Restoration Projects Approved for Lone Tree Hill

 Environment, May-June 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Plants  Comments Off on Restoration Projects Approved for Lone Tree Hill
May 042021
 
Restoration Projects Approved for Lone Tree Hill

By Jeffrey North The Land Management Committee for Lone Tree Hill approved plans and funding for three 2021 forest restoration and meadow management projects for Lone Tree Hill at a March 3 meeting. The Judy Record Conservation Fund is providing matching funds for the projects, for a total of $22,000 for these initiatives. Area A1 Restoration Continues In early spring, licensed field technicians trained in identifying invasive plant species will cut, mow, and apply plant-specific herbicide in the Area A1 woodland. They will combat Asian bittersweet, buckthorn, garlic mustard, black swallow-wort (Cynanchum louiseae), and lesser celandine, and at least one [READ MORE]

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Four Projects Proposed for CPA Funds

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, Construction and Housing, May-June 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Four Projects Proposed for CPA Funds
May 042021
 
Four Projects Proposed for CPA Funds

By Elizabeth Harmer Dionne Belmont’s Community Preservation Committee (CPC) has recommended the following projects to Town Meeting for Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding in FY2022. Phase I Consulting Services for Payson Park Renovation Organization: Friends of Payson Park (Linda Oates, Susanne Croy, Jay Marcotte) CPA Category: Recreation Amount requested: $35,000 This is the first step in renovating Payson Park, which suffers from inadequate access, crumbling infrastructure, and haphazard layout. Phase I involves an assessment of existing site conditions, neighborhood consultation and feedback, a conceptual design, and a proposed budget for construction costs. Due to changes implemented by the CPC in [READ MORE]

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Belmont Has One Year to Clean up Waterways

 Environment, May-June 2021, Newsletter, Sewers, Water Quality  Comments Off on Belmont Has One Year to Clean up Waterways
May 042021
 
Belmont Has One Year to Clean up Waterways

By Anne-Marie Lambert A 2017 consent order from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)  gave Belmont five years to stop underground sewage from leaking into our waterways. We made a lot of progress in 2020, but there could be a long way to go before all our outlets run clean. In 2020, the town undertook a $550,000 sewer system rehabilitation construction project (SSRCP). More work is planned in 2021 under a sump pump removal and sewer rehabilitation contract. The SSRCP included significant work such as: Repairing and lining several sewer mains Lining many sewer service laterals Removing a few sewer [READ MORE]

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Letters to the Editor March/April 2021

 March/April 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Letters to the Editor March/April 2021
Mar 012021
 

To the Editor: Great articles in this issue, as usual. I know there’s an Earth Day cleanup at Lone Tree Hill, but can knowledgeable volunteers help with the removal of invasives and planting of natives that Jeffrey North described? Art Kreiger Jeff North responds: Thank you for your letter, Mr. Kreiger. Watch these pages for future announcements of volunteer days for invasives removal and restorative planting. The stewards of Lone Tree Hill are eager to organize volunteers for pulling garlic mustard and other restoration work as soon as we can safely gather. Look for an initiative following examples such as [READ MORE]

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How to Help Belmont Survive Climate Change

 Climate Change, Environment, March/April 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Stormwater, Water Quality  Comments Off on How to Help Belmont Survive Climate Change
Mar 012021
 
How to Help Belmont Survive Climate Change

by Anne-Marie Lambert Flooding caused the collapse of the Trapelo Road culvert over Beaver Brook in 2010, and inundated the train tracks at the Waverley MBTA commuter rail station. Belmont is expected to see its share of future big intense storms, extreme heat, and other disasters from climate change. If it’s any comfort, our town now has a preparedness plan, thanks to a state-funded program. The Town of Belmont Hazard Mitigation-Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Plan identifies local vulnerabilities to flooding, pollution, and traffic jams, and proposes mitigating actions, short-term and long-term, to help vulnerable populations safely shelter from extreme heat, rain, [READ MORE]

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2021 Select Board Candidate Answers BCF Questions

