Belexit? Vote On A Return To Minuteman Tentatively Set For Special Town Meeting

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Photo: Jim Gammell (left) and the Select Board discussing Belexit.

The United Kingdom is in the midst of a contentious Brexit debate while Belmont is about to enter into Belexit, its own passionate dialogue on whether to return as a member or make a final, clean break with Minuteman Regional Tech.

The Belmont Select Board unanimously voted Monday night, Sept. 9 to tentatively place an article on the upcoming Special Town Meeting in early November to recind leaving as a member town in the Minuteman Career and Technical High School district.

“This will be a very big debate in town but enough has changed that it warrants Town Meeting action,” said Select Board’s Chair Tom Caputo.

The possible reinstatement of Belmont in the nine-member district which runs the public vocational high school located in Lexington comes three years after Belmont voted to leave the district in a dispute over the construction of a new school building.

But just getting to a vote will depend on two major obstacles:

  • The current member communities will need to put away their hard feelings after Belmont left them to pay for the building and unanimously approve its return.
  • Is Belmont prepared, or can afford, to hand over a one-time buy-back fee of $472,000 on top of paying the annual tuition assessment of approximately $255,000 in the 2020 school year.

“We might not even get the chance to bring this to Town Meeting if these issues block it,” said Select Board’s Adam Dash. The Select Board will be holding a public meeting on the article in the coming weeks.

It was a long and bitter fight in Belmont and with the Minuteman leadership on the town’s continued membership in the district. In May 2016, Town Meeting voted 141-81 not to approve a $144 million bond issuance plan for the construction of a new Minuteman High School building.

“[T]his is the wrong school at the wrong time,” said Mark Paolillo, who spoke against the plan which would have saddled Belmont with an annual bill of $350,000 to $500,000 to pay for its portion of the school’s debt.

But times have changed, according to Jim Gammill, who is Belmont’s representative on the Minuteman School Board (this is the final year Belmont will have representation on the board) who has been working with the Belmont School District on determining the benefits and likely return to the vocational school as a member.

The new school – which opened last year – is experiencing a spike in enrollment from member and non-member communities which could put in doubt if all Belmont students could be accommodated if upward trends continue. Non-membership would mean Belmont residents would only be able to attend the school if any of the 630 seats are not taken by member town students.

Gammill said if the upward swing continues, within two years, a small number of Belmont students will be left out in the cold of the fully enrolled school.

“Is it worth taking that risk?” said Gammill.

[UPDATE] Water Main Break Closes Portion of Brighton Street; Repair After 6 PM

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Photo: Water main break on Brighton Street.

A portion of Brighton Street was closed shortly before 11 a.m., Friday, Aug. 16 from Cross Street to Coolidge Road due to water main break, according to town officials.

According to Water Division personnel at the site, a six-inch water main installed in 1933 ruptured late in the morning, reducing pressure in the surrounding neighborhood.

While replacing the main is a routine operation, the placement of other utilities running along the pipe will likely delay a final repair until after 6 p.m.

Select Board OKs 5 Year Trash Processing Contract

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Photo: Trash processing will continue with Wheelabrow Technologies.

Belmont’s Select Board unanimously approved Monday, Aug. 12, a five-year extension to the town’s existing contract with a waste-to-energy firm to process Belmont’s residential trash.

The new contract with Wheelabrow Technologies, which goes into effect July 1, 2020 and runs through fiscal 2025, will see a one year increase of 10 percent from the current fiscal year, jumping from $69.54 to $77 per ton.

Despite the significant spike for the coming year – the cost increases for years two to five will be between 2.5 and 3.5 percent – Jay Marcotte, the town’s director of the Department of Public Works, said he was surprised at the bargain the town received.

“I can honestly tell you that I am surprised that the pricing. I thought it would be a lot more expensive it would be getting rid of trash” since the cost of recycling has skyrocketed in the past year.

“It’s a volitile world out there for recycling and trash,” said Marcotte.

Belmont has separate contracts for hauling trash from the curbside and recycling, each in their second of a five year contracts with Waste Management.

Marcotte said the price Belmont will pay on July 1 is comparable to those in surrounding communities such as Lexington, Wilmington and Reading. He also noted that just a decade ago, trash processing for Belmont was in the $90 to $100 per ton range.

