This Week: Tasteful Home Staging, Teen Dance Party, Learn Bollywood Dance Gold

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The government side of “This Week”:

  • The Planning Board will meet at Town Hall on Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. where it will finalize proposed zoning amendments for Single Residence C Zoning districts and discuss the decision-making process for GR Zoning District applications. And, an update on Cushing Village … AGAIN.
  • The School Committee meets on Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. at the Chenery Middle School to hear updates on the district’s facilities, school calendar and from the Space Task Force. 
This week Belmont High School is holding mid-term exams so give all stressed-out teenagers plenty of room.
Tuesday is story time at both of Belmont libraries:
  • Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer-run library, at 10:30 a.m. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex.
  • Pre-School Storytime at the Belmont Public Library beginning at 9:30 a.m. We’ll read longer books, sing, and dance, and make simple crafts. For 3-5-year-olds with a longer attention span. At 10:30 a.m., is Story Time for 2’s and 3’s.

• State Sen. Will Brownsberger will hold office hours at the Belmont Public Library on Tuesday, Jan. 19 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

• Staff from U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark’s office will be available for walk-in office hours at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Jan. 19 from noon to 1 p.m.

• Deb Lockett will lead a free workshop on Tasteful Home Staging at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 1:15 p.m. She will share tips on what home buyers are looking for and how homeowners can prepare their homes to be competitive in the marketplace. If you are not planning to move soon, staging your home makes it attractive for you and visitors while you live in it and also gets you ready should you decide to move in the future. 

• Meet Belmont artist Roz Grunmann at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 3 p.m. who has her pastels on display at the Center through Jan. 29. Learn the inspiration and story of her tropical themed works, and ask questions about her technique and travels. Refreshments provided.

• It’s exam week at Belmont High Schools so what better time for a dance party. The Belmont Public Library will be hosting a “Just Dance” teen dance party from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 19 in the library’s Assembly Room.

• The Beech Street Center will present a five-week class teaching a new exercise class, Bollywood Dance Gold, over five weeks beginning Tuesday, Jan. 19 at 4 p.m. One of the fastest growing dance forms in the world, Bollywood Dance is a full cardio workout, strengthens muscles and helps you stay fit. It incorporates Indian bhangra, belly-dancing, jazz, and pop music. Learn basic rhythm, arm and foot movements in creatively choreographed sessions with upbeat Bollywood dance tracks. The dance is paced for members age 50+, and no dance experience required. Cost: $15.

• Infant Storytime, for infants up to 12 months and pre-walkers, includes a short program of songs and rhymes followed by time to play and socialize. The fun takes place on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.

• The Belmont Book Discussion Group will read and discuss “We are Completely Beside Ourselves,” by Karen Joy Fowler on Wednesday, Jan. 20 from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the library’s Flett Room. Everyone is welcome to attend. Copies of the book can be requested through the library catalog or call the Reference library staff at 617-993-2870.

• Attention teens, grades 9 and up!  Looking for a new community service opportunity that will look great on your college applications? Come to the Belmont Public Library Teen Advisory Board meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 20, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the library’s Young Adult Room. Sign up to attend by stop by the library’s reference desk, or call 617-993-2873.

• The Chenery Middle School Honors Concert will be held in the school’s auditorium at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 20.

• Storytime for 1’s is for walkers and toddlers under 24 months will be held on Thursday, Jan. 21, at 10:30 a.m. in the library’s Flett Room. They will share simple stories, songs, and nursery rhymes, and end with time to play.

• Join other 2nd and 3rd graders to talk about this month’s book, Squish: Super Amoeba by Jennifer Holm on Thursday, Jan. 21 from 3:30 p.m. to  4:15 p.m. in the Flett Room. Please register by clicking on the hand icon here or by calling the Children’s Department at 617-993-2880.

• Dr. Jolene Ross of the Foundation for Wellness Professionals will speak on “Natural Solutions for Executive Function Struggles and ADHD” on Thursday, Jan. 21 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room  All are welcome to attend this free program.

• The Belmont Storm Water Working Group will be holding its monthly meeting on Thursday, Jan. 21 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library.

• Literacy Playgroup is a parent and child group that supports child’s language and literacy development on Friday, Jan. 22 from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room. You’ll play, read, sing and take home new ideas. Presented by educators from the CFCE grant program; for children age 4 and under.

• Local health counselor and wellness coach Sigal Bar-Gill will offer ways to lower chronic inflammation at a talk at the Beech Street Center on Friday, Jan. 22 at 1:15 p.m. 

