Belmont Citizens Forum

Belmont Roots, Jan/Feb 2019

Environment, Jan/Feb 2019, Newsletter Comments Off

Jan 142019

By Meg Muckenhoupt Environmental News, Notes, and Events Ah, January and February—regularly voted “months most likely to make me want to move far, far away from Massachusetts.” January’s cold and February’s snow are hostile to human undertakings (continually testing our mettle, as mentioned in the “Frozen Water” article in this issue), but January is also the month when five different species of witch hazel trees bloomed at the Arnold Arboretum in 2017. If there’s more than six inches of snow on the ground, voles, mice, and other rodents get busy digging subnivean tunnels in places like Rock Meadow and Habitat. [READ MORE]

November/December 2018 Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter & PDF

Newsletter, Nov-Dec 2018 Comments Off

Nov 052018

View or download the November/December 2018 issue as a color PDF here, or read single articles below. Articles in this issue: Belmont: Town of Homes and Trees An overview of the status of town trees, past and present by Lucia Gates In Belmont, we hold our trees in esteem for their beauty, shade, and the value they add to our property. Our magnificent copper beeches grow throughout town. A wonderful example of these trees stands just east of Cushing Square, along Trapelo Road. Moreover, Belmont has all of the standard Eastern urban trees—callery pears, ginkos, Norway maples—as well as [READ MORE]

Belmont: Town of Homes and Trees

Environment, Historic Preservation, Newsletter, Nov-Dec 2018 Comments Off

Nov 052018

An overview of the status of town trees, past and present By Lucia Gates In Belmont, we hold our trees in esteem for their beauty, shade, and the value they add to our property. Our magnificent copper beeches grow throughout town. A wonderful example of these trees stands just east of Cushing Square, along Trapelo Road. Moreover, Belmont has all of the standard Eastern urban trees—callery pears, ginkos, Norway maples—as well as the standard Eastern forest trees—maples, oaks, and pines. One of the most notable trees* is the large dawn redwood growing in back of the town library parking lot. [READ MORE]

Tree Stewardship

Environment, Newsletter, Nov-Dec 2018, Plants Comments Off

Nov 052018

By Carolyn Bishop Illustrations by Ian Todreas, Updog Gallery When surrounded by beauty, we often take it for granted until we notice its decline. So it may be with our town trees. Many Belmont streets are distinguished by a canopy of large, gracious trees. But are we protecting this valuable asset? What silent threats should we be aware of to preserve this beauty? Compacted soil and chemical leakage from cars parked off the pavement at the edge of the road, failure to water street trees during dry times, road salt, and improper pruning all weaken our trees, making them [READ MORE]

LimeBikes: We Tested One for You

Bicycles and bike paths, Board of Selectmen, Newsletter, Nov-Dec 2018, Traffic, Transit Comments Off

Nov 052018

Two engineers analyze the pros and cons of Belmont’s bike-share pilot program By Sumner Brown and David Chase LimeBikes are not great bicycles, but they may be the best bike for you. They came to Belmont this past July, seemingly in plentiful supply. You probably noticed them. They are bright green and yellow and designed to be noticed. Anyone with a smartphone and a credit card can rent a LimeBike anytime. You locate an available bike with the LimeBike app, and when you finish your ride, you lock it and leave it. At $1 per half hour, LimeBikes are [READ MORE]

Bike-Share Comes to Belmont: A Conversation with Belmont Town Planner Spencer Gober

Bicycles and bike paths, Environment, Nov-Dec 2018, Traffic Comments Off

Nov 052018

Bike-Share Comes to Belmont: A Conversation with Belmont Town Planner Spencer Gober

Questions by Mary Bradley; responses by Spencer Gober Q: What was the impetus behind bringing LimeBikes to Belmont? As a little background, the program is led by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), who approached Belmont in the fall of 2017 to gauge interest in participating in a regional, dockless bike-share system. There are 14 other municipalities participating: Arlington, Bedford, Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Medford, Melrose, Milton, Needham, Newton, Revere, Waltham, Watertown, and Winthrop. MAPC observed numerous municipalities within the region piloting their own dockless bike-share programs and believed that if dockless bike-share was going to be successful and effective, it [READ MORE]

