When he moved to Belmont, outgoing Select Board member Roy Epstein—like most people new to an area—didn’t know much about local politics. He wasn’t even sure what Town Meeting was before meeting a neighbor who served as a member.
Around 2002, that same neighbor encouraged him to run for Town Meeting.
“The first time, I was unsuccessful because I didn’t know what I was doing,” he recalled.
Eventually, after losing a tiebreaker caucus vote, he was elected and began to gain some experience and a better understanding of town politics.
“When I was on Town Meeting, I was impressed that everybody always looked to the Warrant Committee’s opinions … so it kind of struck me that a lot of issues seem to be largely decided—at least the form they took when they were presented to Town Meeting—at an earlier stage,” Epstein said. “I thought the Warrant Committee may be a more interesting place to be.”
In 2007, he was appointed to the Warrant Committee. It was at that point he started to retain his seat on Town Meeting more consistently.
“The more you get into something, the more you realize the Warrant Committee is good, but it’s purely advisory to Town Meeting,” Epstein said. “The decision-making in town is Town Meeting, but on a day-to-day basis, it’s the Select Board. So once you start to feel you have some perspective on things, the Select Board actually sounded more and more interesting.”
In 2019, Mark Paollilo, now running for town moderator in the April 1 election, announced he wouldn’t be running to retain his seat on the Select Board. Epstein decided to throw his hat in the ring and ran a campaign against Jessica Bennett and Timothy Flood.
In what he described as a “vigorously contested campaign,” Epstein bested Bennet by a mere 128 votes, garnering just shy of 49.9% of the vote, compared to her 47%.
In the early years of his public service, either on Town Meeting or as a member of the Warrant Committee, the town was dealing with repercussions from the original McLean zoning, a series of overrides — some successful, most not — and budget issues.
“I remember early on in Town Meeting … one of the first speeches I did was trying to get more money for sidewalks and street trees, which, I’m proud to say, I think the total budget (then) was $20,000, which is essentially $0. But it’s now up to … quarter of a million dollars.”
In the years since he became actively involved with town politics, he has seen the emergence of a strong town administrator— a result of the Town Administrator Special Act, which was enacted in 2014. He’s watched the town’s infrastructure change significantly, from renovating the Public Works facilities to building a new police station, and middle and high school. A new library and municipal rink are well underway on Concord Avenue.
Another major project, he said, was helping Belmont Light find a location for a substation in town to manage the town’s electricity needs. As a representative from the Warrant Committee, Epstein was a member of a working group that met several times a week trying to determine the best location for one. Purecoat was among the options, but Epstein pushed for alternatives due to the expense and potential to limit development down the road.
Finally, a solution arrived at Flanders Road, where one of three warehouses could become the new substation.
As for his two terms on the Select Board, Epstein was most proud of his role in advocating for the establishment of a five-member independently elected Municipal Light Board, a change accepted by Town Meeting in 2021; devising a parking scheme for the high school; drafting language for the town’s leaf blower bylaw; and finally, his involvement in the Police Department’s exit from Civil Service.
Despite what he considers a successful tenure, Epstein decided against running for a third term last fall.
“I enjoyed it too much; I really did,” he said. “But it was taking up – especially when I was chair – some weeks were 30 hours a week, 20 hours a week, and it was making it impossible to do other things. I just don’t know of a way to be on the Select Board at half-speed. … I’m kind of a fanatic when I’m doing something, so either do it fanatically or not.”
With those hours now freed up, Epstein said he will continue to work on some writing projects; “become less mediocre at piano”—a hobby he picked up late in life— and spend more time with family.
“Time is always the scarcest resource,” he said.
Epstein said he applauds Paul Joy and Taylor Yates for stepping up to run for his seat.
“The public is always best served with contested elections,” he said. “And I can honestly say that being on the Select Board was one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever done.”
