Monthly Archives: May 2011

Our Fast Food Democracy

Posted on May 30, 2011 by Matt

Hi, There are a number of negative comments made about the effectiveness of our Watertown, MA Town Council / Manager form of government and the decisions made by our Town Manager. A common complaint that I read in the TAB, … Continue reading →

Posted in Government, Municipalities, Watertown | 1 Comment

Block the Watertown Retirement Board recommendation to increase the Cost of Living Adjustment

Posted on May 29, 2011 by Matt

Hi, I’m asking that you help me encourage our Watertown, MA Town Councilors to reject the recommendation and request from the Watertown Retirement Board to increase the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) base. This vote will have direct long term … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Government, Municipalities, Pensions, Watertown | Leave a comment

An update on continuing to get Watertown, MA police report logs published

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Matt

I’ve had an ongoing dialog and Freedom of Information Request with the Watertown, MA police department about getting access to the computer aided dispatch logs. I was asked to call Capt. Rocca after my latest follow up. Please call me … Continue reading →

Posted in FOIA, Government, Municipalities, Police | 1 Comment

The ability to see raw numbers in police crime data matters

Posted on May 25, 2011 by Matt

Yesterday I came across the article Watertown Police Dept. is Fighting Rising Crime Rate with a Smaller Force on the watertown.patch.com website. After I read the article I wish Charlie Breitrose, the reporter for the Watertown Patch had pushed Chief Deveau further to … Continue reading →

Posted in Municipalities, Police, Watertown | Leave a comment

A proposal regarding food and milk choice in Watertown, MA schools

Posted on May 23, 2011 by Matt

Hi, When Amy Vachon posted in the Watertown Parents for Strong Schools Facebook group about ‘sugary flavored milks‘ I would not have expected 30 comments from people quite firm on one side or the other. I think there are commonalities … Continue reading →

Posted in Schools, Watertown | 1 Comment

Where does the data at www.nearbyfyi.com come from?

Posted on May 22, 2011 by Matt

A friend asked me this question in a private email. Here is my response: Hi Phil, This is long so short answers first: Data comes from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education [1], the MA Department of Revenue [2] … Continue reading →

Posted in FOIA, Government, Municipalities, Watertown | Leave a comment

Watertown, MA Town Council public speaking time OPEB benefits and true department costs

Posted on May 18, 2011 by Matt

Hi, Here is the text for my 2 minutes of public speaking time at the Town Council meeting tonight. Hello Honorable Town Council & Town Manager, I wanted to use my 2 minutes of public speaking time tonight to cover … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Government, Pensions, Uncategorized, Watertown | Leave a comment

Should our school system get more money, where will it go and how will it benefit our students?

Posted on May 17, 2011 by Matt

Hi, This spring rumors about the impending collapse of our Watertown Massachusetts school budget were being circulated among parents, newspapers and community members. As a parent I became alarmed about the possibilities and have been spending the past several months … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget, Fire, FOIA, Government, Healthcare, Municipalities, Pensions, Police, Schools, Uncategorized, Visualizations, Watertown | Leave a comment

Getting access to Police incident logs from a computer aided dispatch system

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Matt

I’ve been working for several weeks to get access to the raw police and fire department incident call logs here in Watertown, MA. After a lengthy freedom of information request process it became clear that I would have to get … Continue reading →

Posted in FOIA, Government, Municipalities, Police, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Understanding how to get access to line item police incidents

Posted on May 10, 2011 by Matt

Hi, I had a good conversation with Capt. Thomas Rocca of the Watertown, MA Police Department. I recently filed a freedom of information request to the police asking for raw access to the police logs. After a bit of back … Continue reading →

Posted in FOIA, Government, Police, Watertown | 1 Comment