Major Shakeup As Office of Community Development Transforms into Office of Planning And Building As Town Eyes Succession Plan

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Photo: Belmont’s new Town Planner, Chris Ryan

While not as thrilling (or funny) as “Succession,” the Netflix series that detailed a family fight for control of a global media and entertainment conglomerate, a major change in the structure of an important town department has as much to do with

At its Monday, Sept. 18, meeting, Belmont Select Board heard Town Engineer Glen Clancy detail the recent reorganization of the Office of Community Development as it transforms into the newly-formed Office of Planning and Building (OPB) and an Engineering Division has been created within the Department of Public Works.

A major part of the reorganization is hiring Christopher Ryan, a 30-year veteran of municipal planning, as the OPB’s first director and Belmont’s new town planner. The reorganization was effective on Sept. 5, Ryan’s first day on the job.

Clancy will continue as town engineer within the DPW while his assistant, Ara Yogurtian, will hold onto his post as Inspector of Buildings while being liasion to the Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals.

The changes will allow the town to prepare for some “big” retirements in the near future, according to Town Administrator Patrice Garvin. While Clancy said he and Yogurtian “are not going anywhere, anytime soon,” the changes prevent the town from being “caught short” with sudden departures and leave the town scrambling to find experienced replacements.

“Succession planning is two-fold,” said Garvin. “It’s really to get people into to learn a lot from the people that are already here, and that will be moving on eventually.”

Speaking to the Board, Clancy said the reorganization was prompted by “vacancies across the spectrum” of the OCD – including the critical town planner position – that were nearly impossible to fill in the current low unemployment job environment. As a result of the unfilled openings, he and Yogurtian were saddled with multiple tasks.

Including being town engineer, Clancy was director of the Office of Community Development, inspector of buildings, and zoning enforcement officer while Yogurtian was juggling the assistant director post, field engineering, inspecting buildings and street work, board work, and supervising the local building inspector.

“It was getting too difficult to cover all the bases effectively and efficiently, so that’s another reason why it was time to do this,” said Clancy.

Select Board Vice Chair Elizabeth Dionne reiterated Monday that important departments have been woefully understaffed for years, noting the Planning Department will be integral in the planned revamping of the town’s zoning bylaws.

“I looked at those two positions and said, ‘How are we going to fill these two positions should they become vacant?'” said Clancy. “And I didn’t have a good answer.”

With no in-house personnel with the skill set ready to step into either his or Yogurtain’s positions, Clancy and Garvin created a succession plan by “reconstituting the Office of Community Development into something that was sensible and recognizable to the public.”

The first step was combining the planning and building functions under one roof “as they made sense together,” said Clancy. He said that making the hard-to-hire town planner post as the new department director made the position more attractive in the job market, as Ryan was soon hired for the critical post.

“The proof is in the pudding, the fact that we were not able to fill this position of the town planner and then finally (after the restructuring) to find someone who is highly capable of the position,” said Clancy.

Engineering functions would be housed with the DPW, which most communities have it located.

As critical as having an efficient departmental structure, there will be opportunities to mentor employees and new hires for future positions. The new Engineering Department will hire a resident engineer, “an immediate need,” who will be overseeing permitting, evacuation, and pavement restoration, as well as becoming the town’s stormwater coordinator.

“This is someone who could act as my assistant and maybe even be a successor as the town engineer down the road,” said Clancy.

A Second Bite: Select Board Seeks Residents View On Ending Civil Service For Police On Thursday

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Photo: Belmont Police Chief James MacIsaac

It’s a second bite at the apple as the Belmont Select Board will be holding a hybrid public meeting on Thursday, Sept. 7, to discuss whether or not the Belmont Police Department should end its relationship with the state’s Civil Service system.

The meeting will occur in the Select Board Conference Room in Town Hall at 7 p.m. Residents can attend via Zoom at this link.

The meeting marks a second attempt to end the police department’s relationship with the government agency designed to provide fairness in the public sector, in entry-level hiring, and promotions, including bypass in rank, demotions, layoffs, and discipline which includes suspensions and terminations.

