Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/category/letters/page/75/)
Dear Editor,
On September 28th, a large group of Watertown citizens met to talk about the November 4th Election. We all felt the Ballot Questions were extremely important, and all faced monied opposition. We voted and endorsed our majority opinion on these questions. Later 25 citizens chipped in to print up our positions and take the issue voter to voter. On Question #1 we voted NO to the repeal of the indexed gas tax.
To the Editor,
We are writing to support the choice of the Grove Street entrance to Filippello Park for the East End Dog Park, using the guidelines written by the Watertown Dog Park Task Force more than a year ago. We are grateful for the other off leash dog parks. There is a need for a somewhat larger one in this area with larger numbers of people potentially using it. 15,000 sq ft is an optimal size and possible in this space. It is accessible and part of a well-used neighborhood park and, most importantly, in the middle of a well-trafficked area.
Re: AthenaHealth LLC and Arsenal on the Charles
We appreciate the Town Council’s delay on the vote for AthenaHealth’s proposal for changes to the AODD. We are assuming they have realized, like we have, that we need more details from them in order to make an informed decision. Any changes to the AODD should be considered with the future in mind: how will these changes affect Watertown’s ability to control what happens on that property while AthenaHealth owns it, as well as after they have gone. We hope AthenaHealth stays for the long term and works with the town in good faith, but businesses come and go, so we shouldn’t give away our rights to some determination on that property. To this end, we are asking the Town Council and relevant town departments to do the following:
1.
Watertown Recreation Director Peter Centola shared a couple of letters supporting the proposed renovation of the track area of Victory Field:
The Watertown High School Athletic Program has benefited greatly from the Victory Field Renovation Project. It has been two years since we first took the field on Thanksgiving Day versus Belmont. We have received many days of playability that we would never have had on the grass field at Victory. We have had very few cancellations due to poor weather. The number of athletes that use the field can be seen on a daily basis.
Watertown’s Warren Tolman send out a thank you letter to his supporters during his campaign for Attorney General, despite the outcome. Here is Tolman’s letter:
Dear Friend,
Thank you! These past ten months have been an exciting journey. Even though last Tuesday was not our day, I am incredibly grateful for your support throughout this campaign. While our mission did not end as we had hoped, I am very proud of the campaign we ran and the dedicated team which worked tirelessly to build a winning coalition stretching across Massachusetts.
As Watertown reviews and finalizes the Comprehensive Plan, the Stormwater Advisory Committee would like to draw your attention to stormwater management in our community. The Charles River is recognized as a key asset to our community life, and the Plan recommends restoring other water assets, such as Sawins and Williams Ponds. For the Charles and the ponds, polluted stormwater is a major, ongoing cause of contamination. Stormwater comes from rainfall and snow melt — they sound so pure, don’t they? But in a town like Watertown, not enough stormwater soaks into the ground, which would filter and clean the water.
Enough is enough! I oppose:
As a resident of Irving Street for over 58 years and property owner, I am convinced that this plan will exacerbate the Irving Street/Arsenal Street corridor. Irving Street provides important access for emergency vehicles so they can quickly get to emergency situations, as it did during the “Marathon Bombers” terrorist attacks in Watertown. In the first place, the location surrounding the proposed housing of 300 units, a market, a restaurant and retail shops is already an overly dense area, and not suitable for the Greystar development project. I am convinced that the project will definitely have an adverse affect on the neighborhood.
To the Editor:
On Thursday, September 11th the Watertown Recreation Department hosted the first of two required public meetings regarding Phase II of the Victory Field renovation project. Roughly 100+ project stakeholders attended the presentation, including our Town Manager, local elected officials, high school varsity coaches, Victory Field abutters, and residents from throughout the community. After hearing presentations from the Recreation Department and project consultants, attendees were invited to speak and ask questions to gain a better understanding of the draft proposal. A majority of attendees shared their concerns with the project team; most referencing the economic, environmental, and health impacts related to the proposed synthetic turf that would replace existing natural grass within the track. Several attendees did speak in favor of the proposal, citing the increasing demand for appropriate practice times by Watertown High School athletic teams.
During the forum, Recreation Department Director Peter Centola confirmed to me that the fundraising efforts of Phase I have concluded with only 20% (roughly $300,000 on a $1.5M target) being raised. The project, we were informed, is now being paid entirely for by monies borrowed by the town due to the fact that, according to Centola, “the fundraising goal was too ambitious”.