Where Your Drinking Water Comes From

Environment, Nov-Dec 2018, Water Quality Comments Off

Nov 052018

By Ria Convery All photos, maps, and illustrations courtesy of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority unless otherwise noted. Have you ever wondered where your water comes from? Well, it’s kind of a long story. The short answer is that Belmont, like most of eastern and central Massachusetts, gets its water from two reservoirs of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA): the Quabbin Reservoir in Belchertown and the Wachusett Reservoir in Clinton. General Plan of the MWRA Water System Our region’s water system is one of the oldest in the country. Its long history started with local wells in the 1700s, [READ MORE]

Environmental Events, November–December 2018

BCF Events, Environment, Newsletter, Nov-Dec 2018 Comments Off

Nov 052018

Owl Prowl and Sunrise Birding Saturday, November 10, 5:30–8 AM Take advantage of the early start time, when it’s much easier to listen for great horned and screech owls and other night sounds. With first light, we will continue birding and hope for some unusual stray or lingering migrants at Rock Meadow. (Rain date is Sunday, November 11.) Fee: $16 member/$20 nonmember.Register at massaudubon.org, call 617-489-5050 or write to habitat@massaudubon.org. Habitat Education Center and Wildlife Sanctuary, 10 Juniper Road, Belmont. Audubon Night Hike Saturday, November 10, 6–7:30 PM Have you been out in the woods at night? Everything seems so different! Spend [READ MORE]

September–October 2018 Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter & PDF

Newsletter, Sept-Oct 2018 Comments Off

Sep 122018

View or download the September–October 2018 issue as a color PDF here, or read single articles below. Articles in this issue: Developing a Conservation Master Plan for Rock Meadow by Jeffrey North “Rock Meadow is a beautiful and diverse landscape with differing microclimates, terrains, and experiences throughout the site. This diversity provides both design challenges and opportunities.” —Excerpt from Rock Meadow, A Conservation Master Plan Read more. The Future of The McLean Barn by Robert Kennedy As most in Belmont are aware, there is a barn located adjacent to Rock Meadow, sitting back from Mill Street just south of [READ MORE]

Developing a Conservation Master Plan for Rock Meadow

Environment, Historic Preservation, Newsletter, Open Space, Parking, Plants, Sept-Oct 2018 Comments Off

Sep 122018

Developing a Conservation Master Plan for Rock Meadow

By Jeffrey North “Rock Meadow is a beautiful and diverse landscape with differing microclimates, terrains, and experiences throughout the site. This diversity provides both design challenges and opportunities.” —Excerpt from Rock Meadow, A Conservation Master Plan (Michael Taurean Gagnon and Sam Freedman map) The proposed Rock Meadow design adds trails and other features such as: 1) a boardwalk; 2) a path bisecting the north meadow and leading to the former landfill site; 3) an extended loop emerging from the central woodland to an observation deck; 4) two groves of oaks and hickories; 5) a nature-inspired playground [READ MORE]

The Future of McLean Barn

Arts & Culture, Construction and Housing, Environment, Historic Preservation, Open Space, Sept-Oct 2018 Comments Off

Sep 122018

By Robert Kennedy As most in Belmont are aware, there is a barn located adjacent to Rock Meadow, sitting back from Mill Street just south of the Rock Meadow parking lot. It is brick, substantially built, and was once part of a farm that supported McLean Hospital. Although now boarded up, it is in reasonably good repair. Belmont Town Meeting recently approved monies from Community Preservation Act funds for minor repairs to help prevent deterioration. Although there are currently no plans for restoration, future use of the barn was discussed during the recent Rock Meadow planning study (see “Developing a [READ MORE]

Sewer Repairs In Progress to Clean Up Wellington Brook and Winn’s Brook

Construction and Housing, Environment, Newsletter, Sept-Oct 2018, Stormwater, Water Quality Comments Off

Sep 122018

Sewer Repairs In Progress to Clean Up Wellington Brook and Winn’s Brook

By Anne-Marie Lambert All images and graphics courtesy of the Town of Belmont, prepared for the town by Stantec Consulting Services Inc. A home in Belmont with four occupants sends about 210 gallons a day of wastewater into the town sewer system.1 When an underground sanitary sewer pipe collapses in a neighborhood where the storm drain is located below the sewer in the same underground trench, the sewage leaks into the storm drain and then into our rivers and ponds. This happened on Homer Road, a small street off Hastings Road. The sewer pipe and storm drain serve three homes [READ MORE]

Two Years of Homer House Restoration Success

Arts & Culture, Construction and Housing, Historic Preservation, Newsletter, Sept-Oct 2018 Comments Off

