Events July-August 2021

 BCF Events, July-August 2021, Newsletter, Plants  Comments Off on Events July-August 2021
Jun 252021
 
Events July-August 2021

Though days are now long and warm, event listings for local organizations harken back to the dreary depths of winter. Few groups are planning meetings this summer, the season of bittersweet freedom, of sunny days so many people did not live to see. Voltaire wrote in Candide, “We must tend our garden,” but he didn’t specify how, or who should benefit from said garden. If you’d like to help support your local web of life, consider enrolling in a class with the Native Plant Trust: “Native Species, Cultivars, and Selections: What’s the Difference?” held on Friday, July 16, from 1-3 [READ MORE]

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Letters to the Editor July-August 2021

 Environment, Historic Preservation, July-August 2021, Newsletter, Open Space  Comments Off on Letters to the Editor July-August 2021
Jun 252021
 

To the Editor: As a 40-year resident in Belmont I take exception to the tone of the article in the latest issue of the Belmont Citizens Forum concerning the treatment of the shore of Clay Pit Pond (“Clay Pit Pond Deforestation Damages Wetland,” Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter, May/June 2021), which attempts to blame the residents who perpetrated an “ecologically damaging assault” on the area. Rather, it seems to me, that these “miscreants” have called attention to the town’s lack of attention and mismanagement of one of our town’s greatest assets: an attractive body of water in the middle of our [READ MORE]

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Belmont’s Invasive Plants: Japanese Knotweed

 Environment, July-August 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Plants  Comments Off on Belmont’s Invasive Plants: Japanese Knotweed
Jun 252021
 
Belmont’s Invasive Plants: Japanese Knotweed

By Jeffrey North Invasive plant species are disrupting ecosystems from Belmont to Beijing, permanently altering the ecology of our forests, fields, and gardens and causing biodiversity loss and species extinction. This article is the third in a series on invasive plant species found in Belmont, the implications of their presence, spread, and ecological damage potential, and hopes for their removal and remediation. Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum), also known as Asian knotweed, is native to Japan, China, and Korea. It is frequently found on the sides of volcanoes, where it breaks down igneous rock into new soil. You might think it [READ MORE]

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Fernald Site Contains Rare Specimen Trees

 Environment, July-August 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Plants  Comments Off on Fernald Site Contains Rare Specimen Trees
Jun 252021
 
Fernald Site Contains Rare Specimen Trees

By Eric Olson It is vanishingly rare that a town within ten miles of Boston can, with a single purchase, add nearly 200 acres to its portfolio of open space. That is exactly what Waltham did in the fall of 2014 when its mayor and city council agreed to buy the former Fernald Development Center from the state. I bet most Belmont residents are at least passingly familiar with this property, tucked up in Waltham’s northeast corner between Trapelo and Waverley Oaks roads, less than a quarter-mile from the Belmont line. As a resident of Newton, I had never heard [READ MORE]

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New Group Seeks to Keep Belmont Beautiful

 Environment, July-August 2021, Lone Tree Hill, Volunteer  Comments Off on New Group Seeks to Keep Belmont Beautiful
Jun 252021
 
New Group Seeks to Keep Belmont Beautiful

By Jeffrey North In 2008 volunteers and government leaders in Mansfield convened, and more than 700 volunteers assembled to give that town a good spring cleaning. They formed a Keep America Beautiful (KAB) chapter the next year to continue their efforts. Now Belmont can do the same—drastically reduce the volume of refuse littering our public spaces and strengthen our sense of community by organizing volunteers and donations for a cleaner, greener place to live. Belmont can take its place among the 33 local nonprofit KAB chapters across Massachusetts (collectively KMB) that are making significant improvements to their communities. Litter attracts [READ MORE]

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Belmont Once Had a Cooperative Market

 Historic Preservation, History, July-August 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Belmont Once Had a Cooperative Market
Jun 252021
 
Belmont Once Had a Cooperative Market

By Jane Sherwin Many people are aware that Belmont was a town of farms until the mid-twentieth century, but fewer may know that we also had a cooperative grocery: the Belmont Cooperative Society Market, which opened in 1911. The Market, the earliest commercial building in Cushing Square, was located on the southwest corner, where the Bradford development now stands. A second store stood in Belmont Center. In his wonderful Footsteps Through Belmont, the late Richard Betts, town historian, wrote that among other things the market sold spring water from a nearby well, and later, gasoline for horseless carriages. A 1905 [READ MORE]

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Cochituate Rail Trail Shows Success

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, July-August 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Cochituate Rail Trail Shows Success
Jun 252021
 
Cochituate Rail Trail Shows Success

By John Dieckmann After we published an article on rail trails in our January newsletter (“Bikeway Building Booms Beyond Belmont”), well-known cycling advocate and expert John Allen pointed out that we didn’t include the Cochituate Rail Trail in Framingham and Natick. Since then, I have had the time to ride this trail and write this update. The Cochituate Rail Trail (CRT) runs from the village of Saxonville in Framingham to the Natick Center commuter rail station along the right of way of the abandoned Saxonville Branch Rail Line. It is the culmination of advocacy dating back to the early 2000s. [READ MORE]

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Belmont Community Path Moves Forward

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, July-August 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Belmont Community Path Moves Forward
Jun 252021
 
Belmont Community Path Moves Forward

By Sara Smith, Jarrod Goentzel, and Eric Batcho Momentum is picking up again for the Belmont Community Path, a critical two-mile link in the Mass Central Rail Trail (MCRT), a safe, off-road path that will ultimately link communities between Boston and Northampton. The 25% design is nearing completion, and the town has appropriated funds to begin securing the right of way. Both of these steps move Belmont closer to obtaining state and federal construction funds and bringing the path to fruition. Community path 25% design phase The town’s contractor, Nitsch Engineering, will complete the 25% design of Phase 1 in [READ MORE]

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Bike Infrastructure Makes Belmont Safer

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, July-August 2021, Newsletter, Traffic, Transit  Comments Off on Bike Infrastructure Makes Belmont Safer
Jun 252021
 
Bike Infrastructure Makes Belmont Safer

By Jeff Roth Few Belmont residents use bikes to get around this small town of only 4.7 square miles, although most live hardly a mile from schools, recreation facilities, stores, transit stations, and restaurants. About 8.2% of Cambridge residents commute regularly by bike, but Belmont’s car-centered infrastructure likely is closer to the state average of 0.9%. Given that short, local trips are responsible for 60% of automobile pollution, how can we encourage car-free travel? Benefits of Walking and Cycling There are many benefits to expanding cycling and walking options in Belmont. People who cycle regularly for transportation and fitness have [READ MORE]

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