IS BELMONT “BUSINESS-FRIENDLY?”
A REPORT TO THE BELMONT BOARD OF SELECTMEN
February 10, 2003
The Belmont Vision 21 Implementation Committee
Jennifer Page, Chair
Jennifer Fallon
Martin Greco
Joseph Greene
Matthew Hausmann
William Hofmann III
Margaret O’Brien
Sara Oaklander
Paul Solomon
Barry Winston
Timothy Higgins, Management Liaison
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE VISION 21 IMPLEMENTATION COMMITTEE
TO THE BOARD OF SELECTMEN OF BELMONT:
IS BELMONT BUSINESS FRIENDLY?
1. PERMITTING PROCESS
The permitting process in Belmont is lengthy and convoluted and creates costly delays for businesses. It was one of the two most frequently cited problems raised in the forums.
Recommendation: that the Board of Selectmen direct the Office of Community Development (1) to review our permitting processes and procedures as they apply to businesses and (2) to develop proposals and recommendations for updating Belmont’s permitting processes and procedures that, when adopted, will be timely and fair for the business owners while still keeping reasonable protections and assurance to residents that the town will maintain its “small town atmosphere.” Further, that these be done in consultation with the Business and Economic Development Planning Group.
2. PARKING
The second most-frequently cited problem was parking. The lack of a sufficient number of appropriate parking spaces throughout town is a major problem for business owners.
Recommendation #1: that the Board of Selectmen make a commitment to the development of a set of coherent, town-wide on-street parking regulations; that as a first step, the Selectmen ask the Police Department to develop and recommend criteria to the Board of Selectmen to use in developing a coherent set of on-street parking regulations; and that after these criteria are developed and accepted by the Selectmen, a committee be established (consisting of representatives of the affected groups [businessmen, abutters, and long-term commuters] plus representatives of the general public, the police department and OCD) to develop a town-wide parking plan which takes into account the competing needs of the various constituencies and results in consistent, coherent, and appropriate on-street parking regulations
throughout the town. This committee should make every possible effort to engage the public as well as the impacted business owners in this endeavor.
Recommendation #2: that the Board of Selectmen refer to the Business and Economic Development Planning Group the task of conducting an analysis of possible costs and benefits of constructing additional municipal parking, including lots and garages; and that they explore other long-term and short-term options, including but not limited to those raised in the 2002 Municipal Parking Study.
3. MASTER PLANNING
The town has not updated its Master Plan since its completion in 1966. Consequently, important land-use decisions are being made lacking the context and guidance of a modern, community plan.
Recommendation: that the Town initiates a master planning process to produce a Comprehensive Master Plan, with broad community input.
4. TRAFFIC
Two specific traffic concerns were prominent in the forum discussions: pedestrian safety and vehicular speed.
Recommendation: that the Selectmen ask the Town Engineer and the Traffic Advisory Committee (TAC) to review the suggestions offered (both here and in the Appendix) for feasibility and for compatibility with the interests of the business community and that the TAC ensure that business interests be a factor in recommendations and decisions it makes.
5. TOWN SERVICES
Much frustration was expressed about snow removal and trash removal, due to the fact that these town services are not provided to businesses.
Recommendation: that the Selectmen request the Business and Economic Development Planning Group to (1) review the town’s practices, policies and by-laws on snow removal; (2) determine how other towns handle this problem; and (3) investigate and identify possible solutions, which may include funding and/or personnel options and other alternatives to expedite the removal of the piled snow.
Recommendation: that Selectmen request the Business and Economic Development Planning Group, in cooperation with the Solid Waste and Recycling Advisory Committee to (1) review the town’s practices and policies on trash removal and recycling; (2) determine how other towns handle trash and recycling for businesses; and (3) investigate and identify solutions which may be appropriate for Belmont and its business community.
6. ADVOCACY FOR BUSINESSES
The Town is perceived as not offering support to its business community, to existing, new and prospective business owners, and to their self-promoting activities.
Recommendation: that the Board of Selectmen refer these ideas (enumerated in the text) to the Business and Economic Development Planning Group for further investigation and development.
7. RESTAURANTS AND LIQUOR LICENSES
Business owners were unanimous in their opinion that a full liquor license is necessary to attract major dining establishments to the community.
Recommendation #1: that the Selectmen support the need for full liquor licenses for dining establishments in Belmont (the exact number to be determined through a public hearing process). Further, that the Board direct Town Counsel to draft the necessary legal documents/paperwork to allow such a proposal to be voted upon by the Town Meeting in April 2003 as a first step in realizing this goal.
Recommendation #2: that the permitting process for granting beer and wine licenses be streamlined. If necessary, Selectmen -- or their designee, the Town Administrator or the Office of Community Development -- should review and update the submittal requirements and procedures so the permitting process will be timely and fair for the business owners while still providing to residents a reasonable set of protections.
