Watertown News (https://www.watertownmanews.com/category/more/page/41/)
After a cold start to the weekend, temperatures will gradually climb as we head into early next week. Friday will bring gusty northwest winds as a coastal low passes southeast of New England. Expect dry conditions through Monday with a steady uptick in temperatures. However, uncertainty remains for mid-week as another coastal low could bring rain or snow to the region. Stay tuned for updates as we track this potential storm.
A drawing of the shuttle boat being designed for Wada Hoppah to take people from Watertown to Boston. (Courtesy of Wada Hoppah)
A small version of the Wada Hoppah electric water shuttle may be carrying passengers from Watertown to Boston and back this spring, and the man behind the effort has plans to create a whole e-boat building industry in the Boston area. Drew Rollert’s goal is to have the first shuttles sailing on the Charles River by the time of the Boston Calling music festival on Memorial Day weekend. “We’re gonna do a smaller version while we work on the bigger electric boat, because I’m just sick of not having anything and just waiting for the large thing,” Rollert said. “So we started building (the smaller boat).”
Last week, the WestMetro HOME Consortium, a partnership of 13 regional communities of which Watertown is a member, released the results of a fair housing audit study that it conducted from March 2023 to January 2025. The Consortium worked with Suffolk Law’s Housing Discrimination Testing Program to test the prevalence of illegal race- and income-based discrimination in the housing market, pairing an applicant with a white alias with another with a “racially identifiable” Black, Hispanic, or Asian alias, or an applicant who posed as someone offering to pay market rate with one who posed as a housing voucher recipient. The study’s results are sobering, to say the least. In 65 tests of race-based discrimination (conducted across the Consortium’s 13 communities), applicants of color experienced discrimination 22 percent of the time. In 69 tests of income-based discrimination, voucher holders experienced discrimination a whopping 35 percent of the time.
For the 26th year, Watertown Savings Bank invites customers to support their favorite local non-profit in the Customer Choice Awards. See the announcement from WSB below. Watertown Savings Bank’s 26th Annual Customer Choice Awards is underway. Local residents and WSB customers are invited to vote for their favorite local non-profit organizations in Arlington, Belmont, Lexington, Newton, Waltham, and Watertown. As part of this Awards program, Watertown Savings Bank will donate a total of $100,000, with the top prize being $15,000.
By Shaunna Harrington
President Trump is gunning to weaken our K-12 public schools, and that should outrage all of us in the Commonwealth. Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Education announced all education institutions must eliminate DEI programs in 14 days to maintain federal funding.
The Trump administration wields DEI as a bogeyman to scare people into believing it is causing grave injustices. But the bogeyman is no longer frightening when we talk about what diversity, equity and inclusion actually mean in our K-12 public schools in Massachusetts.
Our commitment to diversity means we make sure kids from non-majority groups do not feel invisible, excluded, devalued, or unsafe. It means we celebrate multiple cultural traditions and teach kids to respect people different from themselves. We express our commitment to diversity in anti-bullying policies.
UPDATE (Feb. 19) Mount Auburn Street Construction Work Paused for Week of February 18 – February 21, 2025. The Below Work Anticipated to Restart on February 24, 2025
The Mt. Auburn Street renovation continues this week with installation of drainage, a traffic signal, and tree protection, as well as soil testing. See details below provided by the City of Watertown.
Watertown’s home sales included a townhouse and a condo. 12 Maple St. #12, $1,164,000, 3 bedroom 3 bathroom 1,856 sq. ft. Condo
38 Duff St., $538,000, 2 bedroom 1 bathroom 1,311 sq.
There will not be a snow emergency for Saturday’s storm, but cars still must be off the street, according to the announcement from the City of Watertown. See more information below. The City of Watertown would like to advise you of expected snow starting later today, Saturday, February 15, 2025, which will turn into icy conditions heading into Sunday, February 16, 2025. The City is not declaring a Snow Emergency Parking Ban, but the Winter Overnight Parking Ban remains in effect and will be strictly enforced. We strongly encourage residents to park in their driveways or municipal parking lots by the time the storm begins around 6pm, if possible.