Belmont Residents Protest Trump At Waltham ‘Hands Off!’ Demonstration

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Photo: Dan Nolan (right) with the Winter Street contingent at the Hands Off protest held in Waltham on Saturday, April 5.

On a chilly and, at times, rainy Saturday, Belmont residents didn’t have to travel far to join approximately 1,000 fellow campaigners in Waltham who gathered to denounce the policies of President Donald Trump and his billionaire advisor, Elon Musk.

While many Belmontians crowded bus stops in town to head off to the main rally in Boston where 30,000 people congregated, others traveled to the Waltham on April 5 to express their opposition to Trump and Musk’s agenda of mass firing of government workers, the elimination and slashing of vital programs, attacking immigration and the beginning of mass deportations, climate change denial, and the introduction of world-wide tariffs.

The day had a celebratory feel with the protestors chanting slogans and waving colorful homemade signs reading: “Dogs against DOGE”, “Honk if you hate fascism”, “Stop the coup, Dump Trump”, and “Too many issues for one sign.” The crowd cheered drivers blowing their horns in solidarity with the rally. It was part of the national “Hands Off!” protest that organized 1,200 demonstrations in all 50 states and London, Paris, Berlin, and several Canadian cities, which attracted a total of a million attendees.

Belmont’s Dan Nolan brought eight young and enthusiastic participants, each carrying placards with messages concerning climate change awareness and supporting the LGBTQ community.

“It’s the Winter Street contingent,” said Nolan, who came to express their collective displeasure with Trump’s actions since taking office in January. We’re here to protest Trump and Musk, who are dangerous people to our country and the world,” he said, holding a “Fire ICE” sign.

Well-known community members Bonnie Friedman and David Merfeld decided to skip the much larger protest rally in Boston.

“We felt [Waltham] would have fewer distractions [to the protest],” said Friedman. “The crowd is wonderful. It’s a great time.”

Another Belmont resident, reluctant to provide their name as they are employed at a university targeted by the Trump administration, was adamant about attending.

“It’s great that we can come together to express our frustrations, but also our determination that we will ultimately be successful in getting rid of [Trump],” they said.

Done! After Two Decades Of Delays, Beaver Brook Culvert Finally Replaced

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Photo: The new roadway over the Beaver Brook culvert at the Waltham/Belmont line.

After two decades of delays in deciding who would pay what part of a several million-dollar infrastructure project, a brand new tunnel carrying Beaver Brook under the main thoroughfare between Belmont and Waltham is now in operation.

The days of vehicles bouncing over steel plates as they crawled over a crumbling underground culvert, which allowed Beaver Brook to cross Trapelo Road at the border of Waltham and Belmont, have finally ended.

“The culvert? It’s finished,” said Glenn Clancy, Belmont’s long-serving Town Engineer, at a recent Select Board meeting. But don’t expect a ribbon cutting when the remaining items on the “punch list” are tidied up in the new year.

“I think everyone involved is just happy that it’s done,” said Clancy, Belmont’s contact on the project.

The more than three-decade delay in the rebuild was due to the culvert’s location: half of the infrastructure lies in Waltham, and the other half in Belmont. During this time, the two municipalities could not agree on which should pay for what.

“That’s always been a contentious thing. We knew we wanted to replace it, but the biggest issue preventing that was jurisdiction: was it Waltham? Or was it Belmont,” said Clancy.

Finally, in 2019, it was agreed that the two communities would split the project 50/50, although, in the end, Waltham performed more work and accrued additional costs, said Clancy. Belmont’s Town Meeting approved spending up to $800,000 from the town’s Sewer Enterprise Fund, accompanied by a $100,000 state earmark.

In 2022, the state legislature responded to requests for funding by appropriating $2 million to replace the culvert. In October 2022, Waltham—which took the lead on the work—requested bids and, in March 2023, granted the contract to E.T. & L. Corp.

The work began in early July 2024. It included razing the existing culvert and building the new tunnel and its wing walls. It also called for creating a new block wall on the downstream/Waltham side, constructing a moment slab and bridge railing, and constructing a flood wall on the upstream/Belmont side. Finally, minor drainage work, new sidewalk construction, paving, guardrails, and other minor work were and will be completed.

Expect Delays On Trapelo Road Thursday, Friday As Waltham Honors Fallen Officer

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Photo: Waltham Police Officer Paul Tracey (City of Waltham website)

Due to the large number of people and police departments expected to attend services for Waltham Police Officer Paul Tracey, who was killed last week, the Belmont Police Department is advising residents and commuters to avoid Trapelo Road heading towards Waltham on Thursday and Friday, Dec. 14 and 15.

The wake and funeral mass will occur at Our Lady Comforter of the Afflicted Church, 920 Trapelo Rd. in Waltham. The wake is scheduled from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, the funeral services will begin at 10 a.m. on Friday. The burial will occur around 1 p.m. at Mount Feake Cemetery in southwest Waltham.

Waltham plans to close Trapelo Road for most of the day on Thursday and Friday to accommodate traffic to the church as thousands of uniformed officers from across the region, and country will come to Waltham to remember Tracey with his family and friends.

Tracey and National Grid employee Roderick Jackson were killed when a pickup driven by Peter Simon of Woodsville, NH crashed into them at a work site on Totten Pond Road, Dec. 6.