3.18.21 Public Comments
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Belmont Announces First Annual Porchfest
Belmont Citizens Forum Belmont Community Path Update, Part One Feasibility Study Plan would Renew Transportation Infrastructure and Create New Public Spaces PARE CORP. K3 LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE LANDSCAPE K3 CORP. PARE At left, an aerial view of Waverley Square, with Lexington Street on the left, Trapelo Road on the right, and Church Street at the bottom. At right, the feasibility study proposed to “box over” Waverley Station and move the parking lot onto Church Street, creating a 31,000-square-foot park traversed by the community path. much of the former Central Massachusetts By Vincent Stanton, Jr. Railroad right-of-way through town was sold A bicycle and pedestrian path stretching from off. That right-of-way is the route for most of the the Charles River in East Cambridge to the town Mass Central Rail Trail elsewhere. of Berlin, beyond Interstate 495, is in various In 2014 the Belmont Board of Selectmen states of design or construction. The path is appointed the Community Path Implementation complete from Brighton Street in Belmont to Advisory Committee (CPIAC) to engage Lowell Street in Somerville (via Alewife station engineering and design consultants to study and Davis Square.) From the Belmont/Waltham possible routes through Belmont. Last December, border west to Route 128, a path is being the selectmen accepted CPIAC’s recommen- designed. Construction is likely to start in early dation to endorse the route proposed by Pare 2019. Corporation and K3 Landscape Architecture That leaves a 2.1-mile gap in Belmont. Filling (“the Pare team”).1 The endorsement is an the gap is difficult because of Belmont’s dense important step for the Belmont Community settlement and hilly topography and because Path, but challenges remain. -
Solar Electricity Pricing Plans Debated
Belmont Citizens Forum Solar Electricity Pricing Plans Debated By Meg Muckenhoupt and Virginia Jordan with an annual cap on solar buyback of 2% of total system sales. When a homeowner’s roof-top solar panels Under Phase 1 net metering, to calculate the generate more electricity than needed, how monthly bill, Belmont Light would measure much should Belmont Light pay for the excess the total amount of electricity a household energy fed back to the grid? uses and then subtract the electricity the That question is roiling environmental circles household produces. If Mary and Bob Sunshine in Belmont. Cutting the payback makes it less use 100-kilowatt hours (kWh) in a month and likely for people to install solar panels. But, are their photovoltaic solar panel system produced ratepayers subsidizing solar power, or vice versa, 75 kWh hours, they would be billed simply for and if so, by how much? Concerned residents 25 kWh. On the other hand, if their system can comment at the Belmont Light public produced 125 kWh, they would be billed hearing on September 18, 2014, at the Town Hall nothing that month and credited 25 kWh Auditorium, 455 Concord Avenue. against future use. Background The retail cost of electricity to Belmont residents includes the wholesale cost plus In 2008, Massachusetts mandated that overhead. Wholesale is what Belmont Light utilities adopt new net metering incentives pays to energy providers; it appears on your to encourage renewable energy installations. electric bill as Generation Usage. Overhead “Renewable energy” means solar, wind, or other includes maintenance of distribution lines non-fossil-fuel. -
Feasibility Study for the Belmont Community Path
Feasibility Study for the Belmont Community Path Submitted to: Belmont’s Community Path Implementation Advisory Committee Prepared November 2017 by TABLE OF CONTENTS DESCRIPTION PAGE Executive Summary 1 Introduction 3 Project History 3 Purpose 4 Process 5 Site Understanding 7 Safety Review 8 Public Engagement 9 Public Input 10 Design Guidelines 11 Alternative Development 13 Evaluation 40 Cost Estimating 43 Recommended Route 48 Funding 50 Moving Forward 51 Next Steps for Belmont 51 Future Decisions 54 i Belmont Community Path – Feasibility Study Appendices Appendix A Crash Data Appendix B PEP Plan/Formal Presentations Appendix C Public Input Appendix D Crime, Economic Impact and Safety of Multi‐Use Paths Appendix E Matrix Definitions/Completed Matrix Appendix F Alternative Costs Appendix G Property Impacts Appendix H Funding Coordination ii Belmont Community Path – Feasibility Study EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Town of Belmont, a densely settled urban area, suffers from worsening traffic congestion unbalanced with a desire to advance healthy living initiatives. A multi‐use path will provide opportunities for healthy recreation, an alternate mode of transportation for short commutes and great connections to existing transit stations for longer commutes. After 20 years of independently pursuing a multi‐use path, the Town of Belmont has procured a formal feasibility study aimed at identifying a recommended route for the path to move forward to design and construction. The following represents an account of the process and findings of this Feasibility Study. The essence of the proposed multi‐use path is to create a designated space for non‐motorized activity along an alignment that meets the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines for access and use. -
