Belmont Citizens Forum

What is the Future of McLean’s Open Land?

Historic Preservation, July 2015, Newsletter, Open Space Comments Off

Jul 102015

What is the Future of McLean’s Open Land?

By Sue Bass Piece by piece, the remaining open land in Belmont is being protected—or developed. The Belmont Uplands were bulldozed. The town’s last farm has been saved, protected by Lydia Ogilby and her family with an agricultural restriction. A dozen houses are filling what used to be two six-acre estates off Concord Avenue on Belmont Hill. But nearby open space is covered by conservation restrictions, thanks to descendants of the Claflin-Atkins family that once farmed the land, particularly the late Anne Allen. The fate of two major open areas remains undetermined. Officers of the Belmont Country Club insist that [READ MORE]

Mugar Site Plans May Mean More Flooding

July 2015, Newsletter, Open Space, Stormwater Comments Off

May 122015

Along the north side of Route 2 in East Arlington lie seventeen acres of wetlands almost entirely in the 100-year floodplain. Despite its potential for flooding, this parcel has been the subject of various development proposals over the years. Recently Oaktree Development of Cambridge showed Arlington town officials a preliminary sketch of a proposed 219-unit housing development on the parcel owned by the Mugar family and adjacent to the Alewife Reservation. The Oaktree developer intends to invoke the state Chapter 40B statute to circumvent certain local permitting processes and bylaws by including a certain percentage of affordable housing in the [READ MORE]

Porous Pavement Can Drain Sloped Sites

May 2015, Newsletter, Stormwater Comments Off

May 122015

by Kristopher Houle, P.E. A longer version of this article, including several references, originally appeared on the Ecological Landscape Alliance’s blog. Many green infrastructure alternatives exist for reducing stormwater runoff. Porous asphalt is one that has clear benefits. In New England, porous asphalt has been used successfully in sidewalks, parking lots, subdivision roads, and highways. Research has demonstrated its function for stormwater attenuation, recharging local waterways, runoff treatment, and chloride source control. As an engineer and practitioner, I commonly see projects that would benefit from its use, but porous asphalt has been excluded from the final design for reasons relating [READ MORE]

Path Neighbors Can Choose Trees For Privacy

Bike Paths, May 2015, Newsletter, Open Space Comments Off

May 122015

Path Neighbors Can Choose Trees For Privacy

By Meg Muckenhoupt Community paths allow more people to travel without using cars—and a lot of people want to do just that. It is estimated that more than 2 million people walk, run, and bike the Minuteman Bikeway in Cambridge, Arlington, Lexington, and Bedford each year. Understandably, neighbors living in homes abutting new paths are often concerned about the effects of having so many visitors passing by their yards. Different communities have varying approaches to living with bike trails. Today, 22 years after the Minuteman Bikeway officially opened, about a quarter of properties abutting the Bikeway in Arlington have no [READ MORE]

Belmont Farmers’ Market Begins 10th Season June 11

May 2015, Newsletter Comments Off

May 122015

Belmont Farmers' Market Begins 10th Season June 11

The Belmont Farmers’ Market opens on Thursday, June 11, 2-6:30 pm, in the Belmont Center municipal parking lot, rain or shine. An all-volunteer organization celebrating its 10th year, the Market offers a variety of organic and conventionally produced food in a range of prices. Find everything you need for a healthful and satisfying dinner. Visit www.belmontfarmersmarket.org for vendors and updates. Food Assistance Programs Benefit the Community The Market accepts SNAP benefits (food stamps) and matches up to $25 for each SNAP shopper each week, thanks to generous donations to the Market. Benefits are processed quickly and easily at the blue [READ MORE]

What Will Our Future Commutes Look Like?

May 2015, Newsletter, Traffic Comments Off

May 122015

What Will Our Future Commutes Look Like?

By Meg Muckenhoupt Where will residents of Belmont and neighboring towns travel in 2030, and how will they get there? Last winter provoked massive debate about the MBTA’s failure to transport hundreds of thousands of commuters to jobs and schools. But in January, before the snows started, Waltham mayor Jeannette McCarthy raised some eyebrows by announcing that she supports building an elevated electric monorail to run from Burlington through Waltham to the Fitchburg/South Acton commuter rail and beyond to Westwood. Will our future hold decrepit, decaying subways and clogged roads, futuristic transport fit for Epcot Center, or some mix of [READ MORE]

Rogers Works to Keep Rivers Flowing

March 2015, Newsletter Comments Off

Mar 122015

By Dave Rogers On November 4, 2014, at an event at Habitat here in Belmont, I was honored to receive a Rivers Friend Award from the Massachusetts Rivers Alliance. I received the award for my work supporting increased Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) funding and my successful efforts to protect the rollout of major changes to water supply rules in Massachusetts. Both of these issues are important for those of us concerned about careful environmental stewardship. Between 2008 and 2012, battered by the decline in state revenue caused by the global recession, funding for DEP was cut dramatically. Although [READ MORE]

Copper Beeches Grace Belmont Grounds

March 2015, Newsletter Comments Off

Mar 122015

By Elizabeth Gourley “There is no finer specimen tree; so beautiful that it overwhelms one at first glance,” states Michael Dirr, University of Georgia professor and author of Manual of Woody Landscape Plants, on the merits of the European beech (Fagus sylvatica). One of the most striking cultivars of European beech is the copper beech (Fagus sylvatica ‘Cuprea’). A lovely specimen can be found in the small park adjacent to The First Church in Belmont Unitarian Universalist where Concord Avenue and Common Street intersect. This majestic tree has been overseeing our comings and goings for over 150 years. Tom Walsh, [READ MORE]

Selectman Candidates Answer BCF Questions

March 2015, Newsletter Comments Off

Mar 122015

Selectman Candidates Answer BCF Questions

Every year, Belmont voters elect one member of the town’s three-person Board of Selectmen. This year, Andres Rojas and James Williams are running for the seat. The Belmont Citizens Forum asked the candidates to respond to the following seven questions. The candidates were limited to 1,200 words total, or an average of 170 words in response to each question. 1. How do you think Belmont Light should deal with electricity generated by residents’ solar panels? What is the role of solar energy in Belmont’s power grid? Andres Rojas The Light Board adopted a policy that provided generous continuing subsidies to [READ MORE]

Uplands Permit Issued for 298 Apartments

March 2015, Newsletter, Stormwater Comments Off

Mar 122015

Uplands Permit Issued for 298 Apartments

By Meg Muckenhoupt The e-mail that went out on Friday, March 6, was short and to the point: “Please be aware that today a building permit was issued for foundation work at the Belmont Uplands site,” wrote Glenn Clancy, Belmont’s Director of Community Development. “AP Cambridge Partners has fulfilled all requirements under the Zoning Board of Appeals Comprehensive Permit and the Massachusetts State Building Code necessary to secure a building permit.” The permit ends a decade-long struggle over the fate of the Uplands, a 13-acre site that straddles Belmont and Cambridge at the edge of the Alewife reservation. Now, the [READ MORE]

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