Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/page/5/)
Watertown City and State officials appeared before a joint committee at the State House on Jan. 27, 2026. Pictured, from left, Steve Owens, George Proakis, John Lawn, Earl Smith, and Mark Sideris.
City officials from Watertown joined state representatives on Beacon Hill to request an extension to a bill that allowed Watertown to shift more of the property tax burden from residential properties to commercial properties. The shift would allow a 50/50 split, instead of the current requirements of state law to have 61 percent of the tax levy coming from residential properties.
Longtime dining destination, Not Your Average Joe’s, will be closing after more than a quarter century in Watertown Square.
The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department.
Steve Magoon
Steve Magoon has seen the transformation of large sections of Watertown, and played a major role in the creation of some of the City’s most important planning documents during his time working for the City. Magoon will retire at the end of January after more than 17 years as director of the Department of Community Development and Planning.
See the refined conceptual design for Walker Pond at the third and final community meeting on Feb. 5 at 6 p.m. at the Jewish Community Day School, at 57 Stanley Ave. See details provided by the City of Watertown, below.
Wednesday afternoon at 4 p.m. at the John A. Ryan Arena, with Watertown/Wayland Raiders Hockey in the midst of a seven-game losing streak, one and all were treated to an excellent hockey game. Watertown/Wayland was faced with the challenge of trying to end the losing streak against the Winchester Red & Black, ranked 14th in the Boston Globe Top 20 as of last week and fresh off a big win at Belmont.
Plenty of open houses to check out in town this weekend.
Members of the Watertown Police Department discussed different technology used by the WPD, including a proposal to use the Flock Safety cameras. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)
A room full of residents expressed their concerns about the Watertown Police Department’s proposed use of Flock Safety cameras in town, with the biggest issues about how the images collected by the license plate capturing system would be used outside Watertown and who would have access. As the debate over whether cameras should be used in the City, legislation at the state level could help reduce concerns.
Tuesday’s game versus Arlington was likely one Watertown Coach Mike Tempesta had circled on his schedule, especially after Watertown made it to this game 6-2 in league play and Arlington 7-1. It would surely be a chance to measure one’s success to date, and figure out what kind of team he had when facing the strength of the league.
The cast of the Sudbury Savoyards The Gondoliers includes two performers from Watertown, Santo Mammone, who is playing Giuseppe, and Karen Powers who is in the chorus of the Gilbert and Sullivan play. See more details in the announcement from the Sudbury Savoyards, below.
The following announcement was provided by Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice & the Environment:
The Watertown Citizens for Peace and Common Security Committee is holding a webinar on the Nuclear Disarmament Resolution in order to better inform the public about this issue which is on the City Council calendar for February 10, 2026.
The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department.