8. HOSTILITY AND INDIFFERENCE TOWARD THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY
The cumulative effect of the issues identified herein have produced, on the part of business owners, a strong sense that the Town is indifferent to their needs. The opinions expressed suggest anger toward the Town, disillusionment with the Town, and the perception that the Town is, in some instances, openly hostile toward business owners.
Recommendations: that the Board of Selectmen:
--take every opportunity to articulate to the public, to Town boards and committees, and to Town employees the value of a thriving business community to our Town – to the “livability” of the Town and to our local economy.
--direct the Town Administrator to require that each office develop and implement ideas that would make the office more welcoming to the pubic, including business people. This may be coupled with staff training programs about how to work successfully with members of the public.
--take every opportunity to ensure business representation on Town committees that have oversight in areas relevant to them.
--ask that every office, committee and board which has oversight of any area which might affect businesses take care to consider the needs and interests of the business community as they make recommendations and take actions.
--invite any new business owner, after the business has opened, to appear at the following Selectmen’s meeting to be greeted and welcomed, and to speak for a moment about the new business. This could happen for all businesses, large or small, and would only take a few minutes of meeting time while conveying a significant message.
II. INTRODUCTION
In January 2002, the Belmont Board of Selectmen approved the Belmont Vision 21 Implementation Committee’s proposal to begin implementation of Belmont’s Vision statement (approved by Town Meeting in April 2001) by focusing on five priority areas. One of these areas was the business climate in Belmont.
The Committee’s initial commitment to help our business community thrive grew out of several ideas in the Vision Statement:
--Thriving business centers [will] contribute economic stability while offering places for residents to dine, shop, and socialize.
--We will work with neighborhoods and residents to identify and support retail needs and opportunities.
--We will preserve our small-town community atmosphere.
Taken together, these ideas prompted the Committee to decide that helping our business community thrive was an appropriate choice as one of our first initiatives.
During the summer of 2002 informal meetings with several members of the business community revealed that there are many issues with which business people contend; some of these are no doubt present in many small towns, but some of them are unique to doing business in Belmont.
Forums for Business Owners: The Vision Committee proceeded to develop and implement plans to hold three forums, to which Belmont business owners and landlords were invited. The theme was the question, “Is Belmont Business-Friendly?”
Three goals were developed for the forums:
1. Identify some of the key challenges and opportunities faced by businesses in Belmont;
2. Identify ideas and methods to address the challenges; and
3. Develop a mechanism and commitment for continued dialog and decisions.
Two evening forums and one morning forum were held in mid-September, 2002. A total of 27 businessmen and women and one landlord attended one or more forums. Participation was vigorous, and ideas and suggestions were generated. Additionally, business owners unable to attend the meetings contacted Committee members and were subsequently interviewed extensively, using the same general format for eliciting data as that used at the forums.
Validity: In reviewing the data, Committee members asked, “Are these data valid? Did we have a sample that represents the diverse points of view of Belmont businesses?” We concluded that, to a large extent, the data from the forums and interviews were valid, based on the following:
--Types of businesses: We had diverse representation from retail, personal services, professional services, repair services, insurance, food and restaurant providers, and banks.
--Length of stay in Belmont: There was a representative sample, ranging from businesses which are “multi-generational” to those that have been in Belmont for less than one year.
--Geographic sampling: We had representation from most sections of town (the three centers, shops all along Trapelo Road, the east end of Concord Ave./ Brighton Street). There was no representation from the north end of Pleasant Street and the southwest end of Belmont Street.
To improve the validity and quality of the data, the Vision Committee planned and conducted additional interviews with individuals representing business types and geographic areas not in attendance at the forums (auto garages; north Pleasant Street; south-west Belmont St.) and also with individuals representing businesses that either had closed or left Belmont; or “almost” came to Belmont.
Forums for Residents: Is Belmont Business-Friendly? Members of the Vision Committee felt that without the perspective and ideas of residents of the town, the data would be incomplete. Consequently, one forum was conducted for residents in early November. This forum sought residents’ comments on what benefits and detriments a business community brings to a town, and on what kinds of issues residents believed our business community faces. Approximately twelve residents of the town participated.
Report and Recommendations: As the Committee examined the data from the forums, it became clear to us that there were indeed steps, which could be taken by the Town to address some of these issues, and so the Committee turned its attention to developing recommendations, which we believed, could and should be implemented. Ever mindful of the fiscal constraints under which the Town operates in these hard times, almost all of the recommendations require no additional fiscal expenditures at this time. However, each of them requires action on the part of the Selectmen – favorable action that we hope will be taken.
III. BELMONT’S BUSINESS COMMUNITY: WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO OUR TOWN?
During the fall of 2002, the Vision 21 Implementation Committee hosted three forums for business owners in Belmont and one forum for residents. The general theme of these gatherings was the question, “Is Belmont Business-Friendly?”