Fa Fb Fr H L a a a a Ne Nr Oc P W a B 71727377
Boston MBTA System Track Map Service Guide Abandoned Sections & Future Provisions Notes To Lowell Melrose/Cedar Park To Haverhill Heavy Rail Bus Rapid Transit 1. Former North Station portal H 2. Abandoned original Haymarket Sq Green Line station and central tracks Red Line Silver Line 3. Former Joy St portal 4. Unused Brattle Loop platform A Alewife to Ashmont 1 South Station to Logan Airport Terminals 5. Original Green Line tunnel to Adams Sq (demolished) *50 6. Abandoned Court St terminal Red Line Silver Line 7. North Station tracks 11 and 12 provisions 8. Abandoned Tremont St tunnel to South End MELROSE B Alewife to Braintree 2 South Station to Design Center 9. Former Pleasant St portal 10. Former Washington St Line a) portal b) supports for tracks above Mass Pike Winchester Wyoming Silver Line 11. Post Office Sq branch provisions L H Orange Line 12. Former portals at a) Public Garden and b) Boylston St OL 3 South Station to Chelsea 13. Broadway underground trolley station and portals CliftondaleSAUGUS Oak Grove to Forest Hills 14. Former Kenmore Sq portal 16. Original Riverside terminal platform Blue Line Silver Line 17. Gate where Red Line connected to street tracks for access to former Eliot Yard 18. Abandoned a) Harvard Sq platform b) Harvard/Holyoke station WINCHESTER 4 Nubian Station to South Station BL Bowdoin to Wonderland 19. Abandoned tunnels and portal to Eliot Yard (demolished) 20. Abandoned Airport station (original) foundations Light Rail Silver Line 21. Abandoned ROW of Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn RR a) Winthrop branch b) Lynn branch Wedgemere 5 Nubian Station to Downtown Crossing 22. -
Improving South Boston Rail Corridor Katerina Boukin
Improving South Boston Rail Corridor by Katerina Boukin B.Sc, Civil and Environmental Engineering Technion Institute of Technology ,2015 Submitted to the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY May 2020 ○c Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2020. All rights reserved. Author........................................................................... Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering May 19, 2020 Certified by. Andrew J. Whittle Professor Thesis Supervisor Certified by. Frederick P. Salvucci Research Associate, Center for Transportation and Logistics Thesis Supervisor Accepted by...................................................................... Colette L. Heald, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Chair, Graduate Program Committee 2 Improving South Boston Rail Corridor by Katerina Boukin Submitted to the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering on May 19, 2020, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering Abstract . Rail services in older cities such as Boston include an urban metro system with a mixture of light rail/trolley and heavy rail lines, and a network of commuter services emanating from termini in the city center. These legacy systems have grown incrementally over the past century and are struggling to serve the economic and population growth -
2008 Massachusetts Bicycle Transportation Plan
Planners Collaborative Design Collaborative Communications Collaborative MASSACHUSETTS BICYCLE TRANSPORTATION PLAN Prepared for Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation Prepared by Planners Collaborative, Inc. With assistance from TranSystems Corporation National Center for Bicycling and Walking Rubel Bike Maps Alan McLennan September 2008 Table of Contents Dedication Executive Summary 1 Introduction 1.1 Vision for Sustainable Bicycle Transportation 1.2 The Commonwealth’s Role in Bicycle Transportation 1.3 Investing to Improve Bicycle Transportation 1.4 Organization of the Plan 2 The Context for the Plan 2.1 The Massachusetts Long-Range State Transportation Plan and the Strategic Transportation Plan 2.2 1998 Massachusetts Statewide Bicycle Transportation Plan 2.3 MassHighway Initiatives to Improve Bicycling Conditions 2.3.1 Engineering Directives and Guidelines 2.3.2 MassHighway’s Project Development and Design Guide 2.4 Other Commonwealth Planning Efforts 2.4.1 Transit-Oriented Development 2.4.2 DCR’s Commonwealth Connections 2.4.3 MassHighway Bicycle Facilities Inventory 2.4.4 Regional and Local Planning Efforts 2.4.5 Adjacent States’ Bicycle Facilities and Programs 2.5 Public Outreach in Support of the Plan 3 Bicycle Facility Resources and Opportunities 3.1 Bicycle Facility Types 3.1.1 On-Road Bicycle Facilities 3.1.2 Long Distance Bicycle Routes 3.1.3 Shared Use Paths 3.2 Bicycle Facility Resources 3.2.1 Major Shared Use Path Resources in Massachusetts 3.3 Funded Bicycle Projects 3.4 Congressionally Funded -
Minuteman Bikeway Planning Project RFP # 21-28
