The city
of Somerville has hired a consulting service to study the school site
and put together options for its future use. The focus of Tuesday's
meeting was to give an opportunity for Concord Square Planning and
Development to report its initial findings and hear from local
residents on their thoughts about the property and the benefits that it
can bring to Somerville in a different capacity. The charge set forth
by the city to Concord Square Planning is to balance the goals of
putting the site back into productive use, maximizing revenue for the
city, and mitigating the impact on the neighborhood. The main decision
that will have to be voted on by the Board of Aldermen is whether the
city will sell off the property for profit or if they will invest in
the facility and make it an asset to the community and its residents.
Use of the building in its current form, whether it is for city or
commercial purposes, is not an option as the facility is not up to
code. The building can not meet certain electrical standards and
seismic improvements must be made to pass current building codes. Past
tests have shown that a minimum of 5 million dollars must be put into
the Powder House building to simply get it up to code. If the city
decides to hold on to the property and open its doors for civic use,
construction will be necessary.

Concord Square Planning and
Development is in the process of interviewing real estate professionals
to obtain an understanding of the worth of the property and a potential
sale price if the City of Somerville decides to go that route. Possible
uses discussed by the consultants include residential apartments and
condominiums, office space centered around a rehabilitation center, and
a hybrid concept where a portion of the school will be retained by the
city while demolishing the remainder for construction use. Concord
Square Planning felt that with transportation and parking concerns, the
best option in terms of a sale of the property would be a high-end
apartment complex that would cater to graduate students.

This
is where the presentation quickly turned into a community discussion,
as the majority of the 50 local residents who attended the meeting
passionately advocated holding on to the property and turning the
facility into a community center of some sort. There was a general
feeling among residents, a sentiment that was echoed by Ward 7 Alderman
Bob Trane, that there is not enough public space for local children and
that there is a pressing need for a community center. Ideas put forward
by Somerville residents included both indoor and outdoor recreational
spaces for kids, classroom space for adult education, green space, and
offices for municipal use that would include a consolidation of
Somerville's recreation department. All of this would obviously come at
a cost to the city, as estimated budgets for a renovated or newly
constructed building would range from 12-20 million dollars, not to
mention the revenue that would not be created by the possible sale of
property.

Ward 7 Alderman Bob Trane feels that a community
center that is properly managed could actually save money for the city
in the long run though, as the open space could help consolidate youth
and recreation programs that are being run out of offices in which the
city currently pays rent. Alderman Trane also warns that if Somerville
decided to sell the building, now would not be the time. "With the
market being so depressed, a sale at this point would not bring back
the maximum amount of revenue that the city should see from that
property." Trane also feels that now would be the best time to invest
money into a much needed community center as construction costs are as
low as they have been in years.

The wild card in this situation
is the possibility of federal stimulus money that has been applied for
by the City of Somerville for this project, among others. If the
federal government offers monetary support, Alderman Trane feels that
the door should be closed on the possible sale of the Powder House
School building. "There is a possibility that we might receive federal
stimulus money," say Trane. "If that is the case than I think this
would be a no-brainer. West Somerville needs a place to call our own."

Concord
Square Planning has gathered all the feedback from local residents and
will come back to the city with a few different options to be discussed
within the next 30 days. Updates on future meetings will be posted on
the City of Somerville's website and residents can feel free to contact
Alderman Trane at RobertTrane@aol.com.

Man,
have times changed. My life has been so planned and regimented 'lo
these past 15 years. Were you as crazy as I was? I know some of you
were, but don't worry, I won't print your names. We always had fun, but
it was always on the edge. It couldn't be a normal, calm existence. It
was hectic, rushed and we lived as if it was our last days on earth. I
have been in the 'Ville for most of my life, except for a few jaunts to
some pretty far-out places. I always returned to Somerville, like a
baby bird to his nest. Or something like that.

Back in the early
80's, I was going out with a lovely lady from the 'Ville whose father
didn't like me (that's a shocker). He had a problem with long haired
rock musicians who partied too much. We were going hot and heavy, when
all of a sudden we broke up. So I did the logical thing – I left the
comfort of Somerville for the unknown San Fernando Valley of
California. I'll show her – I'll move 3,000 miles away, and become a
Hollywood star. After all, I had my theatre degree from Emerson
College! I got an apartment in the same apartment building where my
sister was living with her new baby girl – it was great! I lived
downstairs from my niece, sister and brother in law. We had a built-in
pool and she cooked for me. That's when I fell in love with avocados.
Life in Canoga Park was different, but I was getting used to it. I got
a job in a head shop (they sold bongs and stuff like that) – a place
that sold all sorts of drug paraphernalia. I met Jimi Hendrix's drummer
on the album band of Gypsies, Mr. Buddy Miles. I met an agent who lived
in Sammy Davis Jr's old house – Sammy had a room the size of my bedroom
just for shoes! I think Judy Garland lived there at one time also. I
also tracked down a couple of Somerville friends out there. You will
find Somerville people everywhere you go. I bumped into a guy from my
street in Disney World back in the 90's. Forget about Old Orchard
Beach, because as I have said before, it's Somerville with water. So
back to the California adventure. There I am, doing pretty well,
enjoying the sun, my sisters cooking, a crazy job and I get a phone
call from Somerville. It seems the gal I had broken up with had a
sudden change of heart – she wanted me back. So, I wanted to get back
to Somerville as fast as I could. I dumped the job, the apartment with
the pool, my sisters cooking, the weather and my dreams of becoming a
star in Hollywood – and headed home. But being the compulsive thick
headed guy that I am, I decided to take a