Commission Orders Removal of Unauthorized Park Shed

Conservation Commission · Meeting of May 6, 2026

Watertown's Conservation Commission voted to force removal of an unauthorized shed from Arsenal Park. The commission found Wednesday that the shed, used by the school's cross country team and other recreation programs, never appeared in the 9 percent design drawings it approved in January 2022 but showed up in 100 percent construction drawings by November 2023. Conservation Agent Katie said "something got dropped in between those changes and when construction happened." Commissioners voted 5-0 to require the Department of Public Works to remove the shed, its concrete foundation, and restore the site with native plantings.

Commissioner Leo said Arsenal Park falls under the commission's jurisdiction and called the unapproved shed a violation. Fairburn also announced he will resign in September after moving out of Watertown, leaving the seven-member board, already short two seats, further strained on quorum.

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Source: the Conservation Commission meeting of May 6, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript. It was corrected where it differed.