Supporters of ending civil service, which included town officials, the Select Board, and the leaders of both fire and police departments, believe the town would see significant cost savings by ending a 108-year-old arcane system for hiring and promotions, replacing it with an efficiently run locally-focused practice. 

Opponents made up of the rank and file of Belmont Fire and Police and resident supporters said changes to civil service – such as altering age limits and increasing diversity in the number of candidates – can be made by changes to the existing language of the agreement.

The last time the issue came before a Town Meeting, an article removing civil service for Belmont’s Police and Fire departments was withdrawn by the Select Board minutes before it was to be presented before a contentious Special Town Meeting in September 2020.

Since then, issues with Civil Service requirements continue to plague hiring at the Police Department. In 2021, Police Chief James MacIsaac pointed to an inability to fill important entry posts for two years due to the limited number of candidates he could choose from. He also said he could bring a more diverse group of candidates to the hiring process outside of Civil Service.

While more than 130 cities and towns have accepted Civil Service, many communities have recently ended their relationship, including Lexington in 2019.

Despite Opposition, Select Board OKs Library’s Children’s Room Move To Benton Library During Construction

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Photo: Residents in the que to speak about the temporary transfer of the Belmont Public Library’s Chirldren’s Room to the Benton Library.

It was past William and Kate’s bedtime, but their mom, Jess Hausman, decided it was worth missing some shuteye to present their letters before the Belmont Select Board to keep the children’s room open as the new Belmont Public Library is built.

With the demolition of the library just months away, the Hausman family and other residents brought their worries that the children’s room and its services were still up in the air due to residents’ concerns.

“Dear Select Bood – Plees ceep the chidrins sechsins open,” wrote Kate, 6.

“I saw my younger child go through the process of becoming an early reader this summer. A critical aspect was her looking through and selecting her own books,” said Hausman in prepared remarks. “Fluency in reading and interacting with books should be cultivated in childhood,” said Hausman.

By the end of an hour of presentations, William, 8, and Kate will be able to peruse and check out books at the independent Everett C. Benton Library after the Select Board unanimously approved temporarily transferring the Jane Gray Dustan Children’s Room collection to the independent library on Oakley Road during the construction of the new public library.

“Very excited to see the Benton this way,” Kathleen Keohane, chair of the Board of Library Trustees, told the Belmontonian after the board’s decision on Monday, Aug. 7.

Later at the meeting, the Board approved a Memorandum of Understanding in which the town will manage the library at 75 Oakley Rd., on the corner of Oakley and Old Middlesex roads. The town will return the building to the Friends of the Benton Library’s board with the completion of the new public library in the summer of 2025.

With the closing of the Public Library rapidly approaching, it was imperative for the trustees to find alternative locations for its services. While new locations for adult circulation and services (Beech Street Center) and staff (Chenery school) were easy to settle on, it took most of the summer working with town officials and the board of the non-profit Benton Library to hammer out a deal to bring the children’s collection to the former branch library.

Finding a home for the children’s room was the final critical component of the trustee’s pre-construction plans. Without a dedicated space for children’s services, the Belmont Library system would likely lose its state certification and membership to the Minuteman Library Network and likely forego state funds.

But the trustees’ plan hit a snag as abutters and neighbors of the library roundly criticized it during a presentation before the Select Board in late July. While adamant that neighbors were not against the library using the facility, several residents said the area could not accommodate the anticipated influx of vehicles bringing children to the Benton with the proposed 50 hours, compromising the safety of both neighborhood and visiting children and other pedestrians.

After the first Select Board meeting, Keohane met with three neighborhood representatives. But it was apparent to Keohane that the residents weren’t especially interested in an actual compromise. One of the residents, Marc Caporini of Indian Hill Road, speaking at Monday’s meeting, told the board that negotiations on the prospective hours must start with a “pilot” program with 20 hours a week, a two-thirds cut in the current children’s hours, which the trustees quickly deemed unpalatable.

Belmont Board of Library Trustee Kathy Keohane

Finding its partner unwilling to dance with them, the trustees created their own mitigation blueprint to meet the Select Board’s demands of lessening the impact of the library program on the neighborhood.