During the forums and in follow-up conversations, we learned about difficulties faced by the business owners and about what they wish the town would do to support them. The bulk of this report addresses those problems. However, one may reasonably ask, “Why should we bother?” “Why should we as a town value our business areas and work to improve them?” We have even heard the cynical, “They’re here to earn a living off of us. We don’t owe them anything!”
We realized, in retrospect, that as we launched this effort we had not stopped to ask ourselves what the business community meant to us as individuals, or to the residents and Town as a whole.
Now we think we know. We have learned from the business people themselves, from residents who talked with us, and from examining our own experience. This is what we have learned about how our business community contributes to the welfare of our Town:
Sense of Community: First, thriving business centers contribute to building a sense of community. They help to define a town by providing public places where people meet – accidentally or by intention. Frequent but casual encounters are critical to the informal building of mutual interests, reinforcement of personal ties, and the exchange of information and news among residents. Such meetings might be impromptu conversations in a grocery store, toy store, or parking lot; or planned get-togethers – a cup of coffee, a meal, or a movie. When a town lacks inviting commercial locations of these kinds, and the residents seek alternatives in other towns, we lose one of the essential means by which we cohere as a community.
A sense of community is vital to our Town’s welfare and future. It inspires in its residents willing volunteerism, a commitment to address local issues, a sense of connectedness and shared responsibility for one another as individuals and, in a larger sense, for our collective welfare.
Convenience: Those who choose to live in a suburban community want it all – the convenience of urban areas together with the enjoyment of the space (and occasional serenity) afforded by back yards and parks. Our commercial centers can fulfill the “convenience” half of that equation. The greater the range of commercial ventures and services near to our homes, the easier it is to manage the essential tasks of daily living. One challenge to us as a town is to find ways of ensuring that such a variety exists.
Safety: Active business areas promote a sense of safety – safety in numbers. We postulate that crime happens less frequently in busy areas. Thus, it is to our benefit to ensure that our commercial areas are busy.
Aesthetics: Well-planned, attractive commercial areas can be aesthetically pleasing and provide a source of pleasure in their own right, while also attracting customers to the area. The visual impact of the street landscape itself (wide sidewalks, clean streets, well positioned buildings, and attractive lighting, for example) makes the experience of simply being in the area a satisfying one. It engenders a sense of civic pride in the residents and helps to distinguish our town from others. Thoughtfully designed clusters of buildings, of a scale appropriate to the town, can also be visually pleasing and can lend “character” to the commercial area. Residents’ positive aesthetic experience in a commercial area is good for business and good for the town.
Revenue: Thriving business areas contribute revenue to the town, in both taxes and fees. Empty buildings and shops pay lower taxes than those that are occupied; the town also does not capture the many other fees that successful businesses pay. Additionally, unoccupied buildings, being unappealing, have a subtle but depressive effect on the surrounding businesses, thereby undermining near-by commercial ventures and making it more difficult for them to thrive. Successful businesses benefit from being near other successful businesses – and provide financial benefit to the town.
Property Values: Thriving business areas also contribute to the town by maintaining or helping to increase property values. When a community has bustling, attractive shopping areas, prospective homeowners are drawn to it.
Reputation of Town: A town with active, attractive business centers communicates important messages to its citizens and to “outsiders.” It is seen as a town that has pride in itself, that it is engaged in comprehensive planning, and that provides good town services. Such a reputation attracts good new businesses as well as good new residents.
Good Neighbors: The business owners in Belmont, and most especially those who manage their own stores, make wonderful neighbors. They contribute generously to town causes both financially and in goods and services. They build personal and caring relationships with customers. They contribute time and energy to public events, which is good for the businesses themselves and good for the town as a whole.
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Perhaps the best way to summarize the importance of our business areas to the Town is that they enhance the livability of Belmont. We believe that it is vital to the future of the Town to support our business areas and business owners and to ensure that they thrive. We hope that you agree.
IV. NARRATIVE AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This section contains eight sets of recommendations from the Vision 21 Implementation Committee to the Board of Selectmen. The topics addressed by each recommendation emerged from the most frequently cited and strongly felt issues raised in the forums. A statement of the issue, in which we attempt to convey how the issue impacts Belmont’s businesses, precedes each recommendation. Imbedded in each recommendation is a suggestion for which office or committee might take responsibility for the implementation of the recommendation.
The areas of recommendation are these:
1. Permitting Process
2. Parking
3. Master Planning
4. Traffic
5. Town Services
6. Advocacy for Businesses
7. Restaurants and Liquor Licenses
8. Hostility and Indifference Toward the Business Community
1. PERMITTING PROCESS
The Issue: The permitting process in Belmont creates a very serious problem for businesses. It was one of the two most frequently cited problems raised in every forum, and it was returned to again and again. Our current permitting process gives Belmont a poor reputation within the larger business community and conveys to new and prospective business owners the impression that the Town is indifferent or, worse, hostile toward them. It also appears to cause the Town to lose many prospective and desirable businesses.
