Winn Brook Tennis Courts Aced Off Town’s Community Preservation Funding List

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The town committee appointed to dole out community dollars for a wide-range of projects decided last night to play singles and not doubles when it comes to funding repairs to a pair of Belmont tennis courts.

The town’s Community Preservation Committee rejected a request from the town for $295,000 to reconstruct and repair the tennis courts at the Winn Brook Elementary School at its monthly meeting held on Wednesday, Jan. 14 at Town Hall.

There is good news to the tennis-playing residents in the southern end of Belmont as the committee approved sending to Town Meeting a proposal to spend the same $295,000 to upgrade and restore the Pequossette Park (also known as the PQ) tennis courts located behind the VFW building off Trapelo Road.

[Under Belmont’s charter, only the 290-member Town Meeting, which meets each spring, can allocate funds from the Community Preservation Act account.]

The debate among the eight members was not that reconstruction work is required at both sites – the group agreed the courts need repairs for their long-term survival – but whether the courts are utilized by residents to warrant the money being spent.

“I believe there’s too much capacity in the number of tennis courts,” said member Floyd Carman. “It’s a distribution problem,” said Carman.

The committee agreed a comprehensive usage survey of the town’s tennis court inventory should be conducted before the community spends another dollar on repairs.

But putting together that study will require forming an oversight group – either within the Recreation Department or as an offshoot of an existing committee – and formulating the criteria to be used will be difficult, because, as Andy Rojas of the Board of Selectmen noted, “the study is time intensive because you’ll need to carefully monitor the courts’ use.”

While voting down the Winn Brook courts, the committee agreed to move forward with the PQ repairs “because it is geographically isolated, and it’s in worse shape,” said Carman, adding the town has only a limited recreation presence in the area south of Trapelo Road.

It is hoped the study will determine the maximum number of courts required for residents and school use, and whether any current courts can be transformed into locations with other activities, such as roller hockey or a skate park, said Carman.

The committee did approve sending to the annual Town Meeting other requests:

  • Belmont Veterans Memorial Project: $150,000,
  • Wellington Station exterior restoration and rehabilitation: $26,300,
  • Electrical upgrade at units owned by the Belmont Housing Authority: $522,500,
  • Digitization of historic Belmont newspapers from 1890 to 1983: $25,000 and
  • Rehabilitation and restoration of the 1853 Homer House: $100,000.

While approving to send the Homer House request to Town Meeting, the committee did attach conditions to that request. One is to have the Belmont Woman’s Club – the building’s owner – put in writing what constitutes “public access” to the historic structure in terms of hours it will be open to residents and how much of the building can be toured.

“Public access is important,” said CPC’s Anthony Ferrante. “I want more specifics.”

In addition, the committee will discuss with Belmont Town Counsel George Hall whether a clause can be written into the structure’s deed that will allow the town to recoup the money it spent on the house if the building is ever sold.

Approved by Belmont voters in November 2010, the Community Preservation Act fund is financed by property tax surcharges and an annual stipend from the state’s “Massachusetts Community Preservation Trust Fund.” The funds are used towards recreation, historic preservation, affordable housing and open space.

Join Boris: Pet Licenses Now Being Issued by Belmont’s Town Clerk

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Photo: Sorry, but cat license number 1 has been taken (by Hammond Road’s Boris, the Amazing Russian Circus Cat (Retired) yes, that’s his official name). But that shouldn’t stop you from getting your pet licensed. In fact, it’s a law.

Don’t let your pets become scofflaws!

Belmont’s Town Clerk’s Office has begun issuing annual dog and cat licenses to their owners.

Now is the time to get Fluffy and Fido their tags as the cost for renewing licenses for neutered or spayed pets will double after March 15.

