Belmont Yard Sales: Sept. 2-3; The Annual Shop Around The Block

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Photo: Garage sales in Belmont.

Here are this weekend’s yard/moving/garage sales happening in the 02478 zip code:

This weekend is the annual Belmont neighborhood “Shop Around The Block” on the streets around the Chenery Middle School at Hurd Road and Oakley Road.

36 JACKSON RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 5:00pm (none)
21 SPRINGFIELD ST 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 4:00pm (none)
285 WAVERLEY ST 09/16 (Sat) 8:30am 5:30pm (none)
75 FLETCHER RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 12:00pm (none)
12 HURD RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 3:00pm neighborhood
53 HURD RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 12:00pm (none)
53 SELWYN RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 2:00pm (none)
175 WASHINGTON ST 09/16 (Sat) 8:30am 2:00pm (none)
60 SELWYN RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 1:00pm (none)
29 SELWYN RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 4:00pm (none)
201 OAKLEY RD 09/16 (Sat)
& 09/17 (Sun)		 9:00am 3:00pm (none)
18 HURD RD 09/16 (Sat)
& 09/17 (Sun)		 8:30am 4:00pm (none)
49 TROWBRIDGE ST 09/16 (Sat) 8:30am 2:00pm (none)
169 WASHINGTON ST 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 1:00pm (none)
67 HURD RD 09/16 (Sat) 9:00am 12:00pm (none)
22 IVY RD 09/16 (Sat) 8:30am 3:00pm (none)

Rain, Thunder To Greet Students On First Day Of School in Belmont

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Photo: Off to school.

In addition to the new backpack, pencils and lunch boxes, parents should add umbrellas, slickers and rain boots to the list of item students will bring to the first day of the 2017-18 school year in Belmont that commences today, Wednesday, Sept. 6. 

The need for added weather protection is due to the National Weather Service issuing a flash flood watch at 10:25 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 5.

Periods of showers and embedded thunderstorms are expected to begin in the late morning and lasting into the night with pockets of localized torrential rainfall. Hourly rainfall rates of one to two inches per hour will be possible with the strongest storms, which may lead to localized flooding of streets and low lying areas. 

Day one: 
  • It is a full day for students grades 1-12.
  • There will be no bus service available for Kindergarten students on Sept. 7, 8, and 9. Busing for Kindergarten students will begin on Monday, Sept. 12.
  • It is a Wednesday schedule for all students, meaning an earlier than usual dismissal time.

Purchase meals and plans online here.

Belmont High School

Wednesday is Opening Day for Grades 9, 10, 11, and 12: All grades will report to school at 7:35 a.m. for homeroom. After homeroom, students will attend each class on their Wednesday schedule and meet with teachers.

A Quick Reference Guide, including a list of items for Opening Day and the first week of school, has been uploaded to each ParentPlus and StudentPlus accounts. 

Dismissal times this year are:

  • Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 2:25 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 1:25 p.m.
  • Wednesday Early Release will be at 10:30 a.m.

Chenery Middle School

Start Time: 7:55 a.m.

Dismissal Times:

  • Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 2:25 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 1:15 p.m.
  • Wednesday Early Release will be at 11 a.m.

Burbank, Butler, Wellington Schools:

Start Time: 8:40 a.m.

Dismissal Times:

  • Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 2:50 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 1:40 p.m.
  • Wednesday Early Release will be at 11:40 a.m.

(1/2 Day Kindergarten: 8:40 a.m. to 11:55 a.m.)

Winn Brook School

Start Time: 8:50 a.m.

Dismissal Times:

  • Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday: 3 p.m.
  • Wednesdays: 1:50 p.m.
  • Wednesday Early Release will be at 11:50 a.m.

Belmont Yard Sales: Sept. 2-3; Helping Houston on Rutledge Road

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Photo: Garage sales in Belmont.

Here are this weekend’s yard/moving/garage sales happening in the 02478 zip code:

• At the corner of Blanchard Road at Mannix Circle (across from Fresh Pond golf course), Saturday, Sept. 2, 8:30 a.m. to noon. 

• 257 Rutledge Rd., Saturday, Sept. 2, 8:30 p.m. to 10 a.m. All proceeds go to support hurricane relief efforts in Houston.

