I am writing to express my opposition to the proposed zoning change that would allow a hotel to be built in close proximity to the high school. As many residents have already voiced, hotels bring documented safety risks that are not appropriate next to a school.

Peer-reviewed research supports these concerns.

A 2022 study by Bowen et al. found that hotel and lodging properties experienced the highest number of violent crimes among business types, with violent crime occurring at twice the rate of restaurants and bars (1).

Leung et al. (2018) reported that crimes connected to hotels were divided into 36.8% statutory crimes (drug-related and prostitution), 45.7% property crimes, and 17.4% personal crimes (2). The same study identified crime locations as 18% inside guest rooms, 35.4% inside the hotel, 17.2% on hotel property, 28.7% outside the hotel, and 0.6% unknown (2). Given the proposed location near the high school, our children would potentially be in proximity to roughly half of these incidents.

LeBeau et al. (2012) classified hotels as both crime generators (“bases for criminal activity”) and crime attractors (“criminal opportunity”), which is uncommon for most businesses (3).

The closest comparable town, Winchester, has no hotels within its borders. Surrounding communities primarily have smaller inns (fewer than 44 rooms). Huang et al. (1998) found that the number of rooms significantly impacts crime rates, with smaller properties associated with lower crime levels (5). Even those smaller inns are not located next to schools.

The Department of Homeland Security has identified sex trafficking as a concern within the hospitality industry (6). A Cornell University report estimated that hotels are involved in 65% of drug trafficking cases, including both luxury and economy properties (7).

The 2024 RKG Associates Market Analysis for Belmont projects only 35 additional rooms within a three-mile radius (4). However, the Cambridge Point development is already underway and will add a new hotel, altering those projections significantly against Belmont.

References:

1. Bowen DA, Anthony KM, Sumner SA. Business and property types experiencing excess violent crime: a micro-spatial analysis. J Inj Violence Res. 2022;14(1):1-10. doi:10.5249/jivr.v14i1.1566.
2. Leung XY, Yang Y, Dubin EA. What are guests scared of? Crime-related hotel experiences and fear of crime. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing. 2018;35(8):1071-1086.
3. LeBeau et al. (2012). Sleeping with strangers: hotels and motels as crime attractors and crime generators. In: Patterns, Prevention, and Geometry of Crime. Routledge.
4. RKG Associates (2024). Town of Belmont, MA Market Analysis Summary Report.
5. Huang et al. (1998). Exploring the Relationship Between Hotel Characteristics and Crime. Hospitality Review Journal.
6. U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Human Trafficking and the Hospitality Industry.
7. Cornell University News (2017). Student work sheds light on hotels’ dark side of sex trafficking.

These concerns are not theoretical. Recent local reports include:

• A sex trafficking ring operating in hotels in Lexington, Newton, and Waltham (9).
• Prostitution stings in Burlington and Woburn hotels (2, 3).
• A kidnapping incident at a Cambridge hotel (12).
• Drug trafficking cases in Watertown, Waltham, Burlington, and Newton hotels (1, 5, 10, 13).
• Shots fired at a Natick hotel (4).
• Arrests of dangerous individuals at hotels in Lexington, Burlington, and Waltham (6, 8, 11, 16).

Looking specifically at Lexington Police logs, officers intervened in local hotels 42 times in 2025 over a 49-week period, with four weeks missing from the public page. These reports only cover police intervention at the hotel address, not any other events connected with hotel residents outside of the premise.

The Boston Globe has reported that hotels are locations where registered sex offenders may rent rooms or work. During the migrant crisis, reporting highlighted risks to families placed in hotel shelters, including lack of protection from individuals with concerning backgrounds (14).

Is this the type of establishment we want overlooking our high school and athletic fields?

Belmont is known for its strong school district, which continues to attract young families. The 2024 RKG report notes that Belmont is not following broader aging demographic trends. Our responsibility is to protect our children.

As a parent of two young children, I respectfully urge you to vote “no” on the Gateway Overlay District on March 4th. I am looking forward to seeing you there.

Thank you for your time.

Yours sincerely,
Dr. Marta Tomaszewska DDS, DMD, MSD, CAGS
(Oakley Road)

Referenced news articles:

1.                  https://www.thexradio.com/news/local-news/19504-lawrenceville-resident-arrested-for-methamphetamine-possession-in-newton/ 

2.                  https://patch.com/massachusetts/woburn/woburn-police-arrest-two-sex-trafficking-sting-mishawum-road-hotel 

3.                  https://www.masslive.com/police-fire/2023/04/7-people-arrested-after-prostitution-sting-at-burlington-hotel.html 

4.                  https://www.boston25news.com/news/police-investigating-shots-fired-at-natick-hotel-hotel-guests-evacuated/934167568/ 

5.                  https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/waltham-ma-large-drug-bust-joseph-keane/3780537/ 

6.                  https://indepthnh.org/2025/07/29/ex-hooksett-cop-accused-of-manchester-domestic-violence-arrested-in-mass/ 

7.                  https://www.masslive.com/news/2025/07/mass-man-on-scooter-found-with-brass-knuckles-other-weapons-drugs-police-say.html 

8.                  https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/news/waltham-search-darren-dyette-assault-arrest/ 

9.                  https://patch.com/massachusetts/waltham/sex-trafficking-ring-busted-thanks-waltham-police 

10.             https://www.wcvb.com/article/hotel-guests-arrested-for-making-meth-inside-room/8227958 

