Trash Update: Keep Using The Old Barrels If Your ‘Carts’ Haven’t Arrived

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Photo: Ready to go!

“Where’rah my barrels?”

That clarion call has been heard from homeowners throughout Belmont as the slow rollout of the new trash and recycling carts scheduled for the past week has reached just about half of Belmont’s households.

And while the new automated garbage and recycling collection system starting today, Monday, July 2, don’t fret that you’ll need to store your trash during the ongoing heat wave. According to the Department of Public Works, if you haven’t seen your new trash and recycling carts, just continue using the old barrels. At least for one more week.

Micheal Santoro, head of the DPW’s Highway Division, said Waste Management – Belmont’s new collection provider –  has supplied just about 50 percent residences with a pair of carts. Santoro said that percentage of carts is what Waste Management expected to deliver the first week with the rest of the households receiving their either this week or next week. Some streets such as Pleasant and Beech received new carts this morning.

No resident who still hasn’t obtained carts will be left holding the bag (of garbage); just keep using existing barrels until the new ones arrive, said Santoro.

Now, what to do with your old barrels and recycling bins? Well, the DPW hopes you’ll keep them around for collecting yard waste (they’ll need “Yard Waste” stickers), leaves and other for other uses. The reason they aren’t being disposed of by the town? Apparently, there currently isn’t a market for “rigid plastics” which the old barrels are considered. The DPW is hoping to take the old barrels during the annual DPW Recycle Day in October when it will be profitable or breakeven. If not, the DPW will likely hold a day to collect these items and dispose of them as trash.

Belmont Light Schedule Power Outage In Belmont Village Area 5 AM Saturday

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Photo: Out goes the lights … and air conditioning.
A small explosion on a piece of equipment on Friday afternoon, June 29 will require Belmont Light to cut power to homes in the Belmont Village neighborhood early Saturday morning, June 30.

According to Belmont Light’s Aidan Leary, “Due to an equipment failure today, we must execute a planned outage tomorrow beginning at 5 a.m., on the following streets:”

  • Thomas St.,
  • Shean Rd.,
  • Weber Rd.,
  • Pearson Rd.,
  • Bradley Rd.,
  • Gordon Ter. 
“We plan to have power restored to all customers by 10 a.m.,” said Leary. 

Bike Park, Anaerobic Digestor, Pet Cemetery: What To Do With Belmont’s Old Incinerator

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Photo: Residents wait to speak to the Selectmen on the future of the town’s incinerator.

A place for recreation, revenue, and reflection. Those were just three broad public suggestions for the future of Belmont’s former incinerator site at the Board of Selectmen’s meeting on Monday, June 18 at Town Hall.  

With the land now fully under town control, the post-closure use of the roughly 17 acres of usable land – 8 acres of the 25 total acres is comprised of wetlands –  which has been closed since 1976 is an empty canvas for residents to fill with their recommendations but only up to a point.

“We can’t do everything on this site, it’s a finite amount of land so clearly … not everyone is going to get what they necessarily what they want. I hope that everyone can keep in mind what’s in the best interest of the town … and the cost of doing these things,” said Selectmen Chair Adam Dash.

Community Development Director Glen Clancy discussed the nuts and bolts of the land off Concord Avenue near the Lexington town line. The site is segmented into three areas; a pair of front parcels – known as A and B – totaling 14 acres and 3 acres in the back which is identified as C. The front parcels – made up of  land was deeded to the town by the state – are under restrictions that limited its use to “recreation, public works, or other municipal uses.”

While the back parcel was never used as a landfill and will not need capping of the soil below, the two front areas will require either an augmented cap or an extensive layering of material over the contaminated ash fill.

While the town in the past had discussed numerous post-closure uses for the site – the location of a new police station, a park, and ride, a skating rink and private commercial development – the restrictions by the state and high costs have officials eyeing a more passive approach to the future uses. In addition, the town’s Department of Public Works will require several “bins” to keep leaf and yard waste for composting, storage of pipes and for emergency snow removal.

Some residents have been thinking about possible best uses of the area. An ad-hoc group is proposing a multi-use project that includes a skate park, bike trails and a solar array that will increase recreation space, be environmentally friendly and create a revenue stream – estimated at $1.5 million over 20 years with a similar solar field – from passive energy benefiting the town and Belmont Light.

“This is something where it produces power, helps us reach our future climate goals, it has an economic payback and it helps our ratepayers,” said Travis Frank who introduced the proposal with a slide show of the plans.

