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Panera Relocates to Watertown Square, Offering Rapid Pick-Up

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Hamra Enterprises opened a new Panera To Go bakery café at 11 Mount Auburn Street in Watertown on July 11. (Courtesy Photo)

The following announcement was provided by Hamra Enterprises:

Consumers in Watertown and surrounding areas now have the convenience of a new dining option with the opening of a Panera To Go location, fully enabled for digital convenience and Rapid Pick-Up®. The grand opening of the new location at 11 Mount Auburn Street was on July 11. For Hamra Enterprises, a nationwide, family-owned restaurant operator headquartered in Springfield, Mo., this is the second Panera To Go location and the first in Massachusetts. It is the company’s 18th Panera location in Massachusetts, 91st Panera overall, and 195th across four brands: Panera Bread, Wendy’s, Noodles and Company, and Caribou Coffee.

Around Town

LETTER: Open Letter to the Council on the Watertown Square Area Plan

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To: Watertown City CouncilorsFrom: Linda ScottSubject: Response to Councilor Gannon’s comments on Watertown’s History on June 27, 2024ATTN: Please include this letter in the record and read at the July 16th Joint Hearing

Dear John,

I am sending this to all of the City Councilors, but I’m addressing it to you, since I am responding to the comments that you made about the history of Watertown at the June 27 Joint Meeting of the City Council and the Planning Board. Your comments gave me food for thought. I thought about how circular the path of Watertown has been … large, broken down factories replaced with office space. That gave way to Bio Tech labs. It’s been a pattern in Watertown’s history to go all-in on one thing.

Around Town

LETTER: A Look at Recommended Amendments to Watertown Square Area Plan

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By Linda ScottWatertown Resident

As I was perusing my e-mail on Friday, late afternoon, I saw this:

Subject Line: Watertown Square: Continued Joint Hearing on 7/16 at 6 PM & Kids Space! Oh, I thought. That’s the announcement of this Tuesday’s meeting at the Middle School to have more resident input on the “Watertown Square Area Plan.” I didn’t think much of it, until a (really) alert resident actually opened this up to find pages of additions and corrections to the Square Area Plan document! Yes, I opened this message and saw a link entitled: “Recommended Amendments to the Plan”Click here to see the amendements to the plan. As I opened this link up, my first thought was, “This is a whole lot to dump on the Council, Planning Board and the public just a few days away from this very important meeting!”

I also thought, “What a confusing presentation!

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Artists and Scientists Wanted to be Part of Edible Watertown Project

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The artwork from Edible Plants 2022, Clockwise from top left: Daylily by Patti Murphy, Bee Balm by Niloufar Keyhani, Elderberry by Marija Draskic Brancazio, Wintergreen by Kate Martens, Mayapple by Carol Leonesio, Mountain Mint by Cat Bennett, Huckleberry by Donna Calleja, Red Bud by Debajyoti Biswas, Bearberry by Connie Henry, and Garlic Chives by Jaclyn Kain. The City of Watertown provided the following announcement:

The Public Arts & Culture Committee is pleased to launch its next public art initiative, part of the Edible Watertown project, titled Expert Pairings. Supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. Full details linked below:

Call for Artists and Scientists: Expert Pairings – Application open until September 15, 2024, at 11:59 p.m.! Expert Pairings invites artists and scientists to explore the ecology of Watertown and collaborate on temporary public artwork. Artists and scientists can submit qualifications individually or as a pair.

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Chat with Tyler, Watertown’s Community Engagement Specialist

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The following announcement was provided by the City of Watertown:

Join Tyler for the next installment of Watertown Chats! He will be near the spray pad at Filippello Park between Grove Street and Arlington Street on July 17, 2024 at 3:30-5 p.m. All are welcome to join and ask questions, raise concerns, and discuss all things Watertown – no appointments needed. Tyler hopes to see you there! Learn more and stay up to date on future Chats.

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LETTER: Watertown Square Plan Decision Should be Made by More than Just Council & Planning Board

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Dear Editor,

It appears Watertown has had Comprehensive Planning Study after Comprehensive PlanningStudies. I served this fair city in a few elected positions for a number of years and am dumbfounded by what I see today. I have considered or prided myself in being a positive person or at least I strived to be. I know many people associate me with flipping burgers; however, before I was a Burger King Franchisee, I spent twenty-five years with the United States Public Health Service (PHS), principally working with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). My first assignment out of College was in Los Angeles, then Albuquerque, New Mexico then Boston.

Around Town

OP-ED: Fixing Deteriorating T Service Should Play Role in Watertown Square Redesign

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Cars driving through Watertown Square. (Photo by Mark Pickering)

By Mark Pickering

The former Watertown Square rotary was one of my big obstacles while I learned to drive a small delivery truck. Once through that wild intersection, I had to make my way past the trolley tracks still-embedded in Galen Street during the late ’70s. That’s why I enjoyed Councilor John Gannon’s remarks at the July special meeting on the Watertown Square Area Plan. I, too, remember learning how to drive through that rotary.