UPDATED Sept. 23: The draft of the Affordable Housing Trust’s action plan is available for review and was discussed at a virtual public meeting held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 21, on Zoom.

The comment period is set to close Monday, Oct. 2. Residents may provide feedback here >>

See the slide deck to the plan here >>

The recording, presentation slides and links to provide comments and suggestions for the draft plan may be viewed at arlingtonma.gov/planning

The Arlington Redevelopment Board is scheduled to meet at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 3, in person in the Arlington Community Center, Main Hall, 27 Maple St.

The agenda is here >>(linked items have supporting documents)

This meeting is not on Zoom.

Claire Ricker, Arlington’s new planning and community-development director, was introduced to the Select Board at its Sept. 28 meeting.

Town Manager Sandy Pooler, welcoming Ricker, said, “We are lucky to have a new talented and experienced director of our planning department.” 

Ricker said that she works with an extraordinarily talented staff. “The town has given me a warm welcome, and everyone has been very supportive. Arlington is thoughtful, engaged and passionate. I think we’ll be able to deliver some really good projects.”

Ricker’s immediate goals include:

Minuteman High School’s 2022 Hall of Fame Ceremony has been scheduled for Friday, Nov. 4, from 5:30 to 9  p.m. at the Paul Revere Conference Room at Minuteman High School, 758 Marrett Road, Lexington.

The ceremony in the recent past had to be paused due to the pandemic, spokesmen for the school reported in a news release.

The Hall of Fame honors alumni plus former teachers, staff members and coaches who have gone above and beyond to exemplify the spirit of Minuteman High School – whether it be in the classroom, on the athletic field, in the community or in the world of business and industry. 

Tim Ross

Teresa Marzilli

Arlington Town Hall had no clear ongoing diversity effort in October 2018, when a town police officer published harsh, racially infused comments in an official, statewide police journal.

Lt. Richard Pedrini was placed on leave, and, in 2019, then-Town Manager Adam Chapdelaine addressed the matter with restorative justice, a process requiring the officer to deal with representatives of those affected by his comments. Pedrini later returned to active duty with the police and, months after that, publicly apologized. 

The controversy that followed spurred the birth of a citizen group, Arlington Fights Racism, whose leaders wanted the officer fired and viewed the restorative-justice process as ineffective. At the same time, the town manager instituted diversity training for all town employees.

Those educational efforts to address institutional bigotry are to continue this fall, Jillian Harvey told local public television station ACMi in an update (see ACMi video here >>). Harvey was appointed the town's first coordinator of diversity, equity and inclusion in 2020. Later, she was elevated to director.

Town Hall efforts to address inclusion are expanding. Harvey now supervises two employees whose roles represent firsts for Arlington.

UPDATED Oct. 2: The Arlington Redevelopment Board on Sunday, Sept. 25, reviewed at its annual goal-setting meeting a list of projects permitted in 2020 through 2022 and several that may come to the board. Of note:

• Arlington's master plan, adopted in 2015, expires soon, and the board has Community Development Block Grant funds to support an update. The board discussed timing of this effort, in relation to MBTA zoning.
• Members asked about the Hotel Lexington, site of the former VFW building on Mass. Ave. in the Heights. Staff believes the owner ran into problems with financing and may come back with a multifamily project.

$860k supports projects aimed at sustainable growth for Covid-affected industries; see list of amounts below

UPDATED Sept. 28: Twenty-two nonprofit organizations and small businesses in Arlington have been selected to receive a total of $860,900 in grants. 

The town's Transformative Growth Grants Program, funded by American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and administered by the Department of Planning and Community Development, helps those affected by Covid-19 bring to life their vision for future growth.

The town announced the awards in a news release. Small-businesses and nonprofit organizations representing a variety of industries received grants for place-making, programming, facilities and infrastructure, news reporting, personnel or planning projects. Here are the recipients how much each received: