Photo: Yard sales in Belmont.
Yard sales in the “Town of Homes.”
• 34 Benjamin Rd., Saturday and Sunday, July 26 and July 26, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• 60 Channing Rd., Saturday, July 25, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• 25 Elm St., Saturday, July 25, 9 a.m. to noon.
• 12 Franklin St., Saturday, July 25, 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• 27 Payson Rd., Sunday, July 26, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
• 37 Springfield St., Saturday, July 25, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• 57 Trapelo Rd., Saturday, July 25, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Photo: Nathaniel Meyer.
Belmont High School alumnus Nathaniel Meyer conducts the Athena Orchestra Chamber Players in a “Summer String Serenade” on Sunday, July 26 at 2 p.m. at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St.
Meyer, a 2013 Yale graduate who concentrated in German Studies and Music, will lead the ensemble in the free concert featuring music by Mozart, Elgar, Sibelius, Bach and Tchaikovsky.
This marks the third time Meyer brings an orchestra to the Beech Street Center for a summer concert– he also presented a concert in December 2013 – having organized the Belmont Festival Orchestra in previous years.
An outstanding trumpet player in his own right, Meyer has dedicated his current activities towards conducting. A student of Benjamin Zander, the long-time conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, Meyer recently obtained his Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music.
At Yale, he conducted the school’s Amadeus Ensemble, Gilbert & Sullivan Society and the Yale Symphony Orchestra.
Photo: What to watch out for.
It’s nearing mid-summer and with the recent rainstorms that passed through the region, it’s certain that in time at all, outdoor activities will be impacted by an influx of mosquitoes. The Belmont Department of Health has issued this press release to warn residents of the danger the insect can inflict on people:
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health announced [Thursday, July 24] that West Nile virus has been detected in mosquito samples collected from Waltham, Brookline, Reading and Richmond.
WNV is most commonly transmitted to humans by the bite of a mosquito infected with the virus. While WNV can infect people of all ages, people over the age of 50 are at higher risk for severe infection.
As always, there are a few precautions people can do to help to protect themselves and their families:
To reduce the mosquito population around your home, eliminate all standing water that is available for mosquito breeding and follow these simple guidelines:
If you have any questions, please call the Health Department at 617 993-2720
Photo: Invitation to Belmont’s big pool party,
You’re invited to Belmont’s biggest pool party of the year as the town celebrates the opening of the New Underwood Pool.
After years of planning, a debt exclusion vote and a last-minute fund raiser in September to save the original proposal, the $5.3 million two pool complex with a pair of buildings housing changing rooms, showers and restroom facilities will hold its grand opening on Saturday, Aug. 8.
The ribbon cutting will take place at 1:30 p.m. with a community open house from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
The Belmont Recreation Department will be providing one-month single and family passes to the New Underwood. For more information, call the department at 617-993-2760.
Below is your official invite:
Photo: The municipal parking lot up for sale in Cushing Square is adjacent Starbucks.
Exactly two years to the day after the town’s Planning Board approved a special permit granting him permission to begin construction, the developer of the troubled Cushing Village complex will be before town officials early next week seeking to purchase a critical piece of town-owned property so he can finally begin construction on the long-stalled project.
The Belmont Board of Selectmen’s Monday, July 27 meeting agenda calls on the board to initially meet in executive session before proceeding to vote whether or not to sell the municipal parking lot at Williston and Trapelo roads to a newly-formed partnership consisting of original developer, Smith Legacy Partners, and its new business associate, Cambridge-based Urban Spaces.
The price tag for the parking lot adjacent Starbucks – set two years ago – is $850,000; along with fees and permits, the final price is closer to $1.3 million. The property will house the first of three buildings making up the 186,000 square-foot retail/housing/parking development in the heart of Cushing Square.
The vote to sell the property marks the two year anniversary when Smith Legacy’s Chris Starr was granted the 25-page special permit from the Planning Board at the culmination of an 18-month design review phase on the project made up of 115 residential units, 38,000 sq.-ft. of retail space and 235 parking spaces.
At the time, Starr proclaimed an accelerated project schedule. Starr told media outlets construction on the first building – located on the parking lot – would be open for retail businesses and resident housing by the late fall/early winter of 2014. The entire project would be completed by mid-summer 2016, said Starr.
