Letter To The Editor: Vote Yes To Retain The Name; No To Amendment At Special Town Meeting

Photo: The former rink

To the editor:

As a proud Belmont resident, I urge Town Meeting Members to vote YES to retain the name James P. “Skip” Viglirolo Rink and NO on Amendment 3 at the Special Town Meeting on Wednesday, July 23.

Skip Viglirolo, a Korean War veteran, varsity athlete, coach, mentor, and founder of Camp Willow (SPORT) and Belmont’s first women’s recreational hockey program, served our town for more than 50 years. Since 1998, the rink has proudly borne his name in recognition of his tireless dedication.

Amendment 3 would require all new or reconstructed facilities to adopt generic names, effectively eliminating the ability to honor local heroes. It would also place disproportionate control over naming decisions in the hands of the Select Board. Additionally, despite some claims to the contrary, this citizen-petition vote is binding under Massachusetts law.

Please protect Belmont’s tradition of celebrating civic service. Vote YES on Article 3 to keep the ‘Skip Viglirolo Rink and NO on Amendment 3.

Antonio Molle

Warwick Road

League Of Women Voters Warrant Briefing For Special Town Meeting Tuesday, July 22

Photo:

The Belmont League of Women Voters is presenting a remote Warrant Briefing on Tuesday, July 22 at 7:30 p.m. in preparation of the Special Town Meeting being held the next day, Wednesday, July 23. The briefing will be hosted by Warrant Committee Chair Paul Rickter.

There will be an opportunity to ask questions concerning the two Warrant articles with Town officials and Department heads present to provide information.

You can join the meeting by connecting to the links below:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89978567162

Zoom meeting ID: 899 7856 7162

Live broadcast: Belmont Ch 8 (Comcast); Ch 28 (Verizon)

Livestream or on-demand: belmontmedia.org/govtv

State Detected West Nile Virus In Belmont

Photo: Mosquitos spread West Nile virus to humans

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced this week that West Nile virus has been detected in mosquitoes collected from Belmont. This year, seven samples were tested for WNV and Belmont had a positive mosquito sample.

WNV is most commonly transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. The mosquitoes that carry this virus are common throughout the state and are found in urban as well as more rural areas. While WNV can infect people of all ages, people over 50 are at higher risk for severe infection.  

By taking a few, common sense precautions, people can help to protect themselves and their loved ones:

Avoid Mosquito Bites

  • Apply Insect Repellent when you go outdoors. Use a repellent with DEETpermethrin, picaridinIR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus, according to the instructions on the product label.
  • Clothing Can Help reduce mosquito bites. Although it may be difficult to do when it’s hot, wearing long-sleeves, long pants and socks when outdoors will help keep mosquitoes away from your skin.
  • Be Aware of Peak Mosquito Hours – The hours from dusk to dawn are peak biting times for many mosquitoes. When risk is increased, consider rescheduling outdoor activities that occur during evening or early morning. If you are outdoors at any time and notice mosquitoes around you, take steps to avoid being bitten by moving indoors, covering up and/or wearing repellant.

Mosquito-Proof Your Home

  • Drain Standing Water – Many mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water. Limit the number of places around your home for mosquitoes to breed by either draining or getting rid of items that hold water. Check rain gutters and drains. Empty any unused flowerpots and wading pools and change water in birdbaths frequently.  
  • Install or Repair Screens – Some mosquitoes like to come indoors. Keep them outside by having tightly-fitting screens on all your windows and doors.

Information about WNV and reports of current and historical WNV virus activity in Massachusetts can be found on the MDPH website at: www.mass.gov/dph/mosquito.

Belmont Opens Beech Street Center As Cooling Station Through Thursday During Heat Wave

Photo: It’s hot out there

The National Weather Service has issued a Moderate Heat Advisory for much of Southern New England – including Belmont – from 11 a.m., Tuesday, July 15 until 7 p.m., Thursday, July 17. With the Heat Index Values – a combination of high heat and humidity – reaching 95-100 degrees Fahrenheit, the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St., will be open to provide an air conditioned respite from 8 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. through Thursday.

