Middle/High School Project Takes Big Step Towards Final Cost Number

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Photo: Daedalus Project’s Shane Nolan report on the trade bids during a recent meeting of the Belmont Middle and High School Building Committee.

A sigh of relief was heard from the members of the Belmont Middle and High School Building Committee Friday. Feb. 7 when the bid results from roughly a third of the cost for the $295 million school project came in just under where they thought it would be.

Shane Nolan, senior project manager with Owners Project Manager Daedalus Projects revealed that final bids – which were opened the day before, Thursday, Feb. 6 in a process called “rip and read” – for the 18 trade subcontractors including skills such as masonry, painting, tile work, and plumbing totaled $73.6 million, approximately $1.7 million under their pre-bid estimated value.

“Is this when we cheer?” asked committee member and Select Board Chair Tom Caputo.

The bid results included some large savings in glass and glazing (an underbid of nearly $834,000) and electrical (at $17.9 million, the bid was $1.89 million under the estimate) that off set overbids in HVAC (at $24.4 million was $3.2 million over the estimate) and roofing and flashing (over by $420,000), Nolan told the committee.

With those favorable numbers in hand, the committee voted to add back work struck from the project in 2019 during what Nolan described as the “painful value engineering exercise” which resulted in $19 million cut out of construction.

Brought back from their sidelines will be:

  • Skylights in the High School Maker Space and Middle School Art Room $74,000,
  • A canopy outside the loading dock entrance, $76,000
  • A slab heat ejection at the loading dock $262,000, and
  • Wall tile to four stairwells, $202,000.

Friday’s result is a big step in finalizing the total project cost, according to Bill Lovallo, Building Committee Chair.

“If you want to just look at this as a $237 million project, a third of the job [is underway], a third of the job were in the trades that Shane just read out … and locked in and about a third of the job is still in its final stages,” said Lovallo.

According to representatives from construction manager Skanska, with the trade subcontractor bids included, the total building cost for the project as of Friday’s meeting is $154.5 million. Add into that contingency, insurance and bonds along with management services, the estimated total project cost comes in at $183.0 million.

With a grand total project cost of $237,208,732 – $52 million is coming from the Massachusetts School Building Authority which partnered with the town on the project – the roughly $54.2 million difference is made up of non-trade work controlled by Shanska.

Non-trade contractors are any third party agent that is not directly involved in the major operations of the project.

Unlike the “rip and read” process with Daedalus in which the subcontractors bid is “locked in,” bids for work with the construction manager is “more of a negotiation,” said Lovallo.

The final third of the cost to be revealed in the next six weeks.

High Schoolers Look To Drop A Dime At Town Meeting in Support Of A Paper Bag Fee [Video]

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Photo: Belmont High Climate Action Club members (from left) Kate Devitt, Madeline Kitch and Shea Brams.

The brown paper grocery bag: made from renewable resources, is biodegradable, and recyclable. What’s not to love?

But the bags are far from being an environmental panacea as making them puts out CO2 at a rate to be a significant contributor to the climate crisis.

A group of students at Belmont High School is now campaigning to bring a proposal to the annual Town Meeting this May – either as a citizens petition or via the Select Board – to imposed a 10 cent fee on all paper grocery bags with the aim of prompting shoppers to supply their own.

“Our team is working tirelessly to pass this, because big change begins small,” said Kate Devitt, one of the founders of the Climate Action Club at Belmont High School.

“We want to begin reducing carbon emissions locally, and attempt to expand from there; our climate is changing at a rapid pace, and we want to take any measure possible to ensure a livable future for humanity,” said Devitt.

And in Belmont, an area to focus is on the ubiquitous paper bag. There is a misconception, said Devitt, that paper bag as being more climate friendly than the plastic bags they replaced. In reality bag emits three to four times as much carbon to be manufactured compared to a polyethylene plastic bag.

“To be clear, we are not suggesting a return to plastic bags, as we are pleased that a plastic bag ban has been instated in Belmont. We want to incentive the use of reusable bags ,” said Devitt.

The fee would return to the businesses and so is not a tax, she said.

Devitt said the club was introduced to the initiative when they were contacted by Rahul Ramakrishnan, a Belmont High graduate (Class of 2016) attending MIT, who has been working on his own fee-based proposal.

“If Belmont could reduce paper bag consumption through a home rule petition, we would drastically decrease our carbon emissions, while setting a precedent to other towns,” said Devitt, noting Belmont would be the first town-structured community to pass such a fee.

In 2014, Cambridge successfully implemented the exact policy the club will proposed, encouraging customers to “BYOB” – bring your own bag. After the installment of the policy, paper bag consumption was reduced by 80 percent.