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, Board of Selectmen, Climate Change, Environment, March/April 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Select Board, Sewers, Stormwater, Traffic, Transit, Water Quality  Comments Off on 2021 Select Board Candidate Answers BCF Questions
Mar 012021
 
2021 Select Board Candidate Answers BCF Questions

Each year, the Belmont Citizens Forum asks Select Board candidates questions about issues facing our town. This year, Mark Paolillo, who is running unopposed, provided answers. He was limited to 1,200 words. Describe your vision for preserving and enhancing Belmont’s quality of living, learning, working, and connecting. Preserving and enhancing Belmont’s quality of life must begin with making town finances stable and sustainable. This will require a more in-depth approach to long-term structural reform.  Belmont should consider the use of performance management budgeting which measures resource input against the resulting output of services for each department. That will help us [READ MORE]

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Neighborhood Opinion: Tank Process is Flawed

 Board of Selectmen, Environment, March/April 2021, Newsletter, Town Committee Meetings  Comments Off on Neighborhood Opinion: Tank Process is Flawed
Mar 012021
 
Neighborhood Opinion: Tank Process is Flawed

Local Residents Challenge Tank Location, Planning By Judith Ananian Sarno and Lisa Oteri At a cost of over $500,000, Belmont is launching an initiative to replace two underground storage fuel tanks located at the Department of Public Works (DPW) yard adjacent to a residential neighborhood—but local residents still have many questions about the tanks’ effect on the neighborhood, and whether the tanks should be in that location at all. The current tanks, which serve Belmont’s fleet of vehicles, need to be replaced as they are single walled and no longer comply with state regulations and are no longer insurable. Town [READ MORE]

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Mystic Charles Pollinator Pathways

 January 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Mystic Charles Pollinator Pathways
Jan 052021
 
Mystic Charles Pollinator Pathways

The Mystic Charles Pollinator Pathways group is a volunteer coalition of gardeners and native plant enthusiasts that has come together to promote and create more pollinator habitats in our region in response to the significant declines in native pollinator species such as bees, butterflies, wasps, and moths. The group is mapping private and public pollinator gardens in the Mystic and Metrowest Charles River watershed communities to show existing resources and identify where more are needed (see the map. The group currently includes sites in Arlington, Belmont, Cambridge, Lexington, Medford, Newton, Somerville, Waltham, Watertown, Winchester, and Woburn, and welcomes new participants. [READ MORE]

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Belmont Roots January 2021

 January 2021, Newsletter  Comments Off on Belmont Roots January 2021
Dec 312020
 
Belmont Roots January 2021

Welcome to another year. We are still limited to mostly solitary entertainments—long walks and webinars—but there are still more places and topics to explore. Are you sure you’ve actually walked everywhere you can? Several local communities have maps of cross-town walking trails that include parks, greenways, art installations, historical markers, and other sites. You can find town-wide walking maps for Arlington: bit.ly/BCFArlWalk Belmont: bit.ly/BCFBelmontWalks West Cambridge: bit.ly/BCFWestCWalks Waltham: walthamlandtrust.org/trail-guides Watertown: bit.ly/BCFWatertownWalks And have you looked at everything? Yes, it’s cold, but most things that live outside around here don’t migrate for the winter. Trees can’t fly, and frogs can’t hop [READ MORE]

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Rock Meadow Design Wins International Award

 Environment, January 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Parking  Comments Off on Rock Meadow Design Wins International Award
Dec 312020
 
Rock Meadow Design Wins International Award

By Jeffrey North The Town of Belmont and the Belmont Conservation Commission congratulates Northeastern University Civil and Environmental Engineering graduates Samantha Kinnaly, Kate Engler, Annie Lamonte, and Emma Totsubo on the recent awards for their design of the main entrance and green infrastructure stormwater management at Belmont’s Rock Meadow conservation area. The project was developed during the spring 2020 capstone course under the supervision of Professor Annalis Onnis-Hayden of the Civil and Environmental Engineering department in partnership with the Belmont Conservation Commission. (See “New Rock Meadow Parking Plan Proposed,” Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter, May/June 2020.) Their project won first place [READ MORE]