After an initial goal of 54 weekly hours was scrapped at the Select Board’s insistence, the updated agenda calls for 39 operating hours over six days including two days with evening hours, with the Benton closed on Sundays. Currently, the Benton is open five days a week for a total of 19 1/2 hours. Due to the building’s small size – the interior is a mere 900 sq. ft. – programs and events will be held off-site. The site will be staffed with three to four library employees, half taking public transportation to the Benton.

A working group will be established where residents, the Benton board, the town, and the library can facilitate ongoing communications and collaboration, said Keohane.

“This is a substantial change to what we had initially proposed and what we have today, and we think this [plan] is acceptable,” said Keohane. While acknowledging the transfer is an imposition on the residents, residents noted the library’s “big ask” of the neighborhood is not a permanent one.

“This is very temporary,” said Anne Paulsen, a former Select Board member. “We all need to pull together to make sure that our library and its programs function just as they have all along.”

“Most of us line in neighborhoods that are impacted by traffic and have been impacted by traffic during construction. We lived through it and you move on. It works,” said Paulsen who lives on School Street.

The neighbors opposing the suggested hours reiterated their concerns of safety and impact on the surrounding streets.

Lenna Garibian, an immediate abutter of the Benton, told the board that as a supporter of the current Benton setup since 2011, she hoped that the 20-or-so residents who make up those concerned with the plan would be part of the solution.

“We have always felt that we had a responsibility and a role in having the solution. We are here to help find a solution. We just believe that we should be part of a solution,” said Garibian.

Unlike the previous meeting when the neighbors filled the room, library supporters came out in force both in person and via Zoom. Amy Checkowey, a neighbor and school committee member, noted that for many families with young children is their “first and primary touch point to connect to the Belmont community” is through the Children’s Room. The trustee’s plan for “this critically important town service” exists using a community asset “willing to partner” with the Belmont Public Library.

And it’s not just the books on the shelves that is needed, said Iris Ponte, the director of the Henry Frost Children’s Program on Pleasant Street.

“[Today] I can look to Deborah [Borsuk, Coordinator of Children’s Services] and say, ‘We need to learn about cats, and ‘boom’ she’s got all the books that are on the computer and ordering them,” said Ponte who was speaking for her fellow early education teachers and day care professional.

“What we need is very highly trained, caring staff that we’ve been working with for year to help us courate these books so we can bring them back to the students.”

After the discussion of concluded, Board Member Mark Paolillo spoke for the board saying the new plan “is a fair compromise.”

Nor is the hours and days “set in stone,” according to the Select Board’s Elizabeth Dionne. “I think we all need to accept this process. They could evolve.”

Town To Begin Laying Out Critical Fiscal ’25 Budget(s) With September Public Forum

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Photo: The budgets for fiscal ’24 for the town and schools will get underway with a public forum in mid-September

The budget process for fiscal 2025 will kick off with a town-wide public forum in mid-September which Town Administrator Patrice Garvin announced would be a prelude “to start talking about the needs of the town, the fiscal constraints, [and] the budget deficit.”

“[It’s a] start to explain to the community what the deficit is, why we’re looking for an override, and hopefully have give-and-take questions and some participation from the public,” said Garvin, noting the Select Board will be presenting a Proposition 2 1/2 override early in the New Year on the town elect ballot in April 2024 to meet the town and school’s needs in the coming fiscal year.

“It’s the start of the education [of the public],” she told the board. Garvin is aiming at an ambitious New Year’s deadline for two budgets, which is nearly two months before a drop dead date for the board to submit an override amount to be on the town election ballot.

Earlier in July, Garvin met with the chairs of the Warrant Committee – Town Meeting’s financial watchdog – Select Board, School Committee, the new School Superintendent Jill Geiser, Town Moderator Mike Widmer, and the town’s finance team to begin formulating a timeline for Belmont’s fiscal year 2025 budgets.

“It was really an opportunity to have some brainstorming and some ideas of how to … inform the public what we’re going to need for [deliverables] from the schools and the town,” Garvin said in July’s gathering.

The upcoming budget process – led by the town’s financial director and assistant Town Administrator Jennifer Hewitt – will produce a pair of budgets for fiscal 2025; one assuming a successful override and the other if the measure fails.

