Developer Proposes Senior-ish Housing At McLean; Residents Push Added Affordability

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Photo: A photo/map of the “senior driven” development on McLean Hospital.
A luxury residential developer came before the Belmont Planning Board on Tuesday, Jan. 16 with a proposal to construct a major senior-ish project on the McLean Hospital property comprised of 34 townhouses and 70 garden-style units in a parcel zoned 20 years ago for comprehensive long-term elder care.
While West Concord-based Northland Residential (which developed the 121-unit The Woodlands on Belmont Hill) contends the proposal is a better fit than an earlier but failed 482 unit, 600,000 sq.-ft. project approved in 2001, several residents and members of the town’s Housing Trust are already pushing for a greater emphasis on affordability that would serve an aging Belmont population.
“There are 1,000 cost burdened seniors living in Belmont and that number is expected to grow,” said Gloria Leipzig of the Belmont Housing Authority and the Housing Trust. “There is a need for affordable senior housing and I think we need to … see this as an opportunity and try and figure out a way to increase the likelihood of more affordable housing on the site.
Flanked by Michele Gougeon, McLean’s chief operating officer, Northland President and CEO John Dawley said the yet unnamed project will be “senior directed” that is unlike the “Continuing Care Retirement Community” concept which includes independent and assisted living as well as nursing home care that the parcel is currently zoned.
“It will have a floor plan that is attractive to 55-years and older,” said Dawley.
Created on November 1999 after Town Meeting approved new zoning for the property that May, a memorandum of agreement between the town and McLean rezoned 238 acres into specific uses including housing, open space, research facilities and senior living.
Since the agreement, most of the land approved for redevelopment would become part of The Woodlands at Belmont Hill, a townhouse development. One of the two final open parcels is the senior-oriented Zone 3 consists of nearly 13 acres near the corner of South Pleasant and Trapelo and a similarly-sized Zone 4 set aside for Research and Development.
Gougeon told the board the hospital will develop Zone 4 into an 86,000 sq.-ft. child and adolescence academic center and then later add a small R&D center. But the parcel’s build-out “will take some time” as the hospital will need to fund raise before building can commence, she said.
In Zone 3, the Northland plans call for 104 independent, non-age restricted units. Thirty-four will be two-to-three bedroom townhouses like those in the Woodlands and two four-story “flat style” buildings with seven to nine units per floor consisting of either two bedrooms or one bedroom and den garden-style apartments. There will be senior or elderly care services as part of the development, just grounds and maintenance staff. Under the current plan, the affordable housing component will remain at nine percent of total units which calculates to nine units.
The development would be situated on the ridge above a proposed assisted living facility along South Pleasant Street. The location has utilities in place and will be ready to be built. As proposed, the completed project will bring in an additional $1.4 million into town coffers, not including permits and fees. 
Dawley said the demographics of those who’ll be purchasing these homes – mostly those 55 and over with no dependent children living with them –  show that they aren’t necessarily downsizing, most will be buying without a mortgage and own a second home elsewhere. Similar townhouse units in the Woodlands run in the $1.2 million range.
The project will need two-thirds approval from Town Meeting as the complex alters existing town zoning requirements. But Dawley said those changes to the bylaw will be “very modest …” as the Northland plan “comports with the zoning very very well.” 
The next step for the board will be “a deep dive” into the zoning and debate the merits of those changes, said Board Chair Chuck Clark, noting the “devil’s in the details.” He also said the changes to the zoning will be presented to the annual Town Meeting as two distinct amendments.
One area that many in the audience of the nearly filled the Board of Selectmen’s room hoped the board and developer would discuss was the project’s affordability component. For Roger Colton, a former member of the Housing Trust, Northland is seeking significant changes to the current bylaw “but for affordable housing, which stays the same.”
The nine units set aside for affordable housing and the acceptance of owners making up to 120 percent of area median income” is unacceptable,” said Colton.
Rachel Heller (who is the CEO of the affordable housing advocacy organization CHAPA) said the Housing Trust is excited by the start of the planning process “because there is a lot that we can do together. McLean wants to be able to sell this land … the town needs more affordable housing so let’s put our heads together and work on it and let us use [the state’s Local Initiative Program] and really maximize the amount of affordable homes that we get out of [the development].”
The Local Initiative helps residential developers and towns develop a plan where a certain percentage of the units are affordable so a project can obtain zoning approval.

