City of Watertown The Parker Annex Building is the recommended home of the City’s new Health and Human Services Department.
A new position will be added to the City government, the director of Human Services, after the City Council approved implementing the recommendations of the Health and Human Services Assessment report.
On Tuesday, the Council unanimously approved the recommendations, and the Human Services Director position has been posted on the City’s Employment d webpage. The Council also approved transferring $38,000 from the Council Reserve to fund the new position for the rest of the fiscal year.
Rob Buchanan, Principal at Health Management Associates (HMA), presented the recommendations of the assessment to the City Council’s Committee on Human Services at a meeting on Feb. 6. The report was created after consultants held a community forum in 2024, followed by about 20 interviews with members of the City Council, City departments, and community-based organizations, he said.
The report looked at the gaps in Watertown’s human services, reviewed the organization of human services, and included a list of recommendations.
The recommendations are:
- Create a Human Services director position for the City with a key task being the development and implementation of a human services strategic plan
- Create a Watertown Health and Human Services cabinet which would serve as a way to formalize the informal work that’s presently being done
- Improve digital front door awareness and access to Watertown’s Health and Human Services.
- Establish a physical front door to Watertown’s Health and Human Services. Use of the Parker Annex Building was suggested for this office, as well as the new home for the Watertown Food Pantry
- Establish relationships with community-based organizations for key programs and services
- Improve access to food supports
- Develop a Diversity Equity and Inclusion approach, including creating a DEI director, integrating DEI into municipal strategic planning, engaging the community on DEI issues, and developing an official statement on inclusion
- Establish a language access program
- Prioritize health promotion and wellness, including developing a health promotion and wellness strategic plan and integrating Live Well Watertown into Human Services and prioritizing strategic planning and alignment
Councilor Tony Palomba, chair of the Committee on Human Services, said he is glad to see the City has a plan for health and human services.
“This has been a long time in coming. We started working on this whole idea quite a while ago and it is wonderful we went through the assessment and it took about a year,” Palomba said. “It is great to have this in place now and it is great to have a new position and I am looking forward to the future Human Service director’s recommendations.”
Councilor John Gannon said a lot of hard work went into the assessment, and he thanked the community for providing input that was used to create it. He added that Palomba had been “dogged” in pushing for the health and human services study.
Council President Mark Sideris said he appreciated the work on the study and the recommendations that came out of it.
“I know it is something that will not be implemented overnight, but I know it is a goal we are working toward,” he said.
Councilor Caroline Bays said she thought the recommendations were wonderful, but she added that the Committee on Human Services members had suggested some tweaks be made.
Sideris said the Council will have an opportunity to make adjustments as the recommendations come forward to be implemented.
City Manager George Proakis said he will be meeting with a Council committee to discuss the qualities and qualifications they would like to see in the Human Services Director.
To start with, Proakis said, the Human Services Director will report directly to him, but he will come back to the Council with a recommendation for where the Health and Human Services Department will fit into the City’s organization, and to whom the director will report.
See the Committee on Human Services meeting report and the Watertown Health and Human Services Assessment report by clicking here.