11.             https://www.wickedlocal.com/story/burlington-union/2015/07/06/two-men-one-from-burlington/34000661007/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z115219v115219d–52–b–52–&gca-ft=164&gca-ds=sophi 

12.             https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2025/05/06/former-cambridge-city-councilor-charged-with-kidnapping-after-hotel-incident/ 

13.             https://www.watertownmanews.com/2020/10/20/man-caught-in-watertown-with-drugs-firearm-also-had-warrants-in-boston-california/ 

14.             https://www.boston25news.com/news/local/report-state-placed-migrant-children-hotels-with-registered-sex-offenders/XU64Z4P4J5HVDJDRC6FLZD5W64/ 

15.             https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2025/10/21/sex-trafficking-survivor-is-suing-mass-hotels-she-says-turned-a-blind-eye/ 

16.             https://www.wickedlocal.com/story/lexington-minuteman/2020/09/14/man-with-knife-arrested-at-lexington-hotel/42988795/?gnt-cfr=1&gca-cat=p&gca-uir=true&gca-epti=z116402v116402d–64–b–64–&gca-ft=183&gca-ds=sophi 

TownieTalk…

I recently attended a Waltham Historical Society presentation by former Belmont resident Marie Daly and decided her presentation was worthy of a special edition TownieTalk. So Happy Halloween and enjoy.

Instead of saying Trick or Treat… If you really want to scare anyone in State or local government then say: “Diane Dizoglio is waiting in the lobby”.      _____________  read_______________

Marie Daly…

Marie is a Townie who like many relocated to Waltham and has become the Richard “Dick” Betts of sorts finding historical tidbits in real estate transactions over the centuries with a focus on the Trapelo corridor (TRAP-elo). I did not get to ask Marie about the Waverly/Waverley dispute or the PQ/Nipmuc missing gold so that is for another time. Marie presented “Incident at Rock Meadow” to a full room including Belmont’s current encyclopedia of history, Victoria Haase. BTW, does anyone have a good GPR(Ground Penetrating radar) and know how to use it? 

“Incident at Rock Meadow”

Many of us know Rock Meadow as a place for stoners and creepers. Not a surprise as it is surrounded by mental health institutions that have treated sexual predators over the years and borders the now closed “Hospital of the Seven Teeth” that is forbidden to be spoken of. The presentation focuses on incidents that took place in the 1670’s in and around “Rock Meadow” and a possible escape route South of  the Town. The crimes included “fornication”, “murder” and more “fornication”. The presentation is available on the Waltham Historical Society website. 

Spoiler alert: There is reasonable evidence that one of these events may have contributed to the start of King Phillips War. 

Belmont Police Chief Screening Committee

You can’t fix Stupid as my friend J says.  Belmont’s new search committee for the next Police Chief is a true collection of misfit toys. The Town has seen a surge in shootings and can expect more as the once quaint suburban Town is urbanized by outsiders. According to reliable neighbors, at least two of the shootings are gang related and tied to relatives visiting family in Town. Several residents have raised concerns about Cambridge Housing Authority and Federal Section 8 vetting processes as the rise is recent. The fact that all three shootings have occurred at all and worse in residential neighborhoods is deeply disturbing as is the volume of shots fired. 

Knowing this and knowing the Police Department suffers from low morale after a concerted effort by the prior Select Board and activists forced their removal from previously negotiated Civil Service protections has made Belmont a less desirable community to work in. One would like to think addressing those two major issues would be the key focus of the screening committee in addition to budgeting etc.  That’s not the case from what I gather. 

Personally, I feel like the next Chief is walking into a trap. Bill Parcells said if you want me to cook the meal then let me shop for the groceries. If I were Chief, I would want to be certain my success or failure is based on what I thought was good policy and not by catering to activists. The activists caused the morale problem and will just make it worse. You are destined to fail in that situation so caveat emptor.  

The Select Board appointed seven people to the Police Chief screening committee. Objections were raised (thank you Ira Morgenstern) and quickly dismissed, which has been common practice by this current Select Board of outsiders. Kings and Queens, you say… nah. Let’s look at the list…

Thomas Browne (current Burlington MA Police Chief) 

Patrice Garvin (Town Administrator)

Mauro Lance (former board on Foundation for Belmont Education)

Didier Moise (Belmont Against Racism)

Dr. Jill Geiser (Superintendent of Belmont Schools)

Roy Epstein (Former Select Board)

Mark Paolillo (Appointed to Board of Assessor (2025)/Appointed to Council on Aging (2025), Lost Moderator race (2025))

Let’s start with the morale issue. Both Roy Epstein and Mark Paolillo worked against the Police Unions to take away Civil Service. Do you really think having them involved is anything but a slap to the face and discredits the process among department employees who need to work for the new hire? Patrice Garvin is not in good standing with the Police Unions either but her role as TA is important enough in the process to include her even though she has some tough sledding ahead. She is the Mulligan as a golfer would say. 

Let’s look at the crime issue. Dr. Geiser is linked with a scandal in Billerica in which convicted felon Monica Collins-Grant was paid to speak (indoctrinate is my word) to students. Collins-Grant holds extreme views including “Defund the Police”. What is Geiser’s expectation from a new Chief? Didier Moise is President of Belmont Against Racism and while one can’t hold him personally responsible for comments by some BAR members it would be nice to know his thoughts on illegal immigration, restorative justice, if all police are racists and if the system itself is structurally racist? In other words that appointment may scream of political bias which is Ok if offset with someone that doesn’t share any of those views. 

