Newsletter – Page 4 – Belmont Citizens Forum

Lone Tree Hill Restoration Continues

Environment, Lone Tree Hill, Open Space, Plants, September/October 2025 Comments Off

Aug 262025

By Jeffrey North and Joe Hibbard For over a decade, Lone Tree Hill has been a focal point of community-led ecological restoration in Belmont. The Belmont Citizens Forum, the Judy Record Conservation Fund, and many dedicated volunteers, all under the aegis of the town’s Land Management Committee for Lone Tree Hill, have shared this effort. Since the restoration work began, this conservation land has transformed from a neglected patch of invasive thickets to a thriving habitat increasingly dominated by native species. Last April 26, despite steady rain, more than 50 volunteers gathered at Lone Tree Hill’s Meadow Edge Trail for [READ MORE]

Judy Record Conservation Fund Cares for Land

Environment, Lone Tree Hill, September/October 2025 Comments Off

Aug 262025

Judy Record Conservation Fund Cares for Land

By Roger Wrubel The Judy Record Conservation Fund (JR Fund) was founded in 2001 in honor and memory of Judy Record by her friends and family. Judy Record worked tirelessly and effectively from 1995 to 2000 as the leader of the McLean Open Space Alliance (MOSA), which began when eight apprehensive Belmont citizens met to discuss the rumored development of over 190 acres of woods and meadows surrounding the McLean Hospital campus. She stepped forward to lead the effort to preserve as much of the undeveloped land as possible. Record grew MOSA into an effective grassroots organization with 800 members. [READ MORE]

Belmont’s Electricity Comes from NE Power Pool

Climate Change, Newsletter, September/October 2025 Comments Off

Aug 262025

Belmont’s Electricity Comes from NE Power Pool

By Dave Beavers To further explore the question, “Where does my electricity come from?” (See “Follow Belmont Electricity From Source to Socket“, BCF Newsletter, July/August 2025), this article considers what happens upstream of the Belmont Light substation at Blair Pond. Beyond Blair Pond Our Blair Pond substation is supplied by a transmission line from Alewife which connects Belmont to the New England grid. The Independent System Operator of New England (ISO-NE) operates the grid and administers the wholesale electricity market in New England. It is one of seven regional grid operators in the United States. Belmont Light is a stakeholder [READ MORE]

State Tackles Housing Crisis with New Laws

Construction and Housing, Newsletter, September/October 2025 Comments Off

Aug 262025

State Tackles Housing Crisis with New Laws

Massachusetts takes major steps to expand affordable housing—and Belmont responds By Representative David M. Rogers While Massachusetts is regularly ranked among the most desirable places to live in the United States, it is also ranked among the most expensive. It is widely agreed that the state is experiencing an affordable housing crisis. Communities from Pittsfield to Provincetown are affected by the housing crisis—and it certainly impacts Belmont as well. In Belmont, 28% of homeowners and 36% of renters are considered “cost-burdened,” meaning they spend more than a third of their income on housing. According to Belmont’s Housing Production Plan, last [READ MORE]

BHA Makes Plans for Belmont Village

Construction and Housing, September/October 2025 Comments Off

Aug 262025

By Gloria Leipzig and Matt Zajac The Belmont Housing Authority (BHA) has recently started work with a Boston-based architecture and urban planning firm, DREAM Collaborative, to create a master plan that could serve as the blueprint for redeveloping Belmont Village. The Belmont Village site north of Town Field and west of Thomas Street currently has 100 affordable homes for Belmont families across 25 fourplexes. BHA has diligently maintained the homes since their construction in 1949, but funding through the state’s public housing program has been insufficient to support any major renovations over the past 75 years. The buildings and site [READ MORE]

Trash on Lone Tree Hill

July/August 2025, Lone Tree Hill Comments Off

Jun 302025

Trash on Lone Tree Hill Here’s some of the trash that volunteers found at Lone Tree Hill . Help keep this beautiful open space clean for all to enjoy. If you see trash, please email lonetreehillbelmont@gmail.com. Thank you for helping keep our precious open spaces pristine!

July/August 2025 Calendar of Events

July/August 2025 Comments Off

Jun 302025

Belmont Farmers’ Market, celebrating 20 years! Weekly, Thursdays I 2–6:30 PM Belmont Center parking lot, behind Belmont Center For more information on vendors, special events, and more, see www.belmontfarmersmarket.org Belmont Conservation Volunteers Monthly, Saturdays I 9:30 AM-noon Pleasant Street area of Lone Tree Hill Help remove the invasive Akebia (chocolate vine) that smothers young trees on Lone Tree Hill. Meet at the kiosk where the trail turns, right up Coal Road from South Pleasant Street. Bring work gloves and small diggers and pruners. Visit www.sustainablebelmont.net/belmont-conservation-volunteers/ to join the google group for information and notices of events. Meet Your Watershed: Edible [READ MORE]

You Can Be a Naturalist Today

Historic Preservation, July/August 2025 Comments Off

Jun 302025

By Fred Bouchard So there we were sitting on the side deck well after six of a June evening, sipping chablis with wine pals Jim and Debbie, grinning over Elon/Donny antics, when in an eye-blink along the driveway, I caught a form flitting through the long-past lilacs. I put down my glass and craned. “What th–?” “What is it?” “A female hummingbird…” “Where!” “No wayy.” The gray mite amid grayish spent blooms was darting back and forth for—a sip of nectar? A late blossom? A leaf to doze under? Everyone got a quick peek at her, and in 15 seconds [READ MORE]