But it soon became apparent Starr was unable to find a financial source willing to back him due to his lack of experience building large-scaled projects. In March 2014, Starr struck a deal with the town to extend the closing on the parking lot by a month for a $20,000 fee. The fee increased to $30,000 a month after a year.
By Sept, 2014, Starr hired a Boston realty firm, Boston Realty Advisors, to unearth a partner or sell his stake in the development. The campaign went international with large ads on a leading Asian real estate website.
In the end, a young development firm, Urban Spaces, joined with Starr. It remains unclear the partnership arrangement between the two, including whether there is a majority stakeholder or arrangements for future management of Cushing Village.
And it does not appear the partnership has been damaged with the arrest of Urban Spaces’ CEO and founder, Paul Ognibene, who was arraigned last week on one count of sexual conduct for fee after he was arrested by Cambridge Police in a sex sting.
To the editor:
I moved to Belmont two years ago when I was in my late 60s. I chose a location where I could easily walk or drive into town. Coming to town frequently, and staying for a while, is one of the things I plan to do to stay connected as I grow older.
Thus far, spending time in town has meant either walking along the sidewalks or ducking into one of the stores. When I first walked around town, I was drawn to the green space in front of the bank. However, I rarely saw anyone sitting there and quickly understood why. The green space beckoned, but I wasn’t inclined to cross a busy street to get to the small patch of green only to sit and watch cars whizzing by on all sides.
That’s why I was delighted when I saw the original reconstruction plan for Belmont Center. The plan created a green space that was actually usable. I thought it would be a wonderful spot for people of all ages to gather, and a perfect focal point for special town events. I envisioned taking my young grandsons to get ice-cream cones and, instead of hanging out on the crammed sidewalk in front of the store, walking over to the green to enjoy them; or buying a sandwich and meeting a friend for lunch on the green; or just sitting there reading a book. I pictured special occasions with everyone in town, from the youngest child to the oldest elder, gathered on the green enjoying the newly created space.
I feel compelled to write this – my first ever letter to an editor – because I’ve read that the reconstruction plan as modified by the selectmen, with its cut-through and parallel parking spaces in front of the bank, was adopted in deference to the elderly. Although I appreciate the concern expressed for seniors, I question whether the cut-through plan is what the majority of the elderly in town would actually choose. I, for one, am deeply disappointed that a safe and inviting gathering place has been abandoned in favor of a few parking spaces of questionable convenience relative to the original plan. Moreover, even if I thought those spaces would serve the purpose intended, I would not want the entire town to lose its carefully planned green to make them available to me.
Joanne Birge
Common Street
Photo: Summer grilling.
One hot car
July 16 – At twenty ’til 2 p.m., Engine 1 and the Ladder truck hustled over to a car fire on Howard Street located across from the Chenery Middle School. Both crews assisted the other in extinguishing the car fire. The motor vehicle was towed to the Town Yard.
An downstairs disaster everted
July 17 – Just a few ticks away from 8 p.m., all of the town’s fire equipment was sent to a single-family house on York Road where the report of smoke in the basement. The Engine 2 crew reported smoke filling the area. Rushing in, firefighters discovered a small blaze – about a foot wide and deep – in a small storage area. The blaze was put out using a Class A extinguisher while the crew from the Ladder truck helped ventilate the house. The culprit? An errant cigarette. The homeowner said a family member accidentally caused the fire.
That smell
July 18 – At 11:23 a.m., an occupant of a Westlund Road dwelling said they smelled a “distinct fuel odor” coming from the basement. Fire personnel soon found a leak from the oil burner. The line from the oil tank was shut down and SpeedyDry® was put down on ground.
On deck: grill close call
July 18 – At 10 minutes ’til 6 p.m., fire equipment was returning back to the station when an eagle eyed firefighter noticed what appeared to be a grill fire on the rear deck of a house on Slade Street. Not only was he correct concerning the placement of the grill, it turns out the grease had just ignited in the drip pan. The fire was quickly extinguished, the grill relocated and the resident was made aware of fire regulations on the placement of grills.
Photo: Cole Bartels.
Belmont High School’s rising senior ace Cole Bartels has verbally committed to attend Division 1 Penn State University.
