Around Town

How Unenrolled Voters Can Request a Vote-by-Mail Ballot

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The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

If you are voter filling out the Unenrolled Vote by Mail Application and you are NOT enrolled in a Party, you must select a Ballot type for the Primary elections on March 5, 2024 and September 3, 2024. 

To receive a primary ballot by mail, you must choose a Democratic, Republican, or Libertarian ballot. The application is incomplete and cannot be processed without a ballot selection and the voter’s signature. Please call the City Clerk at 617-715-8686 for help answering your questions.

Around Town

See What’s Happening in February at the Watertown Senior Center

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Watertown Senior CenterThe Watertown Senior Center. The Watertown Senior Center will host programs on heart health, tax preparation and has trips to museums around the area in February. See more information about what’s happening at the Senior Center in the monthly Watertown Senior News, provided by the Department of Senior Services, below:

February is National Heart Disease Awareness month, please join us for a Heart Health Presentation with Stroke Nurse Marie McCune, of the Mount Auburn Hospital, Wednesday, February 21, at 3:30 pm. This month, we offer trips to the Boston College Art Museum on February 2nd, the Institute of Contemporary Art on February 9th, the MA Historical Society on February 12th, the Armenian Museum on February 16th, and the Peabody Essex Museum on February 26th. We will have a tour of the Watertown Square branch of the Watertown Savings Bank on February 13th.

Around Town

MBTA Holding Meeting on Proposed Fare Changes

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MBTA Bus. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

The following announcement was provided by the MBTA:

The MBTA will host an in-person public meeting on Thursday, February 1, at Cristo Rey Boston High School in Dorchester from 6 PM to 8 PM regarding proposed MBTA fare changes. The MBTA is proposing an expansion of reduced fares eligibility to riders with low income and other fare changes, including replacing change tickets with CharlieCards on buses and the Green and Mattapan lines and a permanent $10 Holiday Weekend Passes. If approved, these changes will go into effect in spring 2024. Riders and the public are encouraged to attend and can learn more at mbta.com/2024FareChanges.  

Accessibility

These meetings are accessible to people with disabilities and those with limited English proficiency. Accessibility accommodations and language services will be provided free of charge, upon request, as available.

Around Town

TVs in Public Spots in Watertown to be Required to Use Closed Captioning

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Televisions in public areas in Watertown will be required to use closed captioning. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

Televisions in public areas in Watertown, including in restaurants and businesses, will have to turn on the closed captioning feature during regular hours. The City Council unanimously approved the ordinance requiring closed captioning, also called subtitles, at its Jan. 9 meeting. The ordinance was recommended to the Council by the Watertown Commission on Disability, City Council President Mark Sideris said.

Around Town

Area at Filippello Park May be Turned into Pickleball Courts

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Recreation Department:

The City of Watertown is interested in repurposing the court space at Filippello Park to include 6 new pickleball courts. Attend this meeting to share your thoughts, and to learn about the proposal and timeline. Location: Hosmer School Learning Commons, 1 Concord Road

Date: February 20, 2024

Time: 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Questions? Email parksprojects@watertown-ma.gov

Around Town

LETTER: Trees Need to be Protected in Watertown

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To the Editor:

Ghost tree

Your fifty foot tall, towering presence would have held snow on your strong, healthy boughs today. Mourning doves would have stood on the boughs near your trunk for protection from the wind, their winter coats puffed up cozy among your pine needle feathers. Mother tree, so many miss you today. Rabbits’ secret shelter under boughs at your trunk, no longer here to offer a safe place to laugh at my barking dog. Chickadee, junco, winter birds who would rest on your branches when hawk was distracted elsewhere. They waited for me to fill the tube with seed to sustain them in this small piece of forest in city.

Around Town

Tonight: Health and Human Services Community Forum

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The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

This is a reminder about the Health & Human Services Community Forum happening on Monday, January 29, 2024 in the Watertown Free Public Library! This event will begin at 6:00pm and all residents are encouraged to attend and participate! This event is hosted by the City of Watertown and will be facilitated by the consultancy group, Health Management Associates. As part of the City’s on-going health and human services study, this forum looks to give residents the opportunity to share their perspectives into the health and human services offered here in Watertown, all with the goal of identifying how to make the city a healthier, more resourceful community for all! We encourage all residents to attend and participate in what we anticipate being a great event!