May 122017
 

View or download the May-June 2017 20-page issue here as a color PDF.

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Cleaning Up Belmont’s Polluted Waterways

 Environment, May-June 2017, Newsletter, Stormwater, Water Quality  Comments Off on Cleaning Up Belmont’s Polluted Waterways
May 122017
 
Cleaning Up Belmont's Polluted Waterways

by Anne-Marie Lambert Water Quality update: On May 15, 2017, the Belmont Board of Selectmen approved and signed a 2017 EPA Administrative Order for Compliance on Consent  with the EPA. This Order includes EPA water sample results through March 30 2016 and makes mandatory the town’s current plan for addressing water pollution.  It also includes downstream water quality measurements from Cambridge in 2014 and 2015, and references water samples collected by the town in November 2016. Belmont has also recently posted their IDDE Plan 05-19-2017.  The Belmont Media Center link to the May 15, 2017 meeting of the Belmont Board of Selectmen includes a discussion of this [READ MORE]

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Watering Trees in a Drought

 Air Quality, Environment, May-June 2017, Newsletter, Plants  Comments Off on Watering Trees in a Drought
May 122017
 
Watering Trees in a Drought

If 2017 is as Bad as 2016 . . . by Jeremy Marin We’ve just come through a very rainy April, but the summer of 2016 was one of the driest in recent memory. With global warming, the same conditions can occur again. If the summer of 2017 is dry, here’s how to take care of your trees. Just like there’s no single best tree for all yards, there’s no single best way to irrigate trees during periods of drought. The easiest and most effective options for one family will be difficult, frustrating, or impossible for others. Not all trees [READ MORE]

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Belmont Farmers’ Market Kicks Off on June 8

 May-June 2017, Newsletter, Parking  Comments Off on Belmont Farmers’ Market Kicks Off on June 8
May 122017
 
Belmont Farmers’ Market Kicks Off on June 8

The Belmont Farmers’ Market opens on Thursday, June 8, 2–6:30 PM, in the Belmont Center municipal parking lot, rain or shine. Now celebrating its 12th year, the Market offers a variety of organic and conventionally grown and produced food in a range of prices. Pick up fixin’s for a healthful and satisfying dinner, and make sure the visit our new neighbor, Foodie’s, to fill in the gaps. Visit www.belmontfarmersmarket.org for this season’s vendors and updates, and follow them on Twitter and Facebook. The Market is close to the MBTA commuter rail station, and #74 and #75 bus stops in Belmont [READ MORE]

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May 122017
 
Engineers Win Award for Trapelo Road Upgrade

Belmont’s “Main Street” Gets A Facelift by Sue Bass How does a municipal project get done, in Belmont or anywhere? What’s the spark? The redesigned and newly paved Belmont Street/Trapelo Road stretch through Belmont—from the Waltham line to the Cambridge line—recently won an award from the American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts for the BSC Group, the town’s longtime engineering consultant. “Incorporating bicycle lanes, pedestrian accessibility, and traffic calming measures, the $17.1 million roadway reconstruction project was one of the first designed in conformance with the MassDOT Highway Design Guidebook,” the citation reads. “Distinguishing project features include coordination with [READ MORE]

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Cushing Village: New Name, Design Tweaks

 Construction and Housing, May-June 2017, Newsletter, Parking, Traffic  Comments Off on Cushing Village: New Name, Design Tweaks
May 122017
 
Cushing Village: New Name, Design Tweaks

It’s Now “The Bradford” by John DiCocco At an April 27 meeting in the Town Hall art gallery, Toll Brothers Apartment Living   representatives updated the community on construction and design plans for Cushing Square in the upcoming weeks and months. The developer has changed the project name from “Cushing Village” to “The Bradford.” The Cushing Square Neighborhood Association has been pressing Toll Brothers for more timely and informative input on the project’s progress and planning, particularly in regard to environmental concerns. There is a significant amount of contaminated soil to be removed (from spills by Tops Cleaners years ago), [READ MORE]

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Lone Tree Hill Annual Spring Volunteer Day

 Environment, Historic Preservation, May-June 2017, Newsletter, Open Space, Plants  Comments Off on Lone Tree Hill Annual Spring Volunteer Day
May 122017
 
Lone Tree Hill Annual Spring Volunteer Day

Tree Plantings and Pleasant Street Pickup by Radha Iyengar On Saturday, April 29, the Belmont Citizens Forum (BCF) in conjunction with the Judith K. Record (JKR) Memorial Conservation Fund held its Fifth Annual Lone Tree Hill Volunteer Day. The rain held off and the volunteers came out in full force. This year the work was divided between planting trees along the Pine Allee, and cleaning up the trash along South Pleasant Street (across from Star Market and Artefact Home & Garden). In 2015, the JKR Memorial Conservation Fund engaged Tree Specialists, Inc. of Holliston, MA, to inspect the health of [READ MORE]

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May 122017
 
Community Path Route Alternatives Viewed

Happy Trail to You by John Dieckmann On April 26, the Community Path Implementation Advisory Committee (CPIAC) and Pare Engineering, the Community Path Feasibility Study contractor, held a public meeting to present their final evaluation of route alternatives for the path, construction cost estimates, and potential funding sources. From west to east, the end-to-end route that ranks highest in the evaluation methodology consists of the following segments: • At the Waltham city line, the path would be on the north side of the commuter rail tracks, then as it approaches Waverley Square it rises to street level and crosses Lexington [READ MORE]

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Poetry Walk at Rock Meadow

 Environment, May-June 2017, Newsletter  Comments Off on Poetry Walk at Rock Meadow
May 122017
 
Poetry Walk at Rock Meadow

Anne-Marie Lambert (far left) and Kevin Gallagher (sixth from the left, with sunglasses), local poet and author of the recently published book Loom, about the Massachusetts textile industry and its relation to the surge in demand for slave labor in the South in the 19th century, led a walk at Rock Meadow on April 29. “Through poetry,” said Lambert, “we explored the landscape and history of this part of Belmont and Waltham.”

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Environmental Events, May/June 2017

 Air Quality, Environment, May-June 2017, Newsletter, Open Space, Solar Power  Comments Off on Environmental Events, May/June 2017
May 122017
 

Belmont’s Semiannual Big Recycling Day Saturday, May 13, 9 AM–1 PM The semiannual Big Recycling Day is your chance to clean out all that stuff you didn’t want and includes paper shredding, electronics, rigid plastics, eyeglasses, books, CDs, DVDs, propane tanks, and bicycles (no cardboard or styrofoam). Info at belmont-ma.gov/recycling-trash-information, or 617-993-2689.  Note: Belmont Residents only. ID required. Town Yard, 37 C Street, Belmont. Fresh Pond Day Saturday, May 20, 11 AM-3 PM Celebrate the land, water, wildlife, and people that make Fresh Pond Reservation a unique and vital part of Cambridge. Fresh Pond Day is the Cambridge Water Department’s annual [READ MORE]

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