Over the next few weeks, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will finalize the data underlying the Chapter 70 education aid distribution for next year and begin to explore options for tweaking the distribution formula. Over the past few years, I’ve been particularly concerned to influence the Chapter 70 formula to address the shortfall that Watertown has experienced.
Author Archives: Will Brownsberger
Download Education Aid Files
The files on this page are related to the Education Aid series of pages on this website. Please do contact me if you notice apparent errors in the analysis on these pages.
Traffic on Blanchard Road North
I’m very concerned about the numbers of large trucks and trailers that pass through the narrow single lane stretch of Blanchard just before the intersection at Concord Ave. This is a densely populated area occupied by multi-families homes with children on each side of the road. If we let this pattern continue, the safety and quality of the neighboring residents will be at risk.
Next Up: Opioid Control Legislation
A committee of Senators has been working to develop legislation in response to the current wave of opioid drug use. Perhaps the most innovative and possibly controversial concept in the legislation is to verbally screen middle-school and high school students for substance abuse. Your thoughts on this proposed program or any aspect of the legislation would be very welcome.
A Step in the Right Direction
This week the Senate took an important step towards making it easier for people who have gotten in trouble to get out of trouble and get back to work. We voted unanimously to repeal provisions of state law that automatically suspend the driver’s licenses of people convicted of drug offenses and require them to pay reinstatement fees of $500 or more.
Trapelo/Common Intersection
There has been serious confusion at the reworked Trapelo Road/Common Street intersection, especially for traffic coming from Watertown. Everyone involved is very aware of the confusion and are all working together to make the situation safer, including immediate changes listed in this post. The bottom line: Don’t continue across Trapelo on Common except on the straight green.