Government

Watertown Updates Regulations on Hens and Honeybees

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In an effort to be supportive of the sustainability movement and local food
production, the Board of Health updated its regulations regarding the keeping of
hens and honeybees in May of 2016, Town officials announced. The Health Department is pleased to report that there are currently five approved permits issued for the keeping of hens in Watertown, though there have been no requests for approval of honeybees. The new regulations followed over one year of research, discussions with industry
experts, and public hearings, and have resulted in relaxed standards on setbacks
that allow more properties to comply than had been able to in the past. The new
standards include provisions for setbacks from property lines and neighboring
properties, how much owners must know about caring for hens and honeybees,
restrictions on number of hives and hens allowed, and standards for storing feed
and waste. A permit is required for each location where hens or honeybees will be
kept, and approval from abutters is required.

Government

Plan Calls for Town’s Elementary Schools to be Renovated First, Then the High School

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An architecture firm hired by the Watertown Public Schools laid out a vision for how all five of the town’s schools could be renovated so they can provide a 21st century education, and recommended doing all three elementary schools at once followed by the high school and finally the middle school. Thursday night, Ai3 Principal Scott Dunlap presented a plan for upgrading Watertown’s five public schools over the next several years to a meeting held by both the School Committee and Town Council. Timeline
The timeline laid out by Ai3 – a firm that works solely on school projects – would start planning for the three elementary schools immediately with the goal of starting construction in late 2019 and completing the work by early 2021, Dunlap said. Meanwhile, the district would be working with the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) to get funding for and renovate Watertown High School. Construction would begin at the high school in early 2021. The timeline does not have an end date for work at WHS.

Elections

Watertown Man Running for Seat on Watertown Library Board of Trustees

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Watertown’s Daniel Pritchard announced his candidacy for Board of Library Trustees in November’s Town Election. 

Pritchard sent out the following press release:

Writer, editor, and nonprofit professional Daniel E. Pritchard is a first-time political candidate running to join the Board of Trustees of the Watertown Free Public Library. Raised in Quincy, MA, Pritchard learned the values of hard work, common decency, and public service from his single mother, who also instilled a love of libraries that would set the trajectory of his life. “The library was a home away from home,” he remembers. “I read everything — fantasy, biography, crime, poetry, the classics. The library was my window to the wider world.”

A graduate cum laude of Boston College, Pritchard has pursued a successful career in the business of letters.

Government

Victory Field Basketball Court to be Moved Slightly, New Storage Approved

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The basketball court at Victory Field will be moved farther from the backyards of neighbors and new, more attractive storage for athletic equipment will be installed in a different location. The Ad Hoc Committee on Victory Field Phase 2 continued its examination of what should happen to the track and courts area of the complex on Orchard Street. Having previously dealt with renovating the track and deciding against putting up netting around the track to stop soccer and lacrosse balls, on Tuesday night the group discussed the tennis and basketball courts and storage containers at at Victory Field. Basketball Court
One of the most popular parts of Victory Field is the basketball court, which sits at the end of the five tennis courts and next to the back driveway. Pickup games are played almost year-round, neighbors said, but the games also creates a lot of noise for those living near the court.

Election 2017

List of Candidates in Watertown Growing as Filing Deadline Nears

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More potential candidates in Watertown have taken out papers to run for elected office with less than a week before the deadline for candidates to be certified. Several candidates have officials made the ballot in November by having their candidate papers certified, while more than a dozen have taken out papers to run for office. The races with the most candidates are for Town Councilor At-Large and the four-year School Committee seats. Candidates must gather 100 signatures of registered Watertown voters, and they must be certified by the Town Clerk’s office. The signatures must be submitted to and certified by the Town Clerk by 5 p.m. on Monday, July 31, and the Town Clerk has until Aug. 14 to certify the signatures.

Government

LETTER: Casual Recreation Opportunities at Victory Field Should Not be Lost

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The renovation of Victory’s Field’s track area is up again for discussion. The Town Council has appointed an ad hoc committee to study proposed plans and make recommendations in September. These plans, basically identical to those put forward three years ago, would rob the area of much of its grass surface while introducing several intrusive and heavy-handed innovations which would go far toward destroying the open feeling which has made it so inviting and attractive a playground for generations of Watertown residents. Among the changes proposed are a parking lot, additional lighting for night games, rubber hardening of the eastern part of the ‘oval’ to concentrate track and field events, and a concrete pad just outside for the two equipment storage containers owned by the schools. A bocce court and long rows of black metal poles and netting at both ends of the field have not been approved by the committee.

Development

Find Out About Phase 3 of Arsenal Mall Project at Community Meeting

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A Community Meeting has been scheduled by Boylston Properties and Wilder Companies for Wednesday, July 26, 2017 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in the Innovation Space at the Arsenal Yards/Mall. The purpose of the meeting is to review the Phase III/Building F plans of the Arsenal Yards Master Plan. Building F is proposed to be a seven story residential building with 58 housing unites and 45,000 square feet of retail and/or restaurant space. The proposal has one more story and 23 more housing units than proposed in Master Plan passed by the Planning Board. The building would be located where the current bridge between to the two sections of the malls are located, and would be near the northeast corner of Arsenal Park.

Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee

Changes on Common Street Will Help Cyclists, Bike Path Planned on Marshall Street

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Changes will be made to help bicyclists get through and around one of Watertown’s more tricky intersections. 

The Department of Public Work is finalizing plans to restructure the Common Street intersection with Orchard Street and Church Street, as well as the nearby Common Street and Spring Street intersection. Common Street at Orchard and Church streets will become a rotary, and bicyclists can either follow the roadway around the round-about, or use the pedestrian paths around the edge. Heading toward Mt. Auburn Street, members of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee had questions about whether bicycles should be encouraged to stay on Common Street, or continue down Spring and use another side street to get to Mt. Auburn.