Here are this weekend’s yard/moving/garage sales (and a free item giveaway event) happening in the 02478 zip code:
• 4 Grove St., Saturday, July 19, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• 15 Ledgewood Place (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints parking lot), Saturday, July 19, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.
• 22 Scott Rd., Saturday, July 19, 9 a.m. to noon.
• Judy and the Jitterbugs, one of the BEST children-music bands in the US, will be performing at noon at Payson Park as part of the Payson Park Music Festival’s Kiddie Concerts. This is a concert – thanks to a generous contribution from Ralph and Sherry Jones – especially made with kids in mind so what better way to start the weekend then to stop by for songs, dancing and a lot more. See them today or you’ll need to travel to Brooklyn for next week’s shows.
• State Sen. Will Brownsberger will be holding office hours at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St., at 10 a.m.
• It’s game day this Friday at the Beech Street Center as it holds “Tea and Games on the Patio” at 1 p.m. There will be scrabble, checkers, cribbage and Trivial Pursuit along with iced tea and some cookies.
• Remember that town offices will be closing at 1 p.m. on summer Fridays.
It’s nearing mid-summer and with the recent rainstorms that passed through the region, it’s certain that in time at all, outdoor activities will be impacted by an influx of mosquitoes. The Belmont Department of Health has issued this press release to warn residents of the danger the insect can inflict on people:
As we all recall, last winter saw significant snowfall and the mosquito breeding environments in and around Belmont are primed for a large number of mosquitoes this year. As always, we need to think about avoiding mosquitoes as well as ensuring that we keep our home environment and yards mosquito free. Mosquitoes are not just a nuisance. Unfortunately they also carry disease to humans which makes it exceedingly important to practice safeguards against mosquito bites. The risk of becoming infected with mosquito-borne disease is highest from late July through September; you should also know that the recent heavy rains will contribute to a large population of mosquitoes.
Belmont is part of the East Middlesex Mosquito Control Project, and as in recent years, workers from that project have already started to treat Belmont’s catch basins with mosquito growth inhibitors, which help to reduce one of the biggest sources of mosquitoes in this community.
Residents should, however, take note of the following suggestions to protect themselves from mosquitoes:
To reduce the mosquito population around your home, eliminate all standing water that is available for mosquito breeding and follow these simple guidelines:
If you have any questions, please call the Health Department at 617 993-2720
A weekly recap of residential properties bought in the past seven days in the “Town of Homes.”
14 Emerson St. Colonial (1929), Sold for: $810,000. Listed at $795,000. Living area: 1,660 sq.-ft. 7 rooms; 3 bedrooms, 1.5 baths. On the market: 62 days.
49 Sharpe Rd. Split-level Ranch (1956), Sold for: $850,000. Listed at $719,000. Living area: 2,708 sq.-ft. 8 rooms; 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths. On the market: 40 days.
30 Brookside Ave. Side-entrance Colonial (1936), Sold for: $752,000. Listed at $699,000. Living area: 1,808 sq.-ft. 8 rooms; 4 bedrooms, 1.5 baths. On the market: 40 days.
35-37 Chandler St. Two-family (1948), Sold for: $685,000. Listed at $699,900. Living area: 1,984 sq.-ft. 11 rooms; 4 bedrooms, 2 baths. On the market: 54 days.
23 Centre Ave. An antique Victorian-era farmhouse and separate carriage house (1861), Sold for: $1,597,000. Listed at $1,649,000. Living area: 4,437 sq.-ft. 14 rooms; 5 bedrooms, 4 baths. On the market: 108 days.
65 Vernon Rd. Garrison Colonial (1961), Sold for: $840,000. Listed at $785,000. Living area: 1,868 sq.-ft. 7 rooms; 3 bedrooms, 3.5 baths. On the market: 60 days.
32 Taylor Rd. Split-level Ranch (1946), Sold for: $715,000. Listed at $740,000. Living area: 1,503 sq.-ft. 5 rooms; 2 bedrooms, 1.5 baths. On the market: 60 days.
515-517 School St. Condominium, Sold for: $537,000. Listed at $525,000. Living area: 1,900 sq.-ft. 8 rooms; 3 bedrooms, 2 baths. On the market: 61 days.
50 Winslow Rd. Condominium, Sold for: $506,500. Listed at $499,900. Living area: 1,432 sq.-ft. 7 rooms; 3 bedrooms, 1 baths. On the market: 80 days.
12 Upland Rd. Condominium, Sold for: $495,000. Listed at $455,000. Living area: 1,420 sq.-ft. 8 rooms; 3 bedrooms, 1 baths. On the market: 77 days.
27 Underwood St. Two-family (1928), Sold for: $726,500. Listed at $699,000. Living area: 2,033 sq.-ft. 10 rooms; 4 bedrooms, 2 baths. On the market: 29 days.
11 Highland Rd. Garrison Colonial (1920), Sold for: $1,819,962. Listed at $1,850,000. Living area: 3,958 sq.-ft. 10 rooms; 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths. On the market: 55 days.
20 Irving St. Condominium, Sold for: $405,000. Listed at $389,900. Living area: 939 sq.-ft. 5 rooms; 2 bedrooms, 1 baths. On the market: 58 days.