Wouldn’t it be great to know before an appointment if a committee member thinks it’s ok to denigrate Federal Immigration and Custom Enforcement Officers. Wouldn’t it be great to know if a member thinks the Police Chief needs to cater to activists. Isn’t this how the chaos started in Portland and San Franscisco? We do have one member’s thoughts as scary as they are… what about the others? I would like to think the Select Board vetted these people although it seems when in doubt just appoint Abercrombie or Paolillo.   

Belmontonian: What qualities and qualifications are you looking for in a candidate?”

Paolillo: “I’m looking for someone that can do the job, similar to what Chief McIsaac did and also Chief Paul McLaughlin. I think what’s so important within our town, because it is such an activist community, is someone that reaches out to the community, listens to the concerns and has a presence in town. And particularly individuals who are empathetic to what’s taking place at a national level. We’re all against, of course, any ICE agents coming into our community and trying to do what they’ve been doing in other communities. I would hope that would be someone who would listen to our concerns about that as well.”(The Belmontonian 10/23/25 Franklin Tucker “Select Board Designates Belmont Police Chief Screening Committee; Q+A with a member”)

Stop the War on America’s workforce

As I write this, the American Federation of Government Employees, Air Traffic Controller’s Union, and the Washington Post are all calling for Senator Charles Schumer to stop the Government shutdown and vote for the clean continuing resolution bill that he has previously rejected 12 straight times. About 600,000 American workers are without paychecks and another 40 million are about to lose their food stamps (SNAP). Not surprisingly, the party that was once pro-worker and pro-union uses them as disposable collateral.   

Belmont’s Congressional Representative Katherine Clark:

“Shutdowns are terrible, and of course there will be families that are going to suffer,” she told Fox News Thursday. “We take that responsibility very seriously. But it is one of the few leverage times we have.”

Anybody else seeing a pattern here…. continued

“We always have to be cognizant of the burden on taxpayers,” Dionne said. “I do not feel good about the fact that for some people, this marginal expense will be the final straw that drives them out of town. That is not something I’m happy about, that we should be proud of … That said, I don’t see an alternative.”

Belmont Voice, Mary Byrne, 2/02/24 “Select Board votes to request $8.4 million override request” 

So, in 2024, it was the fixed income we sacrificed. Now in 2025, It’s Town and School employees again. 

In simple terms, screw the fixed income people and screw the Town and School employees as its on their backs is how Belmont balances its budget. Overrides and cheap labor. This allows for the spending needed on the obscene opulence you will see with the new library opening, the new BHSMS school, private school level offerings at BHS, green energy boondoggle spending, and of course the community path that has drawn millions but has not seen groundbreaking. Yes, some at Dunks kid the Overrides keep the riff raff out. Of course, when the shots were fired on Channing Road that was getting too close to home, and suddenly, the MBTA act and Belmont Center Overlay plan became problematic. 

Does anyone recall a Select Board member or School Committee member openly warning that we can’t afford these buildings? At best, I recall, Meg Moriarty being ambivalent on the Skip rink but not a peep with the library and she is the only one I can recall. Where was the leadership calling for reductions in size and scope on these projects knowing full well the operating budget’s reliance on Overrides would be jeopardized.    

So as the School Committee and Town leaders plant their stories about how we can’t afford salaries to keep up with inflation for Town employees and the Teachers prepare to strike… go grab a coffee and sit in that wonderful new atrium at the Library and ponder how much we were Ok with spending on imported wood for aesthetics on the Wellington school among other luxuries and don’t forget to pass the grey poupon.   

Belmont Center Overlay: “Here’s another fine mess you’ve gotten us into“

From Laurel and Hardy… to Taylor Yates and Elizabeth Dionne on the Overlay plan disaster. 

When your entire campaign was about closing the gap between residential and commercial tax collections and you end up likely creating and or overseeing a greater divergence than you started with. Maybe you should replace all your so-called subject matter experts and spend some time at Dunks. Trapelo or Pleasant but watch out for the grifters at Trapelo. A guy on a bicycle asking for gas money is an indicator. 

Anonymous…

To the anonymous sender of the so called “poison pen” letter regarding Roy Epstein’s appointment to the screening committee. Next time use the bat signal and someone from Belmont Briefing can hunt me down. Clearly, the Civil Service debacle was not one of Roy’s better moments or as they say in “Hubie Halloween” it was a big boner. I bet Roy would have responded to it if given the proper venue.  

Cheers, 

PJ Looney

TownieTalk 02478

“Never Forget” “Never Again” AMDG, MAGA

I don’t have the answer to that question, and it was at a time when the medium to voice one’s opinion was limited to a letter to the editor so maybe that shielded Americans from possibly learning the vile nature of their neighbors. I do know when Congresswoman Gabby Giffords and Congressman Steve Scalise were shot, and Minnesota State Senator Melissa Hortman and her husband were murdered that my social media feeds were generally filled with thoughts and prayers, shock and finger pointing. Not once did I read that any of the victims had it coming. 

I was a huge fan of Charlie Kirk. I didn’t know of him until I joined  Instagram and one of his videos came across my feed. Charlie was a brilliant man, a provocateur, and a champion of debate. His catch lines were “Prove me wrong” and “those who disagree come to the front of the line”. He was a voice of reason for hundreds of thousands of college students feeling disenfranchised by progressive indoctrination across most American Colleges and Universities. In a Country deeply polarized by “echo chamber” politics, Charlie was the conduit championing debate. 

