Around Town

Town Designing 311 System for One-Stop Place for Residents to Report Issues, Get Answers

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Watertown Town Hall

The Town of Watertown plans to create a one-stop place where people can get problems addressed and have their questions answered. In July, the Town Council approved a transfer of $30,000 to the IT Department to move forward with the creation of a 311 Customer Service System. Systems in other communities vary from a phone number to an online chat to texting or using social media messages to send in requests. Town Council President Mark Sideris said many residents have been calling for a 311 system. It was a popular idea at the Kitchen Table Conversations, the informal discussions held in 2019 when the Town Council looked for ways to improve communication with residents.

Election 2021

UPDATED: See Who Will be on the Watertown Town Election Ballot in November, Library Trustee Not Running

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Charlie Breitrose

(Originally posted July 28. Updated July 3o at 12:50 p.m.)

Town Clerk Janet Murphy certified the candidates for Watertown’s Town Election, to be held on Nov. 2, 2021. There will be six contested races in the Town Election: Councilor At-Large, Council Districts A, B and D, School Committee and Board of Library Trustees. Constance Henry announced July 30 that she will run for District D Councilor.

ARPA

Local Data Consultant Discovers Line in Federal Law that Cost Watertown Millions in Pandemic Relief

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CivilyticsWatertown’s Jared Knowles, president of Civilytics, discovered a line in the ARPA Pandemic relief act that cost Watertown millions in aid. A small data analysis firm discovered a five word section in the American Rescue Plan Act that cost communities such as Watertown millions in federal dollars compared to small towns in other states. Watertown-based Civilytics Consulting looks at a variety of data, including public financing, K-12 and higher education and public safety. While examining the ARPA funds found a surprising thing when they sent out their estimates for what states receive, said Jared Knowles, president of Civilytics. “One person called us and said ‘I’m getting told by our state we are getting a lot less than this,'” Knowles said.

Government

Watertown State Rep. Backs Legislation Promoting Electrification of Vehicle Fleets

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State Rep. Steve Owens. The following piece was provided by State Rep. Steve Owens’ office:

At a hearing held today by the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy, Representative Joan Meschino (D-Hull) joined colleagues and advocates to support her legislation promoting the electrification of fleets and vehicles. Efforts to advance a transition to electric vehicles in statute are part of a broader trend that recognizes the pressing need to decarbonize the transportation sector, both within and beyond the United States. Massachusetts and California have already indicated commitments to have all new cars sold in each state be electric by 2035. The United Kingdom and Norway have made similar commitments, making plans for car sales to be zero-emission by 2035 and 2025, respectively.

23 Elm St.

Life Science Building in East Watertown Approved by Zoning Board

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Elm Street PartnersA rendering of the new life science lab building approved to be built at 23 Elm St. The building to the right is the Residence Inn by Marriott hotel. Months after it first appeared before the Zoning Board of Appeal, a three story life science lab building at 23 Elm Street got approval to be constructed on Wednesday night. The proposal first came before the ZBA in February, at a meeting where board members expressed their concerns about the amount of parking for the then 78,000 sq. ft.

Election 2021

LETTER: Vote in November, the Town Election Will be an Important One

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Charlie BreitroseWatertown residents cast their ballots in 2020. Dear Watertown Residents,

I strongly urge you to vote in this fall’s municipal elections. As a lifelong resident, I know this election will be consequential! It will set the trajectory for Watertown for many decades to come, just like those held forty years ago did. What you will be voting for on NOVEMBER 2nd:

Town Council is your legislative branch.  They chair committees, pass ordinances, make budget recommendations, and most importantly, hire and fire the Town Manager, aka CEO. The Town Manager hires persons such as Assessor and Chief of Police. The current Town Manager is retiring after close to 30 years in the position.

Election 2021

LETTER: Councilor At-Large Candidate Seeks to Serve His Hometown

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John Airasian declared his candidacy for Town Councilor At-Large. My name is John Airasian and I hope to secure your vote for the Councilor At Large Race on November 2, 2021. I have lived in Watertown my entire life and have seen first-hand the extraordinary changes this community has gone through. I am a graduate of Watertown Public Schools (’95) and co-owner of Eastern Clothing also located here in East Watertown. My wife, Jackie, and I met here, and we have three boys: Vincent (11), Michael (10) and Jack (9).

Election 2021

Candidate List for 2021 Watertown Election Taking Shape, Several Seek At-Large Council Seats

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Updated July 28 at 3 p.m.:

A late rush of candidates for the Town Election means that there will be enough people running for Councilor At-Large to fill the seats, and then some. There will be at least five contested races if all the candidates’ signatures are certified. Last Wednesday, only three people had put in papers to run for the four Councilor At-Large seats, but by the end of Tuesday — the last day to submit papers and signatures — there were seven people who had turned in papers to run, and a few more possible. The people who turned in their nomination papers with at least 100 signatures required to run are: Anthony Palomba, Caroline Bays, John Gannon, James Mello, Daniel D’Amico, Megan O’Halloran, and John Airasian. Three others have pulled papers but had not turned in the signatures as of early Tuesday afternoon.