The week ahead: Paine Estate’s future will come before City Council this week

A private company has proposed to run Waltham’s historic Robert Treat Paine Estate, which is currently managed by the city.

That’s according to correspondence Mayor Jeannette A. McCarthy submitted to the City Council last week. McCarthy’s letter does not mention the name of the company or details on its proposal, but McCarthy has requested input from the City Council at its 8 p.m. Committee of the Whole meeting this Monday on what to do with the property. 

If the council is interested in having a private contractor run the site, McCarthy  wrote, then she would need to open up a bidding process soliciting proposals from other private companies.

The Paine Estate, also known as Stonehurst, was the private summer home of Robert Treat Paine Jr., Lydia Lyman Paine and their descendants. The shingle-clad house was designed by renowned architect Henry Hobson Richardson. Landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted designed the grounds. The property represents a unique collaboration between two masters of American design. The building is a national historic landmark and is currently owned and operated by the City of Waltham. 

Below is a chronological rundown of other city meetings scheduled this week.

Police Headquarters Selection Committee

The Police Headquarters Selection Committee will meet at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, March 16 in City Hall’s basement conference room to hear updates on the construction of a new joint police, fire and consolidated public works building on Lexington Street.

City Council committees

At its Monday meeting, the Committee of the Whole will discuss a resolution advanced last week by Council President Robert G. Logan to hear from the Charles River Watershed Association about preparing the city for the impacts of climate change. It also plans to hear from IT Director Donald J. Aucoin about updates to the city’s website to comply with new federal accessibility standards.

The Finance Committee will discuss the Paine Estate as well, having been asked to consider accepting a donation from the Robert Treat Paine Historical Trust to restore the estate’s grand piano. It will consider two other donations of historical memorabilia for the city and a state grant for the Council on Aging, as well as three funding requests within the city: $217,157 for softball field improvements at the Veterans Athletic Complex, $174,581 for out-of-district special education funding and $12,188 to repair the heating system at Government Center.

The council’s Licenses and Franchises Committee will discuss requests for 23 lodging house license renewals, including 10 for dormitories at Bentley University; the Economic and Community Development Committee will consider a plan to hire a new city business manager; and the Ordinances and Rules Committee will also meet this week, likely hearing updates on the impacts of three proposed multi-use zoning districts in west Waltham and possibly discussing city regulations on surveillance technology.

The City Council’s committees will meet on Monday beginning at 7 p.m.

Retirement Board

The Waltham Retirement Board will meet this week to discuss recent state guidelines regarding disability claims and obtaining pre-employment employee health information, as well as cost-of-living adjustments, new hires, refunds and makeup payments.

The board will meet Tuesday, March 17 at 4:45 p.m. in City Hall’s basement conference room and will stream the meeting via Zoom.

Zoning Board of Appeals

The ZBA is a five-person board charged with reviewing new and existing buildings that might violate the city’s zoning code. 

The board has the power to grant project-specific variances to the code, overrule judgments made by the building inspector and grant specific types of special permits.

This week it will hear two cases from petitioners requesting permits to construct single-family homes that will not conform to zoning regulations in their respective district, including by encroaching into their lots’ front and rear setbacks. 

The board will meet at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17 at the Arthur Clark Government Center.

Board of Health

The Board of Health works to address potential public health problems in the city, including communicable diseases, foodborne illnesses, and housing and environmental safety issues.

The board will meet at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 18 in the auditorium of the Clark Government Center. Its agenda will be posted by Monday on its page in the city website.

School Committee

The Waltham School Committee, an elected six-member committee chaired by Mayor Jeannette A. McCarthy, makes policy and oversight decisions for the Waltham Public Schools.

The committee this week will discuss Waltham High School’s graduation rates and set new meeting dates for the summer.

The committee will meet at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in the James J. Cannon Lecture Hall at 617 Lexington St.

Traffic Commission

The Traffic Commission meets monthly to discuss matters before the Traffic Engineering Department about improving the streets and infrastructure of the city.

This week the commission will discuss an outdoor dining plan for the summer, as well as traffic management plans for a series of gas line updates in the Felton Street neighborhood and along Main Street. It will also discuss the Traffic Engineering Department’s budget for fiscal year 2027, city parking conditions after snowstorms, and proposals for various road races and city festivals this spring and summer.

It will hear a number of proposals for specific traffic improvements around the city: an all-way stop at Adams and Walnut streets, changes to speed cushions along Crescent Street, and a blind driveway sign on School and Mt. Pleasant streets. It will also revisit parking solutions for Elson Road and a proposed crosswalk at Gardner Street’s spray park.

The commission will meet Thursday, March 19 at 10 a.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall.