Around Town

Learn About the Watertown Public Works Department at an Open House

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Watertown’s Department of Public Works will host an open house on Tuesday, May 20 at the DPW Facility on Orchard Street. See more in the announcement from the City of Watertown below. Watch the walk-and-talk with DPW Director, Tom Brady in preparation for the DPW Open House event with the Watertown Public Works team on May 20, 2025 at 5-7:30 p.m. at 124 Orchard Street in Watertown! View this post on Instagram A post shared by City of Watertown, MA (@watertownmagov)

Watch and hear about Tom’s career, his inspirations, his dogs, and more. Have a question for the Public Works team?

Around Town

Water Service Restored After Pipe Break in East Watertown

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Water service was restored to residents of the East End on Tuesday afternoon several hours after a water main break near Coolidge Square. The announcement from the City about the water supply main break went out at about 10:40 a.m. on April 22. The break occurred at Elton and Nichols avenues. Repairs were completed by the Department of Public Works Tuesday afternoon, with the announcement going out at about 3:30 p.m.

The City advised residents that their water may be impacted by the break, including being discolored. “If your water is discolored, it is recommended to run your cold water through a faucet until it clears up,” the announcement from the City said.

Around Town

DPW Earth Day Event Will Include Styrofoam & Mattress Recycling, Paper Shredding & Get a Sapling

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The following information was provided by the Department of Public Works:

Watertown Public Works will be hosting an Earth Day Event on Saturday April 19, 2025, from 10:00am – 2:00pm at the Jewish Community Day School Parking Lot – 57 Stanley Ave, for Watertown residents only (bring your ID). The event includes paper shredding, $25 mattress recycling, free dehumidifier turn in, styrofoam collection, a clothing drive, finished compost/soil give away, and baby oak trees giveaway. Mattress Recycling

HandUp, a mattress recycler, will be offering a discount on mattress and box spring recycling. Each unit will be $25 (and the City will pay the other $25). This is a first come, first serve option, until the truck is full.

Government

Watertown’s New Director of Public Works Seeks to Get DPW Accredited

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Watertown has a new Public Works Director. Find out more about him in the announcement provided by the City of Watertown. Watertown City Manager George Proakis is excited to announce the hiring of Thomas Brady as the new Director of Public Works! Mr. Brady returns to Watertown after 23 years with the Town of Brookline where he served as a key member of the Brookline Department of Public Works (DPW) team in the role of Urban Forestry Manager, Tree Warden and Town Arborist. Tom has overseen forestry operations, coordinated storm responses, provided oversight for utility projects, and represented Brookline on the extensive Muddy River Restoration Project – a 20-year $70 million public works improvement on the Boston/Brookline line that served the combined roles of addressing flood control, water quality improvement, conservation and historic preservation.

Around Town

Watertown’s Fall Fire Hydrant Flushing to Begin Soon

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The Department of Public Works provided the following announcement:

The Water Department’s Annual Hydrant Fall Flushing Program is September 16 through October 24, 2024 between 7 to 11 p.m.

The purpose of flushing is to remove sediment build up in the water mains and to verify the safe operation of hydrants and valves. Flushing the system may cause discolored water. It is bacteriologically safe to drink, but unpleasant to look at. This situation can usually be resolved by running your cold water until it clears up. Locate the closest and lowest cold-water faucet in your building.

Government

Watertown DPW Director Leaving; Led Road, Water, Park & Recycling Projects

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The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

Gregory St. Louis, PE will be stepping down as Superintendent of the Watertown Department of Public Works (DPW) on September 27, 2024, after four years of service to pursue a new professional opportunity outside of Watertown. Greg was hired as Superintendent of the Watertown DPW in 2020 by the late former City Manager Michael Driscoll amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and later worked under the leadership of Acting City Manager Tom Tracy and City Manager George Proakis. 

Greg has led the department in implementing and completing several projects that will positively impact the Watertown community for many years to come. His leadership has been most felt in the City’s Complete Street projects, an approach to designing and building streets that enables safe access for all road users. Greg led the City’s successful effort to receive MassWorks funding for the Arsenal Street reconstruction project, and he played a critical role in expanding the off-street bike network that exists today. Throughout his time in Watertown, Greg has worked closely with partners like the MBTA to remove the unused catenary electric bus system lines and the Mass Department of Transportation to kick off the long-awaited Mount Auburn Complete Streets Project, which officially started in the spring of 2024.

Around Town

New Spray Pad Will Keep Kids Cool at East Watertown Park

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Children enjoy the new spray pad at Filippello Park in East Watertown. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

On a warm afternoon, dozens of children waited patiently for City officials to declare the new and improved spray pad at Filippello Park open so they could run through the cooling streams of water. Friday’s ribbon cutting marked the official opening of the new feature that has 15 spray features, including geysers, an aquadome, a lunar cannon and a palm tree on 2,500 sq. ft. of non-porous rubber play surface.

Around Town

DPW Releases Results of Watertown’s Recycling Audit

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The following information was provided by the Watertown Department of Public Works:

The Watertown recycling audit has concluded after two weeks. Thank you to all who reached out with questions and engaged with this city program! Observation from the audit found that about 10 percent of each route contains recycling contamination. This means we still have work to do in the city to ensure that we are sending the correct materials to our Materials Recovery Facility, also known as a MRF. MRFs, like everything else, can only work efficiently with the materials that they are built to process.