Officially On The Hook: Selectmen Approve Bonding For New 7-12 School

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Photo: The latest from Perkins + Will architects, facing Clay Pit Pond.

There was the debate, the vote by residents, the approval of Town Meeting. And on Monday, Jan. 7, the Belmont Board of Selectmen made it official in a five-minute signing: the town’s taxpayers are now on the hook to pay for the new 7-12 school building set to open five years down the road.

And the final dollar amount that’s on Belmont’s bill was calculated by Town Accountant Floyd Carman at (drum roll, please) $212,764,911. 

That number is the difference of the total project cost set by the architect Perkins + Will and general contractor Skanska at $295,159,189, subtracting $1,750,000 approved by Town Meeting last year for preliminary design and $80,644,278 in a state grant approved by the town’s partner, the Massachusetts School Building Authority, on Aug. 29, 2018. 

If for whatever reason, the project expenses overrun the projected cost, the selectmen will be required to seek the additional funds from Town Meeting, a prospect Carman believes would not be an enjoyable one. 

Carman told the selectmen the town is set to make its first borrowing of $100 million in March which taxpayers will see in February 2020. The second borrowing for $85 million will take place in March 2021 with its impact felt in February 2021. The final short-term borrowing of $27 million will be in March 2021. The borrowing will hike taxes on a $1 million home by $1,800 in February 2022.

Belmont ’19-’20 School Year Opening Wednesday, Sept. 4

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Photo: It’s already out; the ’19-’20 school calendar.

While the current school term is barely halfway completed, the Belmont School Committee has its eyes on next year’s calendar.

The school district presented the “final” version of the 2019-2020 calendar which the committee appeared to approve unanimously at its Jan. 8 meeting. Keeping with tradition, Belmont will begin its school year after the Labor Day holiday, unlike a growing number of districts which starts its academic term the last week of August.

Below are the highlights which will assist families in their preparation of long-range vacation plans: 

  • The 2019-2020 school year for 1-12 grades will begin on Wednesday, Sept. 4, with a half day at each school. Half of the kindergarten students will be starting either on Sept. 5 or 6 for a half day.
  • The winter recess begins at dismissal on Friday, Dec. 20 and runs until school reopens on Thursday, Jan. 2.
  • February school break is during the week of Feb. 17.
  • Belmont schools will be closed for the Massachusetts Presidential Primary election on Tuesday, March 3.
  • April recess is the week of April 20.
  • Graduation will take place on Sunday, June 7; just where the ceremony will take place could be tricky as the new 7-12 school building project will be nine months into construction of the “high school” section where the Wenner Field House is located.
  • And if the school district declares the average five snow days in 2019-2020, the final day of school before summer recess will be Tuesday, June 23.

Belmont Business Owners Being Asked In Survey How To Stimulate Local Economy

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Photo: Businesses in Belmont Center.

The Town of Belmont is sponsoring a survey conducted by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to guide town policy and is asking for information about what changes Belmont business owners would change to stimulate the town’s economy, including their insights into how to create jobs, support business development, and strengthen the community as a whole.

We are currently distributing a town-wide business survey, which can be found at Belmont’s town website at www.belmont-ma.gov or directly on https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BelmontBizSurvey.

All responses are optional, will be kept confidential, and will only be published in aggregate. The survey should take about 15 minutes to complete per business.