All residents are encouraged to drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. The combination of heat and humidity may cause heat related illnesses and can be deadly.

Mid-Summer Special Town Meeting Set: Vote On Rink’s Name Will Be Non-Binding, Select Board Adds Alcohol (Licenses) To The Night

Photo: Gail Harrington

No one wanted the mid-summer Special Town Meeting.

Not the supporters of a citizens’ petition to affirm a 1998 Town Meeting vote naming the Belmont municipal rink after James “Skip” Viglirolo onto the new $32 million replacement. Gail Harrington, Viglirolo’s youngest child and petiton sponsor, said the supporters wanted the question to be included in the warrant for the fall Special Town Meeting taking place in mid-October when they believed it would receive a wider audience and, they believe, a favorible outcome.

And certainly not the Select Board which was “surpised” by the petition and was left scrambling to set the July 23 get together.

“You are likely asking why on earth the Select Board scheduled a Special Town Meeting for July 23? The short answer is that we received a duly certified Citizen Petition, so we had to,” said Board Member Elizabeth Dionne in an email to Town Meeting members.

And not town officials, the Town Moderator, nor members who will (hopefully) attend a remote meeting to vote on the article that, in a judgement by Belmont’s Town Consel, has been rendered toothless as it will be a non-binding referendum.

Maybe that’s why the town decided to bring alcohol to the coming assembly.

But holding the Special in the middle of July was not anyone’s choice but a requirement in the judgement of Town Counsel Mina Makarious of Anderson & Kreiger. It turned out that the family and friends of the late Viglirolo – who died in June – were too successful in securing signatures for their petition. Once the campaigners obtained and submitted more than 200 signatures from registered voters, the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Citizen’s Guide to Town Meetings requires towns to hold a special within 45 days after the petition has been certified by the Town Clerk on June 18.

Makarious concurred with the state regs “that we have no choice but to hold the meeting” within the 45 days, said Dionne.

“The Town Counsel did not give us the answer we were necessarily hoping for,” said newly installed Board Chair Matt Taylor. “It seems like a prudent thing to do … and it sounds like it wasn’t the answer the petitioners wanted either.”

As the July 23 date for the special town meeting was set, it was revealed the vote on transfering the Viglirolo name to the future building will only be an advisory opinion of the members rather than being a requirement to the town after Makarious determined the petitioners argument was based on

“The new rink has no association to the old one, they are two seperate structures,” said Town Administrator Patrice Garvin, boiling down the argument the town had advocated. The town can now follow the newly-created naming policy of town assets – the school committee and the library trustees have their own guidelines – approved by the Select Board at the July 7 meeting.

As the Select Board opened the warrant for July 23, Garvin presented two citizens’ petitions: the aforementioned rink naming article and a request to submit Home Rule legislation to increase the number of alcohol licenses and expand the number of establishments which can obtain them.

“We got an email earlier today saying that the [alcohol licensing] petitioners preferred July 23 if we were going to be having a special town meeting.” said Matt Taylor.

The town’s reasoning for placing the alcohol petition on the July 23 warrant is “to potentially relieve some of the agenda for October [Special Town Meeting], which is already incredibly full,” said Taylor. The article count for the fall Special has passed a dozen which is likely a high water mark for the autominal meeting.

The Select Board and Town Moderator Mike Crowley declared the meeting will be held remotely as “there’s an issue of public convenience and wanting to maximize participation, which I think we could most effectively do with a remote meeting.”

“Difficult to do this as a hybrid as well. I don’t know who would be available to show up in person,” said Crowley. “A full remote meeting, rather than hybrid, which is easier on staff, time and resources. And summer is not an ideal time.”

It’s A Wonder: Innovative New York-based Food Hall Coming To Waverley Square

Photo: The location of Wonder in Astoria, Queens, NYC

It’s considered big news when a new restaurant arrives in Belmont. Well, how about 28 award-winning and unique restaurants from around the US about to drop into Waverley Square? And they’re arriving all at once in a single storefront?

