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Councilor at Large Anthony Donato stepped down after four years. His final meeting was Dec. 14. In a relatively short time on the Council, Anthony Donato left his mark and was remembered by his colleagues as a sharp, detail oriented and, most of all, kind Councilor. After four years — two terms — Donato chose not to run for re-election as Councilor at Large.
A pedestrian struck and killed on a roadway in Dedham has been identified as a Watertown woman. The Norfolk County District Attorney’s office identified the woman as Marguerite Scanlon, 63, of Watertown, according to a post on the Norfolk DA’s Facebook page. “The matter remains under investigation by Dedham Police Department, with assistance from the Massachusetts State Police, and the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office and no charges are in place at this time,” the message reads. The incident occurred at about 5:30 p.m. on Monday on Bridge Street (Rte. 109) in Dedham, according to WCVB Channel 5.
People must wear face masks or coverings in Watertown while inside after the Board of Health reinstated the indoor face covering mandate Monday night. Health Director Larry Ramdin said cases of COVID-19 in Watertown have increased sharply since early November, and recommended the indoor face mask mandate be reinstated. The Board of Health voted unanimously to start the mandate on Dec. 21, 2021, and it will be in effect until rescinded by the Board. “We have had an explosion of cases in Town since the 3rd of November,” Ramdin said.
Retiring District A Councilor Angie Kounelis, right, with her mother Evangelia. After 16 years, Angeline Kounelis — Angie to most — represented District A for the final time as a Councilor on Dec. 14. She not only represented East Watertown, to many she spoke for them and was a trusted advocate for their needs. In the wake of her final Council meeting, Kounelis said she has been flooded with notes of thanks, congratulations and appreciation.
The following information was provided by the Watertown Police Department. Arrests
Dec. 6, 8:30 a.m.: An officer at the Watertown Library recognized a man who was wanted on a warrant. The man was placed under arrest without incident. Arvedis Vartanian, 68, of Waltham, was arrested on the warrant from Waltham District Court for larceny.
Ai3 ArchitectsA map of the proposed additions to O’Connell Field, shown in yellow. The white pathways are already in the plans. The athletic fields at O’Connell Field will likely be getting some upgrades as part of the construction of the new Hosmer Elementary School, but some neighbors are concerned about the loss of green space and other issues. At Wednesday night’s School Building Committee meeting, designers presented a preliminary design for upgrades to O’Connell Field, which runs along Mt. Auburn Street in front of the Brigham House and sits next to Hosmer’s playground.
Ai3 ArchitectsAn illustration of what the outside of the new Watertown High School will look like. The final design concept for the new Watertown High School project, and the budget of nearly $200 million, received approval from the School Committee and the School Building Committee on Wednesday night. The schematic design report, including the designs and the budget of $198.39 million, will be sent to the Massachusetts School Building Authority Board to be considered at its meeting on March 2, 2022. The project will be paid for by the City of Watertown through borrowing, but it will not require a temporary property tax override to cover the cost, said City Auditor Tom Tracy. “The Town is carrying $200 million in debt services for the high school project,” Tracy said.
The project design has reached its goal of Zero Net Energy, said Project Designer Jordan of Ai3 Architects, including 1.4 megawatts of electricity to be produced by the solar photovoltaic array at the school.
Charlie BreitroseWatertown City Hall
Some Watertown residents will be moved to a different precinct, and vote in a different location, after changes to the precinct boundaries were approved by the City Council Tuesday night. Precincts are changed every 10 years after the results of the Census are released. The changes were complicated by the fact that Watertown’s House districts also changed, with Precinct 9 moving from the 29th Middlesex (represented by Steve Owens) to the 10th Middlesex (John Lawn’s district). The Council had been scheduled to considered the changes at a previous meeting, but they found that the precincts didn’t match up for state and local elections, said City Council President Mark Sideris. “The first time we tried to do this there was going to be a situation where a constituent would have to vote in a city election in one place and a state election in a different place,” Sideris said.