Sep 122018

Two Years of Homer House Restoration Success

By Wendy Murphy The Belmont Woman’s Club has been working on many projects at the beautiful William Flagg Homer House. Located at 661 Pleasant Street, across from Town Hall in the Pleasant Street Historic District, the Homer House is named for its original owner, William Flagg Homer, a wealthy Boston merchant who built the property in 1853 as a summer residence. William Flagg was uncle to famed American artist Winslow Homer, whose artwork features numerous scenes of Belmont people and places, including his uncle’s home. The Homer House has been actively undergoing restoration since 2016, when the Woman’s Club [READ MORE]

BCF Survey Response

BCF Events, Sept-Oct 2018 Comments Off

Sep 122018

In the last issue of the Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter, we asked you to take our reader survey and tell us how we’ve been doing. Thank you to all who participated. We enjoyed your enthusiastic feedback and were inspired by your thoughtful suggestions, including the following: More maps, bigger maps, clearer labeling; Attend Meet Belmont and Town Day to give away old copies to generate interest (Editor’s note: We do this already; hope to see you there next year!); Article suggestions: time-of-day electric billing, commuter rail, continual increases in property taxes, update on Belmont recycling efforts, affordable housing, solar power, [READ MORE]

Alewife Poetry Stroll

Arts & Culture, Environment, Newsletter, Open Space, Sept-Oct 2018 Comments Off

Sep 122018

Poet Elizabeth Quinlan reads by Little River during the August 18 Alewife Poetry Stroll. This event was sponsored by Friends of Alewife Reservation and featured two poets, Quinlan and Barbara Thomas. Belmont Citizens Forum board member Anne-Marie Lambert served as nature guide to educate participants about the history of the land, water, wildlife, and people who have known this place.

Environmental Events: September–October 2018

Environment, Newsletter, Sept-Oct 2018, Stormwater, Water Quality Comments Off

Sep 122018

Mystic River Watershed Association Tuesday, September 11, 8–9 PM Mass Rivers Alliance Policy Director Gabby Queenan will present ways to engage in effective advocacy for the Mystic River. mysticriver.org. 20 Academy Street, Arlington. CoastSweep Cleanup Friday, September 21, 9 AM–12 PM Join Charles River Conservancy for their annual CoastSweep Cleanup. CoastSweep is a statewide event to raise awareness and clean waterfronts. With CRC you will remove litter and debris from the parklands and collect data on the specific types of debris found. Volunteers can work in two locations in Cambridge and Watertown. mass.gov/coastsweep. To volunteer, RSVP via email to [READ MORE]

Belmont Community Path Update, Part Two

Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, July-Aug 2018, Traffic, Transit Comments Off

Jul 172018

Feasibility Study Plan Offers Health and Safety Benefits By Vincent Stanton, Jr. Design and construction of a bicycle and pedestrian path through Belmont have been on the town’s agenda intermittently since 1993, when the selectmen first appointed a temporary committee to study possible routes. The motivation for a path has always been to provide recreational opportunities for Belmont residents and to connect Belmont to surrounding towns and to transit, particularly Alewife Station. Waltham, Cambridge, Somerville, Weston, and Wayland have all made significant progress toward path construction over the last five years. In the May/June issue of the Belmont Citizens Forum [READ MORE]

Tell Us How We’re Doing: Reader Survey

July-Aug 2018, Newsletter Comments Off

Jul 172018

Dear Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter readers, As the new editor of the newsletter, I’d like to get to know more about our readers and your interests to ensure that we are reporting on the issues you care about. Will you please take our five-minute, anonymous reader survey? Please click here to take our survey. We also welcome email if you have questions or ever want to make any suggestions. Please write to: bcfprogramdirector@gmail.com or send mail to Belmont Citizens Forum, P.O. Box 609, Belmont, MA 02478. Thank you for sharing your opinions with us. Sara McCabe, Editor

Getting in Tune with Belmont’s Music Community

Arts & Culture, July-Aug 2018, Newsletter Comments Off

Jul 172018

Getting in Tune with Belmont's Music Community

Opportunities Abound for Making and Enjoying Music with Neighbors By Sara McCabe After moving from Germany to Belmont, music helped me find friends and a new home. Especially the music programs in the public school and Powers Music School created an environment that made me forget that I live in a new country. – Fiona Knoor Chenery Middle School student Fiona Knoor is one of hundreds of Belmont residents, young and old, taking advantage of our town’s vibrant music community. Fiona plays flute, piccolo, and piano and participates in multiple ensembles at Chenery and Powers Music School. But you don’t [READ MORE]

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