New MBTA Hybrid Buses Arrive In Belmont Center With New Stops

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Photo: A new hybrid Xcelsior MBTA bus in Belmont Center

In the past two weeks, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has introduced its new fleet of hybrid buses on routes coming into Belmont. And as a result, long-standing stops in Belmont Center has been replaced due to the size of the new vehicles.

The new Xcelsior manufactured by New Flyer of America brings a better ride for commuters with greater fuel efficiency, according to the MBTA. But due to its higher profile, the buses could not pass through the tunnel over the Belmont Center commuter rail station.

The result has been a new stop impacting routes 75 and 74. are now on Concord Avenue adjacent to the First Church in Belmont, Unitarian Universalist.

The new route from Cambridge requires the buses to continue on Concord Avenue rather than make a right-hand turn through the tunnel, loop around the WWI Memorial, and take a left onto Common Street and back towards Cambridge.

It’s Back: Annual West Nile Virus Confirmed in Mosquitos from Belmont

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Photo: The West Nile virus is back once again. (Image by mika mamy from Pixabay) 

In what has become an annual summer resurgence, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced last week that the West Nile virus has been detected in mosquitos recently collected from Belmont.

WNV is most commonly transmitted to humans by the bite of a mosquito infected with the virus. While WNV can infect people of all ages; people over 50 are at higher risk for severe infection.

There are a few precautions people can do to help to protect themselves and their families:

Avoid Mosquito Bites

  • Be aware of peak mosquito hours: The hours from dusk to dawn are peak biting times for many mosquitoes. Consider rescheduling outdoor activities that occur during evening or early morning.Otherwise, take extra care to use repellent and protective clothing.
  • 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 fromyour skin.
  • Apply insect repellent when you go outdoors. Use a repellent with DEET (N, N-diethyl-m-toluamide), permethrin, picaridin (KBR 3023), IR3535 or oil of lemon eucalyptus [p-methane 3,8- diol (PMD)] according to the instructions on the product label.

Mosquito-Proof Your Home

  • Drain Standing Water: Mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water. Limit the number of placesaround your home for mosquitoes to breed by either draining or getting rid of items that hold water. Check rain gutters and drains. Make sure rain barrels are covered or screened. 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 of your windows and doors.

Information about WNV and reports of WNV activity in Massachusetts during 2020 can be found on the MDPH website at https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-arbovirus-daily-update

Community Meeting Thursday, July 9, For Pleasant St. Pot Shop

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Photo: A Mint retail facility in Tempe, AZ

A proposed retail marijuana establishment is holding a virtual public meeting on Thursday, July 9 to allow residents to ask questions of the venture located on Pleasant Street.

Arizona-based Mint Retail Facilities, a firm described as “an industry leader in the blossoming cannabis industry,” is holding the community outreach meeting at 6 p.m. on Zoom or via a dial-in connection. The Mensing Group, a cannabis advisory firm, will be hosting the meeting.

Join Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84593553591 (ID: 845 9355 3591)

Dial In: 646-558-8656 then enter the ID 845 9355 3591

The proposed pot shop will be located at 768 Pleasant St. in a one-story building constructed where Lenny’s Service Center is currently operating, adjacent to My Other Kitchen and Auto Engineering Body Work and Cityside Subaru.

A second community meeting will be held in September.

Belmont Street Undergoes Restoration, July 6-10

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Photo: Map of Belmont Street to be restored next week

Approximately third-quarters of a mile of Belmont Street will be under construction beginning Monday, July 6 to restore the roadway which was dug up late last year.

Bannon Paving of Hyde Park will be grinding and overlaying this large second on Belmont Street from the Watertown line on Lexington Street to Common Street for the entire week from July 6 to July 10.

The work will repair the street impacted by the installation of new PVC gas-main installed by National Grid/Feeney Brothers late last construction season to connect the new Toll Brothers development in Cushing Square.

Belmont Farmers Market, July 2: Load Up For The Fourth

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Photo: Belmont Farmers Market

It is another great Market Day – sunny and toasty – in Belmont as the Farmers’ Market is open in the Claflin Street parking lot in the rear of Belmont Center.

The market is open from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, changes have been made to shopping run the market include social distancing, preordering when possible, masks and hand washing. We have a one-way path through a larger Market area. We have eliminated social events to reduce crowding. Read our Covid-19 safety rules for you, for us, and for the vendors.

Read all of our pandemic safety rules
Read all of our pandemic safety rules
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Food assistance We match government benefits to help all families take home great, local food: SNAP (Food Stamps), P-EBT (for school-aged children during the pandemic), FMNP (for moms & babies, and for seniors). Most of our produce vendors accept HIP, which adds free produce for SNAP recipients.

This week’s vendors include:

Produce
• C&M Farm
• Dick’s Market Garden

• Hutchins Farm
• Neighbor’s Acre microgreens
• Joyberry Farm mushrooms

Meat, fish & dairy
• Lilac Hedge Farm
• Hooked Fish Shop w/Red’s Best fish & Boston Smoked Fish

Bread, pastry & sweets
• Mariposa Bakery pastries & bread.

Prepared foods
• Tex Mex Eats tamales.

And more
• A Seasoned Chef Spice Blends
• House Bear Brewing
• Flores de Cafe

‘A Big Ask’: Town To Seek $12M-$14M Prop 2 1/2 Override Likely In November

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Photo: Tom Caputo, chair of the Financial Task Force 2.

With town finances at the precipice of a financial black hole coming this time next year, the Belmont Select Board will ask voters to pass the largest Proposition 2 1/2 override in the town’s history of between $12 to $14 million.

“It’s a big ask,” said Tom Caputo, Select Board member and chair of the Financial Task Force II Committee on Thursday, June 25 as the town faces the duel impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on state and local revenues while battling a persistent structural deficit that has become the hallmark of Belmont’s fiscal woes.

“It is an incredibly challenging time to contemplate anything of this scale even in a great economy … It is particularly challenging in an environment where we’re looking at an economic recession,” said Caputo.

If the override is successful, the impact the average home assessed at $1.2 million will result in an additional $1,250 to a homeowner’s annual tax bill. If rejected, the town and schools would be required to make crippling levels of cuts in staffing and teachers, limit or cancel programs and cuts in essential services such as police, fire and schools.

“What we hope folks will appreciate is that there is no one silver bullet going to solve this problem,” said Caputo, pointing out that bridging the $12 million deficit with just employee cuts would require a reduction of approximately 120 full time equivalents (FTEs) positions.

“This is not trimming [costs], these are substantial reductions in order to achieve” balanced budgets starting with fiscal year 2022, said Caputo.

Timetable for November override by the Financial Task Force 2.
(Image: Town of Belmont)

While the date of the override remains fluid, the task force’s preferences are to link the vote to the Tuesday, Nov. 3 presidential election as the town can anticipate an 80 percent voter turnout – in 2016 82.4 percent of voters cast a ballot – which will provide a “fair and accurate read” of residents sentiment, according to the Select Board’s Adam Dash.

Others believe the November date doesn’t give the town enough time to “educate” voters on the need for a revenue push of such a historic amount.

The reason for the proposed override is the combination of the town’s structural budget deficit which is the result of the town’s nearly exclusive reliance on residential property taxes coupled with a 2 1/2 increase limit on the town’s property tax levy.

While constrained on the revenue side, town expenses related to skyrocketing school enrollment, a steady need for capital improvements and key cost drivers such as health and pension costs, employment expenses and mandated school services continue to rise yearly by 3.5 percent to 4.5 percent. The structural deficit alone would have required an $8 to $9 million override to close in fiscal 2022. Add the continued impact of the COVID-19 on state and town revenue of $3 to $4 million and the override comes in the $12 million range.

The Board and Task Force have expressed some optimism if the override is approved the funds will last several years more than the current projected three years just like the 2015 override.

The most recent Prop 2 1/2 override occurred in April 2015 when voters passed – 55 percent to 45 percent – a $4.5 million increase in property taxes to fund schools, town services, capital projects, road repair and sidewalks. It was the only override to pass in the past 17 years.

Originally meant to last three years, a combination of thoughtful planning, fiscal prudence and a good state economy allowed the town to stretch the funds through the current fiscal year.

The joint committees also agreed that seeking voters’ approval for an override must be conjoined with a concrete five-year budgetary blueprint to mitigate the structural deficit by seeking new sources of revenue and discovering ways to tame costs associated with employee pensions and health insurance.

Despite a great deal of heavy lifting by Belmont officials, residents and town boards and committees to pass the unprecedented override, Dash stated his confidence the measure will pass voters muster.

“I think we have a compelling case,” he said. “[The override] is not due to bad management … it’s due to just some structural issues we’re trying to address in addition to the COVID which is totally unpredictable.”

“If we put the case out there and we show people what they’ll get with it and what they’ll lose without it, they’ll make a fair decision and we’ll move on,” Dash said.

Evelyn Gomez Selected To Fill Vacant School Committee Seat

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Photo: Evelyn Gomez, newly-appointed member of the Belmont School Committee.

Evelyn Garcia Gomez, a relative newcomer to Belmont, was named to the School Committee Thursday, June 25, to fill the final nine months of the term of Susan Burgess-Cox who resigned in April.

An engineer and educator with degrees from MIT, Harvard and UCLA, Gomez – who arrived in Belmont in 2017 – is believed to be the first Person Of Color to serve on the Belmont School Committee.

“I think my being selected for the School Committee represents that Belmont is willing to put in the work to have a truly inclusive and equitable town,” said Gomez in an email to the Belmontonian after she was voted to the board on the third ballot by a joint meeting of the Select Board and School Committee. The other finalists included Meghan Moriarty, Jeffrey Liberty, Seeth Burtner, and Vicki Amalfitano.

Gomez’ background includes teaching math and physics for nearly two years in California and working as an adjunct associate professor at Pasadena City College. She also holds teaching credentials for high school math in California and Massachusetts.

“I want to use this time of COVID-19 to reimagine what education can be because, while this current system of AP classes and standardized testing worked for me, it certainly didn’t work for many of my classmates or my students,” said Gomez, who lives with her two young children who have yet to enter the school system.

(Editor’s note: The complete interview with Gomez is at the bottom of the article)

Gomez arrives as the school district and committee are juggling a pair of daunting issues: opening schools in September during a continued COVID-19 pandemic and a looming budgetary gap that could result in massive layoffs.

“This is like parachuting on the deck of a ship to steer it through a really big storm,” said the Select Board’s Adam Dash. In responding to a question from the joint committee, Gomez said after speaking to School Committee Chair Andrea Prestwich, she has an understanding “about the time commitment and how hard it is to do this job.” While acknowledging she has her hands full with two small children, her flexible schedule allows being on the committee “this would be one of my top priorities and I don’t do anything at 50 percent.”

Gomez spoke poignantly how her inclusion to the committee would bring diversity to the group and how that “would be a blessing, and it makes our town stronger.”

Gomez is currently part of the education staff of the Lemelson-MIT Program which recognizes emerging collegiate inventors whose inventions could impact important sectors of the global economy. Before coming to Boston, Gomez was executive director of LA-based DIY Girls whose mission is to increase women’s and girls’ interest in technology, engineering, and making through innovative educational experiences.

Born and raised in the northeast San Fernando Valley, a predominately Hispanic region of Los Angeles, Gomez was her class valedictorian at San Fernando High School in Los Angeles.

Gomez matriculated at MIT where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. She received a Master of Science in the same degree from UCLA. Gomez also holds a Master of Education in secondary education from Harvard.

Interview with newly-appointed School Committee member Evelyn Gomez.

Belmontonian: You said just after being selected that you were not expecting to be named. Why do you think you were selected?

