An Open Letter To The Planning Board On Creating Less Restrictive Zoning Bylaws On Business

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Photo: Meg Moriarty

An Open Letter to the Planning Board:

Supporting business development in Belmont can be good for our schools. Relaxing restrictive zoning bylaws for restaurants in Belmont should provide commercial tax revenue that pays for operating the schools, sponsorship, and support for school programs and after-school activities, job opportunities for Belmont students, and places for Belmont students and families to enjoy.

I have seen the support that local businesses provide in Belmont, both on the School Committee and the Butler PTA. I have also seen It throughout Massachusetts as a professional evaluator of programs that foster broader participation and deeper engagement of students with science, technology, engineering, and math.

This support can be both financial and non-financial support. Based on my professional experience in communities with dense local business development, local businesses partner with schools, sponsor educational programs, provide resources, and donate funds. Local businesses sponsor sports teams, arts programs, and other extracurricular activities, alleviating the financial burden on schools and allowing them to offer a wider range of activities for students. Such partnerships enhance the educational experience for students.

Engaging with local businesses fosters a sense of community. Business leaders and employees may participate in school events, mentor students, and collaborate with schools to develop curricula that align with the skills needed in the local job market. Local businesses also provide jobs for students and prepare them for future employment.

Businesses also generate tax revenue. Although the necessary, short-term option for increasing funding for Belmont schools is to pass an override in April, supporting business development is a feasible long-term strategy for generating additional tax revenue that can fund our schools while offloading the tax burden felt by many in our community. Making our zoning bylaws friendlier to restaurants is a necessary step for encouraging business development.

As a School Committee member, parent, and educator, I spend a lot of time thinking about the core ingredients of effective schools and learning opportunities for all students. I am in good company with my education preoccupation in Belmont: the schools are one of the top reasons that people move to Belmont.

And, being involved in local politics, I notice that we all share the same agenda: increase sources of revenue to offload the tax burden on individuals. Getting clear on how we can achieve that goal means we all get to row in the same direction. Making zoning bylaws less restrictive will help us move closer to generating more tax revenue for maintaining and even expanding or improving learning opportunities for all students in Belmont.

Meg Moriarty, Garfield Road

Belmont School Committee Chair

Letter To The Letter: Adding Superintendent Candidates To Search Committee List An Effective Decision

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Photo: The school administration building in Belmont

On behalf of the Belmont School Committee, I would like to thank Geoff Lubien and every other member of the Belmont Superintendent Screening Committee (SSC) for their diligence in fulfilling their charge of presenting up to three qualified finalists to the School Committee. As Lubien explained in his recent piece, the SSC spent many hours over six weeks reviewing 22 applications, selecting and interviewing five semi-finalists, and recommending two finalists to the School Committee. They operated on a tight timeline that has become common as school districts throughout Massachusetts compete for high quality leadership in a time when the market is volatile. 

The School Committee was thrilled to interview the two recommended finalists. After learning that one of Belmont’s candidates dropped out before the finalists were selected and seeing finalists withdraw from superintendent searches in Newton and Somerville, the School Committee made the informed decision to invite the other semi-finalists identified by the SSC to interview as well. We made this decision after hours of deliberation in an effort to fulfill our obligation to Belmont students and citizens to find the best possible superintendent for our schools. It turned out to be an effective decision as the pool narrowed even further when only three candidates accepted our invitation. 

The candidates who accepted our invitation met with the public, students, and the School Committee. Since the interviews, School Committee members have been gathering feedback from the community and conducting thorough reference checks, all in an effort to determine whether the remaining candidates meet the criteria identified by the Belmont community. 

The Belmont School Committee is an elected body charged under state law with hiring the superintendent. The SSC was an appointed advisory body. Just like the Warrant Committee chaired by Lubien is appointed to make recommendations about the budget that Town Meeting is free to adopt or set aside, the SSC was appointed to advise the School Committee about candidates for the superintendent position, and the School Committee is free to adopt or set aside those recommendations. In this case, the School Committee adopted all of the SSC’s recommended finalists as well as the semi-finalists that the SSC selected from a large applicant pool.

All of us on the Belmont School Committee are volunteers who care deeply about doing what is best for Belmont students. We are fortunate and thankful to have dedicated community members, including Lubien, who volunteered to help us with selecting the next person to lead our school district so our students have the best possible future. We are also thankful to the three excellent finalists who took time to visit Belmont last week and we feel confident in our ability to make the decision that is right for all of our students and the Belmont community.  

