Letter To The Editor: Until There Is Accountability, A ‘No’ Vote On New High School

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Photo: A No until accountability

To The Editor:

I am not going to argue whether we need a new school. I am concerned about the people on the committee and our past debacles.

Wellington Elementary School
1. full before it was finished being built.
2. Neighbor Noise issues (as a side the building committee rolled there eyes even thought the residents were correct and the town eventually after finally listening did something about it).
3. Sound proofing – the school was finally fixed this year for the noise between classrooms and it actually caused a new sound issue in the principals office that has to be corrected.
4. It’s made of wood and is already in need of repair.

Trash Dumpsters
For some reason the committees never take this into account. There was an issue at the Burbank. At the Chenery the solution was to line up barrels in the hallways until the fire chief said it was a safety issue

This is the third high school in 75 years I believe. And the in-all-seriousness Bill Lovallo, the chair of the building committee made a comment that this school should last 50 years. Now I am sure it was said with the best of intentions but with proper maintenance and upkeep, shouldn’t a building last more than 50 years?

Speaking of upkeep, what is the maintenance plan for this building? Are estimated costs for the future? For example, what is the boilers life span? Will there be money in replace [them] when the time comes and not let them be fixed with band aids?

Did you know the building committee decided to take down the [White] Field House in front of the hockey rink? The one where just a few years ago people donated to have new lockers put in with name plates? Not to mention the decision was made without consulting the Recreation Department who uses an office there (and to my knowledge had not been told of their new location) or that that building is also use for IT equipment for wiring around the field and rink (sorry I don’t know the technical terms).

Now I completely appreciate the time and effort that the people on these committees make but its the same people committee after committee. Who picks them? The Town Moderator. I am curious if anyone has been turned down from a committee or if truly no one else has asked to be on it. What we need is an actual plumber, HVAC and general contractor on the committee as they know the codes and can pick things up when reviewing plans. To me not having those on the board is irresponsible.

Finally, one of major concerns is the fiscal responsibility of the committee. Once the money is received from the Massachusetts School Building Authority and from the town, the committee has oversight. The committee does have have to answer to anyone else, not the town administrator or the town selectmen. How long has the Wellington been done and the board is still in existence and still spending money (granted it is to correct problems but really, should it have taken this long).

Until I can get assurances that we are not going down the same road we always do, whether we need it or not, I will vote no.

Lisa Boyajian

Committee OKs Design For Renovation of DPW Building; Bids Out In 2019

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Photo:Belmont DPW building which will be renovated and undergo construction in 2019.

During the winter of 2019-20, there will be one big difference when the first storm blows through Belmont; the crews plowing the snow will finally have a place they WANT to come to take their break.

On Tuesday, Oct. 16, the Department of Public Works/Belmont Police Department Building Committee approved a final design plan for the renovation of the DPW building at the Town Yard off C Street.

“We are very happy, ecstatic really,” said Marcotte, director of the town’s DPW, who had been pushing the renovation/construction along with Committee Chair Anne Marie Mahoney who has been the champion of improving the deteriorating infrastructure at the DPW and Police Headquarters at the corner of Pleasant Street and Concord Avenue.

Mahoney has for years advanced the cause of these “orphan” projects – as they had no natural supporters among residents – with the idea of making repairs to the structures so “to create a humane conditions for our employees.”

Bids on the $1,189,000 project – paid out of the town’s operating budget so it did not require a debt exclusion which was approved by the Town Meeting in May – will be going out in February and awarding the contract in March. The work would not start until April after the winter weather has finished, said Michael Santoro, manager of the DPW’s Highway Division.

It will take about six months to renovate and add to the interior of the 70-year-old building with the construction of locker rooms, showers and laundry space, room for training and quiet rest and a small amount of office space. Renovations to the existing area will provide a more suitable kitchen and break room space and additional restrooms. 

The committee selected the third of three design schemes presented by The Galante Architecture Studio of Cambridge. See design plans below; an overall view of the work on top with a more detailed view below.

Design plans continue for the police station that will under go construction of a large addition and significant interior renovation.

While the makeover is nearly a year away from completion, the head of the DPW said his team is eagerly awaiting the “new” building.

“The crews are especially appreciative,” said Marcotte

Final Day To Register To Vote In State Election On Wednesday, Oct 17

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Photo: The last day to register is Oct. 17.

It’s down to the wire for those residents who want to register to vote in the coming State Election on Tuesday, Nov. 6 – which will include the debt exclusion for the new 7-12 Belmont High School – as the final day is Wednesday, Oct. 17.

The Belmont Town Clerk’s Office will accomindate those residents who work by staying open until 8 p.m. on Wednesday to handle the procastinators. 

Residents can also submit their online voter registration form to the Massachusetts Secretary of State for the State Election by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday.

Special Town Meeting Warrant Opens Tuesday, Closes Wednesday

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Photo: A Brookline town meeting warrant from the time of Belmont incorporation in the late 1850s.

The Belmont Board of Selectmen voted at their Monday, Oct. 15 meeting on the dates in which the warrant for the Special Town Meeting beginning Nov. 13 will be open and closed.

