The Phase 3 Step 1 reopening has begun in the city this week, and several local business owners are already taking advantage of the newly eased restrictions. We wish them all the best of luck, while also cautioning them and all their patrons to keep following safety guidelines that are still in effect. We want everyone to remain safe and healthy as well as the business owner renewed success.

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Don’t forget that this year’s Fluff Fest is a virtual one and can be enjoyed on their website at https://www.flufffestival.com, this Saturday, September 12, beginning at 11:00 a.m. Join in the fun!

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With generous support from the City of Somerville, Cradles to Crayons, The Beautiful Stuff Project, the Diaper Circle and individual donors, Somerville Family Learning Collaborative provides free diapers to Somerville families every Wednesday, 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. outside the East Somerville Community School, 50 Cross St., and West Somerville Neighborhood School, 177 Powderhouse Blvd. No signup or ID required. Since March, more than 200,000 diapers have been donated to families in need. Donations may be made to The Beautiful Stuff Project or contact SPS/SFLC Volunteer Coordinator jCapuano@k12.somerville.ma.us to donate packages of unused diapers. (Sizes 4,5,6 preferred, but any size N-7 and pullups are welcomed), or to volunteer.

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Happy birthday this week to several locals: Happy birthday to local realtor Stephen Bremis. We wish him the very best for his birthday. Happy birthday to an old friend, Bob Trane (former Alderman for Ward 7), and another great guy. We wish him the very best. Happy birthday to Jodi Gallo, who is married to Jimmy. We wish her the very best of birthdays. Happy birthday to an-other local historian and a guy that loves Somerville, Matt Hoey. We wish him the very best of birthdays as well. We wish Juscelia LoRusso a very happy birthday. We know she will have the best cake around! A happy birthday to a great guy, family man and one of the best restaurateurs here in Somerville, Marty Henry, one of the famous Henry’s of the Mt. Vernon Restaurant on lower Broadway. A great guy and family. We wish him the very best of birthdays this week. We wish all of our Facebook friends, such as MaryAnn Mendonca, Joe Fothergill, Sabrina Faria Caprigno, Richard Barry, David Roberts, Tom Champion, Maureen McCole and Judy Calvey 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 Historic Preservation’s I Spy Challenge deadline is Thursday, September 10. “I Spy Somerville” is a part of their virtual programming developed in response to COVID-19. It’s a way for residents, businesses, and visitors of all ages and backgrounds to safely engage in Somerville’s history and charm when they cannot be offering their usual live events. Each week or so, they hope to release a sample image of a physical feature that can be found, but are often not actively noticed around Somerville. Most reflect our rich heritage of fine artisans and builders whose craftsmanship is difficult or unaffordable to recreate, so it is important to preserve them, for now as well as future generations. They challenge folks to locate as many as possible examples of this feature in the city and send in photos of their finds to win cool HPC merchandise. Submit entries via email to both Brandon and Morgan at bwilson@somervillema.gov and morganhistoricpreservation@gmail.com, via their Facebook page, or tag their new Instagram account @preservingsomerville and include the hashtag ISpySomerville in your post description. If you are new to Instagram, you can tag them by tapping the “tag people” option when you are in the process of uploading a photo and typing “preservingsomerville” in the search bar that comes up. You can include a hashtag by typing #ISpySomerville while you are writing your photo caption.

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Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone, Ward 7 City Councilor Katjana Ballantyne, and City of Somerville staff invite you to a virtual meeting to review plans to replace the Dilboy Stadium synthetic turf field and improve the natural-grass Dilboy Auxiliary Fields adjacent to Alewife Brook Parkway. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 9, from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. on the GoToWebinar platform. Please visit www.somervillema.gov/DilboyMeeting to register to attend. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to join the webinar. For more information, contact Arn Franzen at afranzen@somervillema.gov.

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Join the Somerville Arts Council for an artist certification webinar regarding the inclusionary housing units at the Powderhouse/Marka development. The Council, City Housing staff, and the developer agent will be hosting a live, virtual, public information meeting about the certification process and inclusionary units on Wednesday, September 9 at 6:30 p.m. To register for this GoToWebinar event with ability to see documents and ask questions please register here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3076217339313342478 You can also call in to listen: +1 (631) 992-3221. If you do not have GoToWebinar you can access here:  https://www.gotomeeting.com/webinar/join-webinar. Housing applications for these inclusionary units are available now and have a deadline of October 5 at 2:00 p.m.  To apply go to: https://www.calalottery.com. You will need an artist certification to fully complete the application. For future reference this information and links to documents can be found on the Council’s website: https://somervilleartscouncil.org/certification.

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Due to COVID-19, the City of Somerville, in collaboration with ACV Enviro, will be hosting an alternative program for residential pick up of household hazardous waste. Instead of coming to a drop-off site, they will be coming to you. So clean out the garage, empty the basement, and get rid of oil, paint, cleaners, antifreeze, poisons, pesticides, batteries, fluorescent lamps, electronics and more. Please register for only one date. Tuesday, September 15, 7:00 a.m. at https://acv-test-forms.formstack.com/forms/somerville_hhw_pickup_request_form_sept_15 or Tuesday, October 6, 7:00 a.m. at https://acv-test-forms.formstack.com/forms/somerville_hhw_pickup_request_form_oct_6.

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Thirsty Thursday meets Virtual Craft Night. Thursday, September 10, at 7:30 p.m., at Remnant Brewing, 2 Bow Market Way. Join fellow stitchthusiasts for a night of crafts and craft beers. All needlework styles and experience level welcome. Whether you’re picking up a new style, midway through a project, or looking for your that last bit of inspiration to finish a project, we’re happy to virtually hang with you while enjoying delicious beers. Visit the Remnant web-store to order 4-packs and crowlers for pickup or local delivery (Somerville, Cambridge, Medford, Malden, Charlestown and Arlington). Zoom info will be available the day of the event at: https://www.remnantsomerville.com/new-events/2020/9/10/call-to-crafters-virtual-craft-night.

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The Council On Aging has masks available for Somerville residents 60 years or older. If you still need a mask or know of a neighbor or friend who still needs a mask pick it up during their drive-through time. Tuesday, September 15, 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., 167 Holland Street.

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Please join Dormition of the Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church on September 12 and 13, rain or shine, for their Gryo Greekfest to go. It is a time to connect with the people of our surrounding communities, dance a little and of course eat. This year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, they cannot entertain all of you with our full festival. They know that many of you still need that Greek food fix, so this year we are going to try and fill that void with a takeout service. You can pre-order your gyro and loukoumades on www.Grecianfood.com. You will be asked to choose a day and pickup time (September 12 or 13 from noon to 8:00 p.m.). Or you can of course stop by and order a to go gyro and loukoumades the day of our event if you prefer not to pre-order. Please stop by and support the church and get your GYRO fix. They need your financial support now more than ever.

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September is National Recovery Month. The social distancing necessary to control the spread of COVID-19 can make it difficult for people in recovery to connect with others and access sup-port. Groups like Narcotics Anonymous, SMART Recovery, and Herren Project, among others, are offering virtual recovery meetings and resources during the pandemic. There is a list of additional resources at www.somervillema.gov/coronavirushelp.

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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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Reminder: city buildings are still closed to the public. Although city buildings remain closed to the public, a number of city services are still available online or by calling 311. Check the “City Service Status” tab on the city’s COVID-19 page for more information.

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