Garvin and her team is creating a budget timeline that includes setting and meeting goals. Pushing for a successful override vote, “so it’s really critical that a lot of work on the budget is done by the end of the calendar year,” said Garvin.

Yet according to Garvin, the critical line item of unrestricted funds – free cash – is not expected to be certified by the state’s Bureau of Accounts until late October due to issues within the town’s Treasurer Department.

“And without a certified number, you can’t come to a conclusion about the size of the override level,” said Board Chair Roy Epstein.

Fall Special Town Meeting Likely A Multi-Night Affair, ‘They Know What They Signed Up For’

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Photo: The Belmont Select Board

The first week in November is when the leaves in Belmont start to fall, the high school teams head into the playoffs, the sweaters come out of the armoire, and people begin preparing for Thanksgiving.

No one envisions spending countless autumn (late) nights in endless debates with 300 of your fellow residents at the fall Special Town Meeting. As the number of possible articles piles up and at least two – if not more – citizen’s petitions are making their way to the Town Clerk’s office by mid-September when the meeting warrant will be open.

But don’t go moaning to the newest member of the Select Board about this fall’s ever growing Special Town Meeting agenda. All you’ll get from Elizabeth Dionne is some tough love.

“They know what they signed up for,” Dionne said as the board discussed the articles to be presented over several November nights at the Belmont Middle and High School auditorium. “I think they care that we address pressing issues” which the board grudgingly agreed will take up three nights.

“These are substantive articles … and I support conducting substantive business [at this meeting].” said Board Member Mark Paolillo.

The 2023 Special Town Meeting’s tentative start date will be Nov. 6.

A draft list of warrant articles includes:

  • Transfer the undesignated fund balance (free cash) to the general stabilization fund and transfer new FY ’24 revenue to the generalization stabilization fund.
  • Pay the prior year’s bills
  • Current year supplemental budget for operating, capital, and Community Preservation Act
  • Removal of Civil Service for Belmont Police personnel
  • Change the Board of Assessors from an elected board to an appointed one
  • Amend Zoning Bylaw: Hotels as a permissible use
  • Amend Zoning Bylaw: business signage
  • Amend Zoning Bylaw: restaurants
  • Replace the general bylaw codifying the stretch code for construction with a Specialized Energy Code.

The citizens petitions include a home rule petition to the Massachusetts legislature that Belmont be exempted from Massachusetts General Law 61B regarding golf courses and specifically the 75 percent tax break course are granted. There is another that town officials have heard about which could also be related to zoning.

While the current number of articles, several such as Civil Service and rewriting zoning bylaws could, on their own, easily take several hours or a single night to debate and vote on, both the board, town and Town Moderator Mike Widmer would like to see a good number of them held off until the annual Town Meeting in either April or May 2024. One of those articles included removing Belmont Police from the state’s civil service law. A similar article during a special Town Meeting in September 2020 was withdrawn before it came to a vote.

A Special Civil Service Debate

Despite the heavy lifting expected to pass civil service reform, Board Member Mark Paolillo would like to schedule a public forum on civil service with the Belmont Police Chief James McIsaac and the town’s labor attorney in September. If there appears support for the measure, “we’ll move forward with it” in November.

“I’m just thinking how busy the spring [Town Meeting] will be, that would be a good step forward,” said Paolillo.

Patrice Garvin, Belmont Town Administrator, said the Vision 21 Committee will put its efforts into rewording the restaurant bylaw with the assistance of a town consultant for the November meeting, while the Planning Board said it will work on revamping the signage bylaw for the fall meeting “it’s not the highest or best use of their time,” said Dionne who spoke with the new Planning Board Chair Jeff Birenbaum. Roy Epstein, the board chair, said he can see a new sign bylaw before the special if the Planning Board is assisted by the bylaw consultant.

As for a new hotel bylaw, which would make those structures a permissible use in Belmont, Dionne said it would best for that measure to come before the annual town meeting. “We can’t afford that one to fail,” she said, referring to the multiple revenue sources it provides. Supporters will need time to “educate and advocate” on the benefits and disspell stereotypes the last time a small hotel came before the Planning Board in 2016.