The Special warrant will open at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 16 and close a day later on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 4 p.m.

The most prominent of the eight article coming before “the special” is the authorization to borrow $213 million to construct a new 7-12 High School. The overlay district maps for adult retail marijuana sales and South Pleasant Street will be on the warrant along with changing the tax deferral for seniors from 8 to 4.5 percent, a Community Preservation Act off-cycle request for $400,000 for design work on the Alexander Avenue underpass, an extension of the DPW/Belmont Police Committee and a pair of financial issues.

The warrant is a document issued by the Board of Selectmen to call a town meeting. Warrants are essentially a list of items to be voted on by the approximately 300 Town Meeting Members which represents the residents in Belmont’s eight precincts.

The selectmen and town committees, boards and staff can place an article in the warrant. Residents can also insert an article on the warrant through the citizen’s petitions process. In a special town meeting, the citizen petitioner must gather 200 signatures to be accepted. Once received by the town clerk, the selectmen have 45 days to call a special town meeting or place it in the warrant of an existing town meeting. 

After the warrant is closed on Wednesday, the selectmen will meet with Town Moderator Micheal Widmer this coming Monday to determine the order the articles will be taken up and if there are any issues pertaining to conflicts with any of the articles. 

Letter To The Editor: Where You Learn Matters

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Photo: The proposed 7-12 High School.

To the editor:

As a teacher, I’d like to believe that I’m equally effective in every classroom. In reality, the space I teach in matters a lot, and my students don’t have the same quality of experience in a cramped classroom as they do in an airy one. Over the years, I’ve frequently taught in rooms where the seats are bolted to the floor. On a tour this week at Belmont High School, I was disappointed to discover the high school also has a few rooms designed this way. As a veteran history teacher, I can assure you that it is really difficult to foster active learning in rooms where you can’t move the furniture.

When I’ve had the opportunity to teach in more flexible spaces, the difference has been palpable. My favorite room has movable tables that can be brought together to form seminar tables big enough to support the kind of large format documents – broadsides, posters or maps – I love to see students pore over. But the tables can also be subsequently separated into smaller tables for individual or partnered work. The room is flanked by whiteboards, which allow groups to work out problems visually. It’s a joy to teach, and to learn, in this room.

Belmont High School has no spaces conducive to hands-on, project-based learning. Yet studies have confirmed over and again that this is the best way to learn. Our dedicated teachers know this, which is why they send students out into the hallway to use the floor as a table. Still, a noisy hallway is only marginally more conducive to learning than a room with seats bolted to the floor.

Most of us find it hard to concentrate in noisy environments, and few of us learn well by sitting passively. Fortunately, there’s a solution. The need to replace the aging and inadequate high school offers Belmont the opportunity to build a middle and high school with spaces that can change as teaching and learning do, while freeing up more space for hands-on learning at all levels, K-12. The state of Massachusetts agrees this is pedagogically sound and has offered $80 million toward construction costs if Belmont votes to fund the remaining expenses. Please join me Tuesday, Nov. 6 in voting Yes on Question 4.

Mary Lewis

Randolph Street

 

Marsh Street Mess: Road Reconstruction To Last Several Weeks

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Photo: Marsh Street in the fall.

Beginning last Friday, Oct. 12, Belmont’s General contractor, E.H. Perkins has begun road construction on Marsh Street specifically at 178 Marsh St. This work will include, saw-cutting, grading and paving the roadway.

Road closures and delays are expected during construction hours between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Work is expected to continue for several weeks.

Residents and Commuters are advised to seek alternate routes. “We apologize for any inconveniences this construction work might cause,” said Arthur O’Brien, resident engineer in the Office of Community Development.

For any questions or concerns about the project, residents can contact O’Brien at 617-993-2665

Girls Tourney Bound: Soccer, Field Hockey, Volleyball Earn Tickets To Postseason [VIDEO]

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Photo: Belmont High Girls Soccer, pictured below are securing another trip to the Division 2 North playoffs.

It was quite a week for three of Belmont High girls’ fall season teams as each secured playoff spots in the coming state MIAA tournament.

Within a few minutes of each other on Monday, Oct. 8, Girls’ Soccer and Field Hockey punched their tickets to the postseason while Volleyball completed its task on Wednesday, Oct. 10.

After a pair of losses – a heartbreaker, 3-2, at Woburn after leading 2-0 at the half and a 4-0 rout at Winchester – left the team at 2-2-1 early in the season, Girls’ Soccer has rattled off five straight wins including a 3-1 home victory on Columbus Day to see its season extended. While not raking up the goals, the Marauders have been efficient in their games, using senior center forward Ella Gagnon as the cornerstone of the offense with speedsters senior Morgan Krauss and youngster Jenna Thomas (a pair of hat-tricks for the sophomore) creating opportunities on the wings. 

Since clinching the playoffs, Belmont took its revenge on Woburn, defeating the Tanners, 2-1, on Wednesday, Oct. 10 to extend its winning streak to seven and currently in second place in the Middlesex Liberty division with a 9-2-1 record. They will take on Lexington on Tuesday, Oct. 16 before meeting up with league leader Winchester at home on Thursday, Oct. 18.