Meghan Moriarty, Chair

Belmont School Committee

Letter To The Editor: Belmont Hill Proposed Parking Lot Unhealthy For Wildlife, Community

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Photo: A portion of the land owned by Belmont Hill School adjacent to the proposed parking lot

To the residents of Belmont:

The Belmont Hill School intends to build a 100,000 sq. ft. parking lot in place of the current woodlands. This space, almost as big as two football fields, is home to many animal species and is an extension of the ecosystem of Mass Audubon’s Habitat. Important species like foxes, deer, and owls depend on that land to survive, as do the large trees that provide clean air to the entire town. 

The Belmont Middle High School project has no parking lot for students and minimal street parking. All 1,300 students can attend school by carpooling, bus, walking, or biking. We understand there is limited parking at Belmont Hill School, but destroying critical ecosystems and natural habitats is unhealthy for the local wildlife and our community. The size of the parking lot that Belmont Hill wants to build is unnecessary and not worth sacrificing valuable woodlands. 

As Belmont High School Climate Action Club members, we oppose this harmful project. We hope the people of Belmont agree and stand with us against the currently proposed parking design. 

The Belmont High School Climate Action Club

belmonthsclimateactionclub@gmail.com

Letter To The Editor: Accomplishments, Priorities Of Belmont’s Economic Development Committee

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Photo: Small business revival in Belmont Center is a priority of Belmont’s Economic Development Committee

To the editor:

As Co-Chair of Belmont’s Economic Development Committee alongside Katherine Venzke, I am pleased to share a brief overview of our accomplishments this past year with the greater Belmont community. 

2022-23 Accomplishments

Over this past year, I am proud to report that the EDC has made an important contribution. 

Last spring and summer, the EDC implemented a $25,000 Wayfinding and Branding Design grant through a dedicated working group and critical community input most notably by third-generation Belmontian and Town Meeting Member Allison Lenk and Boston-based design studio Favermann Designs. Our process resulted in the Select Board approving the Belmont Gardenia flower design. Mark Favermann – who has worked with 40-plus committees on branding and wayfinding design – described our process as “one of the best examples that really connects to the community and the town’s history in a very natural and authentic way.” The EDC remains fully committed to implementing the design on the Trapelo Corridor and eventually across all of Belmont.  

Second, through a designated state surplus appropriation of $100,000, the EDC successfully designed and advocated a Belmont Small Business Grant program to the Select Board. Ten businesses were eventually awarded $10,000 by our state representatives, state Sen. Will Brownsberger, state Rep. Dave Rogers, the Select Board, Venzke, and myself.  

Third, the EDC has also worked to improve communication and networking among local business leaders. We hosted a small business networking event last fall and will do another in the next month or two. We increased our committee membership from seven to nine and have also worked diligently with other town committees, boards, and Belmont residents to bring the voice of economic development across various town initiatives.  

2023-24 Committee Priorities

However, we understand there remains much to do over this next year and beyond. While empty storefronts are being filled by remarkably persistent and talented local business owners, including Café Vanak on Belmont Road, rated as one of the world’s best restaurants by Condé Nast Traveler, Belmont can and must make the permitting process for local restaurants and businesses easier. We want a vibrant Leonard Street increased business at Cushing Square, and increased mixed-use development at Waverly Square. 

We are also committed to serving residents as a sounding board for ideas and suggestions. As the Collins Center Report and the recent Belmont budget summits clearly show, the town would benefit from a more robust commercial tax base over the medium and long term. Working professionals are spending more time in home offices than in pre-2020 due to the rise of hybrid work. This increases Belmont’s daytime population and local business opportunities across our three key commercial centers: Belmont Center, Cushing Square, and Wavery Square.  

In conclusion, I would like to reiterate that the EDC has made significant contributions to the Belmont community this past year. Looking ahead, the Committee is committed to making the permitting process for local restaurants and businesses easier, increasing small business formation, and serving as a sounding board for ideas and suggestions from the community. We believe that a more robust commercial tax base is crucial for Belmont’s medium and long-term growth, and we will continue to work toward this goal.  