Another plan that came prepared as a written proposal is dubbed anaerobic digestion. While that may sound like what happens when you do high-intensity exercise after eating lunch, rather, it’s when microorganisms break down biodegradable material – ie. food waste – in the absence of oxygen at a moderate-sized facility on the landfill. The byproducts from the process are methane that can be used to generate a large amount of electricity and compost for fertilizer. 

“If the town moves forward on this proposal, they will meet with town officials on how big of a facility will be and how it would be capable to the land it is on,” said Bruce Haskell of Langdon Environmental in Southborough. While the proposal, which would be built by a third-party private vendor, garnered some interest by potentially reducing solid waste collection in town and would be a revenue source, there were concerns of controlling potential odors and truck traffic bringing in organic waste and taking out compost were presented.

Other residents suggestions included passive use, a possible location of the proposed Belmont Youth Hockey ice skating rink, and a dog park.

Another dog related use that perked the ears of those attending was a proposal for a dog/pet cemetery at the location. There are relatively few final resting places for the family pooch and the town could “ask $2,000” for a plot for Spot, suggested Evan Harris from Statler Road. 

While suggestions on the possibilities for the site filled two posterboard sheets of paper, the day of the ribbon cutting of any of the ideas is some time in the future.

“The site will be used as a staging area for the construction of capital projects and the new Belmont High School, so we are looking well down the road,” said Dash after the meeting.

“But its good that we have begun the process,” he added.

Lime Or Orange: Town-Wide Bike Sharing To Start June 30

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Photo: Spencer Gober with a LimeBike.

Belmont residents will soon be able to choose between lime or orange, and it isn’t the type of citrus-flavored water served at Town Hall. Rather, the fruity choice is the colors associated with a pair of bike-sharing companies which will soon be up and running in Belmont.

Walking into the Board of Selectmen’s meeting on Monday, June 11 with a bike owned by San Mateo-based LimeBike – lime green with yellow fenders – Community Development’s Staff Planner Spencer Gober updated the board on the competing firms – the other being Spin located in San Francisco – as they prepare to begin operations in Belmont.

Both companies operates dockless bicycle-sharing systems in several cities and college campuses across the United States, using a mobile app to unlock and use the bikes for a dollar a ride. The Selectmen voted in April to join a regional bicycle-sharing program developed by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council.

The impetus in approving the agreement was to cut vehicle traffic from the neighborhoods to business centers. Gober noted Malden has a similar system in operation since May, generating 250 rides per day with the average distance of a little less than half a mile.

Spenser said both firms will have 17 bikes distributed about town that will roll out in three phases over the summer. The bikes will begin operating in town on Saturday, June 30 with the first rides commencing from the Belmont Media Center in Waverley Square.

New Hours Of Operation At Town Hall, Homer Building To Better Serve Residents

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Photo: The Homer Building.

In an effort to better serve Belmont residents seeking services, the Board of Selectmen voted unanimously Monday, June 4, to implement on a trial basis new operating hours at town offices in the Town Hall complex including Town Hall and the Homer Building.

Beginning this coming Monday, June 11, and running through Friday, Nov. 2, Town Hall and Homer building offices will remain open until 7 p.m. on Mondays after opening at 8 a.m. Hours on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday will remain at the current 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday’s will see offices closing at noon. 

Offices in Town Hall include the Town Clerk, Town Adminstrator, and human resources. Over in the Homer Building is the Treasurer’s Office, Assessors, Recreation Department, Public Works, and Office of Community Development where building permits are issued.

“This is a trial change,” stated Patrice Garvin, Belmont’s town administrator. In October, the selectmen will review the operation and make a final determination on extending Monday hours permanently.

“The [selectmen] welcome your feedback on this change,” said Garvin in an email who added the town appreciations Belmont’s town employees, the workers impacted by the change, for working to resolve this matter to better serve the people of Belmont.

Questions related to this change can contact the Selectmen at 617- 993-2610 or e-mail to selectmen@belmont-ma.gov

2018 Town Meeting; Final Night, Segment B

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Photo: Town meeting.

It’s the final night of the 2018 Belmont Town Meeting and the only suspense will be how early we end the session. 

I’m predicting 9:15 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. while Ann Marie Mahoney and Ellen Cushman believe 9:45 p.m. to 10 p.m.