Listening to Charlie speak was probably on par with how many Americans felt about listening to Barack Obama during his first Presidential campaign. Obviously, Charlie’s murder brings out many feelings from sadness for his wife and two young daughters to anger and disappointment. The lowering of flags to half staff across the Country and supported by our Governor Maura Healey gave me some solace.  

It’s human to want to assign blame with these shootings. Some will blame the availability of guns, others will blame mental health, and others will blame radicalization by the left or right. In this case, the shooter was in a relationship with a trans male (who was vocal in leftist ideology, a furry and enamored with violent video games) but the shooter himself was raised in an America First supportive family. 

What is not human is blaming the victim. It is vile. However, it seems to be a major problem with too large a percent of the progressive element in this Country, and it needs to end now. On 10/7/23, Hamas orchestrated a 9/11 style attack on Israel murdering 1,195 people including 738 civilians and 38 children. These civilians were not collateral damage… they were targets. Literally, that same day on college campuses “Free Palestine” rallies were held blaming Israel. On July 13, 2024, President Donald J. Trump was shot at a campaign event in Butler, PA. A poll by Rasmussen said 28% of Democrats said the Country would be better off if he was killed. Another poll shows 11% of Democrats support violence to eliminate a political opponent. (6% of Republicans said the same). 

On 12/4/24, United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a father of two, was shot in the back and killed by a spoiled brat who then became a poster boy for the left’s fight against private healthcare. He was fawned over by media personalities for his looks, and some even debated his actions as justifiable.   

On 9/10/25, Charlie Kirk was killed. Author Stephen King tweeted “He advocated stoning gays to death, just sayin”. King profusely apologized after learning the Twitter post he read was false and that Kirk never said that. The New York Times had to correct a story in which they falsely attributed an antisemitic comment to Charlie Kirk. Kirk is beloved in Israel, and they are naming a local square after him. Both events indicate people wanting to believe something and running with it without fact checking. People need to do better. 

There was a website charliesmurderers.com that was collecting screen shots of the vilest social media posts in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s murder. There were over 70,000 when the site was asked to be taken down for fear it may provoke retaliation. Thousands of posters received calls from human resources telling them their services are no longer needed. How disturbing to see so many Teachers, Firefighters, Military personnel, and Doctor’s post such vile comments? 

Was Belmont immune? No. Imagine sharing a meme showing Charlie when the bullet struck him next to a quote in which Charlie said, “I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our God-given rights”. Charlie’s life was about communication and debate. 11%-28% of Democrats and 6% of Pubs have given up that path and that number will grow after Kirk’s murder. When you stifle debate, bad things happen, and the trend is not our friend. The major parties are at war over law-and-order issues like illegal immigration, cashless bail, and lenient sentencing. A 14-time convicted violent schizophrenic man in Charlotte NC just stabbed to death a random woman on a bus. He was out on personal recognizance prior to the murder, and his own brother and mother were shocked he wasn’t incarcerated. It’s no surprise gun ownership is soaring among women and minorities when as a society we release these types of people back onto the streets to re-offend. Good policing doesn’t matter when the courts fail to incarcerate the bad in society. You would think we could agree on that, but the reality is we can’t.  

This Thursday night, the 18^th from 7-10pm a candlelight vigil in remembrance of Charlie Kirk will be held at the State House/Boston Common.  

Rest in Peace, Charlie. 

TownieTalk editorial. 

Your upcoming vote and apparent decision to gut the Economic Development Committee (EDC)—stripping away dedicated business representation, replacing residents with professional staff, and even suggesting dissolution, as Taylor Yates did, while clinging to two-year terms, as Chair Matt Taylor insists—is a direct affront to our entire town. Timed just before the October 20-29, 2025, Belmont Center zoning overlay vote, this move silences the voices we need most: the small businesses and residents who’ve fought to keep our town vibrant through unprecedented disruptions. How can you dismiss their expertise at this critical moment?

You claim the EDC has “struggled.” That’s not just wrong—it’s a disservice to our record. In 2023-24, under my leadership, we delivered the RKG Associates market analysis, leading to a January 2024 committee vote for town-wide hotel zoning to add up to 200 rooms—a bold step to boost revenue. We secured over $100,000 in state grants, advanced restaurant rezoning, and shaped MBTA 3A zoning to exclude the Purecoat site, preserving local control. These aren’t struggles; they’re successes, driven by the four district-based business seats you now want to erase. Your newly proposed “Economic Development Committee,” active only “when requested,” turns a proactive force into a puppet, sidelining the nuanced perspectives that made Belmont Center thrive.

Consider this. For the past fifteen plus years landlords and businesses have navigated a housing crisis and a pandemic—unprecedented challenges—yet still delivered a small, quaint, perfect mix of shops, restaurants, and services. But your overlay plan risks it all: endless construction from multiple landlords, sky-high rents pushing out local boutiques for chains, parking and traffic chaos at the Claflin lot and on Concord Ave (busy even on slow days), and traffic bottlenecks at the bridge. This isn’t growth driven by market demand—it’s a top-down tax chase that could turn our charming center into a mega construction zone, echoing past failures like Cushing Square’s empty storefronts.

And let’s talk money. How much have you spent on consultants and staff time for this zoning project? How much more will you spend through by the October vote? And how much of it came from grants you could’ve pursued, like the One Stop for Growth funds we’ve ignored for three years? Transparency matters. Belmont deserves to know if its tax dollars are funding studies that drown out the very businesses they’re meant to help.
Your approach—canceling dissenters, refusing debate, acting like the smartest in the room—is not how democracy works. 

