Around Town

New England Patriots Honor Longtime Perkins School Volunteer as a Difference Maker

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Chairman and CEO of the Kraft Group and the New England Patriots Robert Kraft takes a group photo with the 2024 Patriots Difference Makers of the Week. (Photo courtesy of David Silverman/New England Patriots). The New England Patriots honored volunteers on Jan. 5 during a ceremony honoring the 2024 Patriots Difference Makers, including a woman who had volunteered at Perkins School for the Blind for two decades. See details in the announcement from the New England Patriots Foundation below.

Government

Woman Honored for Her 40+ Years Working for the City and Her Upcoming Retirement

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Surrounded by family, friends, and colleagues, Ingrid Marchesano celebrated her upcoming retirement from the City of Watertown after more than 40 years. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

The City Council Chamber was packed with people recently, not for a government meeting but to celebrate a woman who has dedicated nearly half a century working for the Town (now City) of Watertown. Jan. 28 will be Ingrid Marchesano’s final day working for the City of Watertown. Before she left, on Dec.

Schools

Student Leads Effort to Install Fridge at Watertown School to Save Unopened Items for Community Fridge

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Third-grader Naomi Ward stands next to the fridge where food is saved after lunches at Lowell School and donated to the Watertown Community Fridge. She helped raise money to purchased the fridge. (Photo by Charlie Breitrose)

Thanks to the effort of an elementary school student, bags full of food from lunches at one Watertown school will be saved and made available to those who visit the Watertown Community Fridge. Setting up a program to collect the food and make it available to those who need it was a multi-year effort. Now third-grader Naomi Ward first got the idea of trying to save food from lunches at Lowell Elementary School when she was in first grade.

Government

City Council to Discuss Winter Parking Ban at Special Meeting

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Watertown City Hall

The City Council will discuss whether to continue the Winter Parking Ban after receiving a petition signed by more than 800 residents. The public an provide input at the special meeting scheduled later this month. The City sent out the following information:

A Special City Council Meeting to discuss the Winter Parking Ban has been scheduled for January 21, 2025 at 6 p.m. This is a Public Hearing that has been scheduled following the City Council receiving a petition asking for the Winter Parking Ban be lifted. The Hearing will be held in the City Council Chamber in Watertown City Hall at 149 Main Street. The Hearing’s agenda will be posted soon.

Business

One Watertown Restaurant Closes, a New One Opens

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Some of the South of the Border dishes being served at Plazita Mexico Tacos. As 2025 begins, Watertown has seen one restaurant close, while an addition has been made to the eating scene. Restaurant Says ‘Bye Bye’

Olespana Whiskey & Tapas Bar on Mt. Auburn Street announced that it will be closing. The restaurant that served Spanish food, pizza and other dishes had opened in the former Mount Auburn Grill space in 2023.

Around Town

Drainage Installation at Mt. Auburn St. & Arlington St. Intersection to Begin This Week

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Work on the Mt. Auburn Street reconstruction project will restart in the New Year. See details in the announcement from the City of Watertown. Drainage Installation Work ContinuesNewport Construction is continuing to complete the drainage installation work along Mount Auburn Street, next beginning their work at the Arlington Street intersection and moving toward Watertown Square on Monday, January 6, 2025. Work will happen between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. from Monday through Friday.

Around Town

Community Preservation Committee Recommends Funding Affordable Housing Project

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A rendering of the proposed Willow Park Housing development. An affordable housing project got a boost from the Watertown Community Preservation Committee, which voted to recommend that Community Preservation Act money be used to help fund the project in East Watertown. CPA funds come from a surcharge on Watertown property tax bills, and the money can be used for historic preservation, open space and outdoor recreation, and affordable housing projects. See details in the announcement from the CPC, below. At a special meeting on Dec.

Around Town

See What Title the Library Selected for the 2025 One Book, One Watertown

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The Watertown Free Public Library revealed the title for this year’s One Book, One Watertown. See the announcement below. What happens when we study delight? This year’s One Book, One Watertown selection, Ross Gay’s The Book of Delights, invites us to do just that. We hope you’ll take part in the Watertown Free Public Library’s annual community read! Ross Gay is many things – a New York Times bestselling poet and writer, a winner of prestigious awards, a teacher, a gardener, a skateboarder, a Midwesterner, a partner, a friend, a son, a pick up basketball player, a loiterer, a lover of high-fives, and a student of delight.