For more information, contact Raul Gonzalez, Economic Development Planner for MAPC, at 617-933-0722 or by e-mail at rgonzalez@mapc.org or Patrice Garvin, Town Administrator for the Town of Belmont, at 617-993-2610 or at pgarvin@belmont-ma.gov 

Town Clerk Sends Winn Brook Girl Scouts … To Jail!

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Photo: Adam Dash, Ellen Cushman and Patrice Garvin with Brownies Troop 72470.

Descending the backstairs from the Town Hall auditorium, Belmont Town Clerk Ellen Cushman walked slowly in front of the youngsters, leading them all to … jail! Carrying the big brass key to open the cell’s heavy metal door, Cushman was about to introduce the group to Belmont’s cooler, pen, slammer, poky and Sing Sing.

While the moderate-sized room was once the town’s Hoosegow, the Winn Brook Brownies Troop 72470 weren’t being incarcerated but now visiting what today is the location of files and office equipment kept by the town.

The nearly two dozen girls along with a half dozen parents paid a call to the Town Hall as part of a badge requirement on government. Belmont Board of Selectmen Chair Adam Dash discussed how Belmont is run, the differences of a town and city and other interesting facts while Town Administrator Patrice Garvin spoke on how just a few years previously, there weren’t that many women in her position and how today’s Brownies will help change that.

Besides throwing the kids into the town’s “clink”, Cushman showed them the town auditorium – once the home of Town Meeting – and described how her office is the local record keeper, showing them documents of 100 years ago.

Public Meeting On New Rink Set (Sort Of) For Jan. 22

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Photo: A new facility will replace the “Skip” Viglirolo rink adjacent to Harris Field.

The public will get its opportunity to listen and speak up on a new skating rink as a tentative date was presented at the Belmont School Committee meeting Tuesday, Jan. 8.

“Now is the time to take the next step” on the future of a possible public/private rink which could be located on school department property, said Belmont School Superintendent John Phelan, as he proposed the committee to request the Belmont Board of Selectmen to conduct a joint meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 22. The meeting will likely take place at the Chenery Middle School.

But the date is tentative as it may change if more members of both groups can attend at an alternative date and time.

Phelan said the first part of the meeting will be a listing of the pros and cons of placing the rink along Concord Avenue across from the Underwood Pools or at the closed incinerator location on upper Concord Avenue near the Lexington town line, as well as an explanation of the RFP – request for proposal – process.

The meeting will then become an open forum for the public to participate and “can have some dialogue” that could influence what will be included as public benefits and what it will expect from a new rink design including parking and traffic access, said Phelan.

At Monday’s, Jan 7, Board of Selectmen meeting, member Tom Caputo – the board’s liaison to the rink discussions – said while two locations remain in the running, past discussions and analysis of the upper Concord Avenue site by an environmental consultant revealed the incinerator parcel “might not be the best site” for a building housing a rink as it would be “more challenging” to build on ground that first needs to be capped.

In addition, a rink could not be built at the incinerator site for up to five years as the land will be used as a staging area for the construction of the new 7-12 school building.

Phelan said if the school committee – which last month agreed to move forward towards a possible acceptance of a rink– votes to accept an RFP utilizing school property, it will advantageous that “everything is ready to go” involving the project such as having a partner selected and a list of public benefits written out when a proposal is presented to Town Meeting in May.

While the RFP has yet to be written or placed out for a bid, the leading contender to run the facility is Belmont Youth Hockey which has been guiding  the effort to build a replacement for the “Skip” Viglirolo Skating Rink adjacent to Harris Field for the better part of a decade. It has released draft architectural designs and a list of public amenities such as locker rooms that can be used by home and away teams playing at Harris Field.

The site will be constructed as a public/private partnership in which the school department land would be leased at no cost for 30 years to the entity running the rink with specific language in the RFP requiring an allotment of time for youth hockey, both high school teams, and public uses. The town would be given the opportunity to take ownership of the structure at the end of the lease.