Take Chair Taylor’s attack on Marie Warner during her 2024 reappointment, questioning her affiliations without evidence, or your two-year term push, conveniently set to oust her by 2026. This isn’t leadership; it’s control, and it erodes trust. You’re not just sidelining the EDC—you’re sidelining the community that makes us unique.

I don’t want your thanks for my years as EDC Chair; I’d need to believe you had hearts to offer it (which we know you don’t after you tried to cancel Skip and refused to consider Carol Berberian for reappointment to the Planning Board). Instead, if you truly think the EDC is dispensable, dissolve it before the overlay vote. Let voters and duly elected town meeting members see you mute business voices as you decide Belmont Center’s fate—parking, traffic, and all. Watch the fallout when construction drives patrons to Watertown, Fresh Pond, or Harvard Square, or when your hotel revenue drivers fails to materialize. 

Or do better: Restore the four district-based business seats, empower proactive work, and let the EDC advise all boards freely. Eliminate new business parking requirements. Allow drive throughs. Allow hotels in all of Belmont’s business districts. Read the RKG Market analysis—especially their recommendations on hotels for all of Belmont. Invest in a long-overdue full time dedicated economic development coordinator, as businesses begged years ago. And take the time to study the serious implications of artificial intelligence for our town. 

This is your chance to listen and perhaps learn—not dismiss and sideline critical voices. Belmont hangs in the balance. 

Sincerely,
Paul Joy

(Former Chair, Economic Development Committee, Town Meeting Member Pct 7)

The Fight Against 3A

On August 6, 2025, the coalition submitted four Initiative Petitions (25-32 to 25-35) to the Attorney General’s Office to dismantle or limit the impact of Section 3A. These petitions, currently under review and expected to be certified by early September, aim to:

• Repeal MBTA Zoning (25-32): Completely nullify Section 3A and any existing 3A zones.
• Preserve Local Control (25-33): Prohibit state interference in local zoning (except Chapter 40B) and repeal conflicting laws.
• Prevent Overdevelopment (25-34): Limit state-mandated density to 5 units per acre and require special permits for developments exceeding 10 units per acre.
• Reform the Zoning Process (25-35): Mandate a 2/3 majority for zoning changes, a 21-day gap between public hearings and adoption, written reports from planning boards, and a 3-year wait before reintroducing defeated zoning proposals unless approved by special election.

These petitions represent a united, non-partisan effort by Democrats, Republicans, and Independents to ensure that zoning decisions reflect the will of local communities, not state mandates.

Why This Matters

The MBTA Communities Act, part of Massachusetts’ response to the housing crisis, requires towns served by or near MBTA transit to zone for multifamily housing, often without sufficient local input. Critics argue it threatens the character of small towns, strains infrastructure, and dismisses community priorities. For example, resistance is growing in places like Rockport and Milton, where residents and officials have voiced concerns about “overreach” and “invasion” of local sovereignty.

The Attorney General’s Office is reviewing these petitions to ensure they meet constitutional requirements, with certification decisions expected by September 3, 2025. If approved, the coalition must collect 74,574 signatures by December 3, 2025, to place these measures on the November 2026 ballot. A second round of 12,429 signatures may be needed by July 2026 if the Legislature does not act.

How You Can Help

This is a statewide group effort, and your participation is crucial. Here’s how you can get involved:

• Sign the Petitions: Once certified in early September, help gather signatures in your community. The coalition is also awaiting a decision within two weeks on whether non-ink internet signatures will be accepted, potentially simplifying the process.
• Volunteer: Become a signature gatherer, recruit others, or assist with logistics like collecting and processing signatures.
• Spread the Word: Share this effort on social media using #ReclaimZoningControl, post notices on platforms like Facebook, or email like-minded residents in your network.
• Innovate: Suggest improvements to the signature-gathering process or organize local events to raise awareness.

“This is about giving Massachusetts residents a voice,” says coalition member Jane Doe from Rockport. “Our towns deserve to decide their own futures, not have zoning dictated by the state.”

Join the Movement

If you’re ready to help, email reclaimzoningma@gmail.com to sign up or learn more. Whether you live in Manchester, Malden, or anywhere in between, your support can tip the scales. The coalition is calling for volunteers across all 177 MBTA communities and beyond to ensure this effort reaches every corner of the Commonwealth.

A United Stand for Local Control

This initiative transcends party lines, uniting residents who believe in local governance and sustainable development. By collecting enough signatures, we can let voters—not bureaucrats—decide the fate of Section 3A in November 2026. Let’s protect our communities from overdevelopment and restore the right to shape our own neighborhoods.

For more information or to submit feedback on the petitions, contact the Attorney General’s Office at ballotquestions@mass.gov or (617) 963-2524. Join us in this historic effort to reclaim zoning sovereignty for Massachusetts.

 Jamie is leaving the Belmont Police department after 6 years as Chief. He is moving on to a new opportunity and hopefully in a place that respects law enforcement. Don’t be surprised if the Town hires a consulting firm to evaluate if the title “Chief” is overtly masculine and/or offensive to Native Americans, meanwhile gang shootings become more common than potholes. God Bless the next Chief, as it will not be an easy task to keep police force morale up. 

