Sports

Watertown Field Hockey Coach Named National Coach of the Year

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Watertown Field Hockey Coach Eileen Donahue has been named national coach of the year. Here she speaks to the Raiders during a 2024 State Tournament game. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

The Watertown Public Schools provided the following piece:

Watertown High School field hockey coach Eileen Donahue has been named the field hockey Coach of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations, adding another award to her Hall of Fame career. Donahue, who was honored as the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Coach of the Year for field hockey in December, has molded the Watertown Raiders field hockey program into one of the most decorated high school athletics programs in the United States. Her 22 state championships are the most in Massachusetts field hockey history.

Around Town

City to Install Electric Vehicle Chargers in Four Lots, Will Eventually Charge for Power

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Watertown residents will have more places to charge electric vehicles (EVs) in public parking lots. For now, the charging will be available for free, but in the next several months the City will begin charging for the electricity. A loan order approved by the City Council on Tuesday will allow the City to purchase eight charging stations to go in four locations: Nichols Avenue Lot, the Phillips Building (the lot for the School Administration’s office and the Senior Center behind 30 Common St.), at the John A. Ryan Skating Rink (1 Paramount Place), and at the Police Station (552 Main St.). The two chargers at the skating rink will be fast chargers, and the other locations will get two dual-port charging stations, said City Manager George Proakis. He added that the loan is for $180,000 and the projected cost of the eight stations is about $136,000, so the City will look at a couple other locations to install EV chargers.

Government

Council to Consider Ordinance Proposed to Make Large Buildings be Net Zero by 2050

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Photo by Charlie BreitroseWatertown City Hall

Watertown will explore creating an ordinance requiring buildings to reduce their carbon emissions and will base it on similar ordinances adopted by other communities in Massachusetts. Work has already begun on drafting a Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance, or BERDO, with a proposed ordinance having been submitted by the Watertown Environment and Energy Efficiency Committee (WE3C). City Manager George Proakis told the City Council on Tuesday that creating a BERDO would “implement a key part of the City’s Climate Plan.” The Resilient Watertown Climate & Energy Plan was passed in 2022. “I have often said (the plan) has many ambitious but achievable goals to address our climate crisis and establish a process in our climate resiliency and climate adaptation, and we’ve worked very hard to do that in a number of different ways,” Proakis said. “What that plan did is also provide strategies to reduce carbon emissions for buildings and called out the necessity for building performance standard ordinance.”

Sports

Watertown Field Hockey Player Named Globe Athlete of the Year, Another Makes All-Scholastic Team

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The Watertown field hockey team player Rachel Egan was named Athlete of the Year by the Boston Globe. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

On top of completing an undefeated career as Watertown field hockey players, two Raiders were honored by making the Boston Globe’s All-Scholastic team, including one being named Athlete of the Year. Also, see the Watertown athletes who made the Middlesex League All-Stars for all fall sports. The Globe selected Senior Rachel Egan as the Div. 3 Athlete of the Year.

Schools

Changes to School’s Extended Day Program But No Extra Seats; Plans for PreK & Preschool

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The Watertown Public Schools Extended Day program has been so popular that it consistently has more applications than spots available. School officials said the number of spots will not be increased, but efforts will be made to try to prevent students being on the waitlist for more than one year. The School Committee heard updates on the Extended Day — the district’s after school program for children in grades K-5 — as well as the PreK and district’s Preschool programs at its Jan. 6 meeting. Debi Cornelius, Director of Community Education, said the Extended Day Program is full with 410 students, and officially has 35 students on the waitlist, including 14 at Hosmer, 15 at Lowell and 6 from the PreK program.

Around Town

New England Patriots Honor Longtime Perkins School Volunteer as a Difference Maker

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Chairman and CEO of the Kraft Group and the New England Patriots Robert Kraft takes a group photo with the 2024 Patriots Difference Makers of the Week. (Photo courtesy of David Silverman/New England Patriots). The New England Patriots honored volunteers on Jan. 5 during a ceremony honoring the 2024 Patriots Difference Makers, including a woman who had volunteered at Perkins School for the Blind for two decades. See details in the announcement from the New England Patriots Foundation below.

Government

Woman Honored for Her 40+ Years Working for the City and Her Upcoming Retirement

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Surrounded by family, friends, and colleagues, Ingrid Marchesano celebrated her upcoming retirement from the City of Watertown after more than 40 years. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

The City Council Chamber was packed with people recently, not for a government meeting but to celebrate a woman who has dedicated nearly half a century working for the Town (now City) of Watertown. Jan. 28 will be Ingrid Marchesano’s final day working for the City of Watertown. Before she left, on Dec.