The procedures and rules employed today are duplicative, outmoded, and unnecessarily time-consuming. Numerous examples of this were provided in the forums. In addition, because the process takes so long and is so arcane, chain stores with full-time attorneys and significant financial resources are far more likely to persist and endure throughout the process than are the more unique small businesses and shops that lack such back up. This may result in increasing numbers of chain stores coming to Belmont.
The forums helped to clarify that there are two major problems with our permitting process. First, the business owners who sought permits found that the available information is confusing and inadequate; and second, they experienced a fragmentation of information sources. Many businesspeople complained that they had to go from office to office with no overall sense of what each office would require and with no guidance about the order in which they should approach the various offices. They experienced an Alice-in-Wonderland maze: each time they returned to Town Hall, they dealt with a different office and discovered new and unexpected requirements.
We have subsequently learned that the Office of Community Development (OCD) has taken the lead in resolving this issue by drafting an informational document, which lays out the entire permitting process as it is now conducted, including all of the requirements at each stage, and from each office. We understand that OCD is currently seeking feedback from the other offices regarding this document. We commend OCD for taking this initiative, trust that the document will soon be completed, and hope that it will be a useful guide to our current process, despite how cumbersome and disjointed it may be.
The more difficult problem is how to address the difficulties inherent in the permitting process, as it now exists in Belmont. Numerous examples were given of permit requests before the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) taking up to six (6) months to be resolved. Furthermore, it seems that often there are two separate permits required from the ZBA and the Planning Board for essentially the same request. Such duplication lengthens the process. Six months seems excessively long to most businesses, as “time is money.” Another common complaint was that even the most mundane change or addition to a building or use required action from the Zoning Board of Appeals. Business people were clear that similar proposals in other communities did not require such a lengthy permitting process. Thus, it is
easier and more attractive to do business someplace else.
Clearly, this issue will take longer to remedy than the development of a single document, as is being done now by OCD, but we believe it can be done. We propose a thorough review and, if necessary, a revision of these processes and procedures, in order to bring them up-to-date, make them comparable to those of similar communities, and increase the overall efficiency of the process while still protecting abutters and the Town as a whole. We recognize that such a revision will impact existing procedures, regulations, and by-laws, which comprise the way the Town issues permits. If Belmont is to attract and keep the kinds of businesses that the community desires, we must make these sorely needed changes.
Recommendation: that the Board of Selectmen direct the Office of Community Development (1) to review our permitting processes and procedures as they apply to businesses and (2) to develop proposals and recommendations for updating Belmont’s permitting processes and procedures that, when adopted, will be timely and fair for the business owners while still keeping reasonable protections and assurance to residents that the town will maintain its “small town atmosphere.” Further, that these be done in consultation with the Business and Economic Development Planning Group.
Comment: The Vision Implementation Committee recognizes the possibility that the proposals and recommendations from this effort may result in a significantly different allocation of responsibilities for Town offices, boards and/or committees; will involve
amendments to the Belmont Zoning By-Laws; and will therefore require approval by Town Meeting. Be that as it may, we feel that the Town is doing itself and its residents, as well as the business community, a significant disservice in the way it conducts this aspect of its business.
2. PARKING
The Issue: The lack of sufficient numbers of appropriate parking spaces in business areas throughout town is a significant problem for business owners, as indicated by how frequently it was mentioned at the forums. Four groups compete for existing spaces; of these, the first three are (a) business-owners-and-their-employees, (b) customers, and (c) long-term commuters. The fourth group consists of the (d) residential property owners whose homes are on streets abutting business areas and who exert considerable influence on neighborhood parking policies (e.g., different limits for different streets).
Because the problem is one that is caused by the cumulative effect of these groups’ interests, we feel that it is important to understand the pressures on each of them:
Business owners must have parking spaces for themselves and their employees, reasonably near their places of business, for the duration of the business hours (or longer). Often they have to park on near-by side streets or on main thoroughfares some distance away, in order to keep the parking spaces in front of their shops available to their customers.
The customers themselves are interested in convenience – that is, in proximity to the businesses they patronize – and experience considerable frustration when no parking can be found. Business owners throughout Town believe that the lack of parking in Belmont’s commercial areas sends customers to other towns and to the malls, where parking is free and plentiful.