Using those results, the club took a look at businesses in Belmont, big and small – Star Market, CVS, Rancatores, convenient stores – and calculated the impact of a fee on the community’s carbon emissions.

The manufacturing of a single paper bag emits about 20g of CO2. Assuming 10,000 households in Belmont use a total of 16 paper bags per week, that is a total of 166 tons of CO2 per year. A typical car produces about 3 tons a year, so that works out that our paper bag usage releases about the same amount of CO2 into the atmosphere, per year, as 50 cars. 

The measure would come before Town Meeting as a new bylaw, requiring a two-thirds approval by the 290 member legislative body.

“Town Meeting’s approval is essential to pass the bill through the ‘home rule,’ a town-specific method of passing a bill that doesn’t require approval from the Attorney General’s office,” said Devitt.

Currently, the club is seeking groups and individuals to support the new bylaw as it heads towards a May vote.

Devitt and Madeline Kitch launched the Climate Action Club over the summer and have more than a dozen active members. Its goal is dedicated to taking action within the town.

“[W]e found that in Belmont, the majority of high school students are concerned about the climate crisis. However, many students are unsure of how to combat these daunting issues,” said Devitt.

And club members have been active, attending Belmont Middle and High School Building Committee meetings to push for Zero Net Energy solar energy at the new institution, collecting more than 250 signatures to support the cause.

“We have [also] attended several climate strikes and Lobby Days as a club, taking the Harvard buses and Red Line into Boston during the school day,” said Devitt.

“Now, we are focusing our time into passing the bill,” she said.

Principal McAllister Leaving Chenery For Central Office [Video]

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Photo: Mike McAllister.

Micheal McAllister, the popular principal of the Chenery Middle School, will be heading to the Belmont School District’s Central Office to become the director of the newly named Office of Human Capital.

Entering his 20th year in the Belmont Schools, McAllister has been the Chenery principal for the past four years after spending seven years as principal of the Butler Elementary School in the Waverley neighborhood. He began his career as a sixth-grade social studies teacher at the Chenery in 2000.

McAllister earned his BA from Northeastern and a master’s in education from Harvard. He lives with his family in his hometown of Bedford where he served on the School Committee for six years (2013-2019) and was Chair from 2015 until 2018.

“We will welcome Principal McAllister to his new role after we post and search for an interim principal to replace him for the remainder of the 2019/20 school year,” said Belmont District Superintendent John Phelan announcing the news on Tuesday, Jan. 28.

The district will post for the permanent principal position for the Chenery that would start on July 1.

“I think that the district is about to undergo a lot of change, to be able to have a hand in helping steer that in a good direction is an amazing opportunity,” McAllister told the Belmontonian. He noted that bringing the new Belmont Middle and High School “online” in the next five years will require a great deal of time and effort on his part.

McAllister will handle the district’s human resources duties, including the recruitment and hiring staff and educators, negotiating contracts, benefits, professional development opportunities, retirement, and other related employment issues. 

After 20 years as a classroom teacher and a school leader, this will be McAllister’s first time working in the central office.

“When I saw the job description, one of the things that struck me was that I’ve done a lot of those duties already, so I think I can parlay the skills and experiences that I’ve had,” he said.

“I think the central office is really closely connected to the schools, and I think that I can help do that. I am one of those rare people that has experienced at the elementary, middle and high schools, and I have relationships at all those schools and I’m hoping that we can build on this,” McAllister said.

McAllister said it will be a major adjustment to go from daily managing hundreds of students and educators to an office on Pleasant Street.

“I get fired up by the interaction. I love being in a place where 1,500 people know me and I know 1,500 people, I love that, you know, so it’ll be a big, but it’s just a different type of leadership. You know, and I think that as a leader, you’re always trying to move into a place where you’re being challenged. And this is this will definitely be a challenge.”

School Committee OKs ‘20-‘21 School Year Opening Before Labor Day

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Photo: The calendar for the coming school year.

Despite past complaints by parents fearing squashed holiday plans and previous votes, the Belmont School Committee approved the 2020-2021 calendar in which the first day of school will occur the week before Labor Day.

The official opening day for 1st to 12th graders will be Wednesday, Sept. 2. Half of kindergarteners will begin classes on Sept. 3 and the remainder on Sept. 4. The last scheduled day of school will be Tuesday, June 22 but could be shortened as that date includes five “snow” days.

And parents should be prepared to have their late summer holiday plans reflect a pre-Labor Day opening day of school for the next three school years ending in 2023-2024.