Boisterous Gathering Highlights 15th Meet Belmont

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Photo: William Lovallo, chair of the Belmont High School Building Committee discuss the process of building a new/renovated high school.

The 15th edition of Meet Belmont was a combination of loud and crowded as a wide swath of town residents came to the Chenery Middle School on Tuesday, Aug. 29 to discover what makes the community run. 

With government, education, local nonprofit and faith groups at tables in the school’s cafeteria, the public had the chance to learn about the vast array of resources, services, and opportunities offered in and around our town.

“I think it went very well and I know that because I’m exhausted.  said Natalie Leino, who as the chair of the Belmont Vision 21 Implementation Committee took over the management of the late summer get together a year ago from Sara Oaklander and Jennifer Paige who held the event at the Belmont Public Library in the early years.

This year saw a greater proportion of racial and ethnic diversity at the event, said Leino.

“I think this year we had a high proportion of first time, just new to Belmont people. We had a nusome groups this year including a South Asian theater group and a Chinese American community group. It feels that as we get more diverse exhibitors it helps makes for a greater variety of people,” she said.

The event was also an opportunity for newbies and, old timers to (re)introduce themselves to local government – a number of folks registered to vote Tuesday while other discussed the latest scheduled blackouts with reps from Belmont Light – and community groups representing everything from residents raising money for PQ Park, intergenerational nature programs, morris dancing, and Belmont history. One of the most visited exhibits was a relief map of the vicinity around Belmont High School which will be the location of a renovated/new school. 

Carrying table placards and answering a myriad of questions from other volunteers, Leino said a small group of volunteers put in a lot of work “but it’s worth it because clearly people love this event,” she said noting the cafeteria was packed for most of the two hours of the exhibit. 

“There aren’t many towns that have something like this to learn about everything in town all in one place,” said Leino.

Last Of The Summer Harvest At The Belmont Farmers Market

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Photo: Belmont Farmers Market.
Apples are king at the Belmont Farmers Market; two months into its harvest and the variety continues to grow, while blueberries and peaches are just about done for the year. But if you need a little bit of summer for your kitchen, tomatoes, cucumbers, and corn continues to be available. 
This is the last week of summer hours – 2 p.m. to 6;30 p.m. – at the market. Starting in September, market days will close at 6 p.m. each Thursday to account for the earlier sunsets.
The Belmont Farmer Market is located in the Claflin Street municipal parking lot at the corner of Cross and Channing behind Belmont Center. 
 
Weekly Vendors
Red’s Best, Stillman Quality Meats, Mamadou’s Artisan Bakery, Dick’s Market Garden, Del Sur Empanadas, Goodies Homemade, Bread Obsession, Hutchins Farm, Freedom Food Farm, Foxboro Cheese Co., Flats Mentor Farm, Nicewicz Family Farm, Brookford Farm
Monthly and Occasional Vendors
Bittersweet Herb Farm, Minuteman Kettle Corn, Pet Wants, Recreo Coffee and Roaster, swissbäkers, Valicenti Pasta Farm. Learn more about our vendors on our website.
Community Table
Green Team: sharing tips for reducing food waste in cafeterias.
Schedule of Events
2 p.m.: Music by Joe Zarro, the coolest pastor in Belmont.
4 p.m.: Story time with the children librarians from the Belmont Public Library. 
4:30 p.m.: Music Together is an internationally recognized program “for children from birth through age seven-and the grownups who love them.” Lenka Zbruz, who directs the Belmont group, says she loves “making music more than anything else.”

7th Annual Green Belmont Garden Tour Sunday, Sept 10

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Photo: Gardening green in Belmont.

Sustainable Belmont is hosting the 7th annual Green Belmont Garden Tour on  Sunday, Sept. 10, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. come rain or shine.

The free, self-guided garden tour highlights a variety of safe and healthy organic garden practices.

See how:

  • gardeners in Belmont have changed practices after last year’s drought.
  • Learn about hearty perennial fruits, annual vegetables, and landscaping plants.
  • See different composting methods firsthand. Talk with the gardeners about all their growing habits.

This year participants can enter a chance to win a rain barrel or composter at each garden you visit. The more gardens you visit the better chances of winning! The raffle is an effort to help reach out to the Belmont community on issues of sustainability and to encourage healthy yards care in Belmont. Those garden viewers already on Sustainable’s mailing list may still enter the raffle and residency is not a requirement.