• The school district is declaring Jan. 22 to Jan. 24 as a homework free weekend. This decision will give your student more time clearing snow from the sidewalks. 

Belmont World Film Presents NE Premiere of ‘Landfill Harmonic’ Sunday

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Photo: From the documentary “Landfill Harmonic.”

Belmont World Film’s “Family Festival” presents “Kid Power!” the 13th edition of its popular festival for children ages 3-12, from Jan. 15 to 18, at the Regent Theatre (7 Medford Street, Arlington), and Belmont’s Studio Cinema at 376 Trapelo Rd.

Twelve programs, featuring some of the world’s top animated and live action films for children, will screen in their native languages with English subtitles, from such diverse countries as Argentina, Canada, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Paraguay, Uganda, and the US. Each day is dedicated to a different theme, including magic, caring for the environment, and a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on Martin Luther King Day.

“Belmont BelmontFilm2016FamilyFestivalAdWorld Film’s Family Festival offers filmgoers the opportunity

to hear and understand multiple languages in a fun and natural way while offering an alternative to the standard Hollywood fare typically found at the multiplex,” says Belmont World Film Executive Director Ellen Gitelman.

One of the most anticipated programs is the 10:30 a.m. talk on Saturday, Jan. 16, by Peter Reynolds, author and illustrator of such popular children’s picture books as The Dot, Ish, Sky Color, and The North Star and owner of the Blue Bunny bookstore in Dedham. The program features a screening of animated versions of his books by Weston Woods Studios and a book signing.

Another highlight is the New England premiere of the documentary Landfill Harmonic on Sunday, Jan. 17, at 1:15 p.m. The story is about members of a Paraguayan youth orchestra who live next to one of South America’s largest landfills and whose instruments are made out of garbage found by one of the pickers. When their story goes viral, they realize their dream of performing live with some of their favorite heavy metal bands, including Megadeth, catapulting them into the global spotlight. The film is a beautiful story about the transformative power of music that also highlights two vital issues of our times: poverty and waste pollution (age 6-adult, $9). 

The weekend’s other film programs include:

FRIDAY, JAN. 15

  • Fantasia, the groundbreaking film released 75 years ago by Walt Disney that ingeniously combined animated imagery with classical music, features Mickey Mouse as the sorcerer’s apprentice, and the music of Beethoven, Bach, Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, and more, orchestrated and conducted by Leopold Stokowski. Presented in honor of the film’s 75th anniversary and as a kick-off to the Regent Theatre’s Through the Decades Classic Film Series, a year-long celebration of the Theatre’s 100th anniversary. Prizes will be given for the best costumes after a parade around the Theatre! (7 p.m., age 4+).

SATURDAY, JAN. 16

  • The Amazing Wiplala, a Dutch film in which a 7 year-old boy discovers a tiny man with magical powers in his kitchen cupboard. With his powers on the fritz, he accidentally shrinks the entire family (12:30 PM, age 6+, New England premiere). Presented by Dutch Culture USA
  • Song of the Sea, the Oscar-nominated hand-drawn animated film from Ireland about the last seal-child, Saoirse, and her brother Ben, who go on an epic journey to save the world of magic and discover the secrets of their past (2:30 PM, age 5+). Co-presented by the Boston Irish Film Festival

SUNDAY, JAN. 17

  • It’s Easy Being Green: Short Films about Animals and the Environment featuring award-winning animated and live action shorts followed by a talk by three 12-year old environmentalists Lexington featured in the film Save Tomorrow. 
  • Landfill Harmonic see above (1:15 p.m., age 8+, New England premiere).
  • Birds of Passage, a beautiful story from France about shy 10 year-old Cathy and her friend Margaux who is confined to a wheelchair with myopathy. When the duck egg that Cathy’s overly-enthusiastic father gives her for her birthday hatches and the duckling imprints on Margaux, the two set off on a secret mission to set the duckling free in its natural habitat (3:00 PM, age 6+, East Coast premiere). Co-presented by SMILE Mass.

