Election Day: Belmont Votes On Prop. 2 1/2 Override

The polls are open and with the initial reports say that voter interest is light, Belmont residents are going to the polls in a special election that pits residents seeking additional revenue for town services and those who believe the town must be run with available funds.

Voters will decide whether to approve a $2 million Proposition 2 1/2 override to partially bridge a $3.5 million structural deficit - and increase the average property tax by more than $200 - or require the town to live within the $83 million fiscal year 2011 budget and allow painful cuts to school and town personnel and services such as the town ambulance. 

A majority of the Board of Selectmen, the School Committee and the Warrant Committee support the override.

The campaigns for and against the ballot question has been marked by stark, contrasting approaches. One Belmont, the town-wide residents group, has been holding public rallies, raising money and putting out what has become familiar lime green placards on resident's lawns. 

In the final days before the vote, a pair of anonymous automated calls - a push poll and a robo call - promoted a no vote with statements of facts that have been roundly condemned as untruthful or misleading. No group or individual has taken sponsorship of the calls or their content. 

Questions concerning voting or any other election-related issues can be answered by Town Clerk Ellen O'Brien Cushman, at 617-993-2600.

Voting takes place throughout the town. Belmont has eight precincts, located at:

Precinct 1 Belmont Memorial Library Assembly Room  336 Concord Ave.

Precinct 2 Belmont Town Hall, Selectmen's Room  455 Concord Ave.

Precinct 3 Beech Street Center (Senior Center)  266 Beech St.

Precinct 4 Daniel Butler Elementary School Gym  90 White St.

Precinct 5 Beech Street Center (Senior Center)  266 Beech St.

Precinct 6 Belmont Fire Headquarters  299 Trapelo Rd.

Precinct 7 Mary Lee Burbank Elementary School Gym  266 School St.

Precinct 8 Winn Brook Elementary School Gym  97 Waterhouse Rd. (enter at Cross Street)