Gomez: Timing is everything. At this moment, in this country, and in this town, I think we are all realizing that there is a lot of work to do if we truly want to strive for “a more perfect union.” We are at the intersection of so many monumental events: Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, and lacking trust in our public entities. In this particular moment, many white people are starting to examine their privilege and implicit biases, understand what it really means to be a Person of Color in this country, and how our reality is vastly different than theirs. As I said during the meeting, I have a lot of internalized biases and anxieties about being a minority, but I am learning to overcome those anxieties thanks to anti-racist literature by Ibram X. Kendi, Ta-Nehisi Coates, and so many others. They are teaching me how to have the courage to speak openly about my identity and experiences as a woman of color, as a daughter of immigrants, as an English Language Learner, and how these experiences bring value to my community. 

Belmont has a lot of work to do, but I think my being selected for the School Committee represents that Belmont is willing to put in the work to have a truly inclusive and equitable town. 

Belmontonian: The Select Board’s Adam Dash said with all that is happening in education during the COVID-19 pandemic and the budget issues the town and schools are about to face coming onto the committee is like parachuting on the deck of a ship to steer it through a really big storm. What do you see your role in helping to steer this ship?

Gomez: It’s been said that we need to “scrap the blueprint and revolutionize this dangerously broken system.” As an educator, I think we need to use this forced disruption in the education system to stop and reflect on what we truly value in education and what students value. I want to use this time of COVID-19 to reimagine what education can be because, while this current system of AP classes and standardized testing worked for me, it certainly didn’t work for many of my classmates or my students. Belmont can lead to integrating novel and innovative approaches to schooling that work better for teachers, parents, and students than the old system. Let’s not waste this opportunity in the disruption of schooling, let’s use it as a time to strategically think about what we value in education and what we really want our kids to learn. 

Belmontonian: I believe – although I will have to ask the Town Clerk to confirm this – that you are the first Person of Color to be a member of the School Committee. What in your life’s experience and background will you bring to the committee that it may not have currently? 

Gomez: I have over a decade of experience working with students of color and can relate to their experiences and struggles because I once was one. More importantly, my experience as a Person of Color and a teacher to students of color has forced me to be creative in the ways that I reach my students. I have seen firsthand how empowering students to use their lived experiences to solve problems in their own community engages students in a meaningful and authentic way. While this is true for all students, I believe it is especially true for students of color and women. In 2017, Belmont Public Schools presented findings of the Achievement Gap. Back then, there were 205 students that self-identified as Black. Those students had 3-4 times as many Cs, Ds, or Fs as the total student body and were more likely to report negative social-emotional experiences in Belmont Public Schools. This tells me that something is not working in Belmont Public Schools and we need to work together to fix it. I continue to seek an understanding of how to support students of color and raising the next generation of White allies. I bring this lens to the School Committee and to the forefront during decision making.

Belmont Votes: 2020 Town Election With Limited Polling Hours

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Photo: Go out and vote

The annual Belmont Town Election takes place on Tuesday, June 23, 2020.

Special Hours: Polls are open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

And below is information that will make the process of casting your ballot all that much easier.

Whose running for town wide and Town Meeting 

Click here for the Belmont League of Women 2020 Voters Guide for candidates and their campaign message.

Polling Places

For voting purposes, Belmont is divided into eight voting precincts, located as follows:

  • Precinct 1 – Belmont Memorial Library, Assembly Room, 336 Concord Ave.
  • Precinct 2 – Belmont Town Hall, Selectmen’s Room, 455 Concord Ave.
  • Precinct 3 – Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
  • Precinct 4 – Daniel Butler School, Gymnasium, 90 White St.
  • Precinct 5 – Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
  • Precinct 6 – Belmont Fire Headquarters, 299 Trapelo Rd.
  • Precinct 7 – Burbank School, Gymnasium, 266 School St.
  • Precinct 8 – Winn Brook School, Gymnasium, 97 Waterhouse Rd. (Enter from Cross Street)

Please adhere to the posted parking restrictions and use caution to ensure the safety of pedestrians around the voting precincts.

Are You Registered to Vote in Belmont and Eligible to Vote June 23? 