The hit to residents’ tax bill for trash removal under the new contract should not be that hard due to the automated trash collection system installed last year, said Marcotte. While the town budget anticipated about 7,500 tons of trash processed townwide in the past two years, last fiscal year residents produced 6,200 tons, an 18 percent fall off due to automation.

“There is room for improvement,” said Marcotte.

Planning Board Seeking Two New Members To Join ‘Congenial’ Group

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Photo: The Planning Board’s acting Chair Stephen Pinkerton.

With two empty seats on the group, the Belmont Planning Board is looking to close the gap before the start of a busy fall season, said acting Planning Board Chair Stephen Pinkerton.

“We are reaching out to residents who want to volunteer to serve with a group that is doing some important work for the community,” said Pinkerton, who took over from the previous Chair, Charles Clark, who stepped down after serving nine years on the board.

The board is seeking candidates to fill a full-time vacancy – with the departure of Clark – and an associate member’s position. For both seats, “clearly there’s a need for someone who has strategic or master planning experience,” said Pinkerton.

Those interested in applying for the positions can go the town’s “Talent Bank.”

Created to protect and preserve the character and quality of life that defines Belmont, the Planning Board will face a number of high profile cases coming before its docket in the coming months including a residential and educational development on the two last open parcels at McLean Hospital, multiuse construction along South Pleasant Street and creating bylaws on short-term rentals such as those on AirBnB.

Pinkerton said one area of expertise the board would like to add is someone with legal experience.

“We have a good representative group with planning background so it will be useful to get a lawyer on board,” said Pinkerton who said McLean specifically “will not be an easy one” to resolve as the town and hospital are working within a land management agreement created 20 years ago this November.

While the associate member is not a full voting member, Clark said it’s likely whoever is appoved by the Select Board will be the board’s representative on the 2020-2030 Belmont Comprehensive Plan, which is the framework to guide future decisions and policies governing a wide range of land-use related issues in town.

Creating a new town master plan will “not be a start from scratch” project, said Pinkerton but rather skillfully taking out what has been accomplished since the last revision and help input policies approved by the Planning Board such as the Housing Production and energy plans.

Pinkerton believes a one-time member of the Warrant Committee or the Capital Projects Committee would be ideal for the position.

The Board will be taking its time during August to find the best person to join “a really congenial group. We’re not a fire brand agency,” said Pinkerton.

Temporary Field Lights Proposed For Winn Brook, PQ Grounds Heads To Select Board

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Photo: (foreground) Charlie Conway, president of Belmont Youth Soccer, at a community meeting on field lights at Winn Brook playground.

After a pair of bruising meetings with skeptical neighbors on Wednesday night, July 24, the Belmont Recreation Commission unanimously approved allowing Belmont Youth Soccer to install temporary field lights at Winn Brook Elementary School and Pequossette (PQ) Field for approximately 10 weeks this fall.

The set of four lights will illuminate a 80 yard by 80-yard area for up to two hours until 8:30 p.m. beginning on the first week of September and lasting until early November as part of a pilot program.

“We will bring this [decision to allow lights until 8:30 p.m. weekdays] to the Select Board with the commission’s approval,” said Jon Marshall, assistant town administrator and Recreation Department director.

The commission did place conditions on the proposed permit that echoed resident’s major concerns by prohibiting diesel-generated lights which neighbors to the field considered too noisy and a potential source of air pollution.

In addition, the commission will suggest the Select Board begin a discussion that would lead to the lights being rotated to other play spaces, Town Field and Grove Street Playground, allowing fields to rest and regenerate the grass playing surfaces.

The lights request by Belmont Youth Soccer is an unintended consequence of the new Belmont Middle and High School, said Charlie Conroy, BYS president, who made the presentation to the committee and public at the Beech Street Center on Wednesday, July 24.

Recreation Commission Chair Anthony Ferrante with member Marsha Semuels responding to residents concerns.

With the school’s long-standing practice fields ripped up as the land is being prepared for construction, high school athletic teams will train on town fields and playgrounds (field hockey will be at Winn Brook, Girls’ Soccer at Grove Street and Boys’ Soccer at PQ) from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., dislodging the youth league which has 1,500 players between kindergarten and eighth grade.