Long-term commuters also compete for parking spaces: the two train stations are located in busy business centers, both with inadequate parking for long-term users. (Most suburban towns on the train line do have parking lots next to the station for the train riders.) Those who ride the bus are luckier, since the bus routes traverse long corridors, providing more parking opportunities along the route. Increasingly, however, the “side street” parking is being removed from their list of options. Yet one of the main reasons people move to Belmont is because of its desirable location, which often means proximity to Boston. We must be mindful of our many residents who moved to Belmont because of its proximity to the city, yet cannot find a way to park in Belmont in order to take public
transportation to work.
Residential property owners also feel the pinch: they dislike the presence of unfamiliar people and cars on their streets, parked in front of their houses, sometimes obstructing their driveways. Business owners have experienced the residents’ pressure: it is sometimes expressed as overt hostility toward the business owners themselves, their employees, and -- most distressingly -- their customers. Town authorities have often accommodated the property owners, resulting in a jumble of parking restrictions and prohibitions on side streets near the business areas and along public transportation routes throughout town. This “spot parking” practice has made a shambles of any previously coherent parking policy.
It also appears that public pressure has prevented the Town from creating parking on municipal property. For example, the Town owns land abutting the rail line on Royal Road and on Concord Avenue. The Concord Ave site offers immediate relief at minimal cost while the Royal Road site offers long-term solutions (and potential revenue) at a more moderate cost. It is a common perception that parking on Royal Road was eliminated solely due to the complaints of the residents on that street and that they have opposed all efforts to create additional parking; there might also be issues around the wetlands, but these must be examined. New parking on the Concord Avenue lot (to the rear of the Electric Light Building) has been proposed for over 35 years, but the Town continues to reject the recommendation
for no clear reason – other than the vocal opposition of several “concerned citizens.”
At the forums sponsored by the Vision 21 Implementation Committee, business owners brainstormed solutions to the parking problems they had identified. Regarding parking, they most frequently urged the construction of additional spaces – usually in the form of double-decker parking garages in the various centers and also through creating additional lots, as described above. They also urged that the Town develop a town-wide set of parking policies. Additionally, they asked for more uniform enforcement of existing parking regulations
The Vision 21 Implementation Committee concurs that the construction of additional lots and parking garages would be very helpful, and may be the ultimate solution. However, we also recognize the financial constraints the Town now faces and appreciate that such construction is at present highly unlikely. We do support the suggestion of a town-wide set of parking policies.
This view is supported by findings in the Municipal Parking Study, completed in March 2002, which focused on what are commonly referred to as the three business areas. (There are, of course, many more). The study comments on the need to revise our on-street parking regulations:
“In general, on street parking restrictions in municipalities are implemented to promote vehicle turnover, prevent employee and commuter parking on certain residential streets. These restrictions are usually implemented based on complaints from residents or at the request of business owners…Given the current parking shortages and the latent commuter parking demand, some on-street restrictions are necessary as well as the recognition that there is a need for some overflow parking onto some residential streets”…(p. 38)
“Recommendations: Parking policies should reflect parking needs and should be applied uniformly in the study area. It is recommended that a uniform 2-hour parking restriction be applied in the study areas, with the exception of where 15 or 30 minutes restrictions are justified by the nature of the business, or where unrestricted parking is recommended.” (p. 41)
The Municipal Parking Study also offers interesting observations and recommendations on other facets of the parking problem. We understand that at present it is being used by the Belmont Center Parking Advisory Committee. We believe that this document warrants additional follow-up examination, as it might be a useful source of ideas, along with those proposed at the forums.
The Vision Implementation Committee makes two recommendations regarding parking. The first urges that Belmont take steps to create a town-wide, on-street parking plan; the other that a group examines additional options.
Recommendation #1: that the Board of Selectmen make a commitment to the development of a set of coherent, town-wide on-street parking regulations; that as a first step, the Selectmen ask the Police Department to develop and recommend criteria to the Board of Selectmen to use in developing a coherent set of on-street parking regulations; and that after these criteria are developed and accepted by the Selectmen, a committee be established, (consisting of representatives of the affected groups [businessmen, abutters, and long-term commuters] plus representatives of the general public, the police department and OCD, to develop a town-wide parking plan which takes into account the competing needs of the various constituencies and results in consistent, coherent, and appropriate on-street parking regulations
throughout the town. This committee should make every possible effort to engage the public as well as the impacted business owners in this endeavor.
Recommendation #2: that the Board of Selectmen refer to the Business and Economic Development Planning Group the task of conducting an analysis of possible costs and benefits of constructing additional municipal parking, including lots and garages; and that they explore other long-term and short-term options, including but not limited to those raised in the 2002 Municipal Parking Study.
3. MASTER PLANNING
The Issue: Another issue of high importance to businesspeople is that of zoning and how it is reflected in the land-use regulations employed by the Town. Often lumped together with permitting, it is a major source of difficulty for new businesses. Although zoning is often used by communities to stimulate business growth, in Belmont’s case it seems often to stifle it. This situation is exacerbated by the fact that no long-term planning – especially to promote economic development – has been done by the Town.