Yardemian Breaks 1,000 Point Mark In Win Over Arlington; Girls’ Stay Unbeaten

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Photo: Danny Yardemian with his folks after scoring his 1,000’s point.

It wasn’t if but when Danny Yardemian would break the 1,000 point barrier against Arlington Friday night, Jan. 11.

And the 1,000th and 1,001st points came on a layup just before the half time buzzer blared as Yardemian capped off an 18 point first half against the SpyPonders.

But any hoopla for reaching that career highlight would wait for the end of the matchup.

“Let’s celebrate a little now but let’s get back into the game,” the senior guard and captain told his teammates before heading to the lockers.

By the finish, Yardemian put up 27 points as Belmont prevailed, 77-54, in a relatively dominant team performance against the back-to-back Middlesex Liberty Division champions which usually had the best of Belmont over the past four seasons.

While the countdown on Yardemian’s 1,000th point breakthrough was one everyone’s mind in the Wenner, about the game, Belmont resembled a sprint squad at a track meet as Head Coach Adam Pritchard has the Marauders’ running, running and running some more, creating a myriad of scoring opportunities resulting in the Marauders’ putting up a gaudy 73 points per game. And putting the pedal to the metal is how Belmont shot off to a 16-9 lead after one with Yardemian leading the way with 6 points followed by 3s from junior Mac Annus (20 points) and sophomore Tim Minicozzi (14 points).

Belmont upped the lead to 35-22 by the half as Yardemian hit a pair of 3s and scored his 11th and 12th points of the second quarter on a layup from co-captain senior guard Ben Sseruwagi as time expired.

Arlington would cut the lead to 10 early in the third quarter before Annus scored 11 points of his 14 in the third on a two minute personal run to secure the win. 

After the game – and before the celebratory cake was presented with his accomplishment in icing – Yardemian thanked his teammates over the past four years “who set up plays that allowed me to score. It’s a team sport and I couldn’t do it without these 13 other guys. They’re all special.”

“It’s been a really special year for me,” said the Bentley-bound all purpose guard, having set the team’s single game scoring record at 46 points earlier in the season against Lexington. “It means a lot to get those records and have an individual banner. They all were goals I had for myself but we have bigger things to accomplish along the way.”

Belmont ups its record to 9-1 after defeating the SpyPonder and Melrose on Tuesday, coming off Sunday’s first loss of the season against Algonquin Regional in a “Heritage” game held at the TD Garden in Boston. (While counted as a defeat on its record, the Heritage game is not counted when determining the team’s seed in the MIAA postseason tournament.)

Girls’ Remain Undefeated 

It’s been a wild week for the undefeated Belmont High Girls’ Hoops squad, defeating a pair of one-loss teams, Reading and Melrose, before hosting Arlington High in the early game of the twin bill at the Wenner Field House. While its record is just north of .500, this edition of the SpyPonders are young – the varsity is made up of two seniors and nine sophomores (four youngsters are starters) – and more than happy to play a little rough and tumble. (Watch out for this team in two years time.)

While the visitors stuck around early, Belmont’s hallmark aggressive half-court zone defense and points under the basket settled the outcome of the game by the half as the Marauders remain unbeaten with a 48-30 win. Belmont is currently 9-0 (7-0 in league play) and ranked in the top five of both the Boston Globe and Herald Top 20 High School polls. 

Up five after the first quarter, 15-10, Belmont upped its defensive stance on the young challengers entering the second. And what a difference for Belmont as the SpyPonders could not stop the Marauders’ speed (Belmont had 13 steals in the game) or contend with the host’s considerable height advantage under the glass (6 blocks and 9 offensive rebounds for the team) as the ‘Ponders registered a goose egg over the eight minutes as Belmont took a 20 point cushion (30-10) into the half behind the starting backcourt pairing of senior Megan Tan (6 points in the first half) and freshman Nina Minicozzi (eight in the first) as both finished with 10 points. 

