Letters

LETTER: City Should Reverse Auto Opt-In for Electricity Choice

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Dear Councilors,

I am writing in disgust of the opt-out Electricity Choice notice I received today (attached).  I should be able to expect continuity-in-service and business-as-usual without having to read a notice and take action. Shame on you all for allowing this to happen. I am sure you will agree that a large percentage of residents are too busy to bother reading notifications and will likely discard the notice without action. The consequence of their inaction will occur sometime later when they notice a higher bill. We can only speculate on their reaction when they learn that Watertown moved them into a program without their consent and they will be furious at the opt-out burden that was placed on them. Regardless of an individual’s perspective on clean energy, they will be upset. My anger is doubled in the knowledge that “clean energy” is a lie.  I am sure there are still some folks in the town who still believe in the fairytales promoted by the climate zealots but I am not one. I have a first-hand, front row seat to the construction of wind turbines on Coxes Ledge. I have analyzed wind energy, particularly offshore wind energy, in great detail and it is flawed environmentally as well as economically.  The clean energy narrative is a lie!  It is not clean and it is not economical.

Letters

OP-ED: Housing Group Celebrates Well-Attended Forum on Building 100% Affordable Housing Projects

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One of the most pressing ways that our region’s housing shortage affects Watertown is through an acute lack of deed-restricted affordable housing. It’s quite simple: more of these units would help to keep Watertown’s working people in our city. Yet while Watertown’s inclusionary zoning policy ensures that a proportion of each market rate development’s units are set aside as affordable housing, this only chips away at the shortage. What if, instead, there was a way to build more developments that were composed of just workforce and lower income housing? As an effort to explore more expansive solutions to the affordable housing shortage, Housing for All Watertown hosted a forum on February 23rd to share more about what it will take to build these 100% affordable housing developments (click here for highlights of event).

Letters

LETTER: Questions About What’s Happening in Washington DC

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Dear Editor,

It appears that Americans are no longer seeking domestic tranquility and peace among nations, especially our allies. Certain media is reporting that the U.S. President is or has changed America’s policy and opinion in favor of a Federal, Semi-Presidential Republic under an Authoritarian Dictatorship.    

We know a Dictatorship form of governmental control has existed since man was first born.  I liken what is happening in America today to the reigns of the two French Kings Louis XIII, recognized for increasing the Power of the Monarchy, and Louis the XIV, Known as the “Sun King” for his Absolute Rule. The Three Musketeers served under both of these Kings, and notably were not good or bad, but rather complex characters with flaws, loyal only to each other and their King. Apparently, the dark side of the Musketeers prevailed and they went to Hell.

Letters

LETTER: Actions People Can Take Before the Midterm Elections

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Dear Editor,

I just attended “Protecting Democracy in the Era of Donald Trump including a Discussion of Citizens United” with State Senator Brownsberger at the Watertown Library. Attendees from Watertown, Waltham, Belmont, and Brighton got to express their concerns about the current situation in Washington, D.C., and asked how to impact it. The most salient point was to participate in the electoral process. Last night, we shared our concerns and asked Party representatives there what we can do?  I invite those who attended to share here because the local paper is a media, we the people, still possess. Some of you were so eloquent and some of you hit the nail on the head! I agreed with all of you. Remember it was pamphleteers, including our own Samuel Adams, that spread the unpopular idea for independence. Fair warning there will be responses from idolaters but there are more of us, left, right and center who share very similar concerns. An election won by 1.5% does not a mandate make. I will go first.

Letters

LETTER: Watertown Should Think Twice Before Adopting BERDO

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By Max Woolf

Fighting climate change is essential, but how we do it matters. Watertown is considering new rules that would shift the costs of decarbonization onto property owners, businesses, and renters. The proposed ordinance, known as BERDO, would have Watertown join Boston, Lexington, Cambridge, and Newton by requiring owners of properties 20,000 square feet or larger to track and reduce fossil fuel use — or face fines. While specific requirements and timelines vary based on building size, under the proposal, all large commercial and residential property owners in Watertown will have to take a combination of the following steps to comply:

● Hire a consultant to measure and benchmark energy use● Report energy use annually to the city● Take steps to reduce emissions, such as replacing gas boilers with heat pumps, upgrading HVAC systems and adopting other efficiency measures, or pay fines● Periodically verify energy data through third-party consultants at the owner’s expense● Implement efficiency upgrades, like installing new insulation, optimizing building controls, or reducing overall energy consumption, or pay fines● Possibly install on-site solar panels or instead purchase costly electricity offsets (even after completing retrofits)

On top of that, Watertown’s BERDO rules are different from Boston’s, Cambridge’s, Newton’s, or Lexington’s, and that’s a problem in and of itself because anyone who owns or manages property in multiple communities must navigate a different set of complex rules and deadlines. Watertown’s proposed ordinance also goes further than Newton’s, Cambridge’s, or Lexington’s, raising concerns about the city’s future affordability and competitiveness, not just against these communities but also communities across the region that have not adopted BERDO rules.

Letters

LETTER: Rock Salt – Cheap, Effective, and Very Harmful

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by Anne Harrington PhDTrees for Watertown

Rock salt is the No. 1 de-icer in the United States. It’s cheap, effective at melting snow and ice, and provides good traction on treated surfaces. But road salt is referred to as a “silent killer” because of the seen and unseen damage that it causes to infrastructure and the natural environment. Tons of rock salt are applied every winter in the U.S. Nearly half a million tons are used annually for winter road maintenance in Massachusetts alone (Source: EPA, Nov 2020).