The current zoning scheme has not changed significantly since the Town adopted it in 1925. The zoning districts are virtually the same and the zoning text has not kept pace with improvements in municipal planning methodologies. A re-write in 1987 was primarily residentially-based; it expanded the scope of those uses requiring permits from the Town, a change that impacted negatively on businesses. Furthermore, Belmont’s current zoning by-law does not provide the Planning Board with modern planning “tools;” and the theories it was based upon were replaced decades ago. The failure to modernize the zoning by-law is one of the reasons for the problems with the redevelopment of the Kendall property – the lot being split by the zoning district line. Such problems constantly arise
as new businesses attempt to locate in Belmont.
In addition, the town has not updated its Master Plan since its completion in 1966. Consequently, important land-use decisions are being made lacking the context and guidance of an up-to-date community-wide plan. Over the past several years, limited zoning changes have often been opposed by residents who decry the lack of an over-all Town plan. The lack of a plan is one of the reasons for such lengthy permit processes. A comprehensive plan would, ideally, identify areas suitable for various types of economic development. Once these standards and guidelines were agreed to and the decisions codified, future decision-making processes should be more predictable and subsequently easier.
Some preparatory steps are being taken. The Office of Community Development is beginning an Economic Development Plan, as a first step in visioning what the Trapelo Road/Belmont Street corridor might become. A project undertaken by a citizens’ group, the Citizens’ Forum, is also inviting residents to envision possibilities for that corridor.
However, the Vision Committee is strongly supportive of the Town producing a Comprehensive Master Plan, which would consider the town as a whole, rather than piecemeal, and which could provide a framework, endorsed by the residents, for decision-making in the future. We realize that this is an expensive and time-consuming task, but believe that it will be a worthwhile investment in place of a set of obsolete zoning by-laws and a massive number of precedent-setting exceptions.
Recommendation: that the Town initiate a master planning process to produce a Comprehensive Master Plan, with broad community input.
Comment: Since this recommendation was initially approved by the Vision Implementation Committee, the Selectmen have voted to direct the Planning Board to undertake the development of a Comprehensive Master Plan. First, we wish to applaud this step. Second, we hope that it will be carried out in a manner that deliberately involves maximum public participation and discussion. In a way, the creation of a “master plan” is a major visioning process. And last, we pledge to support this effort in every way that we can.
4. TRAFFIC
The Issue: Traffic was also high on the list of concerns expressed by the business owners. For businesses to thrive, drivers must be able to see what businesses are present in areas they are driving through and pedestrians must be able to reach their destinations safely. Further, in order to thrive, businesses need an on-street atmosphere that is conducive to shopping – wide sidewalks, safe street crossings, and a setting that invites strolling, window-shopping, enjoyment. Traffic plays a large (though not exclusive) part in this scenario.
Two specific traffic concerns were prominent in the forum discussions: pedestrian safety and vehicular speed (particularly on Trapelo Road). We will comment on these as separate issues, however, since acknowledging the importance of pedestrian safety can provide insight when examining the merits of different approaches to slowing traffic.
Pedestrian Safety: The Vision Implementation Committee believes that improving the pedestrian landscape – in terms of both safety and livability—is a high priority. Most shoppers in Belmont drive to the area where they intend to shop, park where they can, and then walk to the destination. If the walking is dangerous, people are disinclined to go there. Business owners offered many ideas about how to make the streets safer for pedestrians and for slowing traffic (see appendix A). Widening the sidewalks to narrow
the street had particular appeal for business owners, since it promotes strolling and window-shopping.
Speed: The speed with which vehicles travel is a concern to the business community because (a) speed causes accidents; and accidents or “near-misses” with pedestrians, bicyclists, and other automobiles are frightening and cause customers to shop elsewhere; (b) as vehicles travel fast down Trapelo Road, they ignore/cannot absorb the array of inviting shops along the road and therefore do not patronize them; (c) the frenzied atmosphere of rapidly moving automobiles is not an inviting setting in which to stroll, window-shop, and shop. Business owners offered thoughtful suggestions to slowing traffic: narrowing the road by widening the sidewalks, laying a textured road surface approaching major intersections and installing stoplights that are only activated if the traffic is speeding (See Appendix A for additional ideas.)
The Vision 21 Implementation Committee recognizes that the Traffic Advisory Committee continues to address the problems of vehicular traffic in Belmont. We support this effort, our recommendation is made for two reasons: so the TAC can examine the specific suggestions made; and to encourage the TAC to include the perspective of and the interests of the business community when decisions and recommendations are made. We hope that the TAC will invite business people to participate in and/or react to proposals that are generated by the Committee.