The earlier start is due to language added to district policy authorized by the school committee in June 2017: “When Labor Day occurs on or before September 3 , the start date for students will be the first Wednesday after Labor Day. When Labor Day occurs later than September 3 , the start date for students will be the Wednesday before Labor Day.“

The wording came into effect after the 2017-18 school year that began on Wednesday, Sept. 6, one of the latest opening in many years as Labor Day was celebrated on Monday, Sept. 4. The late start resulted in kindergarteners not having a full day in classes until Monday, Sept. 11.

The committee voted to approve the late date in January 2017 but with a proviso to revisit the question.

The pre-Labor Day opening has long been advocated by Belmont Superintendent John Phelan who in 2016 told the committee holding two full days of classes on the Wednesday and Thursday before the holiday allows students “to get all the hot air” out of their systems before the long holiday weekend.

Psychologically, the “first-day worries” experienced by students and teachers are out of the way, and the students are “in school” during the first full week in September, said Phelan.

Dogs And Mini Horses – But Not Pets – OK’d As Support Animals In Belmont Schools

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Photo:

In Sarah Hale’s nursery rhyme, Mary’s lamb followed her to school one day and “[t]hat was against the rule.”

While that remains the case for lambs, snakes, rodents, llamas and most other mammals and reptiles, Belmont students can now bring dogs or miniature horses to class after the Belmont School Committee approved policy allowing “service animals” to assist pupils inside the town’s six school buildings.

According to School Superintendent John Phelan, the policy was driven by a request from a student and their parents, the first time anyone has sought to use a service animal in Belmont schools.

Following existing guidelines in use at nearby towns and state and federal law, the committee’s policy subcommittee created very specific wording on what constitutes a service animal, so the family pet is unlikely to make the grade. “A service animal performs some of the functions and tasks that individuals with disabilities cannot perform themselves,” reads the new policy. Under the new rules, these animals will need to certified and trained to handle their duties.

Examples include guiding the blind, alerting the deaf, pulling a wheelchair, assisting those who hav’e seizures and alerting a diabetics who experiencing the effects of low blood sugar.

If the animal’s task is not readily apparent, such as those that provide emotional and anxiety assistance, the parents of the student will be required to answer a pair of questions: 1). Is the animal required because of the student’s disability, and 2). What work and task has the animal been trained to do for the student with the disability.

The role of animals as emotional support services has come under fire this week as the US Department of Transportation is ready to permit airlines to stop accepting those animals on planes, only allowing service dogs. Airlines have argued that many passengers are using the currently loose rules to claim household pets are service animals which allows them to ride for free.

The school district is requiring that all animals comply with rules and standards:

  • the animal must be harnessed, leashed or tethered unless those interfere with do its job.
  • the district doesn’t assume or take custody of any part of the animal’s care – it won’t feed it on school grounds.
  • And it must be housebroken for obvious reasons.

The mini horses will have their own regulations including if the equine is too big or heavy for the building and if it ”compromises the legitimate safety requirements” necessary for the safe operation of certain schools. In addition, if the horse causes others to have an allergic reaction, the animal will be located in a specific area of the building.

As for other animals, future requests for an emotional support peacock (United refused the bird from flying in the cabin) or pot-belly pig (Websites exist to do just that), Phelan said each request would be handled individually and only if they are accepted, will the school’s policies be altered.

Bidding Opens For New Skating Rink, Decision On Winning Offer In May

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Photo: A new rink will replace the five decade old “Skip” Viglirolo Skating Rink.

In the same week the Belmont’s Skip Viglirolo Skating Rink was forced to shut down due to “unseasonably warm” temperatures – in January(!)– the town and schools OKed opening the bidding process to build a next-generation private/public partnership skating facility on school property west of Harris Field.

“This is actually a big moment in the development of this project,” said Jeffery Wheller, Belmont’s senior planner before a joint meeting of the Select Board and School Committee as each group voted unanimously to approve the release of the final version of the request for proposal on Jan. 15.

“Hopefully after tonight’s presentation we’ll get some exciting responses to the project,” he said.

The town’s Community Development Office also released a seven-month timeline of important milestones the RFP will undergo before a deal is struck.