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS (RFP) Minuteman Bikeway Planning Project RFP # 21-28 The Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD) acting through the Town Manager is requesting proposals from qualified individuals and firms for Consulting Services related to conducting the Minuteman Bikeway Planning Project. A copy of the RFP outlining the requirements for submission is available online or from the Purchasing Department. For further information contact Daniel Amstutz, Senior Transportation Planner at 781-316- 3093 or [email protected]. The proposal may be viewed and downloaded from the Town website www.arlingtonma.gov/purchasing. Proposals are invited and will be received by the Purchasing Officer, Town of Arlington, Massachusetts on or before 2:00 PM, June 9, 2021 at the Town Manager’s/Purchasing Office, Town Hall Annex 2nd floor, 730 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington, MA 02476. Proposals delivered after the appointed time and date will not be considered. There is a drop box in the Academy Street parking lot on the side of Town Hall for bids to be submitted as Town Hall is closed to the public. A briefing on the RFP and the scope of work is scheduled May 27, 2021 at 3:00 PM via Zoom. Please register in advance for the briefing session at: https://town-arlington-ma- us.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJItcOCqqjkvGt1xgimcRdf2eaVRYzHvBXbF. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. All prospective applicants are encouraged to attend. Questions about the RFP may be submitted by June 4, 2021, at 12 PM. Responses to questions, including those raised at the briefing session, will be sent to those requesting the RFP and posted online as addenda to the RFP. -
November/December 2013 Preserving Belmont’S Small-Town Atmosphere Vol
Belmont Citizens Forum Many Bikeway Abutters Forgo Trail Barriers By Leah Brams and Vincent Stanton Jr. To investigate abutters’ choices of natural and physical barriers we studied the Minuteman City planners, economists, and sociologists Bikeway in Arlington. We found that just have published many studies of the impact of over half of homes and businesses along the recreational trails on home values, crime and Bikeway are within 50 feet of the trail, yet few other quantifiable events. But the true experts homeowners have put in fences, walls, or dense on recreational trails, it could be argued, are evergreen plantings. Apparently, abutters do not the people who live next to them. They have feel they need to make special efforts to protect experienced the positive and negative aspects their property from path users. firsthand, in some cases for decades. To learn what trail abutters think, one could The Minuteman Bikeway conduct interviews—and that has been done—or The Minuteman Bikeway runs for about one could study how they have behaved, on the nine miles through Arlington and Lexington theory that actions speak louder than words. and about one mile through Bedford. The trail Abutters are free to plant trees and shrubs opened in 1992, so abutters have had 21 years or erect fences and walls to separate their to adjust to the flow of bicyclists, walkers, and house from the trail. Homeowners’ choices of in-line skaters. landscaping elements can reveal their attitudes For this article we catalogued trees, bushes, towards an adjacent path. fences, walls, and other landscaping features For example, it seems fair to assume that a along the Minuteman Bikeway in Arlington, history of trail-associated crime or vagrancy measuring their height, distance from the trail, would eventually lead to more fences and walls, and other properties to determine the degree of and that they would be built higher and stronger screening they provide to abutting properties. -
Alewife Walking Tour
D R E V A R G A E S AVE RE MO ITTE WH Alewife JuneWalking 2017 Tour Cambridge, Massachusetts k o o r B e f i w e l A CONCORD TPK ALEWIFE T STATION ACCESS RD AR LINGTON 4: Minuteman Commuter CAM Bikeway / Linear Path BRIDGE 5: Discovery Park A 6: Lanes and Games L E W I ALEWIFE F !T E B er R iv O e R O ittl K y L P Jerr K n Alewife T Station W Po Y K (START/FINISH) N P Alewife Brook Reservation OR AC 1: Fitchburg Cutoff Bikepath S T E E L VE P GE A L RIND 1/8 ¯ RK DR IDGEPA 1/16 CAMBR 2: Alewife Brook 0 Miles Reservation Wetlands 3: Cambridgepark Drive Map prepared on June 6, 2017. CDD GIS C:\Projects\Env_Trans\PedestrianCommittee\AlewifeWalkRoute8x11.mxd MOONEY ST T L S ETT P FAWC H T I M S Highlights 4. Minuteman Commuter Bikeway/Linear Path The Cambridge Pedestrian The Minuteman Commuter Bikeway and Linear Path are two multi-use paths accessible from Alewife, with Committee Presents: 1. Fitchburg Cutoff Bikepath entrances to both just north of the Alewife T Station. The The Fitchburg Cutoff Bikepath is a 0.8-mile multi-use Minuteman runs 10 miles north from Alewife to Bedford, path that runs from Brighton Street in Belmont to Alewife passing through Arlington and Lexington centers. Station, and connects to three other multi-use paths: the Construction of the Minuteman was completed in 1993 Minuteman Commuter Bikeway, the Alewife Brook path, on top of an inactive railroad right-of-way, and it has Alewife Afoot and Linear Park. -
J T E^Vvslette^I