MONDAY, JAN. 18

  • Imba Means Sing follows 8 year-olds Angel, Moses, Nina and the other members of the Grammy-nominated African Children’s Choir from the slums of Kampala, Uganda, a country torn apart by the guerilla war of 1981-86, through their world tour. Although lacking enough resources to even attend the first grade, the film shows how each child processes the joys and challenges of their life-changing opportunity to receive an education to achieve their dreams. (11:45 a.m., age 8+, New England premiere.
  • The Outlaw League, about a sensitive 12 year-old boy from Quebec who leads a campaign to rescue the town’s baseball field from becoming the town dump. (1:15 p.m., age 9+, New England premiere). Co-presented by the Quebec Delegation of Boston.
  • The Games Maker, about young Ivan Drago’s (David Mazouz, young Bruce Wayne in Gotham) newfound love of board games catapults him into the fantastical and competitive world of game invention, and pits him against the inventor Morodian (Joseph Fiennes), who has long desired to destroy the city of Zyl, founded by Ivan’s grandfather (Ed Asner). To save his family (Tom Cavanaugh) and defeat Morodian, Ivan must come to know what it is to be a true Games Maker (3:00 PM, Age 9+, East Coast premiere)

Festival sponsors include Hammond Real Estate, Dutch Culture USA, Belmont Day School, Solar City and Stellabella Toys. The Family Film Festival is also funded in part by grants from the Arlington, Belmont, Cambridge, Waltham and Watertown Cultural Councils, local agencies that are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Festival partners include the Boston Irish Film Festival, Project Giving Kids, and SMILE Mass.

Individual tickets are $6 for programs for shorts programs and $9 for feature-length films. Full festival passes are $50. Tickets are available in advance online at www.belmontworldfilm.org or in person at either the Studio Cinema or Regent Theatre box offices on

Tickets are available in advance online at www.belmontworldfilm.org or in person at either the Studio Cinema or Regent Theatre box offices on day of show. For full film descriptions and additional information visit www.belmontworldfilm.org or call 617-484-3980.

Belmont World Film is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that promotes cross-cultural understanding through the powerful universal language of film. It presents award-winning feature narrative films, documentaries, animation, and shorts from around the world for both adults and children accompanied by topical speakers, cultural performances and ethnic cuisine.

State Sen. Forry Featured Speaker at MLK Breakfast Monday, Jan. 18

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Photo: State Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry

State Sen. Linda Dorcena Forry will be the featured speaker at the 22nd annual Martin Luther King Community Breakfast to be held at Belmont High School Cafeteria, 221 Concord Ave., on Monday, Jan. 18.  

Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m., with the program starting at 8:45 a.m. Tickets are $5 per person, $10 for each family.

Join the community for this multi-age gathering, including Belmont Schools’ families, Belmont town and school officials, the Belmont Religious Council, and others from Belmont and Boston, and surrounding communities, for community, conversation and celebration

  • Pastries, juice, fruit  and coffee to be served
  • Supervised activity, including gym activities with Belmont High Girls Basketball Coach Melissa Hart and childcare, for children 2- 12
  • Accessible to persons with disabilities
  • African Dance to be performed by middle school students, including one of our Belmont Boston students, from the Tony Williams Dance Center.

State Sen. Forry is the first woman and person of color to represent the 1st Suffolk District, a diverse and thriving cross-section of Boston that includes Dorchester, Hyde Park, Mattapan and South Boston. Forry holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Boston College Carroll School of Management and a Master’s in Public Administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. 

Advance registration requested but not required. RSVP at http://www.belmont-ma.gov/home/slides/mlk or at www.BelmontAgainstRacism.org or at the door.

Donations will be accepted for the Belmont Schools’ METCO Support Fund which supports, among other things, late day transportation for our Belmont METCO students engaged in sports, arts and clubs. Contributions may be made by cash or check to Belmont Against Racism, re: METCO Support Fund or mailed to BAR, PO Box 649, Belmont, MA 02478.

This Week: Parents Lecture Series Begins, Learn About Solar, Sing-a-Rama Is Here

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On the government side of “This Week”

  • The Belmont Board of Selectmen meets at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 11 at Town Hall for a marathon presentation on a review of the town’s sewers and long-standing pollution concerns coming from Belmont into the Mystic River watershed at Wellington and Winn’s brooks.
  • The Zoning Board of Appeals is also meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 11 but in the Belmont Art Gallery on the third floor of the Homer Building in the Town Hall complex. It will review a request to build a Dunkin’ Donuts in a small strip mall at Pleasant and Brighton as well take up a matter concerning a resident who is seeking to rent a room for less than a week via the website Airbnb. 
  • The Community Preservation Committee will review the final applications for CPC’s grants at its meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 13 at 5 p.m. at Town Hall.