The four lights will allow teams of older players, about 40 in 7th and 8th grade, to practice well after dusk. “We will not light up the whole field just a specific part” of the playgrounds,” said Conway.

In addition, said Conway, Youth Soccer is also renting a field at Belmont Day School for $25,000 to supplement the playgrounds already being used this fall.

At both meetings, held consecutively, residents immediately pointed to the impact of diesel-powered lights on the quality of life of the neighborhood.

The fumes from the engines will prevent nearby residents from opening their windows “and that is completely unacceptable,” said Sherman Street’s Linda Matthews, who also pointed to the likelihood of light pollution from their use.

Conway said there are alternatives to diesel generated power sources including solar and electrical. But unlike the diesel machines which can be rented, the alternatives have to be purchased.

“And what we need from the town is a five year commitment to this plan for us to make this investment,” said Conway.

As much as the fumes, residents protested the diesel lights adding “another audio assault,” in the Winn Brook area, said Joanne Adduci of Hoitt Road. “Our chances to sit outside will be gone,” she said from the loud hum of the running motors.

Attendees at both sessions pointed to possible additional traffic, the noise of kids playing past nightfall and the location of the lights along abutters – at PQ it totaled 45 houses and 90 families – homes rather than closer to the center of the grounds.

Rose O’Neil, a Precinct 4 town meeting member from Maple Street adjacent to PQ, said as a member of the Friends of PQ Park, when the playground at the park was being developed this year, lighting was prohibited to prevent constant use.

“There has to be time for the residents … who are not part of league,” said O’Neil, seeking to preserve the park as “a communal place.”

“I love that feel,” she said.

While Conway and members of the commission attempted to reassure the residents that their concerns were being listened to, some in attendance didn’t have the same faith in the responses.

“With all due respect, is this a done deal? Do we get a fair shake,” said a resident.

After the end of the night’s meetings, the commission moved to approve the permit with the conditions against diesel use.

Progress On McLean Barn’s Future To The Lament Of Black-Clad Ninjas

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Photo: The brick barn on Belmont conservation land off of Mill Street.

The future of the long-abandoned McLean Barn off Mill Street adjacent to Rock Meadow and the Kendall Garden neighborhood took a significant step forward with the selection of a facilitator who will begin the public process of determining a best end-use for the two-story brick structure.

“Yeah!,” cheered Ellen Cushman, the chair of the Land Management Committee for Lone Tree Hill which oversees the large swath of conservation land, when the announcement was made at the committee’s most recent meeting in July.

The working barn – whose cows supplied milk for the McLean Hospital – was part of a farm complex built more than a century ago. The 2018 Town Meeting approved $200,000 in Community Preservation Committee funds to stabilize and mothball the deteriorating structure built in 1915.

The facilitator selected by the committee, Kathryn Madden of Madden Planning Group in Watertown, will reach out to the barn’s many stakeholders – several town departments, McLean Hospital, the Land Management committee, the Trustees of the Reservation that holds the conservation easement, and the nearby residents – than group them into focus groups then hold up to eight meetings.

Afterwards, one or more community meetings will be scheduled where the status of the barn will be presented and suggestions on the best use will be presented. Strategies on moving forward with the data and information gathered will be developed.

“I’m extremely impressed how [Madden] is getting these things up and running,” said Cushman.

The future of the building is restricted by an 2005 agreement between the town and McLean Hospital to a small number of uses:

  • Environmental education,
  • the storage of materials and equipment associated with management of Lone Tree Hill or the nearby Highland cemetery and
  • office space for the staff of the cemetery and/or “the Premises.”

Cushman said she anticipates a late fall conclusion of Madden’s work.

One group that will not celebrate the news of a renovated barn is a group of mysterious visitors to the site. According to Cushman, neighbors of the building have seen a group of adults “described as a looking like ninjas wearing black-clad robes” tearing off the plywood covering a first-floor window and entering the building late at night, the latest incident happening over the Memorial Day weekend.

Police who investigated the break-in did not find any illegal activity – the barn is a frequent victim of vandalism – other than lawn chairs left behind.

“We don’t know why the ninjas come other than to hold a meeting,” said Cushman.

With Weekend Extreme Temps, Town Opens Beech Street Center, Library Sat., Sun As Cooling Center

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Photo: Beech Street Center. (Town of Belmont)

With the heat index anticipated to top 100 degrees this weekend, the town of Belmont is opening the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St., as a community cooling station.

