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 …
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 …
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
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 …
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Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
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Tuesday, June 19, 2012
The Budget and Fiscal Oversight Committee wants more information on whether the town would be duplicating services, how other towns do it.
Supporters of creating a community social services coordinator revamped their proposal to make it more appealing to members of the Watertown Town Council. Town Councilor Tony Palomba, who takes part in a task force looking to create the new position, reported that the job would start as a two-year pilot funded by both public dollars and private donations. At the end of two years, the Town Council would have to decide whether to make the social services coordinator a permanent position, he told the Budget and Fiscal Oversight subcommittee Monday night. The coordinator would focus on directing on people to services available from the town, state and federal governments, Palomba said. They seek a licensed social worker, however, because he or…
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Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
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Wednesday, March 14, 2012
The Town Council approved recommendations for capital projects and purchases for next year.
A comprehensive plan for the town and a new fire truck for the Fire Department are among the items on the Fiscal 2013 Capital Improvement Program. The Town Council approved the recommended capital projects and programs for Fiscal 2013 on Monday night. The Comprehensive Plan – which covers development, business, transportation and other factors – is a plan for the future of Watertown. The money to pay for the program will come from funds left over from the Fiscal 2012 capital program, said Town Councilor Vincent Piccirilli, the chairman of the Budget and Fiscal Oversight Commitee which created the proposed Capital Plan. Left over money from the purchase of a pumper truck for the Fire Department in 2010 will be used to purchase another …
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Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
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42.37216
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Browne School Playground
552 Main St, Watertown, MA
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Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Michael Driscoll received the pay increase, which is in line with the raises given to other town employees.
Town Manager Michael Driscoll received a 2.5 percent pay increase in Fiscal 2012, making his salary $148,292 this year after the Town Council approved the raise Tuesday night. Town Council President Mark Sideris said Driscoll has kept Watertown in good financial standing despite the economic downturn. "We have been well served by the Town Manager's guidance as we have gone through some of the most difficult financial times in history," Sideris said. "I am glad to see that the Town Council and the Town Manager agreed to a contract extension through June 30, 2014." Councilor John Donohue commended Driscoll for keeping the town budget balanced without having to go to voters for a Proposition 2-1/2 override. Town Council Vice President Steve …
42.36752
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Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
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Thursday, January 12, 2012
The town has not had a veterans agent since Bob Erickson retired in October. Town is interviewing replacements.
Watertown's veterans filled the Town Council Chamber Wednesday night and demanded that the town hire a replacement for Veterans Agent Bob Erickson, who retired at the end of October. Town Manager Michael Driscoll told the veterans that the town is working on hiring a veterans agent. Erickson told the Town Council they are violating state law that requires communities with over 12,000 residents to have a full-time veterans agent, plus the town's veterans are not receiving the services they deserve. "There are many services: financial, medical with the VA, education, housing," Erickson said. "There are veterans coming back from Iraq and there is no one here to help them." Veteran Steve Felton said Erickson helped a woman back from Iraq who …
42.36752
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Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
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Monday, September 19, 2011
Ken Woodland, a recent college grad, is the only one on the ballot for the District D Town Council seat in this fall's election.
Ken Woodland thanked his friends and supporters at a campaign kick-off at Fit-Z's Bar & Grille Thursday which was also treated as a victory gathering, because he is running unopposed for the District D Town Council seat. Woodland said he plans to run the same campaign he would have if faced 10 opponents. He was introduced by Bob Kaprielian, whose daughter Rachel got her start as a 22-year-old Town Councilor before going on to be Watertown's State Representative and now the Registrar of Motor Vehicles. Woodland thanked his supporters and Fit Z's for opening their doors for his event, but he added a special thanks to John Lawn, who provided the opportunity for Woodland to run. "Thanks for winnning the State Representative race," Woodland …
42.370921
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Fit Z's Bar & Grill
451 Main St, Watertown, MA
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Monday, August 8, 2011
The joint subcommittee meeting on cell towers will be held before the regular Town Council meeting.
The Town Council has a full night Tuesday, with a joint subcommittee meeting at 5 p.m. to discuss rules for cell phone antennas, to be followed by the regular Town Council meeting at 7:15 p.m. Members of the Economic Development and Planning and Public Works committees meet today to continue their discussion on whether to allow cell providers to put up cell antennas on public property. Allowing the antennas to come in would provide more money for the town budget, with each antenna bringing in as much as $25,000 annually. Residents came to the subcommittees because they worry about the health risks posed by increased radiation from the additional antennas. The full Town Council will hold its regular meeting at 7:15 p.m. The agenda includes …
42.36752
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Town of Watertown Town Hall
149 Main St, Watertown, MA
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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 ›