Special Town Meeting Likely In 'Late October' If ...

There is going to be a Special Town Meeting and there will be articles for Town Meeting representatives to vote on. Exactly when and what will be on the agenda remains up in the air.

At Monday's working session of the Belmont Board of Selectmen, Town Administrator David Kale said a fall Town Meeting would take place "likely in late October."

But the exact date has not been selected as several issues will need to be addressed in terms of available dates and other agendas which will need to be sorted out with Belmont Town Clerk Ellen Cushman. 

"There's nothing to put on your calendar yet," said Kale. 

What will be before the approximately 290 representatives for their consideration is also a bit in flux. It is certain that a new residential snow removal bylaw, sponsored by Belmont Selectman Ralph Jones, and a Demolition Delay ordinance to be presented by the Historic District Commission and the Belmont Planning Board will be on the meeting's warrant.

There is some discussion that Town Meeting would take up the start of replacing the turf surface and the underlying padding at Harris Field (Belmont High School's multipurpose athletic field on Concord Avenue) yet Kale said that issue remains fluid as the Capital Budget Committee needs to be heard concerning where in the long-term financing queue the field currently stands. 

At Monday's meeting, the Selectmen heard from "Demo Delay" proponents as they attempt to iron out issues which caused the supporters of the measure – which will delay the demolition of "historically significant" residential homes for up to six months - to be pulled from the annual Town Meeting in June.

During the meeting, the Selectmen suggested creating a 90-day appeals process in which homeowners can ask to be taken off the list of homes in the first three months after the new bylaw passes Town Meeting muster. Currently, the initial list includes roughly 210 residences which are determined worthy of protection by the state.

A second list, this one created by the Historic District Commission with funds from the Community Preservation Committee, will add or subtract homes from the bylaw.