Planning Department’s Barney Heath, Jen Caira leaving City Hall
They've spent years helping the city, residents and businesses plan—new buildings, whole developments, zoning updates and more—and now Planning Department Director Barney Heath and Deputy [...]
Newton Centre Plaza is here to stay another year
Call it a plaza, or call it a parklet. Just don't call it temporary anymore. The Newton Centre Plaza started with controversy, as business owners [...]
Finance Committee unanimously backs 175% tax shift for FY 2026
This story is from The Heights, an independent, nonprofit newspaper run by Boston College students with which the Newton Beacon has a partnership. Newton’s Finance Committee voted [...]
Laredo’s City Hall leadership picks come with a lot of familiarity
Mayor-elect Marc Laredo has announced his incoming leadership team, and it’s filled with familiar faces. The picks hint at a desire to have continuity in [...]
Newton Walk, Roll, and Bike Plan sent back to committee after procedural dispute
A plan prioritizing pedestrian and bike travel hit a roadblock at Monday night's City Council meeting and is headed back to committee for a retry, [...]
Newton Highlands Village Enhancement project gets pushback from area council
After two years of planning, and around half a million dollars invested, the City Council voted to allow a conceptual plan for the Newton Highlands [...]
‘He loved the city’: Thousands gather to say goodbye to former Mayor Setti Warren
On Thursday, thousands of people—city officials, legislators, members of Congress and everyday Newtonians alike—stood in a line that stretched through two floors of City Hall [...]
In Brief: Cooper Center, jazz and trees
West Suburban YMCA gala breaks fundraising record The West Suburban YMCA recently held its annual fundraiser gala, with more than 200 community members attending, including [...]
‘Tireless’: Longtime friend and colleague reflects on life and loss of former Mayor Setti Warren
To Aaron Goldman, former Mayor Setti Warren was like a brother. Now, Goldman is among many left coping with the news of Warren's sudden death [...]
Former Mayor Setti Warren dead at 55
Setti Warren, mayor of Newton from 2010 to 2018, has died at age 55. Mayor Ruthanne Fuller wrote in an email to the community that [...]
City Council approves zoning change aimed at curbing oversized homes
This story is from The Heights, an independent, nonprofit newspaper run by Boston College students with which the Newton Beacon has a partnership. Newton City Council voted [...]
After legal confusion, committee approves new clerk salary
Last week’s Finance Committee meeting was set to include discussion and a vote on a salary for the city clerk, but Chair Leonard Gentile stopped [...]
A wider net: City Council seeks expansion of residential proximity requirement for police chief
Should Newton's next police chief have to live near Newton? Or should the city expand its search to include candidates from as far away as [...]
Newton man sentenced to prison time for gun conviction
James Welch, the Newton man who was arrested in February for illegal firearms possession, was sentenced to 33 months in prison on Oct. 8. The [...]
City Council approves Drew Willison as next city clerk
A couple of weeks ago, City Councilor Leonard Gentile blocked a vote to appoint Drew Willison as Newton's new city clerk, because he wanted the [...]