Belmont Votes: 2020 In-Person State Primary Election

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Photo: Voting is from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Voting in the Massachusetts State Primary will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 1. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

All voters wishing to cast their ballot on Election Day must go to their assigned voting precinct. Polling hours are 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. 

All voters are requested to wear a mask when entering the polling place to keep our election workers and other voters safe. Please be alert to the changes in the flow of access for each precinct as the layouts have been changed to support proper social distance. In most cases, one-way access has been instituted. Please be patient as a limited number of voters will be permitted in the polling places at any time.

Belmont’s voting precincts:

  • Precinct One: Belmont Memorial Library, Assembly Room, 336 Concord Ave.
  • Precinct Two: Belmont Town Hall, Select Board Room 455 Concord Ave.
  • Precinct Three: Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
  • Precinct Four: Daniel Butler School Gym, 90 White St.
  • Precinct Five: Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
  • Precinct Six: Belmont Fire Headquarters, 299 Trapelo Rd.
  • Precinct Seven: Burbank School Gym, 266 School St.
  • Precinct Eight: Winn Brook School Gym, 97 Waterhouse Road, Enter From Cross St.

Inactivated Voters

Voters who have been informed that their voting status has been changed to Inactive should be prepared to present identification before being permitted to vote.

If You Requested a Vote By Mail Ballot But Prefer to Vote In Person

Voters who have requested an absentee or an early vote by mail ballot should expect that the precinct will check with the Town Clerk to determine if a ballot has already been received for that voter.

Voters who Need to Return their Mailed Ballot for Counting

Any voter who would like to return a voted absentee or vote by mail ballot  to be counted, must return the ballot  to the Town Clerk by the close of polls on election night, 8 pm.  It cannot be delivered to a voting precinct.   There is a dedicated drop box for the Town Clerk at the base of the steps to Town Hall along the driveway at parking lot level.

In-Person Early Voting For State Primary Begins Saturday, Aug. 22

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Photo: Early voting starts Aug. 22

In-person early voting for the Massachusetts State Primary will take place statewide from Saturday, Aug. 22 to Friday, Aug. 28., according to a press release from Ellen Cushman, Belmont’s Town Clerk.

In Belmont, all early primary voting will take place at Town Hall, Concord Avenue in Belmont Center. Only voters who are registered as Democratic, Republican, Green Rainbow or Libertarian will be able to vote.

On Election Day, Tuesday, Sept. 1, voters must go to their precincts to cast ballots that day.

Belmont’s in-person hours are:

  • Saturday, Aug. 22        10 a.m. – 2 p.m. 
  • Sunday, Aug. 23           10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
  • Monday, Aug. 24          8 a.m. – 7 p.m.
  • Tuesday, Aug. 25          8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
  • Wednesday, Aug. 26    8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
  • Thursday, Aug. 27        8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
  • Friday, Aug. 28             8 a.m. – NOON 

Annual Fire Hydrant Flushing Begins This Week

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Photo: Flushing out the system.

Starting Monday, Aug. 3 through Friday, Aug. 7 from 7 p.m. to midnight, all street fire hydrants with green tops will be turned on to perform the annual flushing of the pipes. 

Mark Mancuso, water manager of the Belmont Water Division said in an email that operation will cause water discoloration in the system. Residents are asked to draw water for drinking purposes and avoid laundering during flushing hours. 

If there are any questions regarding this program, call the Belmont Water Division at 617-993-2700.

Tropical Storm Bringing Windy Conditions Tuesday Afternoon; Prepare For Outages

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Photo: Latest map from the National Weather Service.

While the worse of Tropical Storm Isaias will impact central and western New England with heavy rain, flooding and possible tornados, Belmont will be visited with buffeting winds beginning on Tuesday afternoon, August 4, according to the National Weather Service in Boston.

Strong, sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 40 to 50 mph can be expected with a low risk of 60 mph gusts as Eastern Massachusetts will be under a Tropical Storm Watch. Such winds can lead to downed trees and power outages, according to the service.

Below are telephone numbers to keep at the ready during the storm:

Belmont Light (to report outages): 617-993-2800.

The Town of Belmont EMERGENCY HOTLINE: (617) 993-2698.

Unless it is an emergency, do not call 911.

You can also see where outages are taking place on the Belmont Light’s Outage map.

Special Town Meeting Set For Sept. 21 Using Zoom, TurningPoint Voting

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Photo:

Belmont Town Meeting Members are being asked to SAVE THE DATES for a Special Town Meeting taking place on Monday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m. Additional sessions will be held on Sept.  23 and 30.

The meeting will again be held by remote-access using Zoom and TurningPoint just as we did for the annual Town Meeting on June 16.

Over the next few weeks, the Town Clerk’s Office will be sending instructions to make sure everyone is up to speed to use both technologies and we’ll be scheduling just three training classes for new Town Meeting Members.  