Plans are currently underway to bring Wonder, a new approach in the popular food hall concept, into the vacant ground floor commercial space at 493 Trapelo Rd., next to Tatte and across from Wheelworks.

“Wonder is coming,” said a town official with knowledge of the proposal. While it has yet to pick up a build out permit or a business license, plans are well underway with architectural drawings in town employee hands, and meetings last week with the Restaurant Review Committee and the Belmont Fire Department.

Described as “a new kind of food hall,” the New York City-based company gives customers the opportunity to order from the menus of multiple top end restaurants from a single location. Chefs such as Marcus Samuelsson, Jonathan Waxman, and Bobby Flay have partnered with Wonder to recreate some of their signature dishes and side orders. The chefs then teach Wonder’s employees how to replicate their dishes.

493 Trapelo Rd. in Waverley Square where Wonder food hall will be located

With a myriad of regional styles and to select from, a family’s meal order could include a Bobby Flay New York Strip steak, Texas-style Brisket Sandwich from Tejas, California-inspired Peri-Peri Salmon, and a Kids Cheeseburger from Wonder’s own Bellies. And your order will be delivered within 35 minutes (well, that’s in Manhatten) or just drive by and pick it up.

According to those who viewed the retail foot print, only about 20 percent of the location will be open to the public – about a dozen seats – with the majority of the space set up as a prep kitchen. Wonder’s produce the variety of meals at a central commercial kitchen which are delivered to each location. The meals are warmed at the store and delivered.

Belmont developer Joseph DeStefano, who in 2019 built and own the two, three story retail/residential structures close to the commuter rail tracks on Trapelo Road, has not responded to press inquires, neither did Wonder.

A great source on the nuts and bolts of Wonder’s history and future plans can be found in the Eater article by Bettina Makalintal: What’s the Deal With Wonder, the ‘Food Hall’ That’s Suddenly Everywhere? (March 12, 2025). Elizabeth G. Dunn wrote the New York Times spotlight of Wonder CEO Marc Lore who created Diapers.com, ran Walmart’s e-commerce division, and dabbled in a nuclear fusion start up and designing flying taxis before settling on revamping the food delivery industry.

Having opened its first storefront operation just three years ago, Wonder growth has resembles a rocket, now operating 38 locations mostly in New York City and New Jersey – with sites in Pennsylvania, and Connecticut – with 15 more set to open in the next several months. It’s closest operation to Belmont is in East Providence, RI.

Multiple Shots Fired On Channing Road In Monday Night Incident; Second Significant Shooting In ’25

Photo: Channing Road

Belmont Police is seeking the publics help as it investigates a shooting on Channing Road Monday night, July 7, which left a house riddled with bullets.

In a press release from Belmont Police Chief James MacIsaac, multiple shots were heard in the area of Channing Road near Belmont Center at approximatley 10:57 p.m. After arriving, officers discovered someone or some people had fired off at least 15 rounds, with multiple gunshots striking a residence. MacIsaac said no one was injured during the incident.

At this time, the Belmont Police believes this was an isolated event. Police are working with the
Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, led by District Attorney and Belmont resident Marian Ryan, in the investigation.

This marks the second significant shooting in Belmont in 2025.  On Feb. 24, gunfire in the vicinity of Clark Lane, a dead-end road off Royal Road, resulted in one person wounded and a suspect on the run. The victim later drove himself to a local hospital.

Anyone who may have witnessed the incident or who has any information is asked to contact the
Belmont Police Department Detective Division at 617-993-2550.

What The Mid-Summer Special Town Meeting Will Be Voting On In The Hands Of Town Counsel

Photo: Mina Makarious of Anderson & Kreiger, Belmont’s new town counsel

A date has been set, and the question will be asked to Special Town Meeting members: Will the assembly vote to support a citizens’ petition to force the town to transfer the name of the demolished skating rink onto the replacement facility?