Select Board defiant against Town Meeting

Most people know Town Meeting holds the final say in Town Government. It is the reason why 288 elected Town residents meet several days a year. Town Meeting is the “checks and balances” for the residents of Belmont against  power hungry individuals. Town Meeting is supposed to represent the voice of the people, but this current Select Board led by Elizabeth Dionne (even though Matt Taylor is technically the chair) is fully intending to openly defy Town Meeting. Town Meeting voted to keep the “Skip Viglirolo” name on the new rink by a 2-1 margin. Town Meeting voted against tabling the subject. This is a direct insult to all who serve at the Town Meeting and to every voter who elected them. 

A lawsuit should be filed by members of Town Meeting against the Select Board or else this will set a precedent. Some say wait till April when Select Board member, Elizabeth Dionne, is up for re-election, as they see her as the autocrat who has pushed to get rid of any dissenting voices around her be it the formerly elected Treasurer, Board of Assessors, and several committee volunteers not being re-appointed. The law is not on the Select Board’s side and sitting idle is the equivalence of compliance. 

Name the ugliest new building in Town

This won’t be easy as the three main candidates are all newer buildings. We start with the new rink that looks more like an ICE detention facility. You could also choose the new Library which clearly fits the “one of these things just doesn’t belong” storyline on Sesame Street. How about the rot-fested appearance of the Wellington School façade. Nothing like paying premium dollars for fancy imported wood that looks more like a weathered carpenter ant infested deck. 

The “not better late than never” technology

Belmont has gone Solar just in time for Solar to be exposed as fools’ gold. Massachusetts has the 6^th highest electricity rate in the Country and the cost surges significantly higher due to Mass Legislatures forcing Utility companies to participate in the Mass Save program which adds a $5 Billion surcharge to delivery fees over three years and about $80 per month to users’ bills. The reason Mass is so expensive is self-inflicted and is not just hurting residents with massive bills but also making Massachusetts less attractive to businesses. Massachusetts has done everything possible to block pipelines into the State that offer cheap reliable electricity. Instead, Mass has forced Utilities to buy unreliable expensive Wind and Solar generated electricity. 

Now that Belmont has solar panel commitments on the new Skip Rink, High School, and Chenery, we awaken to amazing news from the White House and Department of Energy. The DOE has announced contracts with 11 firms to participate in the Reactor Pilot program which seeks to advance at least 3 small nuclear reactor designs to test phase by July of 2026. Nuclear is the most reliable and clean energy at scale and America is finally taking aggressive steps to advance and deploy these reactors. Imagine by 2030, Belmont could be debating having a Small Micro Reactor on the old Town dump site that fully and reliably powers the Town’s entire electric needs. Solar panels go the way of VHS tapes, and we prevent a landfill disaster as solar panel waste looms over the Country. As an aside… rodents caused a solar panel fire on a Canton home earlier this Spring… Thank God, Belmont doesn’t have a rodent problem.  

Belmont Center Overlay plan

This continues to be pressed forward. Currently, the plan is detrimental to Belmont’s coffers as it allows substantially more housing which by extension would stress services beyond new revenues leading to even larger override demands or cuts. Hard to say how Town Meeting would vote on this… fiscal conservatives are a hard No based on the current plan, housing advocates are a Yes, neighbors and existing businesses in the Center are a solid No.   

Public Service Alert!!!  Teacher Strike pending

Parents of School age children in the Belmont Public Schools should prepare now for daycare as a Teacher Strike looms large this Fall. No progress has been made in teacher contract negotiations over the Summer as the School Committee seem uninterested in facing reality. 

The School Committee is being irrational. The Teachers have agreed to lower salary increases in exchange for class size caps, limits on AP course loads and electives, and restrictions on English Learner placements. The School Committee wants to be viewed as equivalent with private school offerings (Belmont offers twice as many AP courses as the State average) and they can only maintain that on the back of the Teachers doing more for less. The MTA is emboldened  after successful strikes last year in Newton, Beverly, and Marblehead among others. American Labor is tired of being disrespected and now is the time. 

A message for the BEA (Belmont Educators Association)

You are your worst enemy. Jay Leno scolded late night talk show hosts for being politically toxic to the point of losing half their audience. We are seeing the results of that with entertainers such as Howard Stern, Steve Colbert, and soon Saturday Night Live being cancelled. The same could be said with public educators. People want Teachers to be like their doctor’s and that means stick to the science and stay away from the craziness. Public schools don’t need rainbow flags or the 10 commandments in them. The reality is people are viewing public education as a leftist indoctrination tool, and the Teacher Unions are making it worse. Educators’ pensions rely heavily on future teachers contributing to the system.  The more you drive parents to private schools and or home schooling, especially with a declining youth population, the worse off you are. Look at Pennsylvania’s pension fund. Most people used to view Teachers as honorable and nurturing and in many countries that is still true… what changed here is you allowed  political activism to taint your profession. Listen to the people. They want educators not indoctrinators and public-school educators’ future hangs in the balance as vouchers will reshape education like Uber reshaped transportation. Keep the politics to yourself. It’s not like Willy B or Dave Rogers will be joining you on any picket line.  

Final Summah thoughts…

The Red Sox are keeping things interesting. Trading Devers looks like Garciaparra. Hopefully, we will get the same result. Addition by subtraction is a real thing. 

Massachusetts is long overdue for a major Hurricane. This could be the year as July and August feel different than other years. Get your sump pumps ready. Cat 2 hitting MA/RI border soon?