Paul Joy

Co-Chair, Economic Development Committee

Letter To The Editor: Historic Clock Tower Needs Community Support

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Photo: The clock on top of First Church in Belmont

To the editor:

Over centuries, since the invention of mechanical devices for keeping time, community elders have placed a clock in a prominent building in the village center to announce the local time. This practice traveled from Europe with migrants to North America. In New England, many of the clocks that we see in churches on town greens were bought by town meetings.

In 1889, Belmont’s Town Meeting voted to purchase a clock to be installed in a new church – today, the First Church in Belmont, Unitarian Universalist – being constructed on the Belmont Town Green. That clock is still there, keeping time dependably until the early 2000’s. It stopped only from an accumulation of environmental dust over the years.

Based on several quotes from qualified craftspeople, the cost of the cleaning and renovation of the clock will be about $29,000.

In Autumn 2021, the First Church and the Belmont Citizens Forum teamed up to seek funding to fix the clock.

This past June, Town Meeting appropriated $26,100 in Community Preservation Committee funding for the clock project. None of the funds will end up in the reserves of the church. The money will be paid to contractors and craftspeople who do the work of repairing the clock.

As part of the CPA approval, $2,900 – or 10 percent of the cost of the project – must be raised privately. The church has created a special account to receive community donations to the project cost. The fund has received approximately $1,050 to date.

Please consider contributing to this historic town restoration. Contributions can be made using this link:
https://forms.ministryforms.net/embed.aspx?formId=d3f6641a-3ae5-41be-b0b4-d7f7e0581458

Michael Fleming

Letter To The Editor: It’s Well Past Time To Build A New Town Library

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Photo: What the new Belmont Public Library will look like if the debt exclusion passes

To the editor:

We’re long-time residents of Belmont and heartily support the Library and the Rink projects.

When we were finally able to afford a modest Belmont house, we moved here for the fine schools (by reputation) and the “well-managed” Town. We soon found out that “well-managed” meant the Town wasn’t spending money on infrastructure or materials. We were shocked to find that the Burbank School
had cracked and lifting asbestos tiles, water-damaged and crumbling plaster walls, rickety and failing windows, faulty plumbing, very dated mechanical systems, lack of educational materials and equipment, etc. etc. The Burbank was in worse shape than the old 1920 elementary school I first attended in the 1950’s, right before it was replaced. Fortunately, the Burbank staff was superb and creative. Small classes after kindergarten were great for the students!

And fortunately for the Town, gradually over the last 46 years most of the neglected Town buildings have been renovated or replaced. But not the Library. The deterioration we found in Burbank in 1979 can be seen in the Library today. The director can do only so much to upgrade the interior, but the structure isn’t sound. It’s time to rebuild.

Our family spent good times in the Children’s Room with Joyce. She, as well as the welcoming staff, gave all of the kids special attention. There were always good activities and programs. Free passes to various museums helped our budget. When they were older, the kids depended on the library for Young Adult fiction and reference materials. We have borrowed videos, audiobooks, periodicals, new books, and old. We’ve attended Library classes and special events. The Library was and is a central part of our Belmont lives. And when my parents retired to Belmont, the Library became my mother’s (a retired librarian) favorite, too. She loved the selection in the collection!

The Library is so much more today – I hope everyone knows how many more offerings are available these days – for free!

The time is right. We have substantial donations toward a new building.

Please support the new Library.

Nancy Davis
Emerson Street

Town Opens Belmont Library As Cooling Center During Weekend Heat Wave

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Photo: The Belmont Public Library will be a cooling center over the weekend

Due to the current period of high heat and humidity, the Belmont Public Library at 336 Concord Ave. will open as a Cooling Center over the next few days, according to a release from the town.

The hours will be as follows: 

  • Friday Aug. 5: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • Saturday Aug. 6: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
  • Sunday Aug. 7: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

“We encourage everyone to stay cool and hydrated,” said the release. “We ask you to check on elderly friends and neighbors, and others who may need help, during this period of high heat and humidity.”  

Letter To The Editor: How Restoring A Pair Of Reading Specialists Will Change How Belmont Schools Support Literacy Growth

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Photo: A reading specialist’s job

Seventeen.

That is the number of students who, out of the roughly 1,400 children between grades 5-8 in Chenery Middle School, were able to receive in-school reading support prior to January 31st, 2022. That is the date that funding took effect to create two dedicated Reading Specialist positions for the remainder of the 2021-22 school year, fundamentally changing how the school has been able to support the literacy growth of its students.