• Belmont Public Library’s Books and Bits Series welcomes author Henriette Lazaridis Power who will read from her novel “The Clover House” on Monday, Jan. 11 from 11 a.m. ’til noon in the library’s Assembly Room. The novel brings to life World War II-era and modern-day Greece, and tells the story of a vibrant family and the tragic secret kept hidden for generations.

• Kids, let’s use polymer clay to make cute charms of animals, food, and more! The crafts workshop, which will take place on Monday, Jan. 11, from 3:30 p.m. to 5  p.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library. For kids in 4th to 6th grades. Registration required by calling the Children’s Department at 617-993-2880.

• The inaugural talk in the Belmont After School Enrichment Collaborative (BASEC) Parents Lecture Series is “Embrace and Let Go – Understanding Digital Dependency” with Joni Siani, media and communication scholar, author/filmmaker of “Celling Your Soul; No App for Life” who will speak beginning at 6:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 11 in the Chenery Middle School auditorium.

Tuesday is story time at both of Belmont libraries:
  • Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer-run library, at 10:30 a.m. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex.
  • Pre-School Storytime at the Belmont Public Library beginning at 9:30 a.m. We’ll read longer books, sing, and dance, and make simple crafts. For 3-5-year-olds with a longer attention span.

• Staff from State Rep. Dave Rogers’ office will be available for walk-in office hours on Tuesday, Jan. 12 at 9:30 a.m. at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.

• A screening of the film “Doctor Zhivago,” produced in 1965 starring Julie Christie, Omar Sharif, and Sir Alec Guinness, will be shown at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Jan. 12 at 1:15 p.m. Boris Pasternak’s masterpiece brings to life the Russian Revolution through the story of the gifted physician-poet Zhivago.

• Belmont cellist Shivane Pratapper performs works by Vivaldi, Goltermann and more at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Jan. 12 at 3:30 p.m.

• Infant Storytime, for infants up to 12 months and pre-walkers, includes a short program of songs and rhymes followed by time to play and socialize. The fun takes place on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.

• Meet Belmont Veterans Service Officer Bob Upton for veterans’ benefits questions on Wednesday, Jan. 13 at noon at the Beech Street Center.

• Learn iPad Basics on Wednesday, Jan. 13, from 11 a.m. to noon in the Young Adult Room of the Belmont Public Library. Register by calling the Reference Desk at 617-993-2870.

• It’s OTAKUrabu at the Belmont Public Library. Watch anime, do a craft/activity, plan for future events and nibble on some Japanese snacks (while they last – they’ll go fast) on Wednesday, Jan. 13 from 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Assembly Room. Provided free, thanks to the Friends of the Belmont Public Library. Just drop in, no registration required.

• Learn more about solar in Belmont and meet the selected installer partner, Direct Energy Solar, on Wednesday, Jan. 13,  at 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Town Hall auditorium.

• It’s Sing-a-rama where all choral groups in Belmont schools come to perform at Belmont High School’s auditorium from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. tonight, Wednesday, Jan. 13.

• Storytime for 1’s is for walkers and toddlers under 24 months will be held on Thursday, Jan. 14, at 10:30 a.m. in the library’s Flett Room. They will share simple stories, songs, and nursery rhymes, and end with time to play.

• The Belmont League of Women Voters monthly meeting takes place at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 14 in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.

• State Sen. Will Brownsberger’s staff will be available for walk-in office hours at the Beech Street Center on Friday, Jan. 15, at 10 a.m.

• Literacy Playgroup is a parent and child group that supports child’s language and literacy development on Friday, Jan. 15, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Flett Room. You’ll play, read, sing and take home new ideas. Presented by educators from the CFCE grant program; for children age 4 and under.

This Week: Cushing Village Before Planning, Spanish in Motion, LEGOs Club

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Photo: ABC Spanish in Motion.

On the government side of this week:

  • The Planning Board will meet for the first time in 2016 on Tuesday, Jan. 5 at 7 p.m. to will discuss … drumroll, please … Cushing Village! as well as the future of possible new bylaws on residents who rent rooms via the Internet booking site Airbnb.
  • The Belmont School Committee will go over the Social Studies Plan for Action in addition to an athletics update on Tuesday, Jan. 5 at 7 p.m. at the Chenery Middle School.
  • The Capital Budget Committee is meeting a few hours later than usual at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 6 at Town Hall to review all capital projects in its docket but, in particular, Belmont High School, the library and modular classrooms to elivate overcrowding at Belmont’s six public schools.

• Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer-run library, at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 5. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library is located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex.