It is simpler then ever to renew pet license for dogs and cats: it can be done online here or by printing the Pet License Form and mailing or bringing in the form and payment to the Clerk’s office at:

Town Clerk’s Office

Town Hall 

455 Concord Ave.

Belmont. MA 02478

New Pets

If your pet has never been licensed before in Belmont, you must supply a Certificate of Rabies Vaccination and a Spay/Neuter certificate from your pet’s veterinarian as well as the Pet License Form and mail to the Town Clerk’s office with payment or come to the Town Clerk’s office and license your pet in person.

2015 Fees

Jan 1 to March 15: Renewals and new pets

  • Neutered/Spayed: $12 per pet; $9 if owner is 60 years of age or older
  • Unaltered: $37 per pet; $34 if owner is 60 years of age or older
March 16 to Dec. 31: Renewals
(New pets use above pricing regardless of date)
  • Neutered/Spayed: $24 per pet; $18 if owner is 60 years of age or older
  • Unaltered: $49 per pet; $43 if owner is 60 years of age or older

Failure to license pets will result in a $50 non-criminal violation. Failure to vaccinate pets will result in a $100 non-criminal violation per Massachusetts General Laws Ch. 140.

Look Who’s Thinking of Running for Town-Wide Office

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With a month to go before the deadline for residents to submit nomination papers, it appears there will be at least two competitive town-wide races – for Board of Selectmen and the Belmont School Committtee – that voters will decide at the Town Election.

As of Jan. 13, Town Clerk Ellen Cushman has recorded the following residents who have taken out papers for a possible run for office. So far, no one has returned their nomination papers with the required number of signatures.

Board of Selectmen

  • James Williams
  • Brian Liddell
  • Andy Rojas (incumbent)

School Committee

  • Lisa Fiore (incumbent)
  • Thomas Caputo
  • Tara Donner
  • Susan Burgess-Cox

Board of Assessors

  • Martin B. Millane, Jr. (incumbent)

Board of Health

  • Dr. David Alper (incumbent)

Belmont Housing Authority

  • Donna Brescia (incumbent)

Cemetery Commission

  • Ellen Cushman (incumbent)

Board of Library Trustees

  • Elaine Alligood (incumbent)

The competitive race that has the most diversified field for Selectmen. Rojas is expected to defend his seat from Williams – who raised his visibility submitting a motion at Special Town Meeting in November to reject financing the $2.8 million Belmont Center Reconstruction project with the town’s “free cash” – and Liddell, a 2014 Belmont High School graduate.

On the school side, there are four residents seeking to fill two full, three-year positions and a two-year seat serving the two-years remanding on the term of Kevin Cunningham who resigned in the fall.

The incumbent Fiore will likely be racing for one of two open seats against two newcomers to the election process; Tara Donner and Susan Burgess-Cox. Yet the pair have some familiarity with the committee as both sought the temporary appointment to the board in November to fill the six months of Cunningham’s term before town election. A joint committee of the Board of Selectmen and the School Committee selected Caputo two months ago.

The deadlines to return nomination papers to the Town Clerk’s office is 5 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2015.

For more information on running as a candidate, read the article in the Belmontonian.

The Town Election will be held on Tuesday, April 7.

Thanks, Charlie: New Governor Sends Extra Cash for Roads to Belmont

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Immigrants were told American streets were paved with gold. Last week, Charlie Baker sent Bay State towns some extra greenbacks to simply pave the streets.

On Wednesday, Jan. 8, on his first full day in office, the newly-installed Massachusetts Governor released an additional $100 million of Chapter 90 funding to Massachusetts communities.

Belmont’s share comes to an extra $266,000 for the town’s roadways and sidewalks.

Chapter 90 reimburses cities and towns for costs incurred for eligible transportation projects. Cities and towns must submit receipts to the state’s Highway Department which verifies if the expenditures qualify for reimbursement..

The money comes from an initial $300 million Chapter 90 funding in the state’s the fiscal year 2015 transportation bond bill that passed the legislature last year.

But then-Gov. Patrick said state revenues would be insufficient to support the entire borrowing and released $200 million.

According to Belmont Town Administrator David Kale, the town received $534,000 from the state for transportation-related projects.