“There were some arguments that I thought were ridiculous and specious made against hotels last time, but they will absolutely come back again” including attracting drug use and sex workers to the Town of Homes.

Along with the hotel bylaw, being shuffled off to the annual Town Meeting will be changing the Board of Assessors to an appointed committee. While there is no great public or town urgency to implement a Specialized Energy Code, the board agreed at the 2023 annual Town Meeting to bring the bylaw change before the meeting in the fall.

But Dionne is eager to get as many of the zoning and administrative changes done as soon as possible.

“Rome is burning,” said Dionne, speaking of the town’s chronic fiscal deficit that will require a multi-million dollar override vote in April 2024.

“So we are in for three nights,” said Paolillo. “Maybe four.”

“Really, really, really late the third night,” added Dionne.

Dash Honored By Town, Select Board Colleagues For Service To Belmont

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Photo: Adam Dash (left) being feted by the Belmont Select Board at a recent meeting

It felt odd for regulars at the Belmont Select Board meeting to see Adam Dash addressing the Belmont Select Board and not with them. But this was a special night as the board paid tribute to Dash’s service to Belmont.

“We don’t do this for the recognition or honor or wealth, obviously, but it’s nice to be appreciated,” said the Goden Street resident as his former colleagues and residents spent a few minutes recognizing their former colleague who did not seek re-election in April.

Dash’s six years on the board included managing the town’s response to a worldwide pandemic, overseeing a budget after a failed override, and the more mundane duties such as honoring a retired board member.

Take a seat: Former Belmont Select Board Member Adam Dash (sitting) was honored by the current board: (from left) Mark Paolillo, Roy Epstein and Elizabeth Dionne.

Like many esteemed residents in Belmont’s history, the proclamation noted that Dash answered the call to public service and selfishly devoted a decade of his time and abilities on several committees before being elected twice to the Select Board starting in 2017.

“Adam has lived up to the lofty ideals of public service through commitment and dedication to the various causes, projects, and people he has represented and will serve as a source of inspiration to our community,” read the proclamation.

Dash’s most significant challenge while on the board was the unprecedented events brought about by COVID-19 in March 2020. “Adam’s leadership was characterized by great poise and resolved during ever-changing circumstances to contribute to the decisions that prioritize the safety and health of the Belmont community,” said Board Chair Mark Paolillo, who, along with the board, presented Dash an engraved chair as its appreciation.

The newest board member, Elizabeth Dionne, recalled Dash’s role as the town’s senior statesman by providing key insights and information during what could have become a very contentious budget debate “that I was personally grateful.”

Dash, for his part, said he’s “taking a break” from town-wide governance, which he said was a privilege representing all town residents.

“But I have to say that it’s nice leaving [a board meeting] before 7:45 p.m. when you know you’re gonna be here until 11 p.m.,” quipped Dash. “I’m fine with that.”

Take This Survey: Tell The Belmont Health Department How It Benefit Residents

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Photo: The Belmont Health Department wants to know what you think about them

The Belmont Health Department would like residents to take a very short online survey about your experience and opinion about the department.

This survey is intended to measure the ways in which the community benefiting from the work of the health department, and its understanding of the resources available to you. In addition, it wants to identify any expectations or misconceptions concerning the department.

Answering the questions should take no more than 10 minutes, and residents may chose to write additional comments at the end.

Fill out the survey by clicking here.

State Rep Rogers Announces June Office Hours In Belmont

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Photo: State Rep Dave Rogers at the Belmont Farmers Market

State Rep Dave Rogers has announced his June office hours in Belmont. They will be:

– Tuesday, June 13, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Beech Street Center in Belmont (266 Beech Street, Belmont, MA, 02478) 

– Tuesday, June 20, from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at the Bellmont Café in Belmont (80 Leonard Street, Belmont MA, 02478) 

Belmont Appoints New Treasurer, Human Resources Director

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Photo: Belmont’s new adminstrative staff: Treasurer Leslie Davidson (left) and Kelli Spencer

The town of Belmont has filled a pair of critical administrative positions that have been empty for several months.