As you or your child get ready to make that next college tuition payment or monthly student loan payment, keep in mind that 71% of Harvard’s International students get aid (a higher percentage than the total student body that gets aid) and the average package is $81,046 versus the average for all students including international package of $72,600. The urban myth that foreign students pay full rate helping drive down costs for domestic students was exposed by the Boston Globe. A cool $1 billion in student aid is delivered to international students while American students sit on $1 trillion in student loan debt. Why are our tax dollars being used to advance other nations while we saddle our next generation with debt? 

Movie reviews… Happy Gilmore 2 starts slow but is still fun 7/10. The Accountant 2 is a solid 8/10.

Fantastic Four: First steps is bland but still gets a 6/10. 

As always… drive by contractors are almost always con men. They may have flyers that look real but then you see they have no name on their truck. If one ends up at your door unsolicited commenting on your chimney, driveway or front walk… just decline them and maybe make a call to the non-emergency line to let police know as it may help someone else avoid being ripped off. 

The Underwood Pool

Young children require both swim diapers and plastic liners to prevent “Poop-a-geddon issues that recently forced a prolonged closure of the shallow end of the pool. As for Adults, Farting is prohibited in the pool as you never know until it’s too late. Sound monitors have been placed to remove offenders.

Teacher Strike

Belmont students may be looking at an extended summer break as contract talks with the Union representing Belmont Public School Teachers and Staff drag on. Town leaders cry poor while employees deal with lingering inflation in a Town that just passed an $8.4 million dollar override and spent $70 million on a Library and Rink. There is a real disconnect here. 

Carol Berberian 

Carol along with Max Colice introduced a successful amendment getting Town Meeting to eliminate the seating requirement for establishments to get all alcohol licenses. While this will require action by the State legislature, it is a positive step to attract and keep commercial establishments in Belmont.  

Second major shooting in Belmont

A home on Channing Road was the scene of a dozen or so bullets being sprayed at it. This is the same home as a prior NEMLEC SWAT unit searched last year. Thankfully, no injuries were reported but neighbors are outraged. You would be as well if you shelled out $1.0m to $2.8m million to live on the street. The landlord has been advised of the neighborhood concern. 

Residents demand answers 

Unlike the prior shooting next to Vet Village in Belmont in which over a dozen bullets were fired including two that struck a man outside the home and another round striking a nearby home, residents went straight to the Select Board. Now that the violence has spread down Pleasant Street from the Waltham line to Belmont Center, the question is what are the Select Board doing. 

The short answer is nothing. One Board member went on a tangent about overrides affecting police enforcement. The reality is all three shootings are related to housing issues. The Town passed a massive $8.4m override recently but has had trouble filling law enforcement positions in part because the Town is not considered law enforcement friendly, especially Town Government, that recently removed the Belmont Police Unions from Civil Service without a negotiated settlement. The Select Board, like the School Committee, tries as hard as possible to ignore inconvenient truths that reflect poorly on the Town, or may be expensive to fix, or are politically incorrect to discuss. All Belmont residents deserve better. Maybe form a committee to evaluate these three incidents to present to the Town Meeting. 

Roll of Shame 

Town Meeting voted to advise the Select Board to continue the 1998 honor the Town gave to James P. “Skip” Viglirolo at the recent special Town Meeting by a greater than 2 -1 margin. Some felt it wasn’t the Town Meeting’s place to advise and then abstained from voting. 55 however said “No”. They could have abstained but chose not to.

The Select Board

It has never made sense that the Rink name should be changed. Sure, creating a naming policy for a future new or change of use building allows an efficient process to be followed but the rink has a name and those closest to the Viglirolo family are the ones who worked tirelessly to make the new building a reality. Applying this policy comes across as retroactive, divisive and creates an us vs them environment. Some want to sue over what they consider a lacking legal assessment by the Town Counsel on who has the granted naming rights which means added cost to the Town and opening the door to unexpected discovery. No reputable business would pay for naming rights knowing they are essentially buying it away from a man who earned it after a lifetime of service to community especially in a community in which one after another Town Meeting member cited, they have never received more communication from the public than on keeping the Skip name. A simple vote by the board to keep the Skip name is the best decision for the Town as the Town Meeting has advised. There are much bigger issues ahead this Fall.    

Becca Pizzi

The news would be if she lost a race but that didn’t happen. Instead, Becca set a record at the North Pole marathon. No word on how the polar bears chasing her are doing after the 4 hours, 46 minutes, 21 second sprint. 

Belmont Center Planning Overlay

If you are not an expert on a subject, Belmont has plenty of residents to reach out to. Here is what was learned. Belmont is not Cambridge. Belmont does not command anywhere close to the price per square foot for commercial property like Cambridge. Reputable builders would likely need 6 floors (5 residential) to make these properties work in Belmont Center. The Cushing Square development is lucky to break even. They really needed an extra floor to not sweat it out year after year. Over the line in Cambridge, a change from 10% to 20% in the affordable housing requirement (if parking is waived) is causing projects to be put on hold. There is no magic bullet for Belmont. Sure, a Hotel in the Center is great. Can we build 5? As they say, Belmont is one Black Swan event away from the cliff.  

The Board is correct in looking at all means possible to increase the commercial tax base. Unfortunately, the timing in the commercial market is not good. Even Lab Space shows a vacancy rate of 25%. Empty buildings mean lower assessments meaning a tax shift back to residents. Boston may be looking at $1.7B lost commercial tax revenue over the next few years. What Belmont can’t afford is new housing that is not fully offset plus some by commercial. Unfortunately, that is what the MBTA act has forced on the Town and Belmont can’t afford it. There are no easy answers or as Mike Widmer warned the Town is a failed override away from massive cuts that fundamentally change the Town. 

