Around Town

Longtime Owner of Meat Spot Retiring, Passing on Business

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Charle BreitroseDick Ucuz, who has owned The Meat Spot for 32 years, will be retiring soon. He has sold the business and the new owners will keep the deli and butcher shop going. For more that three decades, Dick Ucuz has served up sandwiches, cut fresh meat, and provided other edible delights from The Meat Spot. This week is one of his last at the business that has been in Watertown Square for more than a century. Fans of The Meat Spot can be comforted that the business has been sold to new owners who will continue to serve the same favorites.

Around Town

Watertown to Hold First Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration

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Jennifer KavanaughA performance of New Rep Theatre’s “Listen to Sipu” will be part of Watertown’s first Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration. Here Maria Hendricks portrays Sipu during a performance in 2021 at the Arsenal on the Charles. The following announcement was provided by the organizers of Watertown’s Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration:

Watertown’s first celebration of Indigenous Peoples Day will be held on Monday, Oct. 10, 2022, from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. at First Parish Watertown, 35 Church St., Watertown. The free event will feature Indigenous speakers, a presentation of the New Repertory Theatre play Listen to Sipu, and Indigenous musicians, artists and vendors.  

Geri Barney, member of Navajo nation, will welcome participants with flute music followed by keynote speaker Elizabeth Solomon, representative of the Massachusett tribe.

City Council

Council to Look at Neighbor Notifications About Projects, Rodent Control Plan & Hiring Department Heads

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Watertown City Hall

After hearing from residents about not being informed about key meetings about development projects in Watertown, the City Council will discuss ways to improve communications with neighbors of such projects. The City will also work on creating a rodent control plan, and the City Manager will be filling three key positions. On Tuesday, City Council President Mark Sideris said that he heard from residents who were frustrated that they did not know about the proposed project at 148 Waltham St. “We it comes to development we put in place the requirement for community meetings, but one thing that came out, particularly with the Sterritt Lumber site — and I thank Councilor (Emily) Izzo for her efforts — but we don’t have a process with notifying neighbors when a hearing is coming up,” Sideris said. “We do notify the immediate abutters, but we can do a better job.

Government

City May Change Rules for Demolishing Historic Buildings

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A City Council Committee has started looking at doubling the maximum delay for demolition of a historic home or building, but also to remove many properties from consideration for the demo delays. The Historical Commission can put a delay on demolishing homes and buildings that have historic significance in an effort to find a way to preserve them, including finding a person or group to buy it and save it. The Commission can prevent a structure from being demolished. The current maximum delay is 12 months. Currently, projects that must be heard by the Historical Commission include any building 50 years old or older.

Government

Council Approves Funds for Highland Ave. Repaving, Numbers Higher Than Planned

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The City Council approved funds to repave and install new sidewalks on Highland Avenue, but the project will cost more than originally anticipated. The total cost of the project will be $2.96 million for the project that also includes Chapman Street, said City Manager George Proakis, and $2 million will come from the loan order approved by the Council Tuesday night. The remaining funds will come from other Department of Public Works accounts. The loan is more than previous years for similar projects on longer roads in Watertown. “I recommend putting $2 million toward that this year, where we originally talked about $1.5 million,” Proakis said.

Around Town

Group Ends 3 Decades of Helping Watertown Families of Children with Special Needs

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Donald MacDonaldMembers of the Friends of Matt Galligan Board gathered to mark the end of the Watertown-based non-profit. Pictured, Front L-R: Raymond Forte, Kelley MacDonald, Gussie Forte, Susan Calden, Cindi Galligan, Lynda Messina. Back L-R:
Edmund Griffin, Allen Gallagher, Frank Galligan, Stephen Messina, Kevin Calden. Missing Board Members: John Madden, John Bartley, Deborah Kelley. A local non-profit called The Friends of Matt Galligan recently disbanded, but not until providing financial assistance to Watertown families that have children with disabilities for more than three decades.

Arrests

Police Log: Loud Music Call Leads to Arrest, Shoplifter Caught Near Store

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests

Sept. 14, 1:45 a.m.: Police received a call about a vehicle playing loud music and disturbing residents on Repton Circle. When officers arrived they found a vehicle in the middle of the driveway, blocking it, with a man sitting in the driver’s seat and the motor running. An open can of Corona beer was found in the cup holder of the center console, and six empty beer cans were found.