Development

LETTER: Resident Worries CVS Will Erode Character of Coolidge Square

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Editor,

I am unbelievably disappointed that the Town of Watertown appears to be intending to go ahead with plans for a 13,000 sq. foot CVS in Coolidge Square. Such a decision would begin the erosion of the last vestige of true Watertown character that is left here. I bought a house in Watertown over 30 years ago, after returning from a year+ spent in Greece on a fellowship. On one of my first trips to an Armenian market in Coolidge Square, I saw some refrigerated cheese that reminded me of a fabulous village cheese I had eaten daily in Crete.

Development

LETTER: Resident Calls for Resignation of ZBA After CVS Vote

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Councilors,

On January 28, a discouraging event in town governance occurred here in this chamber. Against the wishes of 400 hundred Watertown residents who signed a petition; in disregard of the testimony of approximately 40 East End neighbors; against the advice of the Planning Board; contrary to the expressed goals of the Comprehensive Plan; but in accordance with the advice and counsel of Town Planning staff, the Zoning Board of Appeals voted 5-0 to approve a special permit for a proposed CVS project that a preponderance of Watertown residents feel detrimental to Coolidge Square and the East End in general. This decision is one in a long history of poor development decisions in Watertown that can fairly be described as acts of municipal self-mutilation. Many residents feel that the character of Watertown is being destroyed project by project. This dysfunction must end now.

Government

OP-ED: Town Manager’s Statement on the Fire Contract Negotiations

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At Tuesday’s Town Council meeting Town Manager Michael Driscoll addressed the situation with the Local 1347 firefighters union contract and the Council’s vote in December. Here is his statement:

In recent weeks there have been media articles and Letters to the Editor written about the Town Council’s decision on December 9, 2014 to reject a request to fund the arbitration award that was issued in connection with the Town’s efforts to reach a successor collective bargaining agreement with the Fire Union. Some of that discussion has included comments that the Union and the Town Manager followed a process – the arbitration process – and suggested that the Town Council’s vote somehow violated that process. Contrary to what some would have the public believe, however, the Town Council, by state statute, was also given a role in the overall process and that was to decide whether to fund or not fund an arbitration award like the one that was issued in this case. As set forth in Chapter 1078 of the Acts of 1973, once the Arbitrator issued his award the Executive Branch – in this case the Town Manager – was required to submit to the Legislative Branch – the Town Council – a request for an appropriation necessary to fund the award.

Government

LETTER: Resident Thinks Town Bargained Unfairly with Fire Union

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We have heard several Town Councilors tell the public that funding the arbitration award for the Local 1347 would not have been fair to other public employees. They have cited the fact that all other unions agreed to accept their predetermined parameters of no raises for two years and that the arbitration award did not meet that same criteria because of an increase in EMT / Defibrillator stipend pay. Comparing the outcome of previously negotiated contracts to the outcome of an independent, third-party review such as arbitration is both deceptive and disrespectful. Town officials made a decision in 2009 to treat all public employee unions as one during the negotiation process. The town failed to realize that each separate labor union has a right to not accept those bargaining terms. The town took a risk in using this negotiation tactic as their sole collective bargaining strategy, and the result of this gamble is a lack of a negotiated contract for local firefighters. In my opinion, the town setting these parameters and expecting that all unions comply does not meet the definition of negotiation.

Government

LETTER: Town Unions In Support of Firefighters

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Recently, the Watertown Town Council voted against a third party arbitrator’s award. This award would have settled a contract with our firefighters, who have been working without a contract for over five years. Prior to the vote, a majority of the councilors stated, “…that it would not be fair to other unions in Watertown…” as a reason not to settle the contract. We are writing to set the record straight and state that a false assumption has been made in the logic that (all) the other unions in Town would be offended if the Town settled with the firefighters. To be clear, the Watertown Educators Association, the Police Association, the Police Supervisors, the Town Hall Associates, the Custodians and Food Service Workers support the Town of Watertown accepting the arbitrator’s decision and thereby settling the firefighters’ contract.

Environment

LETTER: Neighborhood Solar’s Thank You

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Now that Neighborhood Solar has drawn to a close, I wish to thank all who made this program a success. First thanks go to Ben Mayer of SunBug Solar and all of SunBug Solar for being willing to be Neighborhood Solar’s installer. A solar program is only as good as its installer, and Neighborhood Solar was lucky enough to have the very, very best. Next, Neighborhood Solar is truly a neighborhood endeavor and thanks go to Gary Shaw, a LEED architect, who spent hours with me at SunBug headquarters planning the program and picking the equipment. My kitchen cabinet of Katherine Codega and Deb Hopper with open laptops, iPad, and good munchies made the website a possibility. A special thanks to Katherine for her design and maintenance of Neighborhood Solar’s website.  She also designed the lay-out for Neighborhood Solar’s cards. And her niece, Kathy Codega, designed our wonderful logo.  The enthusiasm and help of these neighbors made this project happen. Michael Fredrickson and Andy Compagna deserve thanks for hearing the details, offering advice, and having much patience and good humor throughout the program’s inception and duration. A thank you to Sophia Hecht, who used many community service hours, walked the streets with me, and handed out Neighborhood Solar literature and cards.

Government

LETTER: Fire Union President Reacts to Council Rejecting Contract

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As President of the Watertown Firefighters Union, Local 1347, I write today to express my and my membership’s extreme disappointment with the Town Council’s decision to reject the Joint Labor Management Committee’s (JLMC) decision relative to the collective bargaining agreement between the Local and the Town. The tripartite JLMC panel, comprised of a management representative, a labor representative and a neutral arbitrator is empowered by Chapter 589 of the Acts of 1987 to resolve disputes between public safety employees (who by statute lack the ability to go on strike like all the other unions) and cities/towns that have remained unresolved for unreasonable periods of time. In this case, after nearly 6 fruitless years of bargaining, mediation and arbitration the JLMC, after reviewing supportive documentation from both parties and hearing their testimony rendered their decision known as an “award” in late October 2014. The award included the accepted proposals from both parties that this neutral panel believed to fairly represent the wants and needs of the parties collectively. Not all of either parties’ proposals were accepted by the panel.

Environment

LETTER: Watertown Resident Joining Community Solar Program

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Dear Editor and Watertown Neighbors,

I know that many of you have received information about a current Watertown solar initiative called Neighborhood Solar. Recently, my husband, David Breakstone, and I decided to explore this option.  We had no idea what to expect. 

I attended one of the informational meetings and found Ben Mayer of SunBug well-organized, informative, and willing to answer all questions. The program and the process made sense, so David and I asked SunBug Solar, Neighborhood Solar’s installer, to do a site visit and give us a proposal. We thought we would not be good candidates because our roof is already partly covered with solar thermal panels for hot water. Ben Mayer’s site visit affirmed that we could indeed have solar photovoltaic panels.