We are underway at 7:06 p.m.

Moderator Mike Widmer gives a well-earned shout out to the Town Clerk staff and employees of the town which put together the meeting.

A heartfelt tribute by Town Meeting to Dan Kelleher, Belmont’s Mr. Hockey, who recently passed away. 

7:15 p.m.: State Rep. David Rogers gives his report, the highlights are an increase in general government funds by 3.5 percent that helps the town’s overall revenue picture. Belmont will see an increase in ed funding (Chapter 70) by 16 percent. Increases in higher ed scholarship and financial aid, METCO, and legal aid. Legislatively, Rogers points to criminal justice reform, media literacy, restrict access to firearms for those who pose a significant danger to themselves or others, and the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. 

7:30 p.m.: Bill Lovallo, chair of the Belmont High School Building Committee, presents a project update of the proposed building. Widmer is allowing Lovallo 30 minutes to make the case for the $300 million 7-12 grade building. The reason for the new school is due to skyrocketing enrollment causing overcrowding, and the high school is no longer big enough to hold the students who will attend in the future. The physical plant is threadbare and falling apart. How to make the improvement? “The when is now,” said Lovallo. If a debt exclusion is approved by voters in November, construction will begin in June of ’19 with the 12-9 grade building open in 2021 and the rest of the building in 2022. “We are at a crossroads,” he said. “We have a one time opportunity to find a solution for overcrowding,” he said. Lovallo is greeted with a round of applause for a very effective speech.

8:05 p.m.: Floyd Carman, town treasurer, presents the first article of the night, Article 24, which adjusts the benefit to spousal survivors from $6,000 to $12,000 for three residents. Selectmen and Warrant Committee vote favorable  It will increase the budget by $15,500. For more information, read about it here. Carman said it’s an issue of fairness for “short money.” Selectman Chair Dash said he voted against the measure last year and while he remains worried about unfunded pensions and benefits, it only increases that amount by a small amount. The question is called and passes 191-24. 

8:18 p.m.: Article 25 is the increase in the cost of living adjustment for town employees from $12,000 to $13,000, which will increase the unfunded liability $873,000 to be 100 percent by 2029 or about $130,000 by fiscal 2020. The selectmen voted yes, 3-0, while the Warrant Committee voted it down, 10-3. Bob McLaughlin, pct 2, said: “Enough is enough.” The town is not obligated to increase this benefit and “we can’t afford it.” The town meeting needs to show fiscal responsibility knowing that in five months voters will ask to approve a $225 million debt exclusion for a new high school. He fears that voting for added debt is poorly thought out. Geoffrey Lubien and Michael Crowley of the Warrant Committee said the town can support the debt (adding 1 percent on an $80 million debt) without affecting the overall fiscal health of the town, saying that savings can be found to fund the additional liability. Both talked about fairness to former employees. Jack Weis and Anne Helgen also of the Warrant Committee voted against the measure in the committee. Roy Epstein, chair of the Warrant Committee, said its a mistake to think that all retirees are living in poverty, that we don’t know what other income retirees have available to them. He said the $130,000 added debt is a big deal and it shouldn’t be minimized. Dash said last year the cola increase was higher but the retirement board came back with a smaller increase and the town should show the board some flexibility. In an emotional appeal, Kathleen “Fitzie” Cowing, pct 8, said the idea that public servants have “other” sources of retirement income is a fantasy. As a teacher married to a police officer – neither receiving social security – Cowing said the pension is a necessity. The motion is called and it passes 134 – 83 and I lose my bet. 

8:51 p.m.: Now before the members is Article 14, which asks the town to appropriate $770,000 to cap the incinerator on Concord Avenue. Glen Clancy, director of Community Development, gives a history of the site and the hoops the town had to jump through to own the land from the state. The town has a balance of $754,000 appropriated by past town meetings in 2007 and 2013 – years the Red Sox have won the world series! – to cap the site. It’s estimated that it will take $1,524,000 over the next two years to clean the site, which is the $770,000 coming from the town’s stabilization fund which is currently $3.5 million. The new amount for the fund after the $770,000 will be $2.7 million. With an estimate of $3.6 million to cap the site creates a shortfall of $743,340 which Mr. Clancy has no idea how that will be paid for. Passes on a voice vote. 

9:13 p.m.: After the required five-minute break, the fiscal year ’19 budget comes before the Town Meeting. Epstein presents an overview of the budget. Some good news but a lot of apprehensions in the near future with an operational override likely. 