On Monday, June 5, the Select Board will ratify Town Administrator Patrice Garvin’s selection of Leslie Davidson of Beverly to be town treasurer and tax collector, while Kelli Spencer of Brockton has been appointed the town’s Human Resources director.

The appointments were announced at the June 5th Select Board meeting held before Town Meeting.

The annual salary and benefits for each position will be announced later.

Davidson has been treasurer in Lynnfield since November 2019. [Read about her experience before her appointment in Lynnfield in a profile in ItemLive.com] Davidson has nearly ten years of municipal experience in the treasurers departments in Marblehead and Wenham and 14 years at Beverly National Bank as an assistant cashier. Davidson has an associate degree from North Shore Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration manga cum laude from Endicott College.

Spencer is the human resources generalist in Norwood since September 2019 and has twice been asked to be the town’s acting human resources director in the past two years. She worked in human resources in both private industry and for the US Army before coming to Norwood. Spencer enrolled at Bridgewater State University, graduating in 2012, and last month obtained her Master’s in Public Administration from Suffolk University. She is last year’s recipient of the Massachusetts Municipal Management Association’s Gerry Whitlock Memorial Scholarship, a $2,000 award given to a Massachusetts graduate student who plans on a career in local government. Her dog is named Whiskey.

Whiskey, Chief Joy Officer

Crowley Amendment Splits School Committee, Comes Before Town Meeting Monday; Protest Rally Supporting Amendment Anticipated

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Photo: Belmont Town Meeting will take up an amendment to transfer free cash to the school department for SPED programs

In one of the most contentious votes in recent Town Meeting history, an amendment to transfer a little over a quarter million dollars from free cash to the school department will come before the town’s legislative body as the meeting debates the fiscal year ’24 operating budget on Monday, June 5.

Sponsored by former School Committee member Michael Crowley with the backing of several prominent Town Meeting members, the amendment has already shaken up the School Committee as half the members voted on Friday, June 2, their support of the measure when it comes before Town Meeting.

A protest rally outside Belmont High School is anticipated by some of the members backing the transfer, with leaflets expected to be distributed.

The amendment seeks to transfer $289,000 from the town’s “free cash” account to support much-needed funding for the special education program and personnel.

According to Crowley, the amendment will provide $189,000 to hire two FTEs in the SPED program and set aside $100,000 to design and develop a plan to return Belmont students currently being taught “out-of-district” back to district schools resulting in significant savings.

“Out-of-district tuition is a top cost driver for the district, and investing now can reduce future expenses,” said Crowley describing the amendment’s aims.

Members backing the amendment include Karen Bauerle, Heather Barr, Marty Bitner, Julie Crockett, Michael Gao, Kim Haley-Jackson, Paul Joy, Amy Kirsch, and Paul Roberts.

Members and town officials opposing the measure contend the amendment – being presented within the last week – is a last-minute financial interloper that, while admittingly not a budget buster, was not evaluated by the Warrant Committee, Town Meeting’s financial “watchdog.”

The action comes as the town is marshaling funds into free cash as an essential bulwark as the town prepares to present to voters a nearly $10 million Prop 2 1/2 override at the annual Town Election in April 2024. Town officials have stated in budget meetings that building up unreserved funds balance will allow the town to keep the override “ask” under $10 million – an amount many feels is more palatable for voters to accept – and will be a lifeline to town and schools if the override fails.

At a recent Select Board meeting, the board indicated the three members will speak out against the measure as will the Warrant Committee contending the amendments and its backers have subverted the budget process. In addition, a significant number of Town Meeting Members are expected to voice their concern the amendment is sowing division between Town Meeting members – the ultimate judge of the budget – and town and school officials and committees, which spent nearly ten months shepherding the budget to a vote.

That division could be seen taking place in the School Committee 3-3 vote where members Jamal Saeh, Jeffrey Liberty, and Jung Yueh voted “favorable action” to the amendment with Chair Meghan Moriarty, Amy Checkoway, and Amy Zuccarello in opposition. In the debate, the newly-elected Yueh said that Town Meeting is part of the budget process, as are budget amendments.

Crowley, when he was a member of the school committee until April, advocated using free cash to support the schools. He believes that an override will not pass or fail by Town Meetings’ acceptance of the transfer.