The center will be open Saturday, July 20, and Sunday, July 21 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

In addition, the Belmont Public Library at 336 Concord Ave. will be open Friday, July 19 until 5 p.m.; Saturday, July 20 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.; and Sunday, July 21 between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.  

The National Weather Service is forecasting excessive heat starting today, Friday, July 19 through Sunday, July 2. Hot temperatures combined with high humidity are expected to create dangerous heat conditions, with the most oppressive conditions expected on Saturday.

High temperatures Friday through Sunday are forecast to be in the 90s to lower 100s, and dew points in the low to mid 70s. Heat index values are expected to reach the mid to upper 90s Friday, 100 to 110 Saturday, and 97 to 105 Sunday, with the highest values occurring on Saturday in eastern Massachusetts.

Below are tips for preventing Heat Related illnesses:

  • Drink Plenty of Fluids

During hot weather you will need to increase your fluid intake. Don’t wait until you’re thirsty to drink. Popsicles, watermelon, cantaloupe and fruit salads all contain water. Avoid caffeine and alcohol whenever possible.

  • Wear Appropriate Clothing and Sunscreen

Choose lightweight, light-colored, loose-fitting clothing. Use a sunscreen product rated at least SPF (Sun Protection Factor) 15 and apply it to all exposed skin at least 30 minutes before going out into the sun.

  • Stay Cool Indoors

Stay indoors and, if at all possible, stay in an air-conditioned place. If your home does not have air conditioning, go to a shopping mall, public library or community center – even a few hours spent in air conditioning can help your body stay cooler when you go back into the heat.

  • Monitor Those at High Risk

Although any one at any time can suffer from heat-related illness, some people are at greater risk than others.

  • Infants and children up to four years of age are sensitive to the effects of high temperatures and rely on others to regulate their environments and provide adequate liquids.
  • People 65 years of age or older may not compensate for heat stress efficiently and are less likely to sense and respond to change in temperature.
  • People who are overweight or obese may be prone to heat sickness because of their tendency to retain more body heat.

Remember, to prevent a heat illness:

  • Avoid direct sun from late morning until 5 p.m.
  • Limit vigorous exercise or chores to early morning or late afternoon
  • Dress in light-colored, loose-fitting clothes
  • Continually drink plenty of water or juice
  • Avoid caffeine or alcohol
  • Eat light meals
  • NEVER, leave children, adults alone in a closed, parked vehicle.
  • For More Information:For more information visit https://www.cdc.gov/features/extremeheat/index.html orhttps://www.mass.gov/service-details/extreme-heat-safety-tips

Road Work Week: Belmont Side Streets Under Repair

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Photo: Paving starts this week.

The first of the streets on the 2019 Pavement Management “hit” list are about to go under the shovel beginning this week.

Starting Tuesday, July 16, and continuing to Friday, July 19 – if the weather holds out – the Town of Belmont’s General Contractor, EH Perkins, will begin asphalt paving on the following streets:

  • Channing Road from Farm Road to Sherman Street
  • Flanders Road
  • Hastings Road
  • Homer Road 
  • Livermore Road
  • Sandrick Road
  • Winn Street from Cross Street to Pleasant Street

They will also pave Brighton Street from the railroad crossing to the Cambridge line

The streets will be closed to traffic for several hours, between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., while the pavement cures. Residents and Commuters are advised to seek alternate routes. No on street parking will be available during work hours. 

Vehicular access to driveways will not be available during work hours. On-street overnight parking on side streets will be available for residents affected by the construction.

For any questions or concerns about the project, contact Arthur O’Brien, resident engineer in the Office of Community Development, at 617-993-2665.

Proposed Ice Rink Gets Guideposts Along With A ‘Fast And Furious’ Timeline

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Photo: Town officials speaking on guidelines/time frame for a new ice skating rink in Belmont; (from left) Jon Marshall, Jeffrey Wheeler, Patrice Garvin, Tom Caputo.

During its final meeting until September, the Belmont School Committee voted on Tuesday, June 18 to approve a list of “guiding principles” for a Request for Proposal for a new ice skating rink that will ensure the school district and town will have a significant say in future of the public/private venture.