Petition campaigners seek to retain the former name, “James P “Skip” Viglirolo Skating Rink,” onto the new $30 million facility that’s ready to open in the late fall. They stated more than 35 years of tradition and one family’s wishes are paramount over existing town policy and the potential of what the Select Board believes could be a monetary windfall.

It’s still unclear what the Special will be voting on in three weeks as part of an all-hybrid meeting. While that vote will most likely take place virtually on July 23 – the Select Board will vote to open and close the Special’s warrant on Monday, July 7 – just what the members will be voting on now appears to be in the hands of the new Town Counsel, Mina Makarious of Anderson & Kreiger.

As with the citizens’ petition that attempted to halt changes at the town’s senior center that was brought before at the annual Town Meeting in May, Makarious will advise the Select Board and Town Moderator Mike Crowley in June whether there is any relevant town bylaw, general state law, or case law that will either prohibit Town Meeting from proceeding with the move, resulting in the vote being a nonbinding resolution.

“This is the biggest question that we’re asking [Makarious] to suss out: Is this just advisory, or is it binding?” said previous Select Board Chair Elizabeth Dionne.

There is also the real possibility that deciding who gets to name the new rink will remain an open question to be resolved at Town Meeting. “This was some uncharted territory,” said Dionne.

“There are a lot of questions that still have to be answered,” she said, beginning with the rink named in 1998 by a vote of the Board of Selectmen. But there is scant evidence of town or Town Meeting involvement in the process that took place nearly 40 years ago, with no record of the supposed Selectmen vote in the town archieves.

“We’re trying to figure out how it was named in the first place,” said Dionne, noting the board doesn’t know if a monetary gift was attached to that naming. What is known is that the rink was transferred from the School Committee, but not to what town entity took responsibile for its ownership.

“It’s a little tricky who ultimately has jurisdiction over the rink, and we’re tracking that down, whether it’s the Recreation Commission or the Select Board. There’s a lot that’s unknown,” she said.

While Makarious has yet to make his attempt to cut this Gordian knot, Dionne said a preliminary opinion by former town counsel George Hall contends that anything associated with the old building is not bound to the new building.

“There is a distinction between the old building and the $30 million new building,” said Dionne as the new building is a new asset built with a debt exclusion and with Select Board and Town Meeting involvement.

Possibly throwing a wrench into the process is the expectation the Select Board will approve a new town-wide naming policy at its July 7 meeting, beefing up the existing one-page policy written by then Select Board member Adam Dash in 2018. A four-page draft of the new policy presented at the board’s June 23 those seeking to name a town asset after a specific person would require passing over a set of high hurdles of presenting a proposed honoree’s notable achievements. It’s likely Makarious will be asked to determine whether the petition falls under the perview of the current or new naming policy.

Which ever way Makarious decides, a change in the naming policy town-wide is much needed, said Taylor Yates, the Board’s vice chair.

“We needed a better naming policy than what we have, and we put a lot of work into making, what to me, looks like a really good one,” said Yates. “We’re basically two weeks away from adopting it, and I don’t feel great about what feels like [the citizens’ petition is] jumping the gun.”

Once the new policy is adopted, “then we can say, our policy … says this, and this is how we’ve interpreted this case,” said Yates.

Matt Taylor, who took over the helm of the Select Board on July 1, said the three-member board should have a discussion on the name of the rank. “Having this drag out without some clarity is part of what has triggered this petition in the first place. I think we should have that discussion and and a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ vote before the [Special] Town Meeting.”

Gail Harrington, who is James Viglirolo’s youngest child and has helped spur on the petition, said the group submitted proposals to name the new rink for Viglirolo’s under the town’s current naming policy in January and April. After it had not recieved a formal response from the Select Board and to show broad community support, Harrington said it used the citizens’ petition process to ensure the town holds a “public meeting” perscribed under the existing policy.

That public meeting would bring attention to “many community members were not aware of the potential of the rink being named something other than to honor Skip,” said Harrington.