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Committee Battles Invasives at Lone Tree Hill

 January 2021, McLean, Newsletter, Open Space, Plants  Comments Off on Committee Battles Invasives at Lone Tree Hill
Dec 302020
 
Committee Battles Invasives at Lone Tree Hill

By Jeffrey North On November 3, field technicians engaged by the Land Management Committee for Lone Tree Hill (LMC) and the Judy Record Conservation Fund began a multi-year campaign to restore select parcels of the Lone Tree Hill conservation land. This initial project focused on invasive plant removal at Area A1, where horticulturalists from Parterre Ecological Services began restoration of the shrub layer by hand-cutting the bittersweet vines that were smothering the largest trees and employing a forestry mower to cut down the buckthorn and multiflora rose. Lone Tree Hill—like public, private, and protected lands elsewhere—is gradually being overrun by [READ MORE]

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Belmont Traffic Committee Chair Tells All

 Air Quality, January 2021, Newsletter, Parking, Traffic  Comments Off on Belmont Traffic Committee Chair Tells All
Dec 302020
 
Belmont Traffic Committee Chair Tells All

By Sumner Brown Dana Miller chairs Belmont’s Transportation Advisory Committee. She has been a member of the Traffic Advisory Committee, the predecessor to the Transportation Advisory Committe (TAC), since 2009. I talked with Miller in November 2020. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. BCF The name of your committee changed from Traffic Advisory Committee to Transportation Advisory Committee. Why? Miller The Select Board changed the committee name in 2019 to make clear that the committee’s responsibilities encompass safety for pedestrians and those on bicycles, as well as those traveling in vehicles. BCF Who are the members of [READ MORE]

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Bikeway Building Booms Beyond Belmont

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, Environment, January 2021, Newsletter, Open Space  Comments Off on Bikeway Building Booms Beyond Belmont
Dec 302020
 
Bikeway Building Booms Beyond Belmont

By John Dieckmann. Photos by John Dieckmann In January, biking might not be on too many people’s minds, but with spring only a couple of months away, this seems like a good time to take stock of the regional rail trail network. The Belmont Community Path is a short but essential link in the long distance Mass Central Rail Trail (MCRT), which connects to several other rail trails in its 104 miles from Northpoint Park in Cambridge, near the Science Museum, westward all the way to Northampton. This update covers the roughly 30 miles of the MCRT and connecting trails [READ MORE]

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Building Booms on Belmont’s Border

 Bicycles and bike paths, Bike Paths, Construction and Housing, January 2021, Newsletter, Open Space, Traffic, Transit  Comments Off on Building Booms on Belmont’s Border
Dec 302020
 
Building Booms on Belmont's Border

By Meg Muckenhoupt Since aggressively upzoning the Alewife area a decade ago, Cambridge has permitted hundreds of thousands of square feet of new development in the Quadrangle neighborhood adjacent to Belmont, and bordered by Fresh Pond Parkway, Fitchburg line railroad tracks—and Concord Avenue. Now, even more development could solve some long-standing transportation issues, or it could make getting out of Belmont or traveling around the entire Fresh Pond area even more difficult. Why build in the Quadrangle now? Unlike the rest of Cambridge, the Quadrangle has a history of sparse development. Originally one of the lowest-lying areas of the Mystic [READ MORE]

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Belmont Roots November 2020

 Environment, Newsletter, November 2020  Comments Off on Belmont Roots November 2020
Nov 082020
 
Belmont Roots November 2020

Now is the winter of our discontent. We’ve watched all the videos of past events at the Belmont Historical Society and the Charles River Watershed Association. It’s getting cold, but it may be time to get outside. Nature is a balm when screens separate you from the world. If you’ve walked all of the Western Greenway and Lone Tree Hill, consider trying the ACROSS Lexington Challenge. Walk all 12 ACROSS Lexington trails—more than 35 miles!—record the dates, and submit your record to get a certificate and get added to the “baggers” list. Many spellcheck algorithms replace “COVID-19,” the virus, with [READ MORE]