9:33 p.m.: Here we go with the budget which is Article 19:

Employee benefits, retirement expenses: $7.9 million. Passes.

Employee benefits, other reserves: $3.3 million. Passes.

Public Safety: $14.5 million. Claus Becker, pct 5, has been asking for the past years for more data and information to compare with other communities so to benchmark expenses. Christine Doyle, pct 1, said this data research is important not just for public safety but throughout all departments. Selectman Mark Paolillo said, in fact, the information is out there and it should be provided, Passes.

Public Schools: $57.0 million. Superintendent John Phelan presents the budget which includes the always frightening enrollment numbers – there is going to be 1,667 high school students in the near future! – how the district compares with other towns, the number of positions added in the coming year, and a lot of detail. Judith Feins, pct 6, urges caution on predicting that enrollment will only go up as there is a baby bust in the nation, and the department should not be locked into the numbers the district is predicting. Sue Bass, pct 2, agrees with Feins that the enrollment numbers appear to be out of whack. Paul Roberts, pct 8, said while the district 

 

 

Last Year’s Failed Articles Return On Town Meeting’s Final Night

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Photo: Floyd Carman, town treasurer.

“If at first you don’t succeed, Try, try, try again,” goes the old proverb by Thomas Palmer. And on the final night of the 2018 annual Town Meeting, two articles that failed in 2017 will return for a second try before the town’s legislative body.

Articles 24 and 25 are not financial expenditures for renovating buildings or purchasing material, but rather, is a matter of “fairness” as each measure makes adjusts payments to retirees and spousal survivors, according to Town Treasurer Floyd Carman who is sponsoring the measures.

Tonight’s meeting – which reconvenes at 7 p.m. at the Belmont High School – will take up the remaining budgetary articles come before the 300-plus members, including the big-ticket articles such as the school ($57 million) and town budgets in Article 19, along with a vote to expend $770,000 from a stabilization fund to “cap” the former incinerator site on Concord Avenue at the Lexington town line. 

While the financial articles make up more than 90 percent of the town’s $116.2 million fiscal year 2019 budget, the articles are unlikely to stir-up members at Town Meeting as they have been vetted by the Warrant Committee and many members have discussed the motions at Warrant meetings. That is not the case with the two returning articles.

Speaking before the Board of Selectmen on May 30, Carman said the changes being proposed would bring benefits to town employees and spouses to the level what school teachers receive. 

Article 24 will increase the annual spousal benefit to surviving spouses from $6,000 to $12,000. While it is the doubling of the monetary outlay, only three survivors currently collect this benefit with a further 11 who could collect the perk. If accepted, the budget will increase by $15,456 in fiscal year 2019. 

In Article 25, the maximum cost of living adjustment (COLA) for town employees will be upped by $1,000 to $13,000 which is the level of Belmont School teachers, marking the first increase in 20 years. The change will provide eligible employees an extra $30 a year. The jump will impact the fiscal ’19 budget by an additional $9,960.  

Both articles were defeated by the 2017 Town Meeting by a nearly two to one margin as members, who feared the town was likely to seek an operational and schools override in 2019 and were not in a mood to bring employees up to the benefit level of teachers. 

But Carman told the Selectmen that for “short money” the town will “bring a level of fairness” to all employees by providing a level playing field for all retirees. The Selectmen voted 3-0 to seek “favorable action” by members on both articles.

Opinion: Let’s Do The Right Thing; Vote ‘Yes’ On Town Meeting Article 23

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Photo: Belmont Police Headquarters

Have you visited the Belmont police station lately? Or dropped recyclables off at the Department of Public Works yard? Have you noticed the condition of those buildings? Have you tried to climb the 21 stairs to meet with Police Chief Richard McLaughlin? Do you know that our plow drivers have no place to eat or rest after eighteen hours of plowing snow? Have you experienced a sewer back-up in your basement? Do you know that DPW workers have no place to shower or change clothes after wading through raw sewage? Do you know that the female police officers who work in our neighborhoods and schools have only tiny locker space crammed into a bathroom?

Many professional evaluations over the years have determined that the police station and DPW facility are in far worse condition than any other town buildings. The time is now to finally meet the urgent needs of our employees by providing safe, accessible, gender appropriate working space.

The November 2017 Special Town Meeting authorized a building committee to address both the police and DPW. The committee has been working all out since December to present schematic designs to Town Meeting on May 30th.