While the money will be coming to town, a question remains when to spend the funds. Kale said he was in discussions with town counsel to determine if the money is required to be spent as part of the current fiscal year 2015 budget or allocated towards the fiscal 2016 town budget.

Whether it will be used today or towards the 2016 budget, “the money must be used for transportation purposes,” said Kale.

Guess Which Former Belmont Resident is Thinking of Running for President … Again

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Third times the charm.

At least, that’s what Mitt Romney is hoping.

The former Belmont homeowner who lived with his wife, Anne, and five sons for five decades on Winn Street, Marsh Street and South Cottage Road, told a group of donors on Friday, Jan. 9, that he is considering a White House bid in 2016, a move that could scramble the race for the Republican presidential nomination, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In the Journal article, Romney cited turbulent events overseas and the state of the economy as two reasons why he is considering another run.

If Romney does run for a third time for president – he ran in 2008 but did not receive the Republican nomination and lost to President Obama in the 2012 general election – Belmont is unlikely to be placed in the international media spotlight as it was in the fall of 2012 as the Romney’s sold their Woodlands at Belmont Hill townhouse condominium in May for $1.2 million.

 

Belmont Library – Once Again – Seeks a New Director

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The search for a new director of the Belmont Public Library has begun again, and this time, it’s on the fast track.

In a recent appearance before the Belmont Board of Selectmen, Chair of the Board of Library Trustees Elaine Alligood and the library’s interim director Emily Reardon said the campaign have restarted to find the next leader of the library located at 336 Concord Ave.

The search is the second since long-time director Maureen Conners announced her retirement in August. After interviewing an unknown number of candidates in October, the trustees decided in November that none of those finalists meet the qualifications they were seeking.

Alligood said, unlike the previous search, Belmont will not be competing with more than a half-dozen similar-sized Bay State communities seeking library directors that occurred this past fall. She said only Wellesley is seeking to replace its library director at this time.
“This time, we believe the process will be accelerated and we’ll have a new director by February.

The director’s salary range is $76,859 to $109,140 commensurate with experience and includes a full benefits package, according to the job notice released in the summer.

Grove Street Playground Ready to be Redressed

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It’s been sized and appraised. Now, how should the Grove Street Playground be dressed?

This month, the town will formalize a contract for a landscape architecture firm – familiar with Belmont – to begin the  creation a master plan for the 10-acre site on the Cambridge-townline used by numerous youth sports groups, residents and neighbors.

David Kale, Belmont’s town administrator, told the Belmont Board of Selectmen at its Monday, Jan 5 meeting the town was finalizing a contract with Dedham-based Activitas Inc. to create a master plan for the playground.

Currently, the playground is one of the most used in the town. With three dedicated ball fields, Grove Street is the base for youth baseball in Belmont. The soccer field in the lower section is used from early spring to late fall by Belmont Youth Soccer. In addition, the park has four tennis courts, a basketball court (used as a backdrop for a political ad by Maura Healey, the incoming state Attorney General) and a new playground. After any significant snow fall, the playground becomes a place many smaller children first learn to sled.

Yet the evolution of the playground from an open space to a location for many athletic facilities was completed with little planning. Responding to the concerns of residents and neighbors, the Capital Budget Committee submitted in June for Town Meeting approval $30,000 toward the creation of a comprehensive plan to determine if there are efficiencies in land use.

During the fall, a survey was conducted to provide a detailed overview of the playground and its current uses.

Activitas is best known in town for creating the Belmont Athletic Facilities Study as well as managed last year’s Belmont High School Track and Harris Field renovation.

Kale said the firm will hold public meetings to hear from athletic groups, residents and those who live close by for opinions and ideas.

“Anyone interested in Belmont parks should attend those meetings,” said Belmont Selectmen Chair Andy Rojas.

Belmont Joining Smart 911 Network

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Many Belmont residents own smartphones. Smart watches are just around the corner.