• Sing-Along with Julie will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 5 from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library. 

• Enjoy a pictorial visit to the forests of Peru’s Amazonia, one of the most pristine, wildlife-rich places left on the planet, with Earthwatch’s volunteer Mark Hopkins at the Beech Street Center at 1:15 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 5. Mark’s photography will show the work being done with the region’s monkeys and other terrestrial mammals, caimans, macaws, manatees and fish, as well as its fascinating and unique pink fresh-water dolphins.

• Join Karen Halloran of CareOne at Lexington at the Beech Street Center beginning at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 5 for a discussion of foods, cooking techniques, and fitness and nutritional tools that people concerned about preventing Diabetes Type 2, and people with Diabetes can use to make their diet more healthy and exciting.

• Chenery Middle School students are invited to head over to the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room on Wednesday, Jan. 6 from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m., to do your homework while enjoying some hot chocolate. This is for middle schoolers only so high schoolers are on their own. This event is provided for free, thanks to the Friends of the Belmont Public Library.

• Sustainable Belmont will be meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 6 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room.

• The Belmont Woman’s Club will convene its Board meeting in the Belmont Public Library’s Flett Room at at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 6.

• The Parents of Music Students POMS is meeting at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 6 in the Belmont High School Conference Room.

• The Friends of the Belmont Public Library will be meeting on Thursday, Jan. 7 from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the library’s Assembly Room.

• ABC Spanish in Motion, a program for children, will take place in the Flett Room of the Belmont Public Library on Thursday, Jan. 7, from 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. 

• The LEGOs Club is back at the Belmont Public Library! If you love building with LEGOs, this program is for you. Kids in grades Kindergarten through 2nd grade will build with our LEGOs and we’ll put all the creations on display in the Children’s Room. The fun begins Thursday, Jan. 7, 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the library’s Assembly Room.

• Everyone is invited to Chinese Storytime which takes place in the Flett Room of the Belmont Public Library from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. 0n Thursday, Jan. 7.

• Literacy Playgroup is a parent and child group that supports child’s language and literacy development on Friday, Jan. 8, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Flett Room. You’ll play, read, sing and take home new ideas. Presented by educators from the CFCE grant program; for children age 4 and under.

• Members of the Belmont Board of Selectmen will be ready to take your questions at the Beech Street Center beginning at 10 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 8. 

• The Senior Book Discussion Group will meet on Friday, Jan. 8 from 11 a.m. to noon to at the Beech Street Center to discuss the novel Shadows on the Rock by Willa Cather.

• Long-term care insurance can be a confusing product. It has been described as having “a lot of moving parts.” In a workshop presented by Hans Hug, Jr., owner of the LTC Insurance Group, Exeter NH, Hugs will examine how a modern this insurance policy really works. It will be held at 1:15 p.m., Friday, Jan. 8 at the Beech Street Center. 

O’ Tannenbaum, O’ Tannenbaum; It Can Be Left on the Curb Starting Monday

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Photo: Goodbye until next year. 

Today, Monday, Jan. 4th, is the day before Twelfth Night, which marks the end of the Christmas holiday (it’s the night before Epiphany, the day when the nativity story says the three wise men visited the infant Jesus), which in the past was a time of revelry and merry making.

And with the end of the holiday comes another tradition: the dumping of the family Christmas tree onto the curb. 

And starting today, the Belmont Department of Public Works will collect your Christmas trees at the curb for regular trash pickup on the designated trash day during the first two full weeks of January.

For those who like to recycle, the branches can be spread over your garden plot to help protect the soil and provide some shelter for voles and chipmunks. 

If you have any questions about ol‘ Tannenbaum, contact the Belmont Public Works at 617-993-2680.

Heads Up, 2016: The Year to Come in Belmont

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Photo: Belmont High School, Town Meeting and Cushing Village are topics coming up in 2016.

What will 2016 bring to Belmont? While, as the 1981-tour T-shirt by the band “The Clash” proclaimed, “The future is unwritten,” there are some events that we can anticipate happening. As Donald Rumsfeld said, there are known knowns, known unknowns and unknown unknowns, those things “we don’t know we don’t know.” Certainly a known known is the annual Town Election, the known unknown is just how residents will vote at a special Town Meeting on the Minuteman High School and the unknown unknown is, of course, Cushing Village. 

