Emerson Place Project Backed by City Council
In-Kind Services to be Provided
by Tim Buckland, Times Staff Writer  

The Watertown City Council on Tuesday threw unanimous weight behind a proposed $4 million revitalization of a neighborhood off State Street centered on the 100-year-old Emerson Place row apartments.

The council agreed to provide in-kind services, such as demolishing unsalvageable buildings, providing sewer and water connections and paving, to the project, which is being run by Neighbors of Watertown.

Councilmen Jeffrey M. Smith and Peter L. Clough, while saying they supported helping with the project, said the city must be careful with the extent of help. The city has estimated in-kind services and purchase of some materials would add up to about $120,000.

"It can't just be an open checkbook," Mr. Smith said.

Other council members, though, said the city must support the project. Neighbors of Watertown has lined up numerous funding avenues, including tax credits, grants and loans, to pay the bulk of the cost.

"We spent $350,000 on the South Rutland Street project," Mayor Joseph M. Butler said, referring to a street reconstruction job completed last year, "and that was a good project. This one is a project that will have a much larger impact."

Neighbors of Watertown wants to renovate the Emerson apartments by repairing the roofs, reconstructing cellars, replacing plumbing and damaged plaster, restoring original woodwork and hardwood floors where possible, adding second bathrooms in all 11 apartments and modernizing kitchens.

The agency also wants to renovate a dozen other houses near the apartments. It wants to sell the houses to first-time homeowners, who can obtain financial help through various housing assistance programs, and keep about six, with a total of 22 apartments, to rent.

Also at Tuesday's work session, council members set three dates for public information meetings to present proposals for a property maintenance code and a rental housing registration law.

The property maintenance codes are designed to go beyond the city's existing codes and get into building aesthetics. The rental housing law would call for interior inspections of apartments and require owners to obtain certificates of compliance before renting.

The meetings are tentatively scheduled for 7 p.m. Nov. 27 at the North Side Improvement League, 7 p.m. Nov. 29 at Watertown High School and 6 p.m. Dec. 3 at the City Council chambers in the Municipal