Elections

LETTER: Tree Advocates Brace for Tree Prunings by Eversource

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Hi, Trees for Watertown members and friends:

Eversource (formerly NSTAR) is coming back to Watertown to utility-prune our street trees starting Monday, February 29.  Citizen attention can really help to protect our street trees from damaging and disfiguring pruning during this utility pruning cycle. The Problem

Eversource’s official utility pruning standard specifies removal of all tree branches within 10 to 15 feet of high voltage wires. Utility pruning to Eversource’s standard results in canopy removal far in excess of recommended aboricultural guidelines for preserving street tree health. Arboricultural guidelines recommend pruning no more than 25 percent of a young tree’s healthy canopy, less in older trees, and even less — if any — in mature trees stressed by poor soil or confined soil volume and limited moisture access. The majority of trees providing vital canopy over our urban streets fall in this category.

Government

Eversource to Start Pruning Trees Soon, See if Your Street is on the List

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Eversource will begin trimming trees in a few weeks and will be working on dozens of streets in Watertown. Most of the streets are in the west end of town, and maps of the areas to be pruned can be seen by clicking here. Watertown Tree Warden Christopher Hayward sent out the following announcement:

It is anticipated that starting on Monday February 29, 2016,  Eversource contracted tree pruning crews (Lewis Tree) will be starting their Spring 2016 circuit pruning.  The routes the crews will be pruning are advertised in map and list form on the Watertown Tree Warden’s web page at http://www.watertown-ma.gov/index.aspx?nid=352  A copy of the signed Tree Warden’s permit is also posted on the Tree Warden webpage. If you have any questions or concerns about this work, please contact the Watertown Tree Warden, Chris Hayward, at 617-972-6426 or chayward@watertown-ma.gov.

Here are the streets on the list for Eversource’s tree pruning in the spring of 2016

Wesminster Avenue
Bemis Street
Waverley Avenue
King Street
Carey Avenue
Cleveland Road
Morrison Road
Brookline Street
Webster Street
Warren Street
Bancroft Street
Edenfield Avenue
French Street
Homer Street
Myrtle Street
Middle Street
Purvis Street
Olney Street
Main Street
Oakley Street
Acton Street
Lexington Street
Howard Street
Waltham Street
Edward Road
Green River Way
Rutland Street
Evans Street
Bromfield Street
Pine Street
Jensen Road
Brandley Road
Falmouth Road
Puritan Road
Pilgram Road
Morrison Road
Morton Street
Olcott Street
Gilbert Street
Prescott Street
Longfellow Road
Whitman Road
Emerson Road
Partridge Street
Gleason Street
Stuart Street
Wilmot Street
King Street
Copeland Street
Hersom Street
Chapman Street
Grandview Avenue
Heather Road
Desmond Road
Highland Avenue

 

Double Poles

Town Council Getting Serious About Removing Double Utility Poles

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Members of the Town Council are sick and tired about the double utility poles that are a common sight around Watertown, and threatened to deny new utility and cable permits if they are not removed. On Tuesday, the Council heard four requests for petitions from utilities looking install new lines or new poles around town. Two of them were for the new CVS under construction in Coolidge Square, and both were on double poles. The double poles go up when one pole is old or damaged, and the wires have not been transferred to the new pole. This has long been an issue for the Council.

Eversource

STORM UPDATE: High School Loses Power, Flooding Reported

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The large rain storm rolling through Watertown Wednesday has cause some problems, especially with power around town. 

The rains fell long and very hard at times Wednesday. The National Weather Service received reports of rainfall ranging from just under 2 inches in East Boston to over 4 inches in Lexington as of 4:55 p.m.

With the afternoon downpour, street flooding has been reported on Arlington Street at 2:55 p.m. Water also reportedly started pooling in front of 444 Mt. Auburn Street at 3:04 p.m.

Street flooding was reported on Francis Street and at Nichols Avenue at Quimby Street at 11:45 a.m.

A tree came down on the sidewalk on Watertown Street, near the Hibernian Hall at 11:10 a.m.

Watertown High School is one of the places that lost power during Wednesday’s storm. According to a reader, at 9:22 a.m. the students were sheltering in place during the outage. Power was restored a short time later.