It’s been a bit rough for local farmers as the growing season was late in coming. But shoppers at this week’s Belmont Farmers Market (today, Thursday, July 17 from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the Belmont Center municipal parking lot) will find a wide range of fresh produce and fruit available: arugula, beets, bok choy, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, chard, pickling cucumbers, eggplant, garlic, green beans, herbs – dill, parsley, cilantro and more – salad greens, onions, peas (snap and green), peppers, potatoes, radishes, raspberries, scallions, spinach, summer squash and zucchini. Look for tomatoes and corn coming soon.
Westport Rivers Winery, Sugar + Grain, Soluna Garden Farm and Bedford Blueberry Goat Farm are the occasional vendors this week joining the market’s weekly merchants. The Nicewicz Family Farm, a long-time market vendor, is eager to return to Belmont. However, their fruit tree crops have been affected by the late arrival of spring and they will not be at the Market until they have plenty of produce to offer.
The food truck this week will be Rhythm ‘n Wraps Food Truck.
The Belmont Farmers Market accepts and doubles SNAP benefits (formerly called Food Stamps) up to an extra $25 per market day, while matching funds last. Donations to the market’s parent organization, Belmont Food Cooperative, help with programs like this.
In the events tent:
• Music by Sarah Fard from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
• Storytime: Deborah Borsuk of the Belmont Public Library Children’s Department will read about farms and farming for children of all ages from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• The Hoot Owls will liven up the afternoon with their old-time string music, featuring Ruth Rappaport on guitar, Ben Wetherbee on fiddle, and Celeste Frey on banjo. From 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Thunderstorms will likely rumble through Belmont and eastern Massachusetts for most of the day, Wednesday, June 16, as a violent weather front that has been punishing the East Coast for the past two days reaches eastern New England.
The National Weather Service issued its third Hazardous Weather Outlook for most of the region at 4:42 a.m. with thunderstorms popping up throughout the day beginning this morning around 8:15 a.m.
Heavy rainfall is likely though this evening as showers and thunderstorms move across the region,” the NWS reported this morning. “A few strong thunderstorms with gusty winds are possible.”
In addition, there is a flash flood warning for the region in effect until 2 p.m.
Take a musical trip to ol’ New Orleans and laissez les bons temps rouler with Jumpin’ Juba, this week’s performer at the Payson Park Music Festival.
New Orleans swamp-rock, classic boogie-woogie, folk, Memphis rock & roll and a playful use of everything from calypso to country are stirred into the blue stew of Jumpin’ Juba – Steve Hurl on electric guitar and piano player Bruce Ward with help from new drummer Alan Waters.
See the band play “Pipeline” on YouTube here.
The concert will get underway around 6:45 p.m. at Payson Park which is at the corner of Elm Street and Payson Road.
The evening is sponsored by Dr. Baskies of Gentle Dental in Belmont.
• Vermont’s PuppeTree will give a new twist to the classic Leo Lionni picture book, “Swimmy/Swimmer,” with a puppet show at 2:30 p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library.
Watch a trailer of the performance here.
• The Belmont High School Teen Techs are back at the Belmont Public Library to help residents and patrons who are looking for help with computers, the internet, e-readers, tablets and the hows and whys of the social media world. The crew will be doing their tech wizardry from 11 a.m. to noon in the Young Adult Room. Register online, stop by the reference desk to register in person or call 617-993-2870 to register by phone.
• Duplicate Bridge Club meets from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. Every Wednesday the club holds American Contact Bridge League-sanctioned games. All are welcome to play. Cost is $7.
• The Belmont Book Discussion group will discuss “Juliet in August” by Diane Warren at 3 p.m. in the Flett Room of the Belmont Public Library. Everyone is welcome to attend. Copies of the book can be requested through the library’s catalog or call the library’s Reference staff at 617-993-2870.
Due to construction, Mill Street from Trapelo Road (Rt. 60) to McLean Street (the entrance to McLean Hospital) will be closed to through traffic.on July 16, according to Belmont Police.
This closer is likely to cause significant traffic delays in the area of Mill Street and Belmont Center.
Traffic headed southbound on Mill Street toward Waverley Square will be detoured onto Concord Avenue.
Driver’s from Trapelo Road, wishing to travel north on Mill Street, will be detoured onto Pleasant Street or may choose to continue west on Trapelo Road into Waltham.
Vehicles will be allowed access to McLean Hospital and the Stanley Road neighborhood. These two locations will not be affected by road closures.
• Here’s a rainy day event: Einstein’s Workshop program for Young Adults (for kids 10 and older) will be making “Rubber Band Jewelry: The Rainbow Code” in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library beginning at 7 p.m. Discover how to make rubber band bracelets without a loom, learn a few tricks to encode hidden messages in the bracelet and even begin to write your own. Registration is required so call 617-993-2870.
• The Benton Library at Oakley and Old Middlesex will have pre-school summer story time at 10:30 a.m. For children 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must be present. Siblings may attend with adults.
• The Beech Street Center is holding its second annual Talent Show at 1:15 p.m. It was a great event last year so come by and enjoy singing, dancing, reading poetry and a lot more.
• The Belmont Public Library will be holding “Noon Movies for Children” at noon in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library. The movies this week are: