Tuesday, May 7, 2013
The Watertown resident declared his candidacy this week.
A familiar face may return to Town Council, as former councilor Paul Fahey announced he is running for an at-large council seat. The 51-year old Lexington Street resident served on a number of boards and committees over the years, having served on the Town Council, School Committee, Planning Board and Town Meeting from 1980 to 1990, he said. "I seek to again serve on the Town Council to ensure that Watertown's government is effective in providing services, efficient in managing resources, and responsive in hearing from and acting on behalf of its residents," Fahey said. "As someone who has spent a lifetime concerned with our civic governance, I believe that I have the experience, passion, and vision to provide real value to the work of the…
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Watertown's District A Councilor said she has been singled out and that figures in a report do not add up.
Inaccurate numbers were used to justify the need for Watertown town councilors to stop getting printed material, said Town Councilor Angeline Kounelis, the only one who got paper copies rather than receiving them electronically. In January, the council voted to require all members to have a town email and laptop computer to receive materials - everything from memos to the information packet sent to councilors before meetings. Kounelis said she felt that the move to require councilors to get all material by computer was targeted at her. She does not have a home computer and was the only member of the council who did not have a town-provided laptop, until the new policy was approved. "I certainly felt that I was targeted and this was not …
Saturday, March 2, 2013
The project incudes over $7 million worth of projects, but the changes will save that much and more in electric and natural gas costs.
The Town Council approved borrowing $7.3 million to pay for projects to make Watertown's town and school buildings more energy efficient, but the firm doing the work guarantees the town will get at least that amount back in savings on utility bills. The project will be completed by Johnson Controls and includes 97 projects on 14 buildings around Watetown, said Beth Greenblatt of Beacon Integrated Solutions, the town's consultant. Energy savings will come in a variety of ways, including: Construction will take about 18 months, Greenblatt said. The town will borrow the money for 20 years, and over that time the projects will provide enough savings to cover the cost of the project and borrowing the money, Greenblatt told the Town Council…
Friday, March 1, 2013
The Town Council voted to approve temporary covering for the field to allow Watertown High School to have the graduation on the football field.
Wanting to ensure that Watertown High School graduation will be held at Victory Field the Town Council approved purchasing a removable cover for the field for $25,000. The money for the covering will come out of the $3 million borrowed by the town to pay for the renovation of Victory Field, said Town Manager Michael Driscoll. Last year graduation was held on the new artificial turf at the field, but only after a make-shift covering was made out of plywood donated by Sterrit Lumber. The cover was needed so chairs could go on the field and so girls could wear heels and do not damage the artificial turf. The vote was not unanimous, however. Town Councilor Angeline Kounelis said she could not support the purchase. "This project was funded by …
42.37395
-71.180859
Victory Field
40 Orchard St, Watertown, MA
/articles/town-council-makes-way-for-graduation-at-victory-field-but-at-a-cost-of-25k
1430653
/locations/8911381
Friday, January 11, 2013
Councilors will receive laptops and all communication electronically.
The Town Council will take advantage of technology to go paperless, but at least one member of the board is not happy with the move. On Tuesday, the Council voted 8-1 to accept a resolution to require all communications with the board to be done electronically, and each councilor would receive a laptop computer from the town. Until now, councilors had the option of receiving information in paper form, too. Town Councilor Angeline Kounelis was the only councilor to receive printed materials for meetings, and she voted against the move to require councilors to get information via computer at their town-issued email address. Kounelis said she felt the ordinance targeted her, and she thinks the move may prevent some in town from seeking …
Friday, December 21, 2012
DiMascio denies any libel or wrongdoing in asserting that Woodland backed the measure to ask the Town Council to reverse the Citizens United ruling.
- GOVERNMENT
-
Friday, December 21, 2012
To the editor, In his letter to the editor, District D Councilor and Law Student Kenneth Woodland, implies that someone has committed libel and slander when commenting on his involvement vis-a-vis the Citizens United Resolution which the Town Council wisely rejected. [Editor's Note: the Town Council did not vote on the resolution.] He accuses people promoting conspiracy theories about backroom arm-twisting. And then he threatens to prove his “legal skills.” These are the facts. I wrote a letter to the editor in which I said a group of people encouraged by Kenneth Woodland used a charter provision to bring this matter before the Council. The fact is; encouragement can take many forms. The Councilor supported the measure. Therefore to …
Saturday, December 15, 2012
A group recently petitioned to have an item on the agenda asking the Town Council to support reversing the Citizens United ruling.
This week, a group of residents hoping to have the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision reversed petitioned to have the Town Council support the idea, and got the item on the agenda by collecting 150 signatures from Watertown voters. Not everyone liked the idea of having an issue like that placed on the agenda of the town’s highest board. Town Council President Mark Sideris noted that the group of residents followed the Town Charter to get the petition on the agenda. They collected 188 signatures, more than the minimum required, to have it on the agenda. “In my time sitting on the council, which has been a number of years, no group has ever petitioned to put something on the agenda,” Sideris said. “I applaud the people for doing their …
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Town Councilor Kenneth Woodland writes about the petition submitted to the Town Council about reversing the Supreme Court's campaign financing ruling.
- GOVERNMENT
-
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
As many may have read over the past few weeks, a group of citizens have petitioned the Watertown Town Council under the rules and provisions of the Watertown Charter to consider action on the United States Supreme Court Case Citizen’s United. Since then, efforts have been made by partisan groups in favor of the ruling to purposefully misconstrue the process in hopes that the mere notion of impropriety will sway the public to similar methods of thinking. I am writing in today simply to set the record straight. First and foremost, it should be clear that I, Ken Woodland, am not the driving force behind the initiative. Although flattered to be given credit for helping with guidance, I would do the same for any passionate group of citizens …
Councilors will send a letter outlining town voters' support of the non-binding ballot measure asking for the Supreme Courts decision in the political finance question to be overturned.
The Town Council will not take a stand on a citizen’s petition to asking the board to support a movement asking Congress to reverse the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, but they will send a letter outlining the town’s support of the non-binding ballot measure on the Nov. 6 ballot. A group of residents collected 188 signatures and got the resolution on Tuesday’s Town Council agenda. Bevin Croft, who spoke for the group who put the resolution on the agenda, noted that 63 percent of the town’s voters in Districts A, B and C supported the ballot measure asking the town’s state and federal elected officials to take steps to reverse the court decision that gives corporations and unions the same political speech rights as citizens. The …
42.36752
-71.18773
Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
/articles/watertown-town-council-passes-on-taking-stand-on-reversing-citizens-united-ruling
1422333
/locations/8370109
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
The Town Council learned recently that the section of Whitney Hill behind the Public Works facility is not designated as park land, and they want to change that.
In September, Town Councilors learned to their surprise that part of the Whitney Hill recreation area actually belongs to the Public Works Department, and is not protected park land. The Public Work subcommittee took the first step toward trying to turn the parcel into park land on Monday evening. Most of the land on Whitney Hill has been protected as park land, and falls under the control of the Town Council and Town Manager, said Town Councilor Cecilia Lenk. The area along the main walking path - in back of the Victory Field turf field and the Public Works Facility, however, falls under Public Works' control. The 6.4-acre parcel - including both the park land and Public Works land - is some of the last undisturbed wooded land in …
KAB
10:19 am on Thursday, March 7, 2013
I agree. Regardless of the figures it is wasteful. And why can't councilors pick up the packets if they insist on paper docs. Give me a break. more ›