We are writing this letter to the decision-makers of this town because these positions have been eliminated for the 2022-23 school year, and the time to act to restore them is now – before we leave more of our neediest students behind.

Since their transition to this role in January, the impact that Jen Mathews and Taylor Moroso – our two trained and certified Reading Specialists – have had on growing the reading skills of our students has been profound, and we would be failing some of our highest-need students to not have these positions continue into next year.

Due to their other job requirements prior to the funding taking effect, Jen and Taylor were previously able to spend only one 47-minute block per day offering Reading Enrichment classes to students identified as most needing this extra support during the school day. Since being able to pivot to working with students as full-time Reading Specialists in January, Jen and Taylor have been able to focus entirely on supporting students as they strive to achieve their literacy goals, not only through facilitating the small Reading Enrichment groups but also by supporting students in their ELA classrooms – something that was previously not possible.

Since these positions were added, the following positive impacts have been observed:

  • The amount of students being able to receive regular reading intervention services increased from 17 to 59. That is 42 students who were screened and identified as requiring additional support to reach grade-level reading goals but that previously received no reading intervention beyond what was offered in the classroom.
  • Students who receive reading support have also been able to be supported in their ELA classrooms on a regular basis – this helps the teachers and specialists observe how they work not only in small groups, but also support the development of bespoke interventions that can be applied in the classroom for each student individually. In the 14 ELA classrooms the Reading Specialists have been able to support, they have been able to work with students from a variety of skill levels to help lift the confidence and skill levels of all students through their classroom work. Further, this work has enabled the specialists to identify students who may benefit from additional reading support.
  • Some of our highest need students, including those from diverse racial, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds, have been able to be supported in the classroom in ways that were previously not possible. Further, students whose literacy skills atrophied due to COVID and remote-related challenges have been able to experience success while supported by these interventions.

The proposed 2022-23 budget eliminates both of these positions, and as a result eliminates every single one of these benefits.

We implore the decision-makers of the town: the School Committee, Select/Planning Boards, and the citizens of Belmont, to not accept the fact that our school of 1,400 students will only have seventeen students receive small group reading instruction. To, rather than perpetuate a problem that has existed for years where we underserve these students, take a step toward a solution.

To make the decision to support all students, including our highest-need students still reeling from pandemic setbacks, in building their literacy skills. All it will cost to restore all of these crucial supports for many of our most vulnerable students is the 1.6 teacher positions that were added for the second half of this school year.

We are of the belief that there are not many ways to spend the town’s resources more effectively than this. If you agree that there are more than 17 students out of the 1,400 children in Chenery Middle School that need reading support, then you need to raise your voice, be heard, and restore these positions immediately for the 2022-23 school year and beyond.

Alex Goldsmith and Caitlin Corrieri

English/Language Arts Teachers

Chenery Middle School

Letter To The Editor: This We Agree On, Vote Epstein If You Care About Belmont’s Schools

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Photo: Letters to the editor

To the editor:

Over the years the two of us have often found ourselves on different sides of political debates within Town. At meetings of the Select Board, or in the pages of the Citizen Herald we’ve debated and butted heads over any number of issues. Throughout, however, we have always been united by one thing: our love of Belmont and our sincere desire to see our Town and its residents thrive.

That’s why we’re writing to you today to urge you to elect Roy Epstein for the Select Board, and to warn you about his opponent’s stated plan to cut $8 million from the budget for our public schools. If enacted, such a plan would see as many as 160 school staff laid off and deeply degrade the quality of education our children receive. Belmont residents who cherish our public schools must stand, as one, and re-elect Mr. Epstein and refute this noxious proposal. 

Lasseter’s plan? Crippling cuts to schools

The source of our alarm is a statement made by Roy’s opponent, Jeff Lasseter, during the League of Women Voters debate on March 24. Speaking about the Town’s finances, Lasseter stated that the School Committee had budgeted for $69 to $70 million dollars for the next fiscal year but “only needed 59-60 million” if the School Department used “common sense spending.” That’s a $9 to $10 million reduction in school funding – around 14 percent of our budget.

And this was no gaffe. In fact, Roy’s opponent repeated his claim on Saturday afternoon during a forum hosted on behalf of Belmont’s Pan-Asian Coalition and the Belmont Chinese American Association.

Hyperbole by candidates on the campaign trail is nothing new nor is it unique to Belmont. But the plan promoted by Roy’s opponent would have serious implications for our students.