But the family was a little too successful collecting signatures to promote their claim. Harrington told the board at its June 23 meeting the petitioners were attempting to have their request placed on the scheduled fall Special Town Meeting in October. But the pentitioners passed the 200 signature mark in which under state law requires the town to hold a Special Town Meeting within 45 days.

The Vigilrolo family’s decision to go the citizens’ petition route was personally frustrating, said Dionne.

“We have been working on a naming policy for months now. We expect to finally approve it. I’m very concerned about the precedent this sets,” said Dionne, who is the lead author of the new policy.

“We haven’t named our high school after a person. We haven’t named our library after a person. And if you were asking me, I think there are a lot of very worthy people, including Glenn Clancy, who just served the town for 41 years,” said Dionne.

“If Town Meeting is going to be asked to weigh in on this asset, Town Meeting can also be asked to weigh in on any other asset in the town. So it makes a very negative precedent. This is, in my mind, in opposition to good management.”

What’s Open/Closed On The 4th Of July, Fireworks Close To Belmont

Photo: Old Glory, Belmont

Friday, July 4, the country observes Independence Day, commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 (The document was signed on July 2nd). 

Massachusetts’ own John Adams, who signed the Declaration and was the nation’s second president, said the Fourth should be celebrated the day with “Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.” Adams died on July 4th, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the document’s adoption, on the same day as the declaration’s chief author, Thomas Jefferson, the third president.

Here is what’s closed and open on the 4th of July.

Closed on the 4th

  • Belmont Town Hall, the public library at the Beech Street Center and Benton Library, and town offices.
  • State and Federal government offices.
  • US Postal Service: Both Belmont post offices are closed; express delivery only.
  • Banks.

Opened

  • The Underwood Pool: Open to members and those purchasing day passes.
  • Retail stores: Open at owner’s discretion
  • Supermarkets: Star Market on Trapelo Road in Waverley Square is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., but the pharmacy will be closed.
  • Coffee shops: Starbucks and Dunkin’s on Trapelo Road will operate regular hours. The Dunks on Pleasant and Church will also be open.
  • CVS: 89 Leonard St. (Belmont Center) Store 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., Pharmacy 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
  • CVS: 264 Trapelo St. Store 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., Pharmacy 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.

For those who will be traveling using public transportation, the MBTA is running on the following schedule:

  • Subway will run on a modified Saturday schedule until 3 p.m. After 3 p.m., the subway will run on a weekday schedule.
  • Bus and the RIDE will run on a Sunday schedule.
  • Commuter Rail will run on a weekend schedule. After 8:30 p.m., bikes will not be allowed on board on trains. The last train from Boston’s North Station on the Wachusett route, which serves Belmont and Waverley commuter stops, will depart at 11:40 p.m.
  • There is no fare after 9:30 p.m. on all lines.

Riders are encouraged to purchase the $10 Holiday Weekend Pass for unlimited travel, July 4 – July 6.

Where to see fireworks celebrations near-ish to Belmont:

  • Arlington: Robbins Farm Park on Eastern Avenue just over Route 2. There will be music, and refreshments, with the Boston Pops Orchestra and fireworks on a giant screen. Starts at 6 p.m.
  • Boston/Cambridge: along the Charles River at the Esplanade, 10:30 p.m. A great option: Use the Paul Dudley White Charles River Bike Path along the Charles to get to Boston. A great option for viewing the fireworks is the BU Bridge which remains open all night.
  • Newton: Albemarle Field/Halloran Sports Complex. Carnival rides, food trucks, and a crafts fair starts at 1 p.m. with fireworks at 9:10 p.m.

State Rep. Rogers Sets July Office Hours In Belmont

Photo: State Rep. Dave Rogers

State Rep. Dave Rogers has announced his July office hours. They will be:

  • Tuesday, July 8, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. 
  • Thursday, July 17, from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Belmont Farmers Market, 10 Claflin St. in Belmont Center.

Feel free to contact Rogers’ office anytime with questions by phone at 617-722-2263 or email at dave.rogers@mahouse.gov