Around Town

Watertown LGBTQ-Owned Restaurant Receives Community Impact Grant 

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The following announcement was provided by the MA LGBT Chamber of Commerce:

Ritcey East, an LGBTQ-Owned business based in Watertown is among 12 small businesses statewide receiving a community impact grant from the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC). The business received a grant totaling $5,000. “LGBTQ-Owned businesses are an important piece of our Commonwealth’s economy and so this support not only helps each of the businesses receiving grants but also supports the communities they are a part of,” said Grace Moreno, Executive Director of the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce. “The LGBTQ community faces many barriers to creating small businesses and so we have a clear mandate to remove those barriers and find the resources to allow them to thrive. That is what our Chamber is all about.” 

The NGLCC Community Impact Grant Program, supported by the Grubhub Community Fund, annually provides financial support to businesses with grants ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.

Around Town

TV Host Visits Watertown to Meet Fans & Promote His Bourbon

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Jon Taffer, host of “Bar Rescue” poses with fans at an event at Gordon’s Fine Wine and Liquor last week. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

Last week, a line of people snaked around the aisles of Gordon’s Fine Wine and Liquor in Watertown. They eagerly awaited the entrance of the man after whom the drink they were purchasing was named. Jon Taffer arrived shortly after 6 p.m, and was greeted by a fellow TV personality, Jason Santos, when he stepped through the doors of the store inside Arsenal Yards. Santos also owns Buttermilk & Bourbon in Arsenal Yards.

Sports

Former Watertown Hockey Player Named Coach of Prep School

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Mike Busconi

Watertown High School graduate Mike Busconi will take the helm at The Winchendon School as the prep school’s head hockey coach. Busconi played for Watertown High School and served two years as captain. He made the Middlesex League All-Star team in 2012. After WHS, he attended The Winchendon School for a Post-Graduate year. “Super excited about it to be back,” Busconi told the New England Hockey Journal.

Schools

Old School Has New Look, Public Gets First Look Inside Lowell Elementary After Renovation

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Parents and students explore the learning commons, a new addition to Lowell Elementary School. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

Before the new Lowell Elementary School opened its doors on Tuesday afternoon, the hundreds gathers were entertained by student musicians, including the Lowell chorus who sang the Beatles’ song “Here Comes the Sun.” The song has a fitting line, “It seems like years since it’s been here.” The sun shone on the ceremony held outside Lowell School. The outside looked very similar to the school the students, teachers and staff left a few years ago, but inside it is filled with light, and features an expanded cafeteria, a new library, and a group learning commons with windows stretching two stories skyward.

Around Town

Watertown Rotary Club Welcomes Seniors to Cookout, Brings Back a Tradition

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Older residents filled the ballroom at the Sons of Italy for the Rotary Club’s Senior Citizens Cookout. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

A Watertown tradition was renewed on Sunday when the Rotary Club of Watertown welcomed hundreds of older residents to the Senior Citizens Cookout. The event at the Sons of Italy hall was the 28th, said Deb Boyajian, the Senior Cookout event chair, but there had been a break. “We haven’t had it since 2019, so we didn’t know what to expect in terms of how many people are going to come,” Boyajian said. Previous editions of the Senior Cookout were so popular that people lined up out the door to get in at the start of the event, said Rotary member Maria Papadopoulos.

Government

Watertown Tax Relief Takes Step Toward Approval in State House

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Wikimedia Commons / ChensiyuanMassachusetts State House. A request that would provide relief to residential property owners in Watertown moved a step toward approval when the House of Representatives approved the Home Rule Petition recently. In August 2022, City Councilors John Airasian and Emily Izzo brought forward the request, which was approved by the Council, to request that Watertown be able to shift the tax burden from residential properties to commercial, industrial and personal properties. Airasian was pleased to see the petition make progress: “This should have a sizeable impact on the residential real estate taxes.” Izzo added in her email to constituents:

“The Home Rule Petition brought to the City Council by Councilor Airasian and myself has passed the House and is now pending approval by the Senate.

Government

Council Approves Human Rights Commission Ordinance After Debating Role of New Board

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The City Council approved the ordinance creating a Human Rights Commission after debating whether board will hear complaints and have a role in resolving disputes. The Human Rights Commission was created as part of the changes to Watertown’s City Charter in 2021. The ordinance was drafted by the Council’s Committee on Rules & Ordinances with input from residents. Resident Rita Colafella said that the creation of the Human Rights Commission is timely. “There is strong support for the creation of the commission.

Government

Council Gives City Officials & Boards Ability to Set Fees, Wants Further Study on Enforcing Fees & Fines

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Watertown City Hall

Tuesday night the City Council gave other city boards and certain City employees the ability to set “reasonable rates” for fees without getting approval from the City Council. In another item, the Council sent the item that would enforce fees and fines by attaching them to tax bills with a municipal lien to a committee for more discussion. City Manager George Proakis said that in other communities where he has worked certain fees could be changed by boards or “officers,” or designated city employees without going to the Council for a vote. “I am always looking for opportunities to create more efficient and effective processes to address the way that we work through the issues in city government,” Proakis said. He said the change allows the Watertown government to be more “flexible and creative in the way that we ensure that fees match services.”