  • Wednesday, Jan. 15: RFP is released to the public.
  • Wednesday, Jan. 29: Site visit and preliminary meeting with interested parties.
  • Tuesday, Feb. 25: Select Board/School Committee discuss review process.
  • Friday, March 20: Proposals are due.
  • Tuesday, April 7: School Committee/Select Board review top proposals.
  • Tuesday, April 28: School Committee/Select Board interview best proposals.
  • Tuesday, May 12: School Committee/Select Board selects the winning proposal.
  • Monday, June 1: On the second night of the 2020 annual Town Meeting, a Special Town Meeting will be convened to vote: 1). To lease school property to a private developer(s) and 2). amend the definition in the town’s zoning bylaw on municipal recreational uses.
  • Tuesday, June 9: School Committee awards a contract to the winning proposal.
  • Between June 10 to July 8: School Committee negotiates a long-term lease with the selected developer(s).

The town is predicting the design and site plan review process managed by the Planning Board will take between six to nine months. Only when that is completed can the developer seek a building permit.

The existing rink – known as “The Skip” – will remain in operation until the new facility is up and running and will be taken down by the town unless the area that the rink currently occupies will is needed to fulfill the town’s programmatic needs.

The RFP is fairly similar to earlier drafts, although a proposed tennis complex has been removed from the proposal.

The main features of the RFP include:

  • The facility – which may be expanded to be a year round operation – will need to share the land west of the existing rink and Harris Field with three athletic fields, a pair of throwing circles and 110 parking spaces (90 reserved for students on school days) that will be built at town expense.
  • The facility – with a maximum height of two-and-a-half stories – can contain a full-size and one half-size sheet of ice. The building will have at least 300 seats for spectators, public restrooms, a skate shop and food concessions.
  • The building will have a minimum of four locker rooms with two containing 35 lockers for boys’ and girls’ varsity and the other two with 45 lockers for the junior varsity teams. Each room will have a coaches room, showers and storage. The facility will also have a refs room, an athletic trainers room and wet area.
  • Two locker rooms will also be used by high school fall and spring sports, one each for the home and visiting teams. The restrooms will also have outdoor accessibility.
  • The town would “prefer” a zero-net energy facility i.e. avoiding fossil fuels to power the site.
  • The high school’s ice hockey teams will have four consecutive hours of ice time Monday to Saturday, during the 15-week season. Games will be played over two hours. Belmont Youth Hockey will have hours and times that meet its growing needs as will programs linked to the town’s Recreation Department.
  • The hours of operation will be negotiated with the winning bidder and the town.

Each candidate will be evaluated and ranked based on a matrix in which the town will grade the four comparative evaluation criteria the town has selected.

For example, those bidders that can show experience designing and building a significant number of similar rinks that have been successful and with similar goals as Belmont is seeking will receive a “very advantageous” ranking; those who have built only “some” facilities will be seen as being “advantageous” while those with no experience constructing rinks will be deemed “non-advantageous.”

Tennis Aced Out Of High School Campus, Moving To An Expanded Winn Brook Location

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Photo: Winn Brook tennis courts.

Belmont High Tennis tennis teams will be playing its matches at the courts at Winn Brook Elementary School after Superintendent John Phelan announced a decision by school officials that the sport will not be located on the campus of the new school.

Phelan told the Belmont Middle and High School Building Committee on Tuesday morning, Jan. 7 that building five tennis courts west of Harris Field was unfeasible with the current needs for the land including sub-varsity playing fields for softball, baseball, field hockey and soccer and the likely construction of a new public/private skating rink.

“The reason why we chose tennis was not our lack of respect for the program … but the best universal use of all the space not only on campus but around town,” said Phelan. While a fall and spring sport could be located at the Winn Brook, building a new baseball field at the Winn Brook would impact youth club teams such as soccer, recreational sports and educational programs that currently use the ground.

“It’s a real ripple effect across the town’s spaces which we have to be respectful of,” said Phelan.

The push to keep five courts on the new campus came from student-athletes, their supporters and residents who play tennis who said all varsity sports should take place at the high school. The campaigners also said taking away the court was done in a less than open process.

A reassessment was conducted over three meetings in December by Phelan, Assistant Town Manager Jon Marshall and Belmont High Athletic Director Jim Davis. In the end, the “biggest bang for our dollars” was to keep the existing plans “that will provide the most access to the limited space we have.”

The superintendent pointed out that nearly half of the team teams in the Middlesex League that Belmont is a member play outside of their campus’.

It was determined that travel to and from Winn Brook will be lessened once an underpass is completed at the commuter rail line between Alexander Avenue and the new school.

Phelan noted that including tennis courts to the site would likely delay the issuance of the request for proposal for the new skating rink which will be voted on Tuesday night by the school committee.

To lessen the blow of having to play offsite, Phelan will be working with the town to request funds from the Community Preservation Committee to build two new courts at Winn Brook to allow for regular season and post-season tournament play.