Recommendation: that the Selectmen ask the Town Engineer and the Traffic Advisory Committee (TAC) to review the suggestions offered (both here and in the Appendix) for feasibility and for compatibility with the interests of the business community and that the TAC ensure that business interests be a factor in recommendations and decisions it makes.
5. TOWN SERVICES
The Issue: During the forums, we heard much frustration voiced by business people about two important town services which are not provided to them and which have a negative impact on their businesses. These are snow-removal and trash removal.
5.1 Snow: Business owners are distressed about the Town’s policy regarding snow removal. Article 20.11 of the Belmont General By-Laws requires property owners to shovel snow from the sidewalks in front of their properties. While the landlords are legally required to shovel the sidewalks in front of their buildings, this responsibility is often passed on to their tenants - the business owners -- as part of the rental contract.
Having nowhere else to put the snow, businesses pile the snow they shovel along the street curbs in the gutters. Unfortunately, the Town’s Highway Department no longer has the personnel (or the overtime funds to compensate existing staff) to remove this piled snow in a timely manner. Snow removal occurs only during working hours to limit overtime costs; and snow is removed from business areas only after other areas, of a higher priority, are addressed. (Higher priority includes schools, major M.B.T.A. bus stops, municipal buildings, funeral homes and houses of worship.)
The lack of snow removal along our business corridors creates a hazardous situation, is not consumer-friendly, and is unsightly. Because climbing over the piles of snow is a significant deterrent to shoppers, this practice adversely affects the businesses. Business people believe that town policy leads our residents to go to malls – where parking lots are plentiful and are well plowed.
Recommendation: that the Selectmen request the Business and Economic Development Planning Group to (1) review the town’s practices, policies and by-laws on snow removal; (2) determine how other towns handle this problem; and (3) investigate and identify possible solutions, which may include funding and/or personnel options and other alternatives to expedite the removal of the piled snow.
5.2 Trash: The Town does not allow businesses to participate in either the trash removal or the recycling program. How do business owners address this? Some owners of small businesses simply pack up their trash at the end of the day and take it to their own towns, disposing of it there with their personal trash, as residents. Others contract with trash removal companies. Though they seem to resolve the issue for themselves, the solutions are often a hardship. Further, when business people contract individually with trash removal services, there is no financial incentive to recycle. Thus, from the perspective of the Vision Implementation Committee, our town’s trash removal policy does not support that part of the Vision Statement, which reflects the community’s desire to be “an
environmentally responsible community…”
For the business owners, the Town’s practice of excluding them from this service does rankle: it generates a bad feeling that, as taxpayers, they cannot participate in these programs even when they are willing to pay a fee that is additional to taxes. It seems to us that a thoughtful analysis of how other towns handle the problem might produce useful options.
Recommendation: that the Selectmen request the Business and Economic Development Planning Group, in cooperation with the Solid Waste and Recycling Advisory Committee to (1) review the town’s practices and policies on trash removal and recycling; (2) determine how other towns handle trash and recycling for businesses; and (3) investigate and identify solutions which may be appropriate for Belmont and its business community.
Comment: We realize that the Town’s current trash disposal contract may not lend itself to a change that will include businesses; however, that contract will expire in two years, and we believe that this is the right time to undertake a study that might result in a resolution of this problem that can be implemented as part of a future contract.
6. ADVOCACY FOR BUSINESSES
The Issue: We lump together under this heading a number of issues raised by businesses suggesting the Town’s indifference to fostering the success of its business community. People with experience operating businesses in other towns felt that there is much that could be done by Belmont to assist new businesses and the business community as a whole. For example, it was suggested that the Town give support and a warm welcome to new or prospective business owners and actively encourage their self-promoting activities. Forum participants felt that a lack of such effort contributes to the general impression of indifference toward the business community.
A variety of suggestions were made for addressing these concerns:
--The Town could consider hiring or appointing an economic development officer whose job it would be to solicit and encourage businesses to come to Belmont.
--The Town could designate mentors or advocates to new business owners who are applying for permits. These advocates could provide orientation and assistance to business owners who are new to Town. (Retired Belmont businessmen might be especially successful in this.)
--Publicizing new businesses: The Town could arrange for interviews of new businesses for publication in the Citizen-Herald or for interviews to be conducted on community television.
--The Town could encourage “Town Day” to be celebrated in all commercial town centers (as it once was), or for the Trapelo Road corridor to re-institute “Fall Festival.”
--The Town could bring together a collection of landlords to develop ideas for beautification of the Centers, better signage, and other improvements.
--The Town could seek ways to promote cooperation among business centers.
--By inviting businessmen to join relevant committees of the Town, the Town could promote more cooperation among business centers and widen opportunities for the “business perspective” to become part of the Town perspective.
