Around Town

LETTER: Giving Thanks to Watertown Forest Makers

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Volunteers watch Russ Cohen give a tree-planting demonstration. Photo by Anita Meiklejohn. by Anita Roy Dobbs and Libby ShawForests for Watertown, Trees for Watertown

On a warm, sunny Saturday at the end of October, over 200 Watertown community members came together to plant Watertown’s first Miyawaki Forest at the JR Lowell Elementary School near the corner of Orchard and George Streets. Volunteers aged 3 to 93 planted nearly 750 trees and shrubs of some 50 native species in just five hours. The result of this remarkable community effort is a new kind of urban green space.

Entertainment

WEEKEND FUN: Halloween Activities, Fall Fest, Planting Party, Clothes Swap & More

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Fall is here in all its glory, with plenty of outdoor festivals, Halloween activities, and even a planting party to plant a micro forest outside the Lowell School. First, on Friday, head to the library for a children’s clothing swap. You may need some fun clothes for your kids’ Halloween costumes, or a new winter coat to cover their costumes, as the temperature turns downward. Saturday afternoon, you can catch the Fall Festival at Grace Chapel in the early afternoon and then head to the Commander’s Mansion to wander through the inflatable corn maze and get spooked in the mansion. (I’m dying to see what the corn maze is like!) If you are more in the gardening frame of mind, and this is a great time to plant, head over to the Lowell School to watch or help out in the planting of the Miyawaki or micro forest.

Schools

New Watertown High School on Track to be Net Zero Energy

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The entrance to the new Watertown High School is taking shape. (Photo from Watertown School Building Committee meeting)

Progress has been made on the new Watertown High School, and the goal of having the building produce all the energy needed to operate is closer to becoming a reality. When the high school project was approved, it was designed to be Net Zero energy and also meet the LEED Platinum standards for energy efficiency and sustainability. Since being approved in June 2021, the project budget has increased significantly mostly due to the rise in construction costs. City Manager George Proakis told the City Council that the project would be completed, with a net zero energy building, and not borrow more than $150 million to cover the cost.

Schools

UPDATED: Watertown’s Extended Day Program Salaries to be Discussed by School Committee

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The School Committee will hold a pair of meetings on July 29 to discuss the compensation for the Extended Day program staff. The after school program, which is run by Watertown Community Education with the Watertown Schools acting as its fiscal agent, has a waiting list of 38 students, according to Superintendent Dede Galdston. The School Committee will discuss compensation for Extended Day employees to assist in recruitment, Galdston added. The program has had waiting in previous years, and the number on the list is similar to last year, Galdston said. “We limit the number of students to ensure a safe and supportive environment, based on the historical staffing that EDP can sustain,” she said.

Around Town

Bosch Fund Gives Trees for Watertown $25K Grant to Start City’s First Miyawaki Forest

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Future site of Watertown’s first Community Miyawaki Forest at Lowell Elementary School. The following announcement was provided by Trees for Watertown:

The Bosch Community Fund has awarded the volunteer group Trees for Watertown a grant of $25,000 toward creation of a special new kind of green space in Watertown: Watertown’s first Miyawaki Forest, to be planted this November on the grounds of the Lowell Elementary School. “TFW’s Forests For Watertown working group (FFW) was just beginning to realize how much funding and support the creation of a Miyawaki Forest would need, when out of the blue came Bosch Community Fund’s invitation to TFW to apply for a grant,” said Libby Shaw, President of TFW. “We are over the moon to receive the Fund’s support for this project!” Bosch Community Fund’s invitation spurred an intense period of further research, site- searching, and collaboration with Watertown!s Department of Community Development and Planning and Department of Public Works, the Watertown Public Schools, and Watertown Community Gardens, as well as outside consultants and members of the wider Watertown community, in order to propose a strong project in time for BCF!s January 31 deadline.

Around Town

Lowell School Hosting Microforest Community Info Party

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The following information was provided by Forests for Watertown:

This fall, everyone is invited to plant a Mini-Forest of baby trees in the Lowell Schoolyard using the “Miyawaki method.” Next spring, Community Garden plots will be built south of the forest. And we’ll plant a pollinator buffer to surround the forest. The Microforest Community Info Party will be on April 30, 6-8 p.m. at the Lowell School Cafeteria, 123 Lowell Ave., Watertown. Hear about the microforest project from Lowell Principal Stacy Phelan, City of Watertown Senior Environmental Planner Laurel Schwab, Trees for Watertown’s Libby Shaw, author Liza Ketchum, Judy Fallows / Marilyn Salvas from Watertown Community Gardens, and more.

Around Town

J.R. Lowell Elementary School Fifth Graders Write What Happens to the City’s Trash

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Photo by Watertown DPWWatertown trash and recycling toters. What Should Watertown Residents Know About Where Our Trash Goes? By David Chachava, Arafat Kabir, Caroline Marsh Zinser, and Milena Rauhut

I’m pretty sure that we have all asked this question once before, where does our trash in Watertown go? Well, we have finally solved that mystery. Here’s a story about two chip bags.

Schools

Following False Alarms Watertown Schools to Hold Emergency Drills, Also Seek to Improve Communication System

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After a series of false alarms in the security systems at Watertown’s new schools, the district plans to hold drills for the students, and will look for ways to avoid more incidents in the future. The Watertown Public Schools opened two brand new elementary schools, a third underwent a major renovation and expansion, and students at the high school have a new, temporary home. The new buildings also have new technology, including a multi-hazard notification system, said Superintendent Dede Galdston. All four new schools have had false alarms, she said, some due to wiring and other when the panic button was pressed by mistake. “We want to make sure people understand that these happen and that we will do to prevent that from happening again,” Galdston said.