Development

LETTER: Resident Offers Recommendations to Council on RMUD Zoning

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Dear Town Councilors et al.,

Please consider the following recommendations regarding the proposed rezoning of the eastern end of the Arsenal Street corridor. Some of the following will be familiar to some of you, some of it is new. The Process:

Timing: It is more important to thoroughly consider the details of rezoning than to enact a rezoning by any particular date. If there are concerns about potential of-right development under the current zoning, a brief moratorium on large development in the proposed RMU area, until the rezoning is adopted, would be appropriate. Evaluate as a package: The rezoning should be evaluated as a package.

Development

New Mixed-Use Project on Pleasant St. to be Discussed at Community Meeting

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A community meeting will be held to discuss a proposed mixed-use project at 330-350 Pleasant Street. The Community Meeting will be held in the Community Room at the Watertown Police Headquarters, 552 Main St. on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 starting at 7 p.m.

The meeting sponsored by Councilor Ken Woodland and the Petitioner’s Project Design Team. The project is located on Pleasant Street near the intersection with Rosedale Road. For more information, please contact Terry Morris at tpmorris.landuse.law@comcast.net, or 617-202-9132.

Government

LETTER: Outgoing Library Trustee Reflects on the Inauguration

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To the Editor:

The Inauguration of Town Officials January 4 at the Arsenal Center for the Arts was a joyous occasion. I saw a lot of smiling people that evening, on stage and in the audience. Congratulations to all. The good people of the City called the Town of Watertown elected a fine bunch of people to steer our community forward. Four years ago I recited the oath of office for the last time as a Library Trustee.

Government

Schools, Development, Transportation Priorities for Town in Next Two Years

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Among the key areas of focus for the Town Council in the new term will be improving Watertown’s schools, deal with the development boom and seek to improve transportation, Town Council President Mark Sideris announced at Monday’s inauguration ceremony. Sideris, the Town Council (Michael Dattoli, Aaron Dushku, Susan Falkoff, Lisa Feltner, Angeline Kounelis, Anthony Palomba, Vincent Piccirilli and Kenneth Woodland) and the elected or re-elected School Committee members (Eileen Hsu-Balzer, Kendra Medville Foley and Candace Miller) and Library Trustees (Sheppard Ferguson, Penelope Peoples and Timothy Tracy) were sworn in at the event held at the Arsenal Center for the Arts’ Charles Mosesian Theater. Development has been the top issue in town, particularly in the areas east of Watertown Square along Arsenal Street. Two major apartment projects have been approved along Arsenal Street and a new hotel is going up near the malls. Zoning for two areas that could change the town significantly continue to subjects of hot discussion: the Regional Mixed Use District (RMUD) in the area of the two malls in town, and the redevelopment of the Arsenal on the Charles.

Development

Town, Citizens Group Hosting Meetings on Zoning Changes Near Malls

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The proposal to change the zoning for the area around the malls on Arsenal Street has sparked much concern and many questions, and both the town and citizen group Sustainable Watertown will host meetings to discuss the proposed Regional Mixed Use District (RMUD). During Monday night’s Watertown Inauguration Ceremony, Town Council President Mark Sideris announced a pair of meetings about the RMUD hosted by the town and to be held at the Arsenal Project. Both meetings will be held on Saturdays from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., the first will be on Jan. 9 and the second on Jan. 16.

Cecilia Lenk

Outgoing Town Councilor Looks Back on Her 6 Years in Office

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During her time on the Town Council, which ended with the New Year, Cecilia Lenk got involved in some of the biggest issues, such as the town’s finances, but she also liked to tackle some of the less glamorous areas such as roads, sidewalks and sewers. 

Lenk joined the Council six years ago, when the District B seat opened up. Her most prominent role prior to that was serving on the Building Committee for the expansion of the Watertown Free Public Library. “Jon Hecht was leaving the seat (to become a state representative) and a number of people encouraged me to run,” Lenk said. “It was something I was interested in doing and it seemed like the right time.” She thought some of her expertise would be useful on the Council, particularly in the area of financial and the environment.

Elections

Watertown’s Steve Aylward Holding Campaign Kick Off Event

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You are cordially invited to a Campaign Kickoff Celebration to support the re-election of: Steve Aylward State Committeeman Massachusetts Republican Party Second Suffolk and Middlesex District. The event will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, from 5-7 p.m. at Patou Restaurant, 69 Leonard St. in Belmont. Steve was also the Campaign Chair for the successful 2014 Ballot Question 1 “Tank the Gas Tax,” which repealed the automatic increases in the Gas Tax.

Government

Steve Corbett Says Goodbye to Town Council After 10 Years

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A mainstay on the Watertown Town Council, Steve Corbett, had his final meeting in December after a decade in town government. His focuses have been economic development, the disabled and he served on the building committee for the new Police Station, but Corbett said he did not come in with any particular ax to grind. “I never really tried to look for attention. I was one of nine. You really can do nothing by yourself.