Garden tour maps can be picked up from the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. on Sept. 10, from 11 to 3 pm. Those attending can download or follow using Google Maps on the morning of the tour at http://www.sustainablebelmont.net/ But note; the page will not be available until then as a courtesy to our participating gardeners)

Belmont Yard Sales: Aug. 26-27

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Photo: Yard sales this weekend.

Here are this weekend’s yard/moving/garage sales happening in the 02478 zip code:

• 69 Elm St., Saturday, Aug. 26, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

• 26 Jeanette Ave., Sunday, Aug. 27, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

• 54 Sycamore St., Saturday, Aug. 26, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. 

• 126 White St., Sunday, Aug. 27, 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. 

Don’t Pass Up Summer’s Favorite Stop; The Local Lemonade Stand

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Photo: Belmont lemonade salesperson.

The days are not as long as they were just two weeks ago and the high temperatures just break 80 degrees. High school teams are practicing on Harris Field while kids are loading up on school supplies.

Summer is nearly over.

But in the final two weekends, before school resumes, you can still enjoy one of the joys of summer somewhere in town: freshly-squeezed lemonade from a paper/plastic cup, the creation of a young entrepreneur on a Belmont sidewalk.

So take the time to stop by and visit your local lemonade stand and purchase a glass (along with a side order of cookies if that’s also for sale) in an effort enjoy the last days of summer before heading home to wrestle through your closet to find the sweaters and boots you’ll need to wear soon enough. 

Gas Line Replacement Begins Friday at Washington and Branchaud

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Photo: Road work on Washington and Branchaud.

The prep work has been done, and the work to replace a major utility line a block from the Chenery Middle School is set to begin today.

National Grid is scheduled to replace the natural gas main at the intersection of Branchaud Road and Washington Street. As part of this project, we will also replace the natural gas service piping that connects the main to the customer’s gas meters of nine houses.

Traffic will be affected at the site.

Construction is expected to begin on Friday, Aug. 25 and end approximately on Monday, Sept. 4, all dates weather permitting. The first day of school at the Chenery Middle School is Wednesday, Sept. 6.

We will work hard to complete this project promptly and with minimal disruption to the community,” said Grace Sawaya, Community & Customer Management manager for National Grid in a press release to the town.

National Grid has produced a YouTube video on the gas main replacement process, in addition to a second video explaining the replacement of the service pipe to customer homes at ngrid.com/serviceline.

“We’re here for you if you have any questions about this project. Please contact me at 781-907-3419
We look forward to working with you as we upgrade our community’s infrastructure,” said Sawaya.

Tomatoes, Honey and Yoga At Today’s Farmers Market

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Photo: Peaches are in season.
Late August is the perfect time of year at the Belmont Farmers Market open today, Thursday, Aug. 24 from 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the Claflin Street Municipal parking lot behind Belmont Center. 
Summer produce is very much in season, with an amazing selection of tomatoes, peppers, corn, summer squash, and peaches, and fall produce is just starting to come in. It’s also time to stock up on honey, as this is Tewksbury Honey’s final week at the Market for this year.
 
Weekly Vendors
Red’s Best, Stillman Quality Meats, Mamadou’s Artisan Bakery, Dick’s Market Garden, Del Sur Empanadas, Goodies Homemade, Bread Obsession, Hutchins Farm, Freedom Food Farm, Foxboro Cheese Co., Flats Mentor Farm, Nicewicz Family Farm, Tewksbury Honey (final week), Brookford Farm
Monthly and Occasional Vendors
Deano’s Pasta, Jaju Pierogi, Japonaise Bakery, Recreo Coffee and Roastery, The Warren Farm and Sugarhouse
Community Table
Boston Area Gleaners
Schedule of Events
2 p.m.: Acoustic Breezes – a progressive, guitar-driven band that fuse jazz, folk, rock, and world rhythms with strong, expressive vocals to create a wealth of unique “free-verse” songs.
4 p.m.: Storytime with the librarians from the Children’s Room of the Belmont Public Library.
4:30 p.m.; Artemis Yoga – The Coolidge Square studio will teach a posture exercise to align the body in an optimal standing position and host a plank challenge.