Cushing Village: 2016 will be the start of construction on the long-troubled, infinitely delayed three-building development. But, then again, everyone thought 2015 would be that year. The latest update on the three-building development with 115 housing units, 38,000 sq.-ft. of stores and 200-plus parking spaces will be early in the new year on Tuesday, Jan. 5 before the Planning Board. Two-and-a-half years (YEARS) since winning approval to build the 168,000 sq.-ft. project, all there have been being promised to commence building the development from Chris Starr, head of Smith Legacy Partners. With the latest “rock solid” deadline missed last month, it will come to no one’s surprise if Well Fargo, the project’s lead lender, steps into the abyss to kick-start what should have been a Belmont landmark (and business magnet) but has been a missed opportunity.

Early February Town Meeting for Minuteman: What? Wait a minute! Town Meeting? In about 45 days? Yup, that’s right. Belmont’s 300 Town Meeting members will be braving winter conditions to assemble to debate and vote on a single article: approving a new agreement for towns to participate in the Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School District. In a roundabout way (the whole story will take a separate story to explain), the reason is to approve the construction a new $144 million school building but what has evolved to change the partnership between the 16 member towns and the Lexington-based voke school including proportional votes to the number of kids each town sends (Belmont has the third largest population with about 30 students) and requiring non-member students – from places such as Watertown, Medford and Waltham that make up about 40 percent of all students – to help play for the school. As a Belmont representative explained to the Warrant Committee and Selectmen: “It’s a bad deal but it’s better than the alternative.” Oh, by the way, the vote could be meaningless if other towns or the state objects, then all residents will be asked to vote on the deal, likely on a Saturday in June. Yes, it’s nuts. 

Foodies arrival: Belmont gets an anchor with the opening of Foodies Urban Market, the upscale South End supermarket in the former location of Macy’s/Filene’s. But it’s unlikely that residents will be purchasing prepared dinners and a Russo’s-type selection of fruits and vegetables until the fall of 2016 as construction on the site is taking longer than expected. One point of concern: Some Belmont Center businesses are a bit worried that a food-based business will not attract walk-about shoppers the way Macy’s did. The site will also be the home to a major national business which the Belmontonian will report on this week.

“New” High School: Wednesday, Jan. 27 is D-Day for the future of Belmont High School. The School District’s statement of interest to renovate the 45-year-old building and construct a modern science wing for $100 million will be voted on by the Massachusetts School Building Authority, which will finance about a third of the total cost. If it gets the MSBA’s OK, 2016 will be a year when the town creates a building committee, design and construction details are hammered out with the state and possibly the hiring of an architectural firm. A vote on an anticipated $67 million debt exclusion is likely in 2017.

Town Election: You can expect the unexpected at Belmont Town Election: Last year was Jim Williams’ stunning swamping of incumbent Andy Rojas and the ease the $3.5 million override passed muster. This years’ edition will include three open seats for School Committee with neither of the two incumbents so far declaring their intentions. And will there be a challenge to Selectman incumbent Mark Paolillo as he attempts a third (and final) three-year term? So far, the only contested town-wide race is for a seat on the Health Board. A big question around town: will someone from Williams’ political sphere launch a challenge for the schools or be audacious enough to see if lightning strikes twice in as many years for a place on Selectmen?

School: 2016 will likely be a continuation of the students piling into the six overcrowded schools. September will see modular classrooms coming to a few schools – (whisper: it’s reported that the Chenery Middle School have already designated its tennis courts as the location for the temporary classrooms.) It will also be a year that a growing number of students who enter the system need greater help to speak and read in English as well as navigate a highly competitive system. The challenges continue.

Belmont Uplands: The land has been cleared so where are the buildings? Expect 2016 to be when the first steps take place in the construction of the 299 apartments in an area that has seen an explosion of residential complexes, the latest a proposed 219 unit Chapter 40B complex just over the line in Arlington off Route 2 just a stone’s throw from the Uplands. 

OPEB: Speaking of Williams, the long-anticipated meeting on the town’s pension and OPEB (Other Postemployment Benefits Obligations such as health insurance for retirees) as well as a discussion of Pension Obligation Bonds which the selectman obtained at the 2015 Town Meeting was held and it was determined that everyone was going to take a second look at how the town handles these benefits which the town doesn’t have funds to cover currently. Expect push comes to shove in 2016 as those supporting Williams to put a proposal on funding those obligations on the table either at Town Meeting or at a special TM in the fall.

Housing: Is Belmont in a housing bubble? That will depend on macroeconomic national trends but there is ample evidence since July that homes are selling for well above assessed values. What will be interesting is if the median assessed housing value in this “Town of Homes” tops the $1 million mark; it currently stands at $928,003.