\ 7 . ,—— Boston\ 9& MaineIncorporated Railroad Historical Societ y 71 / —« J_ T E^VVSLETTE^I Meeting/Membership Telephone Number (978) 454-3600 copyright 2010 B&MRRHS September - October 2010 Bob Warren, Editor ([email protected]) Visit the B&MRRHS on the web at: http:www.tram web.org/bmrrhs/ Opinions expressed in the signed columns or letters of this Newsletter are those of their respective authors and not necessarily represent the opinions of the Society, its officers or members with respect to any particular subject discussed in those columns. The inclusion of commercial products or services in this Newsletter is for the conve• nience of the membership only, and in no way constitutes an endorsement of said products or services by the Society or any of its officers or directors, nor will the Society be responsible for the performance of said commercial suppliersB&MRRH. We reserve theS righ CALENDAt to edit all materialR , either due to length or content, submitted_for publication. Meetings commence at 3:30 pm on the second Saturday at Rogers Hall unless otherwise indicated. Sept. 25th We will be back at the Silver Lake Railway for another fun-filled day. Oct. 16th Justin Winiarz will be taking us on his railroad travels. Nov.1301 George and Kathy Melvin will do a presentation on their book "B&M Memories" which covers the 45 year career of Preston Johnson on the B&M. There will be a book signing and we hope that Preston Johnson will be able to attend. Dec.ll01 "Members Nite", bring your slides and videos. Directions To The Rogers Hall Society Meeting Location From Rt. -
Regional Bicycle Plan (PDF)
Acknowledgments Chairman, Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization Bernard Cohen Metropolitan Area Planning Council Executive Director Marc Draisen Project Manager Barbara Lucas Principal Author Scott Walker Staff Contributors Rebecca Dann, Wendy Ingram Plan Review Committee Michelle Ciccolo, Town of Hudson Reno DeLuzio, Chairman, Milford Upper Charles Trail Committee Dan Driscoll, Department of Conservation and Recreation Mark Fenton, Public health and transportation consultant Todd Fontanella, Executive Office of Transportation Jack Johnson, Arlington Bicycle Committee Carl King, Marblehead resident and bicycling advocate Josh Lehman, Bicycle and Pedestrian Program Manager, EOT Cathy Buckley Lewis, Central Transportation Planning Staff Steve Miller, Hub on Wheels Cara Seiderman, City of Cambridge Bill Steelman, Essex National Heritage Commission David Watson, MassBike Stephen Winslow, City of Somerville Special Thanks Doug Mink, Jon Niehof, Chris Porter Document Design and Preparation Maciej Citowicki, Kenneth Dumas, and Lee Morrison, Central Transportation Planning Staff This document was prepared for the Boston Region MPO. Its preparation was supported by 3C Transportation Planning Funds and by state and local matching funds. Massachusetts Highway Department Contracts 0042578 and 004868 and EOTC Section 5303: MA-80-X017 and MA-80-0001. March 2007 REGIONAL BICYCLE PLAN 1 Table of Contents Executive Summary .........................................................................................5 Introduction ....................................................................................................7 -
Infinite Urban Landscapes: a Journey Through Cambridge, Massachusetts
Infinite Urban Landscapes: A Journey Through Cambridge, Massachusetts by Leah B. Brunetto SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN ARCHITECTURE AT THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY MAY 2012 © 2012 Leah B. Brunetto. All rights reserved The author hereby grants to MIT permission to reproduce and to distribute publicly paper and electronic copies of this thesis document in whole or in part in any medium now known or hereafter created. Signature of Author: _____________________________________________________________ Department of Architecture May 25, 2012 Certified by: ___________________________________________________________________ Azra Aksamija Assistant Professor of Art, Culture, and Technology Thesis Supervisor Accepted by: ___________________________________________________________________ Meejin Yoon Professor of Architecture Director of the Undergraduate Architecture Program 2 THESIS COMMITTEE Advisor: Azra Aksamija, PhD Assistant Professor of Art, Culture, and Technology Reader: Anne Whiston Spirn Professor of Landscape Architecture and Planning 3 4 Infinite Urban Landscapes: A Journey Through Cambridge, Massachusetts by Leah B. Brunetto SUBMITTED TO THE DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN ARCHITECTURE AT THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY MAY 2012 ABSTRACT This study explores how the forms of urban landscapes influence and reflect physical and metaphorical journeys through a city. Using an interdisciplinary approach, the artist and researcher investigates the diverse landscapes of her native Cambridge, Massachusetts: from her own backyard to the Minuteman Bikeway. Places such as public parks once felt physically infinite and natural in childhood, but are revealed as man-made and enclosed by the inorganic frameworks of the city.