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Letter to the Editor: Affordable Housing

 Construction and Housing, Newsletter, November 2020  Comments Off on Letter to the Editor: Affordable Housing
Nov 082020
 

To the Editor: Overall, it’s positive that the Belmont Citizens Forum devoted two articles to the topic of affordable housing in Belmont in the September/October Newsletter. However, it was disappointing that the picture of 40B was incomplete, and neither article acknowledged the benefits of increasing the stock of housing—both affordable and market rate—including social, racial, and economic benefits for the residents of Belmont and the region. “How Affordable Housing Works in Belmont,” by Meg Muckenhoupt, incorrectly states the townhome number of the 91 Beatrice Circle site development as 32. The developer originally proposed 16 units and then revised it to [READ MORE]

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Carrots and Sticks Nudge Belmont’s Cleanup

 Environment, Newsletter, November 2020, Sewers, Stormwater, Water Quality  Comments Off on Carrots and Sticks Nudge Belmont’s Cleanup
Nov 062020
 
Carrots and Sticks Nudge Belmont’s Cleanup

By Anne-Marie Lambert Two key drivers are nudging Belmont to clean up our waterways and protect us from the storms coming with climate change: the threat behind an Environmental Protection Agency Consent Order and the tempting Massachusetts Municipal Vulnerability Program (MVP) Every six months, Belmont is obliged to file a report with the New England region of the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to demonstrate compliance with a 2017 consent order under the Clean Water Act. The town has to show steady progress cleaning up the sewage pollution Belmont has sent to Boston Harbor due to the intermingling of Belmont’s [READ MORE]

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Energy Retrofit Keeps Saving after 10 Years

 Construction and Housing, Newsletter, November 2020, Solar Power  Comments Off on Energy Retrofit Keeps Saving after 10 Years
Nov 062020
 
Energy Retrofit Keeps Saving after 10 Years

By Will Browsberger A little over 10 years ago, my wife and I proposed to my parents that we downsize into a two-family house together and make it as energy efficient as possible. (See “Deep Energy Retrofit Shrinks Utility Bills,” Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter, September 2010.) This is a story of four experiments. First, the living arrangement has worked out very well for all of us—we can be helpful in little ways to my parents and we feel very fortunate to see them more. Our only wish is that we had made the decision when the kids were younger. Second, [READ MORE]

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Is it Time to Get Natural Gas Out of Belmont?

 Environment, Newsletter, November 2020  Comments Off on Is it Time to Get Natural Gas Out of Belmont?
Nov 062020
 
Is it Time to Get Natural Gas Out of Belmont?

By Roger Wrubel In 2009, Town Meeting adopted a Belmont Climate Action resolution committing to an 80% reduction in our town’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050. An inventory in 2015 found that Belmont had reduced its GHG emissions by 5% compared with 2007. The inventory showed that the most of Belmont’s emissions came from home heating and vehicles. Most of the reduction in emissions in the last nine years is attributable to a shift from using oil for home heating to natural gas, and a similar shift to natural gas from coal and oil to generate electricity for the [READ MORE]

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Belmont Waterways Get Failing Grades

 Newsletter, Sept/Oct 2020, Sewers, Stormwater, Water Quality  Comments Off on Belmont Waterways Get Failing Grades
Sep 032020
 
Belmont Waterways Get Failing Grades

By Meg Muckenhoupt The Mystic River’s most recent water quality report card, released on August 13, gives Winn’s Brook an F for 2019—and the Little River and Alewife Brook earned Ds. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) creates the  annual report card in collaboration with the Mystic River Watershed Association. It grades segments of the Mystic River’s lakes, river, and streams on how frequently they meet bacterial standards for swimming and boating. The Upper Mystic Lake and the Chelsea River got an A grade; they met boating and swimming standards 90% or more of the time in 2019. Winn’s Brook [READ MORE]

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