Selecting a Community Path: We can only give our thanks to the members of the Community Path Implementation Committee for the truly thankless work they conducted. (There was so much walking on and off road around town that the members could be excused if they were climbing Dante’s Purgatorio.) The committee in 2016 will provide the Board of Selectmen with its preferred path that will require landowners and the town to compromise to make it work. But no one shouldn’t be surprised that town politics will rear its head to trump the reality on the ground.

Town Meeting: Another year without a budget crisis doesn’t mean Town Meeting will be boring; expect a few citizen petitions to bring at least one 11 p.m. session as residents line up to “speak their minds.”

Residential Zoning: Will 2016 be the year the town’s residential neighborhoods see a bylaw restricting the bulk and height of new construction that is representative of the existing housing stock? It all depends on the Planning Board making this a priority in 2016. If not, expect more soul-destroying mega mansions popping up on your street. 

Road/Parking projects: Who would have thought both major roadway projects in Belmont would not be finished on time? (Likely, everyone in town.) It will now be spring/early summer of 2016 for final infrastructure work and paving to be completed on the state-run Trapelo/Belmont Corridor project while the triangle adjacent to the Belmont Savings Bank will be dedicated in late spring as well. This year will also see a new parking system coming to Belmont Center including automated meters on Leonard Street.

Sports: My predictions!

Both Basketball teams go deep in the 2016 tournament especially the girls’ who have ten players who could start on any team in the league. (Watertown comes to town on Tuesday, Jan. 26.)

Baseball will take the Middlesex League Liberty Division and make a run in the sectionals behind the strongest and deepest pitching staff this side of the Chicago Cubs. That’s right, the Cubs!

Girls’ Track (in and outdoors) continues to run away from opponents with underclassmen leading the way including sophomore Anoush Krafian. 

Girls’ Swimming: The team will see Jessie Blake-West, one of the program’s greatest swimmers, breaking records at Brown in 2016 and will miss a slew of great seniors from the 2015 squad, but its foundation is set on the shoulders of three-time state champion sophomore Nicoletta Kalavantis.

Football will have a winning record, make and win a game in the playoffs and place a whopping on Watertown on Thanksgiving in Belmont.

Girls’ Soccer will be scary good with a mature, stronger team – a young defense with a year under their belts – that is aiming to score goals, lots of them. 

Field Hockey, which recorded a program’s best 16-3 2015 record and was Belmont High’s “2015 Team of the Year” will meet some surging squads next year – Winchester, Wilmington, and Lexington – and ponder who will take over for midfield star Serena Nally. But don’t bet against the team from reaching the sectional finals as they lost only five seniors, return a half-dozen exciting underclassmen, have a solid back four and are led by Division 1-bound AnnMarie Habelow. Although it would be nice if the team could welcome a few transfer students from the Netherlands next season.

This Week: Winter Break Movie Tuesday, New Year’s Mixer at the Beech

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Photo: Minnons on Tuesday.

On the government side of this week:

  • The Belmont Board of Selectmen will be meeting at 7 p.m., Monday, Dec. 28 in Town Hall to renew the Belmont Media Center’s agreement and review its annual report, the presentation of an RFP for the town’s Verizon contract and the appointment of a new member of the Planning Board.

• Music & Movement with Rubi, a movement and music program recommended for ages 3 to 5 (but 2-year-olds are welcome) will be held in the Flett Room on Monday, Dec. 28.  There will be two sessions: 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

• Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer-run library, at 10:30 a.m on Tuesday, Dec. 29. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library is located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex.

• Back from visiting relatives and wondering what you can do with those kids out on the holiday recess? How about taking in a Winter Break Movie at the Belmont Public Library? Beginning at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 29, the library will be screening “MINIONS” in the Assembly Room. The movie is rated PG and has a running time of 1 hour 31 minutes. Snacks will be provided!

• Musician David Polansky returns to the Beech Street Center for its annual New Year’s Mixer on Tuesday, Dec. 29, beginning at 3 p.m. One of the most popular musicians to entertain at the Center, David Polansky will regale us with seasonal and holiday music, including original tunes.

• Celebrate New Year’s Eve a few hours early with a Family Dance Party on Thursday, Dec. 31 with Jeff Jam who plays upbeat kids’ classics for little ones from newborns to six-year-olds and their families. The show starts at 10:30 a.m. in the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room.