The proposed solution for the DPW facility has two-prongs. In the short-term, renovate a small section of the DPW main building and add modular units which will house locker rooms, shower and laundry space, room for training and quiet rest and a small amount of office space. Renovations to the existing space will provide a more suitable kitchen and break room space and additional restrooms. This first phase will provide greatly improved working conditions for about $1.2 million. Long-term, the Town must pledge to construct a totally new facility on the existing site within ten years.

The solution for the police station is a brilliant design to renovate and add to the existing building on Concord Avenue. This will meet the department’s needs indefinitely. This extraordinary proposal includes additional construction on the back of the station as well as a sally port on the Pleasant Street side. The completed addition and renovation will provide new locker room space for both genders, new holding cells, safe and secure entry and booking space for prisoners, an elevator and second stair, evidence storage, meeting space and more. The proposed design respects the historic features of the building, provides an accessible entrance and additional parking. The permanent solution can be accomplished for between $6.2 and $7.5 million, which is a quarter of the cost of a new facility.

This proposal can be paid for out of the operating budget and will not require a debt exclusion. The advantage of this funding approach is that the work can begin immediately and will not interfere with either the library or high school plans for debt exclusions. The plan is the result of tremendous creativity by the building committee, the architect and owner’s project manager, the Town Administrator, and the Town Treasurer as well as the enthusiastic support of police and DPW personnel.

This proposal is a significant step forward for the Police and DPW who have languished in substandard working conditions for decades. As a town, we depend on our police department to keep us safe. We depend on our DPW to plow the snow, keep clean water flowing to our homes, and maintain our playgrounds.

Please urge your Town Meeting Members to vote YES on Article 23. It is the right thing to do.

DPW/Belmont Police Department Building Committee
Kathleen Cowing, Secretary
Roy Epstein
Anthony Ferrante, Vice-Chair
Anne Marie Mahoney, Chair
Stephen Rosales
Judith Ananian Sarno, Treasurer
William Shea
Michael Smith

Underwood Pool Funding Surplus To Keep Patrons In The Shade

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Photo:

After all had been set and done, the Underwood Pool Building Committee which led the private/public funding partnership to build the $5.3 million pool facility at Cottage Street and Concord Avenue in 2015 discovered a bit of change in the back of the couch.

With all the bills paid, a $68,400 surplus was found floating in the committee’s bank account. That bit of remaining cash will be used to help patrons to remain in the shade.

Committee representatives, who literally handed the check to Town Treasurer Floyd Carman during last week’s meeting of the Board of Selectmen on May 21, said the extra funds will be used to replace, repair and add the large “umbrellas” that dot the pool’s deck and replace plants and flowers surrounding the facility.

“[The umbrellas and plantings] are quite expensive. This account will free [the pool] from seeking money from the capital budget or the recreation department,” said Building Committee Chair Anne Paulsen.

Selectmen To Ask Residents: What Should Go Into The Former Incinerator Site?

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Photo: The entrance to the former Belmont incinerator site.

The day before town residents are asked to provide their thoughts on limits on the place and time of retail marijuana sales, the Board of Selectmen is holding a meeting inviting citizens to discuss the future use (also known as post-closure) at the closed incinerator site off Concord Avenue on the Lexington Town Line.

The meeting to take place on Monday, June 18 at 8 p.m. at Town Hall will seek ideas for future use since whatever is selected will determine the type of “cap” or cover that will secure the contaminated land below the surface. For instance, a “passive” use such as trails will require a less intrusive and less expensive cover than a cap on which a structure is built.

A description of capping by the EPA can be found here.

Uses brought up in the past include a solar farm, trails, municipal use, a location for a skating rink, athletic fields and as a marijuana farm.

A pot far will be eliminated as an option if Belmont voters approve the “opt-out” bylaw in the September special town election. Lexington opened a solar facility on a closed landfill site in May 2017, reportedly saving $19 million in municipal energy expenses. While Belmont Youth Hockey has developed preliminary plans for a two full-sized rink facility on the site, the group has said it prefers to locate the public/private development close to Harris Field on Concord Avenue.

One use that many residents feel will continue is Department of Public Works including the location of its brush and composting piles.

Whatever the selected use is finally determined, it will be years before it is opened as the site is the likely staging area for equipment and material for the construction of the new Belmont High School which will not be completed until the mid-2020s.