The big, lanky right-hander, named the MVP of the Middlesex League and selected as a Boston Globe All-Scholastic this season, will be heading to State College, Penn. after his high school eligibility ends to pitch for the Nittany Lions in the Big 10 Conference.
On the mound, Bartels had a sub-1.00 ERA as the Marauders’ number one pitcher. He also batted at nearly a .450 clip.
Bartels, who is a high honor roll student and a member of the varsity basketball team, joins a program rebuilding in a highly-competitive league which includes teams such as Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio State and Maryland. He will be playing in the 5,406 seat Medlar Field, considered one of the best college facilities in the country.
The earliest Bartels can submitted a national letter of intent to attend Penn State is Nov. 11.
Photo: “Bubbleology,” with Keith Michael Johnson.
On the government side of the week:
• Summertime Pre-School Story Time at the Benton Library, Belmont’s independent and volunteer run library, at 10:30 a.m., Tuesday, July 21. Stories and crafts for children age 3 to 5. Parents or caregivers must attend. Siblings may attend with adults. Registration is not required. The Benton Library is located at the intersection of Oakley and Old Middlesex.
• US Rep. Katherine Clark is holding office hours at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St., on Tuesday, July 21, from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.
• Mary Poppins Sing-Along (with lyrics) will be the Noon movies for children on Tuesday, July 21, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library.
• The Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St., will present “Revere Beach Then & Now Slide Show” on Tuesday, July 21, at 1:15 p.m. The presentation will include more than 100 beautiful images of historic Revere Beach and its glorious past. Once again be thrilled to recall the special memories that we share of Rotherhams Red Indian popcorn, Moxie, Korr Bros. Frozen Custard, and, of course, Kelley’s Roast Beef. Many will also remember the wonderful Big Band music always heard at the dance halls of Revere Beach such as the Oceanview Ballroom, Ocean Pier, or the Frolic nightclub.
• In his show “Bubbleology,” Keith Michael Johnson will build beautiful creations out of bubbles with enthusiasm, humor and style in the Assembly Room of the Belmont Public Library on Wednesday, July 22, at 2 p.m. One moment he will be encasing a dinosaur in a bubble and the next he’s encapsulating an audience volunteer! For kindergarteners to fourth grade.
• It is the final three concerts of the summer by the Music on the Hill (MOTH) students will be Wednesday through Friday, July 22-24, at 6:30 pm, at the Powers Music School, 404 Concord Ave. Wednesday and Thursday will be the MOTH Orchestra, with Jazz, Fiddle on Friday.
• The nation’s premier tribute to U2, The Joshua Tree, will once again grace the stage of the Payson Park Music Festival as this week’s featured artist beginning at 6:45 p.m., Wednesday, July 22, at Payson Park Playground at Payson Road and Elm Street.
• The Chillin’ With Villains Movie Series begins Tuesday, July 21, at 6:30 p.m. with The Avengers (2012) at the Belmont Public Library’s Assembly Room.
• Musician Matt Heaton plays kid-friendly folk music and surf-inspired original songs on Thursday, July 23 at 10:30 a.m. For ages 2 to 5.
• It’s OTAKUrabu at the Belmont Public Library. Watch anime, do a craft/activity, plan for future events and nibble on some Japanese snacks (while they last – they’ll go fast) on Thursday, July 23, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. in the Assembly Room. Provided free, thanks to the Friends of the Belmont Public Library. Just drop in, no registration required.
Photo: Ironman is coming to the Belmont Public Library next week, July 28.
This summer the Friends of the Belmont Public Library will use its superpowers to transform the library’s Assembly Room into a showcase for your favorite (mostly) Marvel heroes at the “Chillin’ With Villains Movie Series.”
For the next month, head to the library to enjoy freshly popped popcorn or a sweet snow cone and watch your favorite comics come to life.
The schedule is:
• Tuesday, July 21, 6:30 p.m.: The Avengers (2012) (PG-13) 142 min.
• Tuesday, July 28, 6:30 p.m.: Iron Man (2008) (PG-13) 125 min.
• Tuesday, August 4, 6:30 p.m.: Amazing Spiderman (2012) (PG-13) 136 min.
• Monday, August 10, 6:30 p.m.: Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) (PG-13) 136 min
• Friday, August 21, 2 p.m.: Dick Tracy (1990) (PG) 101 min.