Pool Memberships Stable for Residents, Increases for Out-of-Towers

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Photo: Underwood Pool, Belmont. 

Preparing for the first full season of the still “new” Underwood Pool in the summer of 2016, members of the Recreation Commission told the Board of Selectmen Monday night, Dec. 15, that visitor season and daily passes will see significant increases as the town prepares for a deluge of swimmers beginning in June.

“Last year was a like a shakeout cruise,” said Recreation Commission Chair David Kane of the one month the pools were open in August. “We were just trying to understand what we need to do to be enjoyable.” 

This coming year will be “more holistic,” said Kane, which includes the new price tag on using the facility.

While nearly all Belmont residents will not see an increase in tag prices for the 2016 swimming season, Kane said non-residents will feel the “bite” of a big increase for the pleasure of frolicking in Belmont’s new pools.

According to Kane, prices for Belmont residents will be:

  • Family season pass (two adults, up to four children): $225 before June 30/$250 after July 1.
  • Adult season pass: $150
  • Child season pass: $110
  • Day pass/adult: $10
  • Day pass/child: $5

For non-Belmont residents, prices will be:

  • Family season pass (two adults, up to four children): $375
  • Adult season pass: $225
  • Child season pass: $175
  • Day pass/adult: $20

In comparison, two years ago the non-resident family pass was $225 and a year ago $265. 

“It is high,” said Kane of the new costs, but noting the commission had received “some complaints of overcrowding on certain days” and there is some hope that the new price structure will deter some non-residents swimmers from coming.

Staff members will ask for identification to determine residency. 

In addition, there will be a 25 percent military discount while seniors will no longer have the option of a lifetime charge of $50 a year. 

When asked if Belmont should place a hard cap limit on the number of non-residents, commission member Ann Bere – who conducted a review of pricing patterns in neighboring communities – said the group will review the membership data in late May so “we’d know if non-resident passes is at a level where we’d be at a level that we would need to set a limit.” 

Bere said she believes the new costs will self-limit the number of out-of-towners coming to the Underwood. 

This Christmas Week: Madrigal Singers at the Beech, Basketball’s First Time on the New Court

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Photo: Belmont High Madrigal Singers.

On the government side of “This Week”

  • It’s a holiday edition of the Belmont Board of Selectmen on Monday, Dec. 21, at 7 p.m. at Town Hall. After a few administrative duties, the board will hear a two-hour presentation of Pension Obligation Bonds and an actuarial report on the town’s OPEB (Other Post-Employment Benefits). Oh boy!
  • The Cable TV Advisory Committee is meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 22 at 3 p.m. at Town Hall to discuss Verizon’s contract renewal. 

• Music & Movement with Rubi, a movement and music program recommended for ages 3 to 5 (but 2-year-olds are welcome) will be held in the Assembly Room on Monday, Dec. 21. There will be two sessions: 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

• The Belmont Public Library is holding a Teen Holiday Party on Monday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. in the Assembly Room. Bake and decorate Christmas cookies, make tree ornaments, eat pizza and snacks, and sing karaoke. For teens 5th grade and up. Free, no sign-up necessary. If you have any questions, please ask Kylie at ksparks@minlib.net

• The “new” court in the Wenner Field House will see its first varsity basketball games as the Belmont High School Girls’ and Boys’ Basketball teams will face the Wildcats of Wilmington High on Monday, Dec. 21. The Boys’ game will start at 5 p.m. and the Girls’ at 7 p.m.

• Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer-run library, at 10:30 a.m on Tuesday, Dec. 22. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library is located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex.

• The Belmont High School Madrigal Singers will perform seasonal music at the Beech Street Center on Tuesday, Dec. 22 at 3 p.m. 

• Come see the Belmont High Girls’ Ice Hockey team – no longer a cooperative with Watertown – play on home ice as they host the Wilmington High Wildcats at the “Skip” (the skating rink on Concord Avenue) at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 23. 

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day office hours around Belmont:

  • Town Hall and all Town Offices will close at noon on Thursday, Dec. 24 and remain closed on Christmas Day, Friday, Dec. 25.
  • The Belmont Public Library will have limited hours on Thursday, Dec. 24 from 9 a.m. until noon and will be closed on Christmas day, Friday, Dec. 25 and Boxing Day, Saturday, Dec. 26. 
  • Beech Street Center will close at 1 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 24, Christmas eve, and Christmas Day, Friday, Dec. 25 for the Holiday.