If you are wondering if you are a registered voter and your voting precinct, go to the Town Clerk’s web page or phone the Town Clerk’s office at 617-993-2600.

Arrive early, consider traffic and limited parking 

Belmont Police will designate some voter parking at each of the polling locations however with a  busy election, parking close to the polling places is often a challenge.

Plan ahead: consider walking, carpooling with a friend or voting “off peak” during the middle of the day. Only voters who arrive at the precinct and are in line for the Voter Check-In before the close of polls at 8 p.m. can be permitted to vote; those who arrive too late will miss out.

Need a ride to the polls? Rides to the Polls will be provided by the Belmont League of Women Voters. If you would like a ride to a Belmont polling place, please contact: rides@BelmontLWV.org, or call 617-771-8500. Please include your name, address, precinct (if you know it), phone number, and what time you would like a ride.

Election Results – How Do I Find Out the Results?

Election results for each precinct are announced by the Warden of each precinct after the close of the polls. The unofficial town-wide results will be announced at Town Hall and posted on the home page of the Town website as soon as they are available Tuesday afternoon or phone the Town Clerk’s office at 617-993-2600 on Wednesday morning. Campaign representatives are welcome to wait at Town Hall for the printed results.

Light Board Names Asst. GM Craig Spinale To Belmont Light’s Top Post

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Photo: Craig Spinale, Belmont Light

Craig Spinale will be dropping the “assistant” from his title as he was named the new General Manager at Belmont Light.

The eight-year veteran of Belmont’s independent electric utility was appointed to Belmont Light’s top position by the town’s Light Board – which is made up of the three members fo the Select Board – at a brief meeting on Monday, June 22.

“I really appreciate the confidence you putting me,” said Spinale, who will be the acting general manager on July 14 when Roy leaves until a contract is agreed.

“I’m excited to continue my work at Belmont Light and to lead the organization” in regards to green energy and Energy Saving Motors programming that we go to great pains to put in place, he said.

Negotiations on Spinale’s contract will get underway next week.

Spinale is the director of operations overseeing the day-to-day internal operations including utility line functions, customer service, meter operations, line operations, and engineering operations.

Spinale takes the helm from Chris Roy who accepted the GM’s position in Shrewsbury. Spinale was a finalist for the GM’s position in 2018 but lost out to Roy.

Before coming to Belmont in 2012, Spinale spent 14 years with National Grid as a Lead Design Engineer and a Supervisor of Distribution Design. Spinale holds an associate’s degree and bachelor’s of science from Wentworth Institute of Technology.

Tuesday’s Belmont Annual Election Will Be A 10 And 2 Event

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Photo: Belmont Town Election will take place Tuesday, June 23.

The usual combination of heavy sweaters, boots and gloves will be traded in for summer outfits, sandals and shorts as Belmont’s annual town election was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic from its traditional early April date to the first two days of summer.

The Town Election will be held Tuesday, June 23 with new special hours for voting. Poll hours are limited to 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Belmont’s eight voting precincts. Only voters will live in Precinct 2 will vote at Town Hall. 

“Voting in person will be different with social distancing protocols and other safety measures in place to protect Belmont’s election workers and voters,” said Town Clerk Ellen O’Brien Cushman. 

“Ideally most people who want to vote in the local election will do so by mail to limit exposure. Voters choosing absentee voting must submit a written signed request to receive ballots by mail,” said Cushman.

This year with expanded voting, approximately 2,000 Belmont voters have received Absentee and Early Voting ballots. All ballots must be received by the Town Clerk by 2 p.m., the close of polls on June 23. To ensure your ballot gets counted, we ask you to deposit your voted ballot in our Town Clerk dropbox, located at the base of the steps to Town Hall at the parking lot level. 

For those who have not yet filed an application to receive an Absentee or Early Voting ballot, time is running out to apply for and receive a ballot. Though the legal deadline to submit an application is Monday, June 22 at noon, per Mass General Laws, the likelihood that a ballot will reach the voter by US Mail on June 23 is slim.