The Belmont Voice

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News

Belmont Fails to Secure PILOT Payments from Wealthy Nonprofits

April 14, 2024

As Belmont struggles to increase its tax base, the town is potentially missing out on money from tax-exempt organizations that could be making a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, a program that has successfully increased revenue in neighboring communities, including…

News

Annual Town Meeting to Return to In-Person Only

April 13, 2024

After several hybrid Town Meetings, the Select Board voted to return to its original, in-person format this month, with no remote option for the upcoming Town Meeting. “The town operated just fine … through 2019 with the live meeting,” said Select Board…

Arts·News

Belmont’s Shining Stars

April 12, 2024

Photos by Isabel Miranda/Belmont Voice The stars were out in Belmont Friday night for the Belmont Woman’s Club’s Dancing With The Belmont Stars fundraiser. Between admission, the bar, and voting tickets for the Fan Favorite, the club raised more than $25,000 to…

News

A Celestial Event Creates Community Connection

April 11, 2024

An estimated 1,500-plus people from near and far flocked to Town Field Monday afternoon to join others across North and Central America in experiencing the total solar eclipse. “We’ve been waiting for this since we heard about it a year ago,” said…

A brick house standing next to a mint green house.

Arts·News

Common Street Home Is Belmont’s Link to the Manhattan Project

April 10, 2024

The home at 404 Common Street looks like a typical Boston suburb, with neat homes on fairly small lots set close together. But the home at 404 Common St. makes the neighborhood more of a conversation piece because it was owned by…

News

School Committee, Administrators Consider Changes for 7th Grade Math

April 9, 2024

For years, Belmont school officials have discussed the math curriculum, seeking ways to ensure all students’ needs are met while also offering opportunities for high-achieving students. “This is not just a Belmont question; this has been tackled by several other districts,” said…

Arts

Belmont Has a Link To An R&B Hero

April 8, 2024

It may not be a song you’ve heard in a while, but one listen to the hit “Poison”—as dozens of attendees did at last week’s Dancing with the Belmont Stars—and you may very well time travel back to the music group Bell…

A woman standing next to a cut out figure.

Business·News

Westcott Mercantile Celebrates 10 Years in Belmont Center

April 8, 2024

It’s hard to believe Westcott Mercantile has only been in Belmont Center for 10 years. With its quirky displays, friendly staff, and old-fashioned customer service, the stylish gift shop at 63 Leonard St. taps so strongly into a sense of nostalgia that…

News

MBTA Advisory Committee Sends Recommendation to Planning Board

April 7, 2024

After more than a year of discussing how to comply with a new state law [and with a December compliance deadline looming], the MBTA Community Advisory Committee voted on a zoning map recommendation this week. The committee will now send the recommended…

Business·News

‘A Hobby, Not a Business’: Dick’s Place Owner Looks to Sell

April 6, 2024

As a young boy, Richard “Dick” Chandler used to marvel at the antique furniture in the old homes on Brattle Street in Cambridge. “When I’d trick-or-treat, they’d invite us inside, and I’d see all these antiques,” he recalled. “Some of the guys…