“We got a lot of offense from our guards because they were just quicker on both ends of the court,” said Belmont Head Coach Melissa Hart. 

“We passed the ball around really well and that got everyone open at some point,” said sophomore Miaya Bergdorf who was top scorer with 15 points including three 3s.

While the lead hovered around 2o for the second half, Arlington was unafraid to bang with the Marauders with each loose ball ending up with bodies lying on the deck. 

“They were physical but that really didn’t bother us because [our forwards] are pretty tall and they still were able to get the rebounds,” said Bergdorf, referring to seniors Jess Giorgio, Jane Mahon, Ella Gagnon and sophomore center Emma McDevitt who came off the bench to score 5 points and secure a game-high six rebounds, half off the offensive boards.

Now There Are Two: Warrant Committee’s Epstein Pulls Selectman Papers

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Photo: Roy Epstein

It didn’t take long for the race to fill the open seat on the Board of Selectmen to became a real contest.

Warrant Committee Chair Roy Epstein picked up nomination papers at the Town Clerk’s Office on Friday morning, Jan. 11, two days after Town Meeting member Jessica Bennett obtained hers, setting up a particularly interesting town election with two – for now – possible candidates with strong views on the direction the town should take.

A well-known member of numerous boards, working groups and committees – he currently serves on four and sat on five others in the past – the 24 year resident touts his extensive knowledge working on the financial and policy nuts and bolts of Belmont’s town government.

“Why me?  I have the professional background and actual town experience that has an unmatched record of solving the hardest problems and saving the town millions of dollars,” said the adjunct professor of finance at Boston College who earned a PhD in Economics for Yale after matriculating at Wesleyan University.

“I think I will do the best job for the town as a whole. I will continue to be an independent, reliable voice and will always welcome public input from everyone; left, right, or center,” said Epstein who lives with his family on Cushing Avenue.

(The Belmontonian will conduct detailed interviews with all candidates after nominations close on Feb. 12).

Kindergarten Parent Information Night Set For Thursday, Jan. 24

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Photo: Kindergarten Parent Information Night.

The Belmont Public Schools is holding its Kindergarten Parent Information Night on Thursday, Jan. 24, at 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Chenery Middle School auditorium located at 95 Washington St. Parking in the school’s lot is off Orchard Street.

(Snow date is Thursday, Jan. 31).

This is a general information night for parents and guardians of students entering kindergarten at Belmont Public Schools in the 2019-2020 school term with the four elementary schools represented; Mary Lee Burbank, Daniel Butler, Roger Wellington, and Winn Brook. Presenting will be Belmont Superintendent John Phelan along with school and central office personnel.

New in March is Kindergarten Central Registration for families with kindergarten students entering in 2019-2020. More details will be presented at Kindergarten Information Night and information is also available on the Belmont Public Schools website .

Please note: Kindergarten Parent Information Night is for adults only.

 

Belmont Police Collecting Coats And Clothes For Cradles To Crayons Starting Friday

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Photo: The Cradles to Crayons warehouse. 

The Belmont Police Department along with the non-profit Cradles to Crayons will be holding a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service collection drive.

We will be collecting new or like new warm winter essentials for children up to age 12. Items most needed are:

  • Winter Coats: boys and girls size newborn to adult medium.
  • Winter Boots: boys and girls size child 0-13 and adult 1-10.
  • Winter clothing: boys and girls sizes newborn to child 18/20 or adult medium.

A collection bin will be in the Belmont Police Department lobby. Items can be dropped off starting on Friday, Jan. 11 at 4 p.m. through Monday, Jan. 21 at 1 p.m.

Items can also be dropped off at Belmont High School from Monday, Jan. 14, thru Friday, Jan. 17, 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Monday, Jan. 21 at 9 a.m.

Cradles to Crayons provides children from birth through age 12 living in homeless or low-income with the essential items they need to thrive at home, at school, and at play.

If you have questions about the drive please call Lt. Kristin Daley at 617-993-2554.