Watertown

Watertown City Council

Tuesday June 27, 2023

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The order of items in transcripts is the chronological order in which they were taken up. Some Agenda items may have been skipped.

Section 1

27.12 That would, that would be correct. PALOMBA - Yeah. Okay. Thank you. SPEAKER1 - Any other comments? I'll be supporting this, although I do agree with Councilor Palomba. It's not a, it's not a huge increase. I do, I do think that we need to work diligently to find ways to limit these increases. I know that this is coming on the heels of last year's increase, and I know that there, there are increases coming for the next 2 years. We have to do the work today to limit any further increases in the future. I mean, this just, this just can't keep going on like this at a certain point. So I will be supporting this tonight, but I will be looking for ways and asking the city manager, to come up with ways to limit these increases going forward. I'm not sure how we'll do that, but it's just a conversation that has to be had. So with that, all those in favor of increasing the water and sewer rates by 5.5% and 6%, respectively, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? The ayes have it. Thank you. Next up, we have a public hearing to discuss and vote on the proposed order to amend the Town of Watertown, Watertown Zoning Ordinances to provide for re-zoning of the parcel located at 2 Spring Street, map 39, parcel 39, from General Business District to the Washington Street Corridor District, and to provide for the application of an Interim Planning Overlay District for that property. It is my understanding that this public hearing is continued from our last meeting, and I will turn it over to our city solicitor for further explanation. ASSISTANT CITY SOLICITOR - Thank you, Mr. President. On June 1, the council held a public hearing and continued it for the purpose of receiving and considering comments on the proposal to convert from General Business to the Washington Street Corridor District. The council also took action to establish an Interim Planning Overlay District over the property pending its decision on the rezoning proposal. A number of people spoke at the hearing, both in favor of, and against the proposal. The council did not close the public hearing. Therefore, you have to take action to close the public hearing. There is no legal requirement for you to close this public hearing, but

Section 2

32/12 | The City Council held a meeting to discuss various topics, including an increase in water rates, the city auditor's salary, and a petition from Eversource. They also held a public hearing and vote on a reorganization plan submitted by the city manager. The plan included changes to the city departments and the creation of new positions. The council discussed the changes, including the consolidation of current and long-range planning, and the creation of a new Assistant Superintendent position for the Sewer Water Division. The meeting concluded with a public hearing and vote on a petition from Eversource for a grant of location to install conduits for electric service to a temporary high school.

Section 3

the order that you're going to read, is for $300,000 to continue the program that's been going on for a number of years now. SPEAKER1 - Thank you. Can I get a motion on this order? PICCIRILLI - Mr. President, make a motion that we approve the order for the $300,000 appropriation for lead service. SPEAKER1 - Is there a second? SPEAKER6 - Second. SPEAKER1 - Any discussion? Council Palombo? PALOMBA - Thank you very much. I am pleased to see this, and I'm grateful for the work that the water department and all departments are doing, in order to reduce the amount of lead that's in our water system. So, I know that this 300,000 is on top of the, 2 million that we approved in the budget. But I don't know if the town manager has any more information about how successful we've been in the tests that we've been doing, and whether or not the town manager plans to, ask for additional funds in subsequent years. Or are we sort of at the end. Thank you. PROAKIS - Thank you, through you, Mr President. At this point, we project and anticipate that we would go through fiscal year 26. We will also look to consider any potential grant opportunities that may be available through the, the American, American rescue plan or any other sources that may be available. PALOMBA - Thank you so much. I'm glad to hear that. SPEAKER1 - Any other comments? Roll call, please. SPEAKER2 - Councillor Base? Yes. Councillor Gannon? Yes. Councillor Garner? Yes. SPEAKER2 - Councillor Izzo? Yes. Councillor Palombo? Yes. Counselloreration? Yes. SPEAKER2 - President Sidiris. SIDERIS - Yes. Thank you. 10f is a resolution authorizing the city manager to accept and expend the amount of $100,000 from the commonwealth of Massachusetts, Executive Office of public safety, and security fiscal year 23, municipal public safety staffing grant. Mr. manager. PROAKIS - Thank you, Mr President. This is a grant that is available to provide additional funding for public safety staffing. It was a competitive grant process, and I'm

Section 4

At the May 11th meeting, the City Council's Human Services Committee discussed the city's rodent control plan and received updates from various departments on their efforts to address the issue. The meeting was attended by city councilors, members of the administration, and residents. Updates were provided on a pilot program utilizing smart technology traps, with 63 catches reported in the first two months. The committee also reviewed the latest draft of the rodent control plan, which will be further developed into a formal plan with timelines and evaluation of effectiveness. Residents raised concerns about rodent complaints not being adequately addressed and suggested measures such as using fertility drugs and expanding rodent control plans to adjacent streets. The committee also discussed ways to publicize the city's rodent control efforts and address specific hotspots, such as dumpsters and leaf buildup in a local park. The meeting concluded with a motion to adjourn and the minutes were prepared by Councilor Palomba.

Section 5

In this content, we see a council meeting taking place with various speakers discussing different items on the agenda. The first speaker, SPEAKER1, asks for a motion to accept a report and then proposes a new business item. The next speaker, SPEAKER3, announces the next item on the agenda. Then, the third speaker, SIDERIS, asks for confirmation of appointments and reappointments to the zoning board of appeals, planning board, Affordable Housing Trust, and the Solid Waste and Recycling Advisory Committee. The fourth speaker, PROAKIS, provides information about the candidates and their qualifications for each of these positions. The fifth speaker, SIDERIS, asks for confirmation of reappointments to the Affordable Housing Trust and the Solid Waste and Recycling Advisory Committee. The sixth speaker, PROAKIS, explains the reasoning behind the reappointments and requests support from the council. Following this, the speaker, SIDERIS, requests confirmation of reappointments to the Affordable Housing Trust and the Solid Waste and Recycling Advisory Committee. PROAKIS provides updates on the HR Director position, the assessment center for the fire chief and plans for the police chief position, and the latest draft of the comprehensive plan. He also mentions upcoming events in the city, including the farmers market and the Fair on the Square. The next speaker, FELTNER, requests for a template on how to schedule meetings and create agendas and attachments, as well as addressing accessibility issues at Salt Park. The final speaker, ELODIA, suggests attaching short bios of committee members to the website for transparency purposes. The meeting then concludes with a motion to adjourn.