“It’s vitally important that we have a current email address for every Town Meeting Member so that everyone will be included in the TurningPoint list of voting Town Meeting Members,” said Belmont Town Clerk Ellen Cushman.

If you have changed your email address from the one where you are receiving this email, please inform us at townclerk@belmont-ma.gov and designate the email address as public or confidential. Remember that every Town Meeting Member must have at least one public contact, either phone or email.

‘Vote By Mail’ Postcards Mailed To Belmont’s Registered Voters.

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Photo: A sample of the ‘Vote By Mail’

Planning to vote in the State Primary Sept. 1 or the Presidential Election Nov. 3? 

This is certainly a different election season and different behavior will help to keep us all safe and guarantee your ballot gets counted on Election Day.  The Massachusetts Legislature voted new entitlements in the Election Laws that allow all registered voters to vote by mail, with no excuse necessary.

Every registered voter of Belmont who had not already filed an application to receive an Absentee Ballot or Early Voting Ballot by mail for the fall elections was mailed a postcard last week by the Commonwealth.  

Ellen Cushman, Belmont’s Town Clerk, encourages all Belmont voters to consider voting early by mail, instead of going to the polls on Election Day. Every voted ballot received by the deadline will be counted in the official election results.  

The postcard to “Vote by Mail” is pre-printed with the voter’s name and voter ID and is intended to make requesting a Vote by Mail ballot extraordinarily simple. The voter can choose to receive a ballot for the Presidential Election only or the State Primary only, or both.  

Voters wanting to vote in the State Primary must indicate the party ballot for us to send: Democratic, Republican, Green-Rainbow, or Libertarian. If no choice is made, no ballot can be sent. The voter must sign the card to receive a ballot.

How to Get Your Vote by Mail Card to Us

Once you’ve made your selections and signed your card, there are a few ways to get it to the Town Clerk’s office so your ballot can be mailed to you.  

  • The preferred method is to use our Town Clerk drop box located at the base of the stairs to Town Hall at parking lot level. We empty the box frequently and you will be certain of the date we received your application/postcard.  
  • You can drop the postcard at the Post Office or a US Mailbox. The card is already postage-paid and will be delivered to us once processed and sorted by the Post Office. Be aware that this can take several days.

Please consider filing your Vote by Mail postcard now; ballots are mailed out in the order that we receive the requests so the later requests squeeze the time allowed for you to receive and return your ballot to us.  

If You Didn’t Receive a Post Card but Want to Vote by Mail

Registered voters who already have valid requests to receive an absentee ballot or an early voting ballot would not receive the new postcard. Voters can confirm that they have a valid current request by visiting the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Elections site:    http://www.sec.state.ma.us/wheredoivotema/track/trackmyballot.aspx

Application forms to request a Vote by Mail Ballot or an Absentee Ballot are also available on the Town Clerk pages on the Town of Belmont website:   https://www.belmont-ma.gov/town-clerk and select the link on the left of page. These applications, containing the voter’s information and signature, can be emailed to Voting@Belmont-ma.gov  or faxed to 617-993-2601.

In Person Early Voting dates and hours have not yet been established; stay tuned for updated bulletins.

The Town Clerk and the Board of Registrars of Voters Encourages All Belmont Voters to take advantage of Vote By Mail to keep Belmont voters and Belmont election workers safe.  If you have any questions, please email voting@Belmont-ma.gov or call the Town Clerk’s office at 617-993-2603.  All voted ballots received by the Town Clerk by the deadline will be counted.

Register to Vote Now if You Aren’t Already Registered to Vote in Belmont

Voter registration, and change of party deadlines:

  • August 22 to be eligible to vote in the Sept. 1 State Primary
  • October 24 to be eligible to vote in the Nov. 3 Presidential Election

Once you’re registered to vote and remain at the same address, there is no need to register again. 

To register to vote, or change your voting address, party affiliation or name, to find out whether and where you are already registered, or where you vote, visit: www.RegisterToVoteMA.com

Once Thought Gone, Payson Park Music’s Summer Concerts Are Back

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Photo: The logo of the Payson Park Music Festival

After nearly being cancelled due to the COVID-19 coronavirus, the third time was a charm as the founder of the Payson Park Music Festival was successful in getting the four-decade old summer tradition underway Wednesday (before the rains came) with the perennial favorite THE LOVE DOGS.

Tomi Olsen, who founded the music series in 1990 and continues to run the operation, last week convinced the Recreation Commission and the Board of Health on Monday to grant a permit for the first in an abbreviated concert season at its home venue in Payson Park.

“I know we can bring in more as people have been asking for the music. We definitely don’t want to do anything that would jeopardize the [concerts],” Olsen told the board Monday.

But the festival known for its Woodstock-like concert setting with attendees bunched up near the stage and kids running around this year will have the feel of a theater performance with assigned “seating” and ushers as prescribed by the Health Board to the annoyance of Olsen.