Field Hockey came into its annual match with perennial Division 2 state champions Watertown on a seven-game winning streak. The night game on Oct. held at Belmont’s Harris Field saw the Marauders come out and controlled the match, dominating possession, especially in the second half, ending the game with 11 shots on goal and a 13 to 1 margin in penalty corners. The one area they didn’t hold an advantage over Watertown was on the scoreboard as the Raiders tallied on both of their two shots of the game in a two-minute stretch in the final five minutes of the first half, defeating the disappointed hosts, 2-0.

To make the playoffs, Belmont had to take a trip to an improving Wakefield High team and came away with a solid 2-0 win with senior co-captain Jordan Lettiere scoring both times to continue her hot stick at the inner forward position.

After reaching the playoffs, Belmont traveled Wednesday, Oct. 10 to the environs of Lexington to battle it out with a very good Minuteman squad. Starting at 6:30 p.m. (on a school night!) on a field – situated on the border of a mosquito-infested swamp – apparently illuminated by mood lights as no one could see the ball. In an evenly fought battle, Lexington took advantage of the not so common “man” advantage when the refs called Belmont’s junior Emma Donahue, the team’s top defender, for a push then sent off junior Katie Guden, the squad’s leader, for not respecting the five-meter space when the ball is restarted. And the Minutemen scored both times as Belmont’s best players were sitting by the scorer’s desk, winning 2-0, as the Marauders had to contend with the odd custom in Lexington of allowing dogs to wander along the sidelines.

Belmont, which defeated Woburn, 8-0, on Friday, Oct. 12 will have its rematch with Lexington on Wednesday, Oct. 17 with the winner in control to capture the Middlesex League Liberty title. This game played during the day, sans the threat of malaria and without mutts on the field. 

After just making the playoffs last year, Volleyball’s goal this year was a return act. And Belmont got there, but even faster than they thought, reaching its 10th win in just 12 games as the Marauders swept Wayland, 3-0, in an out-of-league match on Wednesday, Oct. 10. Led by kill specialist Jane Mahon (who is leading the Middlesex League) , and a pair of three year junior starters; setter Mindee Lai and libero Sophia Estok, Belmont was pushed in each of the three sets including having an 11-0 service run against them in the third to fall behind 21-20. But good digging and returning from the back line as well as a few unforced errors on the part of the Warriors allowed the Marauders to take the win.

After defeating Woburn on Friday, Oct. 12, Belmont, at 11-2,. will host Lexington on Tuesday, Oct. 17.

It’s ‘B’ Sunday: Belmont Boosters Annual Fundraising Drive Oct. 14

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Photo: Belmont Boosters’ ‘B’ decale.

The Belmont Boosters annual “B” Drive will held on the afternoon of Sunday, Oct. 14, during which Belmont High School student-athletes will engage in a door-to-door fundraising campaign encompassing all of Belmont.

All proceeds support the Belmont Boosters LLC, a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to promote and support the athletic programs and related educational programs of Belmont High School. This is a major fundraiser for the Boosters, which provides financial support to BHS athletic teams and programs individually as well as to broader capital initiatives in support of all teams and programs.

Parent-volunteers, especially parent-drivers, are critical to the success of this fundraising event. For more information please go to the Boosters website.

You also can email the Boosters at: belmontMAboosters@gmail.com

Belmont Light Sends Crews To Restore Power To Florida’s Panhandle After Hurricane [VIDEO]

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Photo: Belmont Light crews are heading to Florida’s Panhandle to help restore power after devastating hurricane. 

The photos and videos don’t do justice to the destructive force which Category 5 Hurricane Michael brought to northwest Florida.

In response to the natural disaster, Belmont Light has sent two crews down to the Florida Panhandle to help in the massive work to restore power after the devastation from Hurricane Michael. The four workers and two trucks will be based in the state capital Tallahassee, but may be moved around to where the damage to the electrical grid has been most severe.

This is part of the larger Public Power response, which has public-owned utilities like Belmont Light sending crews from across the country. The storm struck during Public Power Week and October is Public Power Month, so the response by the local electric utility highlights the benefits of community-owned power in being able to bring people together to help those in need.

Below is a video from Aidan Leary, Belmont Light’s executive assistant and communications coordinator made as the trucks began their travel south.

Friends’ Annual Fall Book Sale At The Library This Weekend, Oct. 13-14

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Photo: Lots of books on sale this weekend at the Belmont Public Library.

If you love books but not looking to pay an arm and a leg, this is your weekend to stock up on fiction, non-fiction, children’s and every other sort of book as the Friends of the Belmont Public Library holds its annual Fall Book Sale this weekend.

The sale takes place on Saturday, Oct. 13 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 14 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Assembly and Flett rooms at the library, 336 Concord Ave. And don’t forget that Sunday is the Bag o’ Books sale. 

A preview party for Friends members takes place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on a new night, Thursday, Oct. 11. In addition, Belmont teachers will spend Friday picking out books for their classrooms, thanks to the Friends.

The sale’s proceeds allow the Friends to purchase museum memberships, bring authors and demonstrations to the library while adding to the technology available to all patrons.