Government

Memorials Approved to Honor Armenian Genocide Survivor & Little Girl Who Loved Reading

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Watertown City Hall

A survivor of the Armenian Genocide and a young girl who loved reading will be commemorated with memorials to be installed in Watertown. On Feb. 13, the City Council approved having a bench and a little library installed on City property. Memorial Bench

The bench commemorates Nazar Ohanessian, a survivor of the 1915 Armenian Genocide who settled on Quimby Street. He left Turkey and spent time in Northern Greece and Athens in the 1940s during the German occupation during World War II.

Around Town

Arsenal Park Improvements Approved, Project Cost Significantly Higher Than Expected

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Photo by Charlie BreitroseArsenal Park will be getting a major overhaul. Here it is set up for the Watertown Arts Market. The second phase of renovations at Arsenal Park was approved by the City Council, which will include improvements to the recreation areas, but came in more than $4 million higher than originally budgeted. On Tuesday night, the City Council unanimously approved borrowing $10.35 million to cover the cost of the project. The project will make significant improvements to the park in the East End, said City Manager George Proakis.

Government

Watertown City Council Hosting Remote-Only Meeting Tuesday

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The City Council will meet Tuesday night in a remote-only session. See more details below. The agenda includes a public hearing and vote on $10.3 million for the Arsenal Park Improvements Phase B project, and the City Council will hear requests for accepting gifts to be used as memorials in the City. The meeting will meet on Tuesday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. See the entire agenda here.

Around Town

Retiring Board of Health Member Honored by Council, New Member Appointed

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GradientDr. Barbara Beck. The City Council recently honored Watertown Board of Health board member Barbara Beck for her 28 years of service. When she announced her retirement from the Board of Health, the City Council passed a proclamation honoring Beck. “I’ve been really honored to serve on the Board of Health,” Beck said. “We started off working on hazardous materials recycling form auto body shops all they way through the pandemic to biotechs, it’s been a learning experience and an honor to be able to serve the people of this community.”

Around Town

TVs in Public Spots in Watertown to be Required to Use Closed Captioning

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Televisions in public areas in Watertown will be required to use closed captioning. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

Televisions in public areas in Watertown, including in restaurants and businesses, will have to turn on the closed captioning feature during regular hours. The City Council unanimously approved the ordinance requiring closed captioning, also called subtitles, at its Jan. 9 meeting. The ordinance was recommended to the Council by the Watertown Commission on Disability, City Council President Mark Sideris said.

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LETTER: Questions About New Position on Traffic Commission

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By Linda ScottWatertown Resident

Democracy?  I know you’re out there somewhere…

This is not a letter that I could even imagine having to write, but here goes. When I looked at Tuesday night’s agenda for the City Council meeting, I noticed an unusual item. Then I started getting phone calls. Other people were curious about this item as well. So I got curious. Why would there be a sudden change to the structure of the Traffic Commission without any visible input from them?

Around Town

Residential Snow Shoveling Requirement Approved by Council

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Watertown residents will be required to clear snow and ice from sidewalks in front of their homes within 24 hours of the end of a storm after the City Council passed the amendment to the City’s Snow and Ice Removal Ordinance. Under the new rules, residents face a fine for repeatedly not clearing sidewalks, but those will not be levied during the current winter. The vote Tuesday night was 6-3, and came after more than two hours combined public input and discussion by Councilors. Residents against the proposal brought up concerns about how the new rules would be enforced, potential liability, and even whether people should be required to remove snow and ice from sidewalks, which are owned by the City. They added that most people do shovel their sidewalks, so they don’t see the need for new regulations.