Letter to the Editor: Snow Removal Bylaw Not Enforced on Town's Own Property

This letter was sent to the Belmont Board of Selectmen.

To the editor:

Belmont has once again failed to comply with its own Snow Removal Bylaw with this winter's  second major snowfall, which occurred on Jan. 2 and 3. 

Selectman Jones claimed in a public hearing that Belmont needed the Snow Removal Bylaw to address the safety concerns of those using town sidewalks. However, the town itself raises safety concerns by failing to remove snow and treat for ice on the heavily trafficked public sidewalks for which it remains responsible after the passage of the Bylaw. These are just a few of the photographs I've taken on Sunday, Jan. 4 to illustrate the poor quality of snow removal performed by Belmont’s Department of Public Works.  

The Belmont Snow Removal Bylaw requires private property owners in Belmont to clear the snow from the public sidewalks adjoining their property within 24 hours after a snowfall, down to the bare pavement and to the width of 36 inches, and also to treat for ice at their own expense, or face fines from the Town. The attached photographs, all taken within 24 hours from this most recent heavy snowfall, show that on public sidewalks for which the Town of Belmont is responsible for clearing snow, the Belmont DPW fails to meet these standards. As is clearly shown in most of the attached photos,  when the DPW clears a sidewalk there's almost no exposed pavement, it's not cleared to the required 36 inches in width, and there’s no treatment of ice.  

As can be seen in the attached photos, the sidewalks around the Municipal Lot, the MBTA  station, and Waverly Square triangle (on Trapelo Road, Church Street, and Lexington Street, respectively) pose a risk of injury to pedestrians due to the DPW's failures to completely clear snow and treat for ice within 24 hours of a snowfall. Similar failures can be seen on the sidewalks surrounding the Cushing Square municipal lot. The Trapelo Road portion of the sidewalk with the bus stop is only half cleared, and the Williston Street sidewalk has yet to be plowed. The public sidewalks along Concord Ave near the Viglirolo Skating Rink and the high school playing field, and the sidewalks leading to the main high school entrance, are all poorly plowed, as are those abutting the Wellington School car drop off.  For comparison, a few photographs which show adequate snow clearing and/or ice treatment by the Town were taken on the sidewalks in front of WheelWorks and around Cushing Square. Finally, screen shots of Google Map aerial photos taken in the warmer months are attached and marked to show the geographic extent of the town's most recent failure to adequately clear snow and ice from public sidewalks.   

The demonstrated facts are that Belmont's DPW is capable of adequately clearing snow and ice from our sidewalks, but consistently fails to do so. The town government does not come close to meeting the standards for snow clearance that it has imposed on private property owners. This failure should be an embarrassment to the Board of Selectmen, Peter Castanino (Director of the DPW), and Glenn Clancy (Director of Community Development). Clancy is responsible for enforcement of the Snow Removal Bylaw and I welcome his comments as to how he plans to enforce the Bylaw on private property owners, given that Belmont's own government routinely fails to meet the snow clearing standards of the Bylaw. 

Contrary to the testimony of Jones and the other selectmen who favored the Snow Removal Bylaw, our elected officials apparently didn't actually care about public safety when they passed the Bylaw. They just wanted to shift some of the labor and expense of snow removal onto private property owners, and collect additional revenue from these same property owners through fines. Of course there is no recourse under the Bylaw for Belmont citizens to fine or penalize town officials who do a poor job of snow clearing on the town's most heavily trafficked sidewalks, including those used by Belmont's children and youth. 

It is unfair and unreasonable that Belmont homeowners should be held to a higher standard of snow removal than the town itself, and forced to pay for ice treatment out of their own pockets. After all, one of the many public goods we already pay for through our property taxes is maintenance of safe conditions on public sidewalks. There should be one standard of snow clearing for both the town and for Belmont's homeowners; Town officials should be held accountable if sidewalks under their jurisdiction are not adequately cleared; and if the town is going to require ice treatment on a sidewalk adjoining a private home, the town should pay for it.   

Is Jones serious about public safety or is he just talking out of the side of his mustache since the above facts are contrary to his claims?

Lee Adams
Trapelo Road