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) shipped thousands of viral samples to a lab in Wuhan over the course of a 10-year program even though it had no formal agreement with the lab in place, according to previously unreported documents.

The documents show that USAID funded the exportation of 11,000 samples from Yunnan Province, where some of the closest relatives of the COVID-19 virus circulate, to Wuhan, the epicenter of the pandemic, with no apparent plan for ensuring the samples were not misdirected to bioweapons and remained accessible to the U.S. government.

A $210 million USAID public health program called PREDICT, steered by the University of California-Davis, collected viral samples in countries throughout the globe but lacked long-term storage when funding dried up, according to rudimentary plans in 2019.

USAID’s sample dispensation plan for China is sparse: “No need [sic] information from Yunnan. They were never an official lab partner for PREDICT. All samples they helped collected [sic] are sent to, tested, and stored in Wuhan.”

The “lab” refers to the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV). WIV was a close partner of USAID contractor EcoHealth Alliance and a slated partner for a PREDICT-like program supported by the State Department. The lab has poor biosafety practices and ties to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

After serving four years on the Economic Development Committee—including three as Chair and Co-Chair—I write to formally decline consideration for any role on the proposed “Economic Development Advisory Committee” (EDAC). My decision stems from profound concerns that this restructured body abandons Belmont’s economic development priorities and silences critical voices. I cannot lend legitimacy to a framework that undermines our town’s commercial vitality and does not explicitly spell out the critical goal of expanding our commercial tax base. 

Core Failures of the EDAC Proposal

1. The Evisceration of Local Business Representation

As an architect of our district-focused business roundtables and networking events, I witnessed firsthand how different business perspectives from across Belmont helped us achieve policy consensus and allowed us to credibly listen and integrate local business concerns in our deliberations. The EDC’s existing four district-based business seats ensured these nuances drove policy. The EDAC’s lone “local business representative” reduces neighborhood input to tokenism. When combined with new seats for biotech and commercial real estate professionals (who profit from transaction volume, not community stability), this guarantees systemic disregard for small businesses and threatens Belmont’s holistic economic development. 

2. The End of Proactive Grassroots Economic Development 

Under the current EDC charge, we proactively shaped several critical pro growth economic development policies through primary reach out and community feedback. This includes Belmont’s MBTA 3A response by coordinating with Planning Board members and also through my two year service as member of the MBTA Advisory Committee and our entire committee effort to analyze commercial-housing balance—before formal plans were drafted and voted on. The EDAC’s reactive structure (“when requested by the Select Board…”) makes this impossible. 

Consider:  

– Our 2023 recommendations for Belmont restaurant rezoning stemmed from 6 months of independent data collection and analysis

– We secured $100-plus thousand in state grants by identifying opportunities without waiting for permission. Indeed, I see the decision by Belmonts government not to meaningful pursue Massachusetts OneStop for Growth grants over the past three years to be absolutely indefensible. By not allowing the proposed EDAC structure to even initiate work without Select Board approval turns a technical committee into a ceremonial one.  

3. Charge Ambiguities & Centralized Control

The charge’s vague priorities (“balanced development reflecting community character”) and open-ended mandates (“perform other projects as requested”) grant the Select Board unchecked power to:  

– Divert EDAC into non-economic agendas (e.g., enforcing subjective “character” tests)

– Ignore inconvenient recommendations (e.g., if EDAC supports parking reform but Select Board favors status quo)

The requirement that all recommendations flow exclusively through you—with no direct access to other boards—further isolates economic expertise from decision-making.  

Why This Matters Now

Belmont faces existential challenges: commercial tax base stagnation, state-mandated housing compliance policies, and rising business vacancies in key districts. You may well want to study AI and its implications on the Belmont economy, but the large potential impact of AI on energy, transport, and a myriad number of key foundational sectors shouldn’t relegate responsibility to understand its impact to one subset of a single committee. Furthermore, one of the key recommendations from the 2019 Belmont Business study, that the town shall hire a dedicated economic development professional, has gone ignored for the past six years. We need a committee that:  

– Centrally positions small businesses—not as a footnote, but as 4+ voting seats 

– Empowers committee members to initiate solutions, not await assignments

– Holds direct channels across Belmont and greater Boston to integrate a rapidly changing technology driven economic reality into positive fiscal impact for Belmont taxpayers

The EDAC proposal does the opposite. It is not reform—it is regression.  

My Formal Position

I will not serve on this committee. My decades in business strategy consulting in the US and globally combined with my diverse and multifaceted educational background and Belmont governance experience tell me that this proposed EDAC structure is designed to fail. And this change is not grounded in any research, data, primary feedback, or any kind of peer community benchmarking. 

As such, I strongly recommend to the Select Board that you amend the proposal to:  

1. Restore four district-based business seats,

2. Remove all “when requested”language to enable proactive work, and  

3. Grant EDAC standing authority to advise all boards on economic-impact matters

However, given my inclination that my recommendations will fall on silent ears, I will therefore not seek any role in this EDAC and will instead devote my efforts to supporting Belmont businesses and grow its economy through other channels.  

Respectfully,  

Paul Joy

(Former Chair, Belmont Economic Development Committee)  

Neighbors reported hearing multiple shots in quick succession, like a firecracker going off.

See below for an update from Police Chief MacIsaac.