Here are the real numbers for Belmont’s schools

The facts of the School Budget for 2022-2023 are clear and a matter of public record. After months of discussion and planning, the School Department presented a revised budget of $67.2 million as of March 29, 2022. This number is slightly lower than the School Department’s original request for $69.4 million. Those $2 million in cuts have been followed by another cut of $165,000 and a proposed cut of $507,400. 
This final cut has not been approved by the School Committee. Even without the final $507,400, the Committee would need to cut an additional $8.2 million to meet the budget target of $59 million set by Roy Epstein’s opponent.       

Mind you: Belmont’s public schools already run lean. Class size in Belmont is larger than average among our peer districts, while per pupil spending in-district is thousands of dollars per-pupil below the State average. The two of us can, and have, disagreed about the relative importance of such statistics to educational outcomes. What we agree on is that Belmont’s public schools already operate with a much leaner budget than comparable districts.  

Death blow: Cut 120 teachers and 40 aides

What would happen if the School Department reduced its already lean budget to $59 million as Roy’s opponent has proposed? Well, the only areas for substantial cuts are staffing: personnel. We cannot end state-mandated services (which account for $23 million); we cannot cut fixed costs for operations. To find another $8.2 million in cuts, Lasseter has proposed, Belmont would have no choice but to carry out massive layoffs of teachers and professional aides. Salary savings for 160 personnel would be $10 million.  Health insurance savings would be $1.5 million. But unemployment benefits paid for layoffs would be a cost increase of $3.3 million.

By our calculations, to live within a budget of $59 million in FY23, Belmont might close one of its elementary schools entirely, squeezing all of that school’s students into the other three grade schools in Town. But even that logistic nightmare would not be save enough.

If we, instead, spread the $8.2 million in cuts over K-12, we would need to eliminate more than 160 positions in all: 120 teachers and 40 professional aides. The number of teachers in Belmont would be reduced by more than one-third. Class sizes would explode as a result. Elementary grades would see classes of more than 30 students. At the high school, we would need to cut all electives, saving staffing for the core classes required by the state. AP offerings would also be affected. Fees would soar, further hampering working families in town.

Just as troubling as the implications of Lasseter’s proposal for our schools is the fact-free and cavalier manner in which he floated them. The schools, he said, simply needed “common sense spending” to find the millions in savings. He offered no details on what “common sense” entailed, or  where the millions of dollars in cuts would come from.    

Wanted: facts and common sense, not conspiracies

As a town, and a nation, we know well what to expect from politicians who rail against government, while reveling in their ignorance of how it actually works. We know the dangers of conspiracy theories and promises like “only I can fix it!” We’ve seen the chaos that such ill-conceived and ill-informed plans deliver.

Only now is our community emerging from the trial and trauma of the COVID pandemic. Masks are coming off and life is ever so slowly returning to normal. But there is so much more to do. Now, more than ever, we need smart, serious and informed leaders who can lead our Town out of the depths of the pandemic, and put us back on a track to prosperity and common purpose. On Tuesday, Roy Epstein is the candidate who can deliver that. Together, we urge you to vote for him on Tuesday, April 5.

Paul F. Roberts, Town Meeting Member Precinct 8, Chair, IT Advisory Committee

Ralph T. Jones, Town Meeting Member, Precinct 3, School Committee

[Note: Jones is the chair of Roy Epstein’s re-election campaign]

Letter To The Editor: Lasseter Will Welcome Change To Status Quo

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Photo: A lawn sign for Jeff Lasseter (Jeff for Belmont Facebook page)

To the editor:

Although I’m too young to vote, I want to express my support for Jeff Lasseter who is running for Belmont Select Board. I’ve met Jeff and was impressed with his depth of knowledge, commitment to the town, and how he listens to residents and thinks about their input, before reaching decisions, leading to action. I appreciate how Jeff hired young Belmont residents to work in his restaurant and his involvement in the community through sponsoring fundraisers. 

In his many years in federal government, Jeff acquired real life experience balancing the books, often needing to do “more with less.” We need to run the town like a business, holding everyone involved with the town’s finances accountable. 

Jeff sincerely relates to parents, seniors, business owners and anyone invested in improving our town for all. Jeff’s ability to relate to all constituents and respect their concerns, is a welcome change to the status quo in Belmont.

Antonio Molle

Warwick Road