The list of suggestions that includes size, uses and oversight of the new rink, will provide “potential applicant the freedom to explore a variety of different [design] options,” said Tom Caputo, chair of the Board of Selectmen.

In addition to the guideline, the town presented a very tight timeline going from the release of a draft RFP in early September to finalizing a public/private lease with a selected development team in late November.

“The calendar is critical and that everybody buys into it,” insisted Jeffrey Wheeler, the town’s senior planner who will be working over the next two months with the Town Administrator’s Office and a working group of school committee members creating the RFP.

An anticipated vote on a location of the rink was delayed until after a traffic study is conducted with the aim of determining the best place for the “curb cut” from Concord Avenue.

“We felt that until that was determined, we really couldn’t figure out the place to site the rink,” said Patrice Garvin, Belmont Town Administrator who was joined by Jon Marshall. the assistant town manager who will lead the effort in writing the RFP.

The school committee guidelines include:

• A rink with one and a half sheets of ice is “acceptable” but developers can submit a plan for a single ice sheet.

• developer should minimize the building’s footprint to accomodate three playing fields for high school sports.

• The rink will include between 70 to 90 parking spaces within the site design; the spaces will be available for student parking at the new Middle and High School.

• The need for locker rooms to accommodate the high school teams and can be used for fall and spring sports.

• Ice time will be allocated to the high school teams and reduced rates for Recreation Department programs.

• The developer must submit a financial model to demonstrate financial viability.

• The creation of an oversight committee to secure the terms of the lease are being fulfilled.

While the town will be performing the heavy lifting of creating the proposal with many moving parts, the real challenge is a fast and furious timeline imposed by the town that calls for the approve the RFP, selecting a developer, OKing a lease and then signing a comprehensive public/private agreement all within a tiddy three months.

According to Wheeler, the accelerated timeline starts the day after Labor Day (Sept. 3) with a draft RFP sent to school committee members and the Select Board for edits and review.

It will be followed over the next two weeks by a pair of public meetings (Sept. 10 and 17) for residents input before a final RFP is approved on Sept. 24. A day later, the RFP is out before potential developers who will have a shortened five-week interval to submit a bid to the community development office by Oct. 30.

Just six days later on Nov. 5, the Select Board and the School Committee will select the best proposal followed eight days later on Nov. 13 with Special Town Meeting voting to approve leasing town/school land to a private developer.

Finally, two days before Thanksgiving (Nov. 26), the Select Board and School Committee will award a contract to the winning proposal on Nov. 26.

Construction Underway At New Middle and High School

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Photo: The first heavy equipment on site at Belmont High School.

A friend of Belmont Middle and High School Building Committee member Pat Brusch called shortly after 7 a.m. on Tuesday, June 18 to tell her that she could hear from her home the cacophony of beeping warning sounds from trailers bringing bulldozers and other equipment to the field adjacent Belmont High School.

For Building Committee Chair Bill Lovallo, who relayed the story to the committee on Wednesday, June 19, it was nice to hear that the $295 million school building project was getting underway “right on time.”

The first day of the summer recess for Belmont Schools on Tuesday morning coincides with the start of four-plus years of construction to build the new Belmont Middle and High School.

While the demolition of the brick gateway and sidewalk leading to the now decommissioned Brendan Grant Field along Concord Avenue is the most visible demonstration of work being done on the site, the most significant workout is occurring inside the Wenner Field House where the second floor – the location of the small gym – is being ripped out and reconfigured to include temporary locker rooms. Major work related to the Higginbottom Pool has also started.

Lovallo thanked Belmont Superintendent John Phelan along with interim High School Principal John Brow, Steve Dorrance, director of facilities, Athletic Director Jim Davis and the town’s Department of Public Works for “prepping” the field house and the former playing fields so construction could take place on day one, “all while students were still in the building.”

In other news

The committee approved W. L. French Excavating Corp. of North Billerica to perform all the pile foundation work with the first piles driven in the ground outside the field house in August with an ending date in late October.

The building committee also approved hiring a contractor to record precondition of the exterior of approximately 70 homes within 500 feet of the construction site. Those residents will begin receiving notifications in the next few weeks.

“We just want to make sure we have it documented, not that we are expecting any issues,” said Lovallo.