On Sunday, December 1, the Nonantum Children’s Christmas Party Association (NCCPA) lit the first lights of Newton’s annual holiday season. More than 2,000 people — including many children and many local elected officials — gathered at the Coletti-Magni Park on Watertown Street to greet Santa Claus and his reindeer, enjoy…
Fig City News
Shouting matches at public meetings are not uncommon in Newton. Debates over subjects as mundane as math make national news. At times, observers and participants seem mystified by the assumptions made, accusations thrown, and the ugly name-calling. After the teacher’s strike, the City Council acknowledged the need for “a renewed…
At a large, enthusiastic gathering on November 25 in Newton’s War Memorial Auditorium, Governor Maura Healey announced that the Newtonville Commuter Rail station, on the Framingham / Worcester Commuter line, is now slated for an upgrade that will make it fully accessible and able to handle bidirectional rail traffic. The…
The City took an important step in improving the health of Newton firefighters last week when the City Council approved the appropriation of $1 million to buy essential safety gear. The funds, proposed by Mayor Ruthanne Fuller to come from certified free cash, will go toward purchasing one set of…
Opinions differ over the pace of change, but broad agreement that prior systems were deficient. The School Committee and Newton Public Schools (NPS) administration met for over five hours on Monday, November 18, first at 5:30 in an executive session and leadership caucus, and then at 6:30 for the regular…
On Monday November 25, the School Committee and Newton Public Schools (NPS) administration, including Superintendent Anna Nolin, attended a nearly three-hour “Special Work Session” at the Education Center. Although this was a public meeting posted by the City Clerk and listed in Fig City News Local Government Announcements, the only…
The Newton Free Library was the site of a sometimes contentious meeting between Newton Highlands residents and the Newton Public Works Department (DPW) on November 14. This was the sixth community meeting addressing the Newton Highlands Village Enhancement Project, which could create substantial changes to Newton Highland’s center. The Project…
The proposed Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO) was reported out of the Zoning and Planning (ZAP) Committee on Monday night, November 25, after two hours of contentious public comments. BERDO will now be discussed and voted on or amended at the full City Council meeting on December 2. …
It could have been awkward. Thirty-eight years ago, Fran Clancy was a born-and-raised Catholic, a parishioner at Our Lady’s, and the mother of two young daughters, and she needed a new job. When she applied for the advertised position of Secretary at the First Unitarian Society in Newton (FUUSN), she…
The Newton Turkey Trot is an annual event — featuring both a 1-mile family race and a certified USATF 5K road race — on the Sunday before Thanksgiving, starting and ending at Zervas Elementary School. It started 11 years ago with 100 runners, but this year has grown to 1,700…
Following the unanimous recommendation by Newton’s nine-member Police Selection Committee, Mayor Ruthanne Fuller announced that George McMains, the Acting Chief of the Newton Police Department (NPD), will succeed John Carmichael as the department’s new chief. Former Chief Carmichael resigned at the end of August, after a three-month personal leave. Acting…
The Community Day Center of Waltham (CDCW) — a fifteen-minute drive from Newton — provides shelter and support for the unhoused. Starting in a church basement twenty years ago, CDCW has grown as both a drop-in day center and an extension of the MetroWest community. Newtonian volunteers are essential to…