawing of the plans for the property at 735 Mt. Auburn St., which is becoming a landscaping company office with space for three pickup trucks. The eight spots on the bottom left of the drawing will be four extra long spaces. A landscaping business got approval from the Zoning Board Wednesday night to alter a former auto repair garage on Mt. Auburn Street and use the property as an office with a small garage on the property.