--The town should review its current practice of promoting/listing businesses on the Town web site, deciding to actively encourage town businesses to participate or to discontinue the links. Although a good idea in theory, the present practice seems to include few businesses (21 businesses are listed currently) which may indicate that the opportunity is not widely known or may reflect how few businesses have web sites; as it is currently provided, the practice seems inherently unfair.
It seems to the Vision Implementation Committee that these ideas, and others, bear further exploration and development.
Recommendation: that the Board of Selectmen refer these ideas (above) to the Business and Economic Development Planning Group for further investigation and development.
7. RESTAURANTS AND LIQUOR LICENSING
The Issue: A common refrain from residents is the need for a “first class restaurant” in Belmont. This request appeared regularly during the town-wide Visioning process (focus groups, forums, and survey) and again in the recent forums held specifically to discuss our business community. Residents feel they must leave Belmont to go out to dinner. The potential revenue, employment opportunities and ancillary benefits (a vibrant business district after 8:00 p.m. in the evening, for example) leave with them.
Business owners were unanimous in their opinion that a full liquor license is necessary to attract such a facility, that the vast majority of successful dining establishments have full liquor licenses, and that those who don’t are the rare exception, not the rule. The Committee concurs with the need for a full liquor license to attract a major first class dinner establishment.
A second problem identified by the businesses was that it has seemed to take an extraordinarily long time for applicants to go through the permitting process for obtaining a beer and wine license. It sends an anti-business message when business owners perceive that permits are unnecessarily delayed.
Recommendation #1: that the Selectmen support the need for full liquor licenses in dining establishments in Belmont (the exact number to be determined through a public hearing process). Further, that the Board direct Town Counsel to draft the necessary legal documents/paperwork to allow such a proposal to be voted upon by the Town Meeting in April, 2003, as a first step in realizing this goal.
Recommendation #2: that the permitting process for granting beer and wine licenses be streamlined. If necessary, Selectmen -- or their designee, the Town Administrator or the Office of Community Development -- should review and update the submittal requirements and procedures so the permitting process will be timely and fair for the business owners while still providing to residents a reasonable set of protections.
8. HOSTILITY AND INDIFFERENCE TOWARD THE BUSINESS COMMUNITY
The Issue: The cumulative effect of the issues identified herein have produced in our business community a strong sense on the part of business owners that the Town is indifferent to their needs. The opinions expressed by business owners suggest anger toward the Town, disillusionment with the Town, and the perception that the Town is in some instances openly hostile toward business owners.
Who is “the Town” in this context? As the business owners experience it, “the Town” means -- first -- the Selectmen. (Businessfolk would hasten to say that it’s not any one individual selectman; and many cited very positive individual interactions with each of the Selectmen.) But the bottom line is that the Selectmen create policy and set the tone.
Business people would add that “the Town” also includes the department heads of the offices with which they come in contact, who sometimes set policy and always oversee practice; the staff in town offices who may not be welcoming and who sometimes treat business people as “interfering” with their work; the police officers who are perceived to enforce the parking regulations selectively.
And last, our business people believe that “The Town” includes citizens who are members of town committees and boards that delay or cancel meetings, or are slow in acknowledging or responding to requests; residents who resent or fear business owners, employees or customers parking on a public road in front of the resident’s house. And it includes the residents (usually a vocal minority) who appear in opposition to many business requests and more often than not, receive the support and/or empathy of the permit-granting authorities. This opposition lengthens the permitting process and, embitters the applicant, – to the detriment of the businesses themselves and, ultimately, the Town.
And yet, many of the business owners are devoted to Belmont; indeed, many of them live in the town. They have found their niche, have prospered, enjoy a devoted clientele, and reap satisfaction from participating in and supporting town activities. And support them they do: with financial contributions and material goods for the schools, for athletic events, for a variety of projects near and dear to the citizens’ hearts. And this is most especially true of the smaller owner-run businesses in Belmont.
We believe that the Selectmen can and should take steps, which will ensure that the Town government, at every level, makes known its commitment to, and appreciation for our business community and thereby provides a model for the citizens to follow.
Recommendations: That the Board of Selectmen:
--Take every opportunity to articulate to the public, to town boards and committees, and to town employees the value of a thriving business community to our town – to the “livability” of the town and to our local economy.
--Direct the Town Administrator to require that each office develop and implement ideas that would make the office more welcoming to the pubic, including business people. This may be coupled with staff training programs about how to work successfully with members of the public.
--Take every opportunity to ensure business representation on town committees that have oversight in areas relevant to them.
--Ask that every office, committee and board which has oversight of any area which might affect businesses take care to consider the needs and interests of the business community as they make recommendations and take actions.
--Invite any new business owner, after the business has opened, to appear at the following Selectmen’s meeting to be greeted and welcomed, and to speak for a moment about the new business. This could happen for all businesses, large or small, and would only take a few minutes of meeting time while conveying a significant message.
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