Government

Pedestrians & Cars to Share Victory Field Driveway, Fencing to be Replaced

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The driveway at Victory Field will be transformed into an area where pedestrians, bicycles and cars will intermingle. 

The Ad Hoc Committee on Victory Field Phase 2 voted to make changes to the area between the two parking areas at Victory Field to make a shared use area. The area will be raised and the surface will be something different from asphalt, likely some sort of brick or paver. Tuesday’s meeting was the second time the committee had discussed the possibility of creating a shared space at Victory Field (read about the last meeting here). The group asked for some possible designs for the shared area and on Tuesday Designer Glenn Howard of CDM Smith presented some mock-ups for how the shared area might look with new surface, plantings and other features. The portion of the driveway that goes between the track and the football bleachers is quite narrow, and adding a sidewalk would just make it tougher for vehicles to pass each other, Howard said.

Community Choice Aggregation

Town Looking at Joining Green Energy Program for All Residential Electric Customers

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Watertown may join a state program that would provide “greener” electricity to customers and would likely come at a lower rate than for regular Eversource customers. Ed Lewis, the town’s Energy Manager, presented information about the Community Choice Aggregation program at a last week’s Town Council meeting. The town’s Energy Office and the Watertown Environment and Energy Efficiency Committee (WE3C) are asking the Town Council to consider signing Watertown to be part of the program. More than 110 communities across the state have become a part of the program, Lewis said, including nearby communities of Arlington, Brookline, Cambridge, Somerville and Melrose. The program applies to residential customers, small businesses and non-profit groups.

DPW

Watertown Fire Hydrant Flushing Begins This Week, May Discolor Water

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Watertown’s Department of Public Works will begin flushing fire hydrants this week, and will continue for the next six weeks. Public Works Superintendent Gerald Mee sent out the following announcement:

In order to maintain the high quality of drinking water in Watertown, the annual program of flushing mains will begin during the week of Sept. 18, 2017. Flushing hours are Monday Through Friday 7 p.m. to midnight. Consumers may experience discolored water at times during the weeks of Sept.

Government

Watertown Woman Lobbies Congress to Improve Support for Cancer Patients

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This week, a Watertown woman was one of more than 700 cancer patients, survivors, volunteers and staff from all 50 states and nearly every congressional district gathered in Washington, D.C., as part of the annual American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) Leadership Summit and Lobby Day. Advocates urged Congress to take steps to make cancer a national priority and help end a disease that still kills more than 1,650 people a day in this country. The American Cancer Society sent out the following information:

Rachel Laufersweiler from Watertown met with members of Massachusetts Congressional delegation to ask for support in three key areas in the cancer fight. They discussed the need to support an increase in federal funding for cancer research. She also asked them to advance legislation that works to improve patients’ quality of life and to support legislation that would close a loophole in Medicare that can result in surprise costs for seniors when a polyp is found during a routine colonoscopy.

Government

Sen. Edward Markey Holding Town Hall Discussion in Newton on Sunday

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Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) will hold a town hall on Sunday, September 17 in Newton, Massachusetts. He will discuss the latest efforts in the U.S. Senate on health care, immigration, the threat of a nuclear North Korea, and climate change and take questions from the audience, his office announced. WHO: Senator Edward J. Markey

WHAT: Town hall discussion and Q&A

WHEN: 6:00–7:30 PM, Sunday, September 17, 2017 (Doors open at 5:30 PM)

WHERE: 457 Walnut Street, Newton North High School, Newton, Mass.

Government

Town Council and Town Manager Will Appoint People to Community Preservation Committee

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After more than an hour’s debate Tuesday night, the Town Council decided who will appoint the four at-large members of the committee that will recommend how to spend the funds from the Community Preservation Act (CPA) after coming to a compromise, of sorts. The Community Preservation Committee (CPC) was created when Watertown voters approved the CPA in November 2017, and will send recommended projects to be funded by the CPA money to the Town Council for final approval. Five members of the CPC are required to be on the committee by the state statute, but communities can add other members. Watertown decided to have four at-large members, but the Rules and Ordinances subcommittee could not agree on how the four would be appointed. The group that put the CPA on the ballot, Invest in Watertown, pushed for the four seats to be appointed by the Town Council.

Elections

LETTER: Councilor At-Large Seeks Re-election to Second Term

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Dear neighbors,

I am currently in my first term as a Watertown Councilor At-Large. Throughout
the past two years, I have worked to create positive outcomes for residents
through my involvement advocating for school building improvements, open
space, housing affordability, and increased transparency. During this period, the residential exemption was increased for homeowners for
the first time in fifteen years, as were affordable housing and LEED sustainability
requirements for many new development projects. Members of police and fire
departments are now both carrying Narcan, and several new town positions were
created and funded in the recent budget for Recreation, the Library’s Hatch, and
wellness services. The town has a new ambulance, which accommodates the
recently implemented Advanced Life Services (ALS) program.

Government

Second Arsenal Park Design Meeting Moved, Survey Results from First Meeting

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The second meeting for the Arsenal Park Design has been moved to Wednesday, October 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the Commander’s Mansion, the Department of Community Development and Planning announced. The DCDP sent out the following announcement:

Below is a summary of the information about the upcoming meeting and links to documents from the first meeting:

Community Meeting # Two: Options for Design and Enhancements

When: Wednesday, October 11 –6:30-8:30 PM
Where:  Commander’s Mansion, 440 Talcott Avenue

See the Content for Community Meeting # One held August 15, 2017

Survey Results:  Arsenal Survey #1 Results 
Meeting Documents: Click the link to explore the presentation, breakout meeting summary, and look at the breakout sessions map exercise with comments received: Document Center Meeting Folder
With the folder, there is also a link to the online comments received prior to the meeting. Presentation: Meeting Presentation with Breakout summary report out. Project Webpage: http://www.watertown-ma.gov/index.aspx?NID=867