The town of Belmont is currently having an active debate over the best way to rezone our Belmont Center district. As a Town Meeting member, I strongly want to see more commercial tax revenue to help our budget and more housing for our young (and old) town residents. I fully respect those Town Meeting members who also have concerns over disruption in the center due to construction, or concerns over traffic and density. I am personally friends with one such member who is experienced, kind, and well-educated on these issues and debates.
However, what I wanted to raise in this letter is how increasingly fringy voices online have been vitriolic and increasingly untethered to reality. These voices claimed “moneyed interests” are “behind this.” Which residents are being referred to here is left unsaid. But this is in addition to other comments suggesting Belmont is a “war zone” and another calling Belmont potential for a business (in this case a hotel) would lead to it “be taken over by the state to house illegal migrants (including their children who were enrolled in local schools).” (I am quoting them directly.)
These fact-free statements are the wrong message for Belmont to send to potential businesses that want to move here and will scare away folks who have the skills and talents we need to keep our community solvent, let alone thriving. I encourage debate and free speech, but please, let’s stick to the facts.
Michael McNamara, Marlboro Street