Government

City Council Will Consider Special Committee’s Recommendations to Raise Council Salaries Nearly 70%

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Watertown City Hall

The committee appointed to study City Council compensation is recommending that Councilors get a raise of more than $6,000. The compensation proposal will be considered by the Council Tuesday night at the Council Meeting. The Blue Ribbon Committee, a group of seven residents, met seven times and looked at councilor salaries in other communities, interviewed Watertown City Councilors, and came up with four recommendations including raising salaries. The last time the Council changed its compensation it used a cost of living percentage of 2.5 percent per year. In January 2023, it increased the salary of Councilors from $7,500 to $8,900, and the Council President’s Salary from $10,500 to $12,000.

Letters

LETTER: Chamber Supports Increasing City Council Compensation

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Dear President Sideris,

The Charles River Regional Chamber supports the Blue Ribbon Commission’s proposal to increase City Councilor and Council President compensation. Public service is demanding, often thankless work. If we want to continue attracting talented, diverse, and committed civic leaders, especially those who may not be independently wealthy or retired, we must offer compensation that at least begins to reflect the time, energy, and responsibility these positions require. Most importantly, improved compensation reflects the value of public service and strengthens our democracy by broadening the pool of individuals who can realistically serve. The commission’s recommendation is the result of a thorough data-driven examination of peer communities, taking into account the city’s budget and core responsibilities.

Government

City Watertown Retirees Will Get a Pension Boost After Council Vote

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This week, the City Council voted to give City retirees an increase in their pension benefits, while maintaining a fully-funded pension system. Retirees typically get an annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) of 3 percent a year, said City Manager George Proakis, but that increase only applies to the first $14,000. On May 13, the Council voted to increase the amount that the COLA is applied to by $1,000. The pension number is fixed based upon an employee’s years of service and their age when they retired, Proakis said. The increase came at the request of the Watertown Retirement Board, said City Council President Mark Sideris.

Government

City Councilor Caroline Bays Hosting Annual Public Meeting

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City Councilor At-Large Caroline Bays. As part of the changes to the Watertown Charter all City Councilors must have an annual meeting to meet with the public. City Councilor At-Large Caroline Bays announced the date of her meeting. See info below. Please join City Councilor Caroline Bays at her Annual City Councilor Meeting on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, from 6-7:30 p.m.

The meeting will take place in the Third Floor Conference Room in City Hall, 149 Main Street, Watertown.

Government

Staffing for Second Watertown-Run Ambulance Approved by City Council

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The Watertown Fire Department got approval to run a second ambulance after the City Council approved funding to staff the ambulance on Tuesday. The vote came a couple weeks after the City Council’s Committee on Budget & Fiscal Oversight heard a presentation from Fire Chief Ryan Nicholson and members of the City administration. That meeting was the second hearing on adding a second ambulance. Nicholson said when calls are handled by the contracted ambulance run by Pro EMS, it takes longer to get to calls, and the City is losing reimbursement for the transportations to hospital when the outside ambulance handles a call. Additionally, he said that Watertown’s paramedics are overworked, morale is low, and several have left the WFD.

Government

City Councilor Tony Palomba Will Hold Two Annual Meetings

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Tony Palomba seeks re-eleciton as Town Councilor At-Large. City Councilor At-Large Tony Palomba announced he will host a pair of meeting with the public. See the announcement below. Please join me at one of my Councilor Annual Meetings.  Each councilor is required to hold at least one community meeting annually. This is required of our City Charter. I have chosen to hold two meetings in order to give the residents of Watertown a couple of options. 

The meetings will be on Wednesday, April 30 from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM and again on Thursday, May 1 from 5:30 PM to 7:30 PM. Both meetings will take place in the Mastrangelo Room on the second floor of the Watertown Free Public Library. There is no formal agenda nor will there be a formal presentation.

Government

Council Update: City Logo Not Going Ahead, Capital Projects Funded, Support for Community Media Bill

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On April 22, 2025, the City Council voted to approve funding for capital projects, heard from the City Manager about the City logo, heard about the re-organization plan, set limits for revolving funds, and supported a bill on Beacon Hill about Community Media Programming. See the highlights of the meeting provided by Municipal Policy Analyst Doug Newton. City Council Newsletter 

Please see below for the city council’s newsletter for its meeting on April 22, 2025. You can view the video recording of the meeting here. President’s Report

The council president informed the council and the public that four visioning sessions have been held discussing what might be needed in designing the middle school which have been very informative.

Government

Council Update: FY26 Budget, Hometown Hero, Police Dog & More

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On April 8, 2025, City Council heard the City Manager’s FY26 budget presentation, recognized a hometown hero, heard updates on BERDO, the referral of the Demolition Delay Ordinance for review, and met the new Watertown Police dog. See the highlights of the meeting provided by Municipal Policy Analyst Doug Newton

City Council Newsletter 

Please see below for the city council’s newsletter for its meeting on April 8, 2025. You can view the video recording of the meeting here.  

Mary Barry Honored as a Hometown Hero

Mary Barry, a lifelong resident of Watertown who served as a volunteer in the food pantry for over thirty years, a Parent Teacher Association member for twenty years, among many other roles such as Town Meeting Member, Brownie Girl Scout Leader, and Election Worker in Precinct Three, was honored with a proclamation at Tuesday’s council meeting as a Hometown Hero. 

Mary spoke after receiving the proclamation and expressed that she wishes the rest of the world could be more like Watertown. The full proclamation can be read here.  

Manager Presentation of FY26 Budget

The significant majority of Tuesday’s meeting consisted of City Manager George Proakis presenting his FY26 budget to the council. The presentation given by the manager can be viewed here, and his full FY26 budget can be accessed here. 

The submitted budget contains expenditures totaling $223,660,433.