The festival’s season – filled with a lineup of pop, rock, blues and country groups – appeared all but dead when the state’s shut down order in mid-March.

In June, Olsen believed she could make a go of it by moving the concerts to Belmont Center to the patio of the Bellmont Caffe on Leonard Street. But the alternative plan was squashed by the Health Department as being far too risky in the early stages of reopening the state.

But Olsen received her own last minute reprieve when Gov. Charlie Baker announced the state was entering Phase Three of a planned reopening on July 6 which allows for greater use of outdoor space. Olsen with the help of Juliet Jenkins came before the Recreation Commission which controls the operations of the park with a vague concept on opening the festival and asking the commission for ideas.

The commission told Olsen and Jenkins they would tentatively approve weekly permits if the festival won approval from the Health Department. At Monday’s meeting, Olsen announced a lengthy list of safety measures include mask wearing and a diagram of the park with 25 10-foot circles spaced 6 feet apart where patrons would sit. The park’s children’s playground will be off-limits and kids will need to stay with their parents during the concerts.

Board of Health Chair Stephen Fiore told Olsen the board agreed with a Recreation Commission recommendation to issue permits “week-to-week” rather than the standard season permit “just so that you know everything is following the process … and everyone feels comfortable that it’s in a place where it needs to be.”

It was the final requirements requested by the Health Board – volunteer ushers and patron’s contact information – that appeared to rankle Olsen as the impositions were going beyond the template used for the Farmers Market.

But the last minute additions did not deter Olsen from getting her permit and holding the first concert on Wednesday, July 22.

“In a world where people [are] a little touchy … our goal is to bring just a little bit of joy,” said Jenkins.

The next concert is scheduled for Wednesday, July 29 at 6:30 p.m. with Tomi’s All Stars featuring Binny Stone, James Brown Jr., Billy T.,
Karl Bryan, Lee Lundy, & Sir Cecil and sponsored by East Boston Savings Bank and Belmont Against Racism.

Community Path Public Meeting Set For Thursday, July 16, 7PM

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Photo: The community path in Belmont

The Belmont Community Path Project Committee is holding a remote public information meeting Thursday, July 16 with the the town’s engineering consultant Nitsch Engineering to go over Phase 1 of the Community Path project.

The meeting will be a presentation by the Boston-based engineering firm regarding the draft 25 percent design plans for the community path, and an opportunity to ask questions and provide feedback on the draft design.

The presentation will include the path from the Clark Street bridge to the Belmont/Cambridge line and the proposed pedestrian tunnel under the MBTA commuter rail tracks at Alexander Avenue.

The CPPC also encourages you to review the draft design plans, which are posted and available for download on Nitsch’s project website at https://belmontcommunitypath.com/project-updates/

This important milestone helps the project advance and remain on track to receive funding as part of the state’s Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).  

The meeting will be held at 7 p.m., and you can find the agenda and Zoom sign-in information is available on the town’s website: https://www.belmont-ma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif2801/f/agendas/2020-07-16_community_path_project_1.pdf

HOW TO ACCESS THE MEETING

FOR PARTICIPANTS: The Community Path Project Committee meeting will start at 7:00 P.M. and you may join the meeting remotely starting at 6:50 P.M.  The meeting will also be broadcast and recorded by the Belmont Media Center.

LINK TO VIRTUAL MEETING:

TO PROVIDE YOUR FEEDBACK:

Enter your Full Name under participant if you would like to provide comments and feedback (only those with a name entered will be allowed to comment and provide feedback to the CPPC team)

When prompted by the meeting chair, you can “raise your hand” to be recognized by the meeting host

Comments will be limited by the Chair, shall be concise, and shall not repeat previous comments or questions presented by others before you Chair is not obligated to recognize all comments and may end comment period prior to your comment being heard

BY PHONE:

  • Dial-in: 1-929-205-6099
  • If you would like to provide comments: press *9 when prompted
  • When the host is ready for you, you will be called on by your phone number or name (when prompted always start by presenting your full name)

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN FOLLOWING ALONG ELSEWHERE:

  • Channel 8 on Comcast
  • Channel 28 or 2130 on Verizon

Original Meeting Notice MeetingDownload

Cushing Square Paving Set For Thursday, July 16; Seek Alternative Routes

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Photo: The Bradford in Cushing Square.

As the construction of the Bradford, the Toll Brothers Apartment Living project in Cushing Square nears completion, the developer is finishing the restoration of the roads this week.

On Thursday, July 16, paving will occur on the following locations:

  • Trapelo Road, from Williston Road to the main intersection at Common Street;
  • Common Street, from Trapelo Road to Belmont Street; and
  • The main intersection up to the crosswalk at the gas station at Common Street and Trapelo Road.

Appropriate signage will be in place, but the work will definitely impact traffic flow.

Toll Brothers’ Contact person is Steve Iacaboni and he can be reached at 978-870-0603.

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.