https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefsThe daily local brief for Arlington, MA.en-ushttps://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-09-02https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-09-02Wed, 02 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000State Rep. David M. Rogers defeated Nomita Ganguly of Belmont in the Sept. 1 Democratic primary for the 24th Middlesex District, which covers six Arlington precincts, all of Belmont and two Cambridge precincts. Rogers took 2,698 votes to Ganguly's 641 in Arlington precincts 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12, and 3,462 to 2,043 in Belmont, per unofficial results from Town Clerk Juli Brazile. Turnout in Arlington was 11,174 of 32,996 registered voters, or 33.86 percent, with no irregularities reported; the final election is Tuesday, Nov. 3.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-09-01https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-09-01Tue, 01 Sep 2026 12:00:00 +0000Arlington polling places are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today for the Massachusetts state primary, with voting at your assigned precinct. The ballot includes races for U.S. Senate, governor and other offices. In-person early voting was held in the Town Clerk's Office on the second floor of Town Hall, which is reachable by an elevator in the main lobby.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-31https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-31Mon, 31 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000The town posted on its website Aug. 30 that the complete renovation and reconstruction of Veterans Memorial Park in Arlington Center will wait until the "2027 construction season." No reason was given for the delay, and a Select Board member shared the announcement on social media without comment. Earlier this year the Select Board was told work could begin as early as July 1; no renovation work has been done at the site. The town is also asking residents, veterans and families to review names for the Veterans Honor Roll, starting with the Vietnam Era list.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-30https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-30Sun, 30 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000The 9th annual Lonely Seal International Film, Screenplay & Music Festival closes today at the Regent Theatre after a four-day run that began Thursday, Aug. 27. Sunday's program includes the first-ever cinematic feature-film version of Eugene O'Neill's "The First Man." Festival highlights also included Academy Award-winning "On Golden Pond" screenwriter Ernest Thompson, who attended a screening of his short film "The Constituent" and signed his new novel.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-29https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-29Sat, 29 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Arlington Police and Arlington Public Schools are implementing a new bus safety enforcement strategy for the 2026-2027 school year, using a camera system on the district's bus fleet to capture video of vehicles that pass a stopped bus with its red lights flashing and stop arm extended. Under a state law the Town accepted in spring of 2025, those images can be used to identify the vehicles and issue citations to their owners. Buses will display signs notifying motorists of the monitoring, and all violations will be reviewed by the APD Traffic Unit.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-28https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-28Fri, 28 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000An emergency order from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health classifies kratom as a Schedule I controlled substance and bans its sale statewide, effective today. Arlington had already moved on its own: on Aug. 20, the Board of Health voted unanimously to adopt regulations against the manufacturing, sale and distribution of the substance, citing health effects associated with ingesting it in tablet, capsule or extract form. Those local rules followed a hearing at which residents, mental health clinicians and law enforcement officials raised concerns about the product.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-27https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-27Thu, 27 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Arlington has completed energy-efficiency work at Parmenter School, Town Hall, Peirce Elementary and the Central Fire Station, using a $125,000 Green Communities grant from the state Department of Energy Resources. The projects included added insulation, high-efficiency LED lighting and a new building management system; the grant covers 25% of total costs, with Eversource and National Grid incentives covering another 39%. The town says nearly 15% of its $180,901 match will be recovered in energy savings in the first year. It is Arlington's fourteenth award from the competitive program.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-26https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-26Wed, 26 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000MassDOT has begun bicycle and pedestrian improvements on Lake Street, working overnight. The scope includes removing a median, milling, paving and pavement marking work.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-25https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-25Tue, 25 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000The Massachusetts Department of Public Health has designated Arlington at moderate risk for West Nile virus, and community members are urged to take precautions. The designation follows the state's recent announcement of the first human case of West Nile virus.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-24https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-24Mon, 24 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000In-person early voting for the Sept. 1 State Primary is underway at the Town Clerk's Office in Town Hall, running through Friday, Aug. 28, when it ends at noon. Voters who want a ballot mailed to them must request it by Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 5 p.m. Polls on primary day are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-23https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-23Sun, 23 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000In a letter published Friday, Aug. 21, resident Richard Aleo criticized the nearly nine-year delay in remodeling and updating the veterans memorial display in Arlington Center. He also urged the town to correct hundreds of names missing from the display.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-22https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-22Sat, 22 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Arlington's Highway Division will repair erosion on the bike path in Arlington Heights near Lowell Street, working Tuesday night, Aug. 25, and during the day Wednesday, Aug. 26. Yard waste collection will be delayed for Thursday and Friday routes that week.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-21https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-21Fri, 21 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Arlington's Board of Health adopted local regulations on Aug. 19 prohibiting the manufacturing, sale and distribution of kratom in town. The board cited concerns about the substance's availability and its potential health effects.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-20https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-20Thu, 20 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Arlington has launched a Water Usage Customer Portal that lets water and sewer customers view usage by year, month, day or hour and compare it with weather and rainfall data in one chart. Customers can also set high-usage alarms for daily, multi-day or billing-cycle use to help spot leaks or unusual consumption; setting up an account requires a recent water and sewer bill. The launch follows a meter upgrade program begun in 2022, with more than 9,000 meter installations and 12,300 meter-reading device installations completed so far.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-19https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-19Wed, 19 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000The newly formed Ottoson Middle School Building Committee holds its first public meeting tonight, Aug. 19, from 6:15 to 8:15 p.m., conducted entirely by remote participation over Zoom. The committee is charged with beginning planning for the middle school rebuild project. Residents can join the call through the link posted with the town's calendar listing.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-18https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-18Tue, 18 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000WM reports it is running behind on yard waste collection and may remain behind as the week progresses. Residents should still set yard waste out on their regular collection day and leave it at the curb until it is picked up.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-17https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-17Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Massachusetts is moving to classify kratom as a Schedule I drug, a change the town's police chief says will finally let local officials hold retailers accountable for risky products sold off store shelves. Within about two weeks, kratom is expected to start disappearing from area convenience stores and smoke shops. Residents who currently use it are urged to seek help managing withdrawal and treatment options.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-16https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-16Sun, 16 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000A water main break at 128 Lowell St. led the town to close Lowell Street from Park Avenue Extension up to the Reservoir just after 5 p.m. Saturday, according to an Arlington Police Department post on X. No further information was available from the town's Public Works Department. The Res swimming area reopened Aug. 15 after being closed when scheduled testing found an unacceptably high level of E. coli in the water.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-15https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-15Sat, 15 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000The Arlington Police Department and Council on Aging issued a joint alert Aug. 14 about cryptocurrency ATM scams that increasingly target older adults. More than 25 residents have reported losses to police over the past two years, totaling more than $1 million, and money converted to cryptocurrency is extremely difficult to recover. Scams typically begin with a call, text, email or pop-up from someone posing as a police officer, government official, bank representative, tech support employee, utility or a family member in an emergency.https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-14https://nanopress.net/arlington-ma/briefs/2026-08-14Fri, 14 Aug 2026 12:00:00 +0000Town health officials have closed the Arlington Reservoir beach effective immediately after recent testing showed E. coli levels above bathing water standards. The closure takes hold heading into the weekend; officials have not said when the beach may reopen.