Watertown Cable
A Federal Bankruptcy Court judge sided with the Watertown Boys & Girls Club’s motion to allow them to evict the First Path Day Care Center from the facility on Whites Avenue.
On Monday, Judge Janet E. Bostwick rejected First Path’s request for a preliminary injunction preventing the eviction, and ruled that the bankruptcy filing does not prevent the Boys & Girls Club evicting the day care center, according to a report by the Boston Globe.
In the ruling, Bostwick said lease had “unequivocally expired,” according to the Globe, and that under state law any other agreements “needed to be in writing to be enforceable.”
First Path has been located in the building owned by the Watertown Boys & Girls Club for 26 years, and currently serves 60 families. In December 2021, the Boys & Girls Club informed First Path that its lease would not be renewed because it seeks to expand its program into that space. The lease was set to end on May 31, 2024.
First Path sought a three month extension to the end of August 2024, but the Boys & Girls Club’s board gave only a one month extension to June 30, 2024.
In July, First Path filed for bankruptcy, which includes putting a stay on being evicted from their current home. On Aug. 5, the Boys & Girls Club filed a motion to lift the eviction protection because the day care center filed for bankruptcy after their lease had expired.
According to the Globe, the day care center filed a case in bankruptcy court accusing the Boys & Girls Club of breaking promises, and on Aug. 15 filed a motion to prevent the eviction.
First Path said having to close while their new home is completed would not only mean a temporary loss of child care for its families, but also would put it out of business.
Legal issues have also extended to the work on First Path’s new facility. The day care center has been seeking a new home, and is in the process of renovating the space, but it is not ready.
First Path secured a new space in January 2023, and it has been preparing the space, but work has not been completed. According to the Globe, First Path expects the renovations to be completed by October, and the Boys & Girls Club said the day care center could stay until the end of September.
First Path sued the City of Watertown claiming the City delayed its ability to move. Last week, City Manager George Proakis said the day care center filed one suit “claiming that we were withholding permits prior to them going through site plan review,” and a second appealed the Zoning Board’s site plan review conditions.
Proakis told the City Council that he could not go into details because of the ongoing litigation, but he said “our Building Department does everything they can to work the best they can to work with every applicant to make sure they have met all the necessary steps on building code and they are able to move forward as quickly as they can relative to those steps and what needs to happen.”
He added that while a day care center falls under the Dover Amendment, which prevents communities from denying that use, the project still has to go through the local zoning process, and meet the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance.
I hope the example of First Path illustrates for all Watertown voters and taxpayers very clearly how density-obsessed city officials will treat anyone who dares interfere with their nefarious plans: as expendable. Your dedades of service to the community, the children, your livelihood–they count for nothing.
Local officials will jam you up at every turn. The City Council needs to demand action ASAP to end the unconscionable obstructionism surrounding the move, or the citizens of Watertown should VOTE THE BUMS OUT. And the new crop of elected, accountable representatives should send George packing.