Early voting will take place between August 22 and August 28 during specific times at City Hall. To see the full early voting schedule, visit somervillema.gov/earlyvoting2020. If you plan to vote by mail, the deadline for the Elections Department to receive your vote by mail application is August 26 at 5:00 p.m. However, we encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible if you plan to vote by mail and haven’t yet submitted it. Applications can be mailed, emailed, faxed, or put in the dropbox at the School St. entrance to City Hall. If you don’t choose to vote by mail or vote early, you can still vote at your polling place as you normally would on September 1. Several polling places have recently been relocated, so make sure to double check your polling place at somervillema.gov/MySomerville before you go to vote on Election Day. All of this information and more is available at somervillema.gov/elections.

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In partnership with arts and cultural leaders in the city of Somerville, MASSCreative is hosting a petition to Mayor Curtatone, City Councilors and the Somerville Arts Council to advocate for protection and relief for arts and culture in Somerville. Like many other Somerville arts and cultural orgs, The Center for Arts at the Armory is in dire need of the city’s support. Petition is live for one more week only and we need to gather as many signatures as possible to show wide support for our requests. https://bit.ly/SomervilleArts. Somerville residents, or those who work in Somerville, and value the arts, please add your name to this petition.

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Happy birthday this week to several locals: Happy birthday our own best photographer, Claudia Ferro. He is such a great person with a fantastic family. We hope she has the best birthday ever we know her family will find a way for everyone to be together to celebrate. Another one of own, Bob “Monty” Doherty is celebrating this week! Ask him anything about the history of Somerville and he will have the answer. We wish him the best! Happy birthday to Rick Pye, we wish him the best as well. Happy birthday to State Representative Christine Barber, who is also celebrating. We hope she has a great day with her family and friends here in the city. Happy birthday to our good friend Jonathan Bowers, we wish him a great year ahead. We wish all of our Facebook friends, such as Kathleen Goss, Ellie Loder Chute, Louise Cruz-Partee, John McDermott, Bob Baxter, Kimberly Anderson, Cheryl Endicott-Ribeiro, Michael Madden, Leesette Bengar, Isabel Mercauto, Nancy Batterton, Thomas B. Mercier and Donna M. Morabito, a very happy birthday. We hope everyone has a great day. To all the others we may have missed, we sincerely wish them the very best of birthdays.

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The Somerville Fire Department will conduct its annual inspection of all fire hydrants between approximately August 17 and August 29. Inspections are expected to conclude on or around Saturday, August 29. This procedure requires the flushing of water from the hydrants as well as a check of the mechanical operation of the hydrant. The inspection/testing program will take approximately two weeks to complete. Though water will remain safe to drink, it is suggested that residents refrain from washing clothes, especially white fabrics, until the water runs clear. If rust stains do appear on wet laundry, the clothes should not be dried, and residents may call 617-666-3311 to obtain a free bottle of rust remover. Inspections/testing will be conducted Monday through Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and if necessary, in the evening, from 6:15 until 8:15 p.m. Annual fire hydrant inspection is a safety measure. Testing is necessary to ensure hydrants will operate properly during an emergency. Anyone with questions regarding this procedure may contact the Somerville Fire Department at 617-623-1700.

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This summer, Somerville Prevention Services is hosting a series of free virtual presentations about a range of substance use prevention topics as one way to continue to educate and support community members during the coronavirus pandemic. Session themes include tobacco/nicotine, marijuana, problem gambling, anger management in recovery, and alcohol. Upcoming presentations will be held on August 27 at 6:00 p.m. on Zoom. Visit somervillema.gov/preventionservices shortly before the meeting to join live. Each session will also be recorded and posted online following the presentation. For more information, please visit somervillema.gov/preventionservices.

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Somerville Public Schools students will be starting the 2020-2021 school year virtually in an effort to protect the health of students, teachers, school staff, and the broader community. This is part of a phased hybrid approach that will, dependent on positive health data, transition to some in-person learning. To learn more about SPS’s back-to-school planning, visit their website https://somerville.k12.ma.us/.

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Thanks to our crafty residents, more than 3,700 reusable cloth masks have been donated as part of the 10,000 Masks Drive. If you’d like to sew and donate some masks, please seal them in a bag and use the book drop at either the Central or East Branch Library. Masks are being distributed to seniors and other vulnerable populations who may not have easy access to reusable masks.

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#WearAMask to protect your friends and family. Wear one for the people in your community you don’t know you’re connected to: the friend of a friend, the elderly neighbor, the person with an underlying condition who shops at your grocery store.

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There is still time to fill out the 2020 U.S. Census, and the time is now! Census takers have begun visiting Somerville homes that have not yet completed the Census. Census takers will be wearing PPE and taking safety precautions, but the safest way to complete the Census (and avoid a visit!) is to respond on your own at my2020census.gov or call 844-330-2020. You can always verify the identity of a Census worker by calling the local Census office at 212-882-7100.

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The city has set up a separate website dedicated to local business needs during this health crisis. Please bookmark somervillema.gov/COVIDBizHelp and visit for regular updates, event announcements, and support during this difficult time. You can also contact the Economic Development team at EconomicDevelopment@somervillema.gov.