Letters

LETTER: Group of Parents Support Using Moxley Field as Site for Temporary High School

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As WPS parents, We are writing in support of the proposal to build a new WHS on its current site and to use a section of Moxley Park as swing space during construction. There are many important reasons for this choice: this proposal will provide the best possible educational experience for students during construction; it will minimize the construction timeline; it will create the space needed to build a state-of-the-art, 21st Century high school for Watertown; and, it will reduce overall project costs. This investment requires temporary sacrifices from abutters, students and families. We are all sharing this burden, but the benefits far outweigh the temporary inconveniences. This project will benefit the entire Watertown community for generations to come.

21st Century Policing

OP-ED: Who Gets to Reform the Police?

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“Owning your own narrative” is a common expression used in business, in politics, and in private life where personal reputation is at stake. Owning your narrative means ensuring that what is told about you matches the way you’d like it to be told, without distortions, mischaracterization, half-truths, or false perceptions. If you are waging a battle in the arena of public opinion, and others succeed in owning your narrative, you have lost the battle. If you are paying even the slightest attention to town politics, you are aware that there is a police crisis in Watertown, centered around alleged racist behavior regarding stops, citations, and arrests. In my opinion — and I believe in the opinion of the vast majority of residents — this is an invented crisis.

Homepage Featured

LETTER: Group of Parents Support Using Moxley as Site for Temporary High School

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Ai3 ArchitectsA view from Columbia Street of what the new Watertown High School could look like. Last week, the Town Manager announced that the new Watertown High School would be paid for within the confines of Proposition 2 ½, and will NOT require a debt exclusion vote by the community. This is truly an astonishing, unprecedented commitment by Watertown. Thank you to the Town Manager and the Town Council for creating this remarkable opportunity. This is a project that will be transformative for our entire community.

Around Town

LETTER: Watertown School Committee Thanks Teachers During Educator Appreciation Week

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From The Watertown School Committee:

Teachers do a job that many do not fully understand, yet everyone knows and hopefully has loved a teacher or two throughout their lifetime. This year we asked our educators to do the unthinkable — to become experts on remote education seemingly overnight, to pivot between plans, learning styles, modalities and pedagogy without everything that usually goes into making those types of switches. And our educators of WPS did not miss a beat. From the first day of the shutdown last spring, until the moment this is being read, WPS educators have put students first, have reached into their hearts, their minds, and their depth of knowledge to provide the very best educational experience for all WPS students. While they faced uncertainty and anxiety that we all faced with this pandemic — they stepped up, and they calmed their students, reassured parents, and found ways to both build relationships with students virtually, and provide a rigorous and joyful learning experience as best they could.

Angeline Kounelis

LETTER: Resident Sad to See Kounelis Step Down as East End Town Councilor

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Editor:

I was disappointed to see Angie Kounelis give her notice that she was stepping down as a Town Councilor!! First and foremost Angie was special in keeping East Enders in the know on what was happening in our part of town!! But more than that she was different. She took no money at all she placed no signs on lawns. She spoke her mind and she got elected every time!! She paid attention and knew the issues like the back of her hand!

Defund the Police

OP-ED: Is it Really Time to Cancel the Police?

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In cities and towns across the country, the very concept of policing is under fire, and whether you are aware of it or not, Watertown is no exception. It seems that not a week goes by without a bad cop, somewhere, adding fuel to that fire. Whether it’s a veteran cop somehow mistaking her gun for a taser and killing a young Black man, or a bully with a badge pepper-spraying a respectful and compliant Black army lieutenant, anti-police activists need only to say: “See, it happened again and it will keep happening, unless we do something.”

Defund the Police became a popular rallying cry during the racial protest demonstrations resulting from the killing of George Floyd and the killings of too many other Black Americans who died as a result of unwarranted lethal force at the hands of white cops. The video of George Floyd’s murder by Derek Chauvin was absolute gut-wrenching proof that policing in America requires reexamination and overdue reform. It was only natural that in cities and towns across the nation, residents, including some in Watertown, began asking:

Could that happen here?

Government

LETTER: Town Councilor Condemns “Disturbing” Sticker Found at Victory Field

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The following statement was first read by Town Councilor Tony Palomba at Tuesday’s Town Council meeting as part of a request for information about what steps the Town administration will take in response to an offensive sticker found at Victory Field recently. Town Council President Mark Sideris and School Committee Chair John Portz also spoke out against the sticker at meetings this week. Palomba’s statement reads:

It is disappointing and disturbing that a sticker of a Native American carrying a tomahawk and a Blue Lives Matter flag was posted on Town property in Watertown. We should be clear that this act of racist hate speech is not a one-off by a resident or visitor. Given the sophistication of the sticker — it required time, energy, and money to produce it — I would not be surprised to see more of these stickers around Town. 

I stand with those who believe there are many good people who reside in Watertown. But we must also accept the reality that there are among us individuals and groups of individuals who are determined to perpetuate stereotypes and foster division, and who espouse white supremacy and racism.

Elections

LETTER: Town Councilor Announces Resignation to Take Position With State

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Ken Woodland, District D Town Councilor, announced he will be resigning to take a position with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. After 9+ years of service on the Town Council, this morning I submitted my resignation as Watertown’s District D Town Councilor, effective immediately. I have accepted a position with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that does not permit me to simultaneously hold an elected role in local government. It has been the honor of my life to serve on the Town Council. I’ve lived my entire life in Watertown and my decision to run for office and serve the Town was inspired by the close-knit community experiences that have defined my life here.