And beginning in the next few weeks, Smart 911 will be available to every Belmont resident.

That’s the word from Belmont Police Chief Richard McLaughlin after he presented what was an upgrade to the town’s existing 911 system to the Belmont Board of Selectmen at its Monday, Jan. 5 meeting.

“We want to get as many people as possible onto the system,” said McLaughlin, calling it “an enhancement to community policing.”

Smart911 – currently being used by the Massachusetts State Police, in Watertown, Medford, Chelsea and Stoughton and on the campuses of Boston College and MIT – allows citizens to create a Safety Profile at www.smart911.com for their household that includes any information they wish first responders to have in the event of an emergency.

“It is all voluntary; residents can provide as much or as little information to the system,” said McLaughlin, adding the profile is secured, and password protected. The company – Rave Mobile Safety of Framingham – also verifies the information every six months to keep it up-to-date.

When a citizen makes an emergency call, their Safety Profile is displayed to one of the two Belmont dispatchers located at the Police headquarters on Common Street, allowing them to send the appropriate response teams with the right information for those making the call.

“Right now, we only have the phone number and address. We don’t know what to expect,” said McLaughlin.

Police, fire and EMTs can be aware of a greater amount of information that is not known under the current system: fire crews can arrive at a house fire knowing how many people live in the home and the location of bedrooms including children’s rooms, EMS can be advised of allergies or specific medical conditions and police can have the photo of a missing child in seconds rather than minutes or hours.

McLaughlin said that the system can include all phones used at the location including cell phones, emergency contacts, vehicle identification and even the number of pets.

The chief said an added benefit is the personal information is “portable” which allows it to be used in other communities served by Smart911.

“Let’s say you are in Orlando [Florida] and need to contact 911, [the dispatchers] there will have the callers information because the caller is using a cell phone that is linked to the system,” said McLaughlin.

Outstanding restraining or protection orders can not be placed into the system by residents, said McLaughlin, indicating that local police are informed of those court-issued judgements.

The Smart911 system costs $9,000 annually – $4,500 for each dispatcher – with a three-year contract. The town will begin promoting Smart911 through its website and through social media in the upcoming weeks.

The Selectmen gave their support for the town to join Smart911.

“This is exciting for our community,” said Chair Andy Rojas.

Oh, Christmas Tree, You Can Place It On the Curb Beginning this Week

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Today, Jan. 5th, is 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.

Town Administrator Kale To Receive Second Three-Year Contract

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Receiving four-and-a-half (out of five) stars on the review and ranking website Yelp says a lot about how people think of a business or service.

You can add Belmont’s Town Administrator David Kale to that high-standard list as the official who manages the day-to-day operations of the town’s departments received an enthusiastic annual evaluation from the Belmont Board of Selectmen its Tuesday, Dec. 30 meeting.

“It was all very positive,” said Board Chair Andy Rojas.

During the meeting, the board announced Kale will receive a second three-year contract through July 2017 to stay in the position he’s held since August 2012.

“We are finishing the wording” in the contract, said the Cambridge-resident, who will receive a two percent cost-of-living adjustment to his current salary retroactive to July 1.

Kale’s evaluation was a tabulation of individual assessments by each selectmen, said Diane Crimmins, the town’s human resources director. The board appraised Kale’s expertise in professional tasks, public relations, organizational leadership, personnel management, leading the budget process and planning. Kale received a combined rating of 4.5 out of 5, said Crimmins.

The three selectmen praised Kale on improving morale in town personnel and working collaboratively with departments, and the school district, “which is critical is a small town like Belmont,” said Rojas.

Kale’s handling of the annual budget – which included creating a “one budget” process that requires a close working relationship between the town and the school committee and district – was sighted by the board.

“You’ve enhanced the public budget process,” said Selectman Mark Paolillo.

Kale, in turn, acknowledged the work of “a great group of department heads and employees” who “makes the work happen.”

“This is not done in a vacuum,” said Kale.