Around Town

Record Numbers Turn Out for 2019 Donohue’s Turkey Trot

By |

Runners of all shapes, sizes and breeds took part in the 2019 Donohue’s Turkey Trot. Despite the rainy weather on Thanksgiving morning, the 2019 Donohue’s Turkey Trot drew a record number of runners and walkers for the annual 5K run and walk. Donohue’s owner John Donohue announced that the number of participants eclipsed the 1,000 mark, more participants than any of the previous 13 editions. Turkey Trot participants withstood rainy and chilly weather in 2019. Many runners huddled inside Donohue’s Bar & Grill before the race to escape the wet, chilly conditions.

Around Town

Watertown Scouts Collect $10K in Items for Food Pantry

By |

Den leader Stephen Lipscomb works with Bear Scouts from Pack 30 to purchase $200 in shampoo and soap for clients of the Watertown Food Pantry. The following piece was provided by Watertown Boy Scout Troop 30 and Cub Scout Pack 30:

In what may be the largest-ever one-day event to benefit the Watertown Food Pantry, scouts on Saturday collected $10,000 worth of food at the Watertown Street Stop & Shop. 

That’s twice what was collected last year in the annual event called Scouting for Food. “I’m overwhelmed by the effort of all the boys and girls in the scouts,” said Kathleen Cunningham, Watertown Food Pantry Coordinator. “It’s amazing that all those parents and leaders make this work possible.”

Pack 30, with scouts age 5-10, and Troop 30, with scouts age 10-17, come together every year to collect donations for the Watertown Food Pantry. Last year, 200 bags of groceries were collected from Stop & Shop customers at 171 Watertown Street. The this year, the response from Stop & Shop customers was so great, scouts needed to change how they collect goods.

Around Town

Senior Center Hosting Holiday Party, Has Help with Medicare & More in December

By |

Watertown Senior Center

From the holiday events to help with Medicare Parts A and B to getting help with shoveling snow this weekend, the December edition of the Watertown Senior News is filled with information. From the Director

Season’s Greetings! The Watertown Senior Center will be offering some great programs in December that you won’t want to miss! We will be hosting the ever-popular Holiday Boxwood Trees event with Ernie Berardinelli; and local artist Dawn Scaltreto will be leading her final Zen Art workshop using vibrant alcohol inks to create stunning abstract artworks. On Dec.

Around Town

LETTER: Former Town Councilor Urges Support of Town/BB&N Fields Agreement

By |

A drawing of the proposed playing fields that BB&N School wants to build on Grove Street. The land currently belongs to Mount Auburn Cemetery. Dear friends and neighbors,

As many of you may have heard, the Mount Auburn Cemetery’s property on Grove Street is up for sale. Just next door to Filippello Park, the site is currently being leased by the Mount Auburn Hospital for employee parking. Most bidders on the lot are looking to build lab/office or residential space there. This means more cars on Grove Street and no chance at expanding our open and green space in Watertown. There’s also a historic home on the site called the Shick House which isn’t likely to be saved under that scenario. The Shick family once operated a dairy farm from that house in the mid 1900’s. The Trustees of the cemetery have a fiduciary responsibility to be responsible stewards of the cemetery’s assets for the long-term and have chosen to liquidate the asset. They’re going to make the responsible choice for their institution and one can hardly blame them.

Around Town

Watertown Hosting Pearl Harbor Ceremony in Watertown Square

By |

Members of Watertown’s veterans organizations talk before the Pearl Harbor Commemoration at the Watertown Dock in Watertown Square in 2017. The Watertown Veterans Service Office sent out the following information:

On Friday, Dec. 6, 2019 from 12:00-12:30 p.m., we will honor those who lost their lives during the Pearl Harbor attacks on Dec. 7, 1941. Please join us as we lay a ceremonial wreath and hold a brief ceremony honoring our fallen service members.

Around Town

Watertown Library Seeks Volunteers to Help Create Strategic Plan

By |

Watertown Free Public Library

The Watertown Free Public Library announced that it seeks Strategic Planning Volunteers to be part of the creation of the latest strategic plan. Libraries across Massachusetts are required to have a 3-5 year strategic plan on file with the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners to be eligible for construction or Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grants. An integral part of this process is to get input from the community. To do this, the Watertown Free Public Library has four opportunities for you to participate. First, and easiest, is by filling out a quick, four minute survey, available online at watertownlib.org/survey.

Around Town

LETTER: East End Councilor Calls Town’s Partnership with BB&N “Win-Win”

By |

A drawing of the proposed playing fields that BB&N School wants to build on Grove Street. The land currently belongs to Mount Auburn Cemetery. Hello East Enders,

Interesting possibilities are on the horizon…………. The private, Buckingham, Browne and Nichols School (BB&N) has shown an interest in purchasing the Mount Auburn Cemetery property at 165-183 Grove St. in our East End of Watertown.

Arkuda

Biotech Company Announces Move to Watertown’s Arsenal Yards

By |

The following information was provided by Boylston Properties:

Boylston Properties, a Boston-based real estate developer of distinctive places, today announced that Arkuda Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing therapies to change the trajectory of neurodegenerative disease, has signed a 10,819 square foot lease at Arsenal Yards’ new state-of-the-art life science lab space. Arkuda is the latest in a number of emerging, innovative life science companies to relocate from Kendall Square in Cambridge to Watertown’s booming biotech cluster. With openings beginning this month, Arsenal Yards is the perfect work environment for Boston area companies that hope to attract and retain talent. Arsenal Yards boasts more than one million square feet of development including lab and office space, diverse dining options such as City Works Eatery and Pour House, The Gallows, Tori Jiro, Shake Shack, and Condesa Restaurante and Tequila Bar, fresh groceries from Roche Bros., boutique fitness options, entertainment at the Majestic 7, green space, and more. “The relocation to Arsenal Yards has afforded Arkuda state-of-the-art facilities in what is quickly becoming a dynamic and flourishing biotech community,” said Gerhard Koenig, PhD, President and CEO, Arkuda Therapeutics.