Coffeehouse Fundraiser At Belmont High On Friday

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Photo: Coffeehouse at Belmont High on Friday

End the week with is an evening of entertainment, good food and festive celebration at the Belmont High School Performing Arts Company’s Winter Coffeehouse Fundraiser on Friday, Dec. 13 from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Join the company as they transform the High School’s cafeteria into a cozy performance hall for this favorite annual tradition. Enjoy musical acts performed by Belmont High students, dinner and drink from local restaurants, along with tasty desserts. 

Admission: $10 for adults, $5 for students. Cost of food not included in admission price.

Dust Off That Dream Gown For Belmont High’s ‘Prom Dress Drive’ On Saturday

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Photo: The poster of the Prom Dress Drive being held this Saturday, Dec. 14 at Belmont High.

For most prom dresses, it’s a one and done deal. After than special night with your friends, that dream dress is likely to languish in the back of a closet until a younger sibling wants to play dress up.

But you now have an opportunity to take out that dress one more time to allow someone to have their own “special” day as the Belmont High Leadership Team in partnership with Dresses to Dreams Foundation is holding a “Prom Dress Drive” on Saturday, Dec. 14 at Belmont High School Parking Lot from 9 a.m. to noon.

New or gently used prom and dresses will be donated to girls who can use a helping hand to make their prom experience a great one, according to Manisha Tirunagaru and Sara Manganelli from the Student Leadership Team.

“My mom and I thought of the drive idea around prom-day last year,”said Manganelli. “We feel as if prom is a right of passage for a high school girl, and the idea that someone may not be able to participate because of the inability to afford a dress unsettles me.”

“I thought we could hold a prom dress drive at [Belmont High] because almost everybody attends prom here, and a lot of us are very lucky to have gorgeous dresses to contribute to the cause,” she said.

The donated items will be given to Dresses to Dreams, an organization that gathers new and lightly used prom dresses specifically. In February, it holds an event for girls around New England to come and pick out a beautiful dress, said Manganelli.

If you can’t drop off your dress on Saturday, email Manganelli at ssmanganelli24@gmail.com and she will pick up your donation.

Winn Brook’s Carey Stepping Down As Principal, Search For Next Leader Underway

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Photo: Winn Brook Principal Janet Carey

Janet Carey, Belmont’s longest tenured principal, has announced that she is stepping down from leading the educators at the Winn Brook Elementary School at the end of the 2020 school year.

“Filled with mixed emotions, I am writing to let you know that this will be my final year as principal of the Winn Brook School,” Carey wrote in a letter to parents and students.

“Almost eighteen years ago, I came to Belmont as a novice principal. I have cherished my time here and have grown as a result of it. The journey has been challenging yet fulfilling, exhilarating yet exhausting, and constantly changing while unwavering guided by our core values. If I can credit myself with anything, it is hiring well and keeping children central to all decision making,” she said.

While it may seem early to make this announcement, Carey said principal searches typically start in January.

“As I said to [Belmont] Superintendent [John] Phelan, my priority is to give you time to find the right person to lead your school community, the privilege that I’ve so enjoyed.”

Speaking after Tuesday night’s School Committee meeting, Dec. 10, Phelan said Carey put off her retirement for a year as the district welcomed three new principals in the ’19-’20 school year.

“She’s truly a dedicated educator who was really excited to stay one more year with us.” said Phelan.

Search For Next Principal Now Underway

The district posted the Winn Brook job this past Friday, Dec. 6, as Phelan has reached out to the PTO and the Belmont Education Association asking for volunteers to serve on a search committee made up of two parents, two teachers and several administrators.

Phelan hopes to begin the process in mid-January then “whittle the applicants” from about 20 who make the first cut to four or five who will meet with parents, students, educators and administrators. That group will be cut to two finalists who will be interviewed twice by Phelan and Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Janice Darias who will then make an offer to the one they feel will be the best fit for the position.

Phelan said he’d like to hire internal candidates “because we know who they are and their character, their work ethic and we have them as part of our family. In turn, they know our culture and all that adds a value to hiring for leadership positions.”

But unlike the recent search for the next Belmont Police Chief which focused on in-house applicants, “we are not just looking internally or just externally,” said Phelan, who was on the chief’s screening committee.

“We let the process take itself through and find out who the best candidate is and move from there,” he noted, pointing to Chenery Middle School Principal Mike McAllister as an internal applicant who beat out a large pool of outside contenders and Heidi Paisner-Roffman, the Wellington’s new principal who was an external candidate from Wayland who “knocked our socks off.”

“If you’re an internal candidate, you might have a slight edge but you’ve got to prove yourself,” said Phelan.