Belmont’s First Miyawaki Forest Comes to BHS

Climate Change, Environment, July/August 2025, Open Space, Plants Comments Off

Jun 302025

Belmont’s First Miyawaki Forest Comes to BHS

By Jean Devine Picture this: It’s 2028, and on the Belmont High School campus, a small forest of native trees and shrubs is shooting toward the sky. The trunks sway gently and the leaves shimmer softly in the summer breeze. As you walk toward this grove, birds flit in and out, you hear a hum of bees, while other pollinators, insects, and worms, mostly invisible to you, thrive in deeper sections of this new habitat. Before you stands Belmont’s first Miyawaki Forest (aka mini forest). Now, three years after planting, this forest is self-sufficient. And, it’s replicable! Maybe it has [READ MORE]

Correction to May/June 2025 Newsletter

July/August 2025, May/June 2025 Comments Off

Jun 302025

On page 19 of “Belmont Reduces Rodenticide on Town Land” in the May/June Belmont Citizens Forum Newsletter, the last paragraph of the section Municipal action: alternatives to poison on public property, should read as follows: “According to Raymond Morales, district housing manager, the BHA is actively replacing SGARs with rodenticides containing Vitamin D3, which do not travel up the food chain and thus pose less risk to non-target species.” We apologize for the error.

Profiles in Belmont: Sue Bass

July/August 2025, Newsletter Comments Off

Jun 302025

By Elissa Ely Sometimes, one accomplished, involved person is actually two; the sum of their lives together exceeds traditional math. This sum was so with Sue and Henry Bass. Sue has been a Town Meeting member since 1998 and cofounded the Belmont Citizens Forum in 1999, diving into local politics and policies after moving to town with Henry four years earlier. In their 57 years of marriage, they did a tremendous amount of diving together. She was not a gregarious child. She was a reader: Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys mysteries, and most of all, any book that featured a [READ MORE]

Meet Belmont’s New Recycling Coordinator

July/August 2025, Recycling Comments Off

Jun 302025

Meet Belmont’s New Recycling Coordinator

By Terri Goldberg Joseph Sten started working for Belmont three months before we sat down for a meeting on April 9. He is still learning how Belmont’s programs work and getting support and help from Jay Marcotte, Belmont’s Department of Public Works director. Sten worked at Needham’s transfer station and has a background in political science and urban studies. He’s friendly and approachable. Here’s a summary of what we talked about. Goldberg What are you working on these days to help improve Belmont’s recycling? Sten Helping answer questions from residents about recycling and waste. Most of the questions are about [READ MORE]

Belmont Recycling is Alive and Growing

Environment, July/August 2025, Recycling Comments Off

Jun 302025

By Terri Goldberg Lately, there has been a slew of dramatic stories about the failures of recycling. They could leave readers with the impression that recycling collection programs, like the one supported by Belmont, are a lie or a waste of time (for example, see “The Story You’ve Been Told About Recycling is a Lie” in the New York Times). Often, when I talk to friends and family about my work with MassRecycle, the state recycling organization, they ask me whether recycling is a scam. No! The truth is that the recyclables in our recycling carts are being largely recycled, [READ MORE]

Follow Belmont Electricity From Source to Socket

Environment, July/August 2025 Comments Off

Jun 302025

Follow Belmont Electricity From Source to Socket

By Dave Beavers The answer to the question “Where does my electricity come from?” can be elusive. There can be many answers to what appears to be a straightforward question. These answers can be abstract by necessity, requiring physics concepts and a plethora of obscure acronyms for precision. Instead of a textbook approach, the goal of this article is to offer an intuitive understanding of Belmont’s electricity. I will eschew dry facts, physics, and acronyms in favor of less abstract explanations and analogies. Along the way, I will explore key issues such as utility costs, rates, reliability, governance, and climate [READ MORE]

Vision for a Better Belmont: Matt Taylor

Board of Selectmen, July/August 2025 Comments Off

Jun 302025

Vision for a Better Belmont: Matt Taylor

This article is the latest in a series of interviews with Belmont stakeholders about their vision for the future of Belmont. Jeffrey North conducted this interview. It has been edited for length and clarity. – Ed. BCF Congratulations on your recent rotation to the chair of the Select Board. Over the past year as a member of the Select Board, what are some positive steps or improvements in town governance you have seen? And what do you see as needing improvement? Taylor We have an excellent town, and we are a welcoming community. I hope you see what I see. [READ MORE]

PILOT Program Could Ease Tax Burden

July/August 2025, Newsletter Comments Off

Jun 302025

By Max Colice Belmont’s annual budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, approved by Town Meeting in May, is $166.23 million. Of that, $138.85 M (83.5%) comes from property taxes and debt exclusions. The rest comes from state aid ($15.5 M), auto excise taxes, and a variety of lesser sources. Just over 95% of property taxes come from residents, the remainder from businesses. The 2022 Collins Center Report on municipal best practices recommends that Belmont should develop new sources of revenue to mitigate the burden of property taxes, including a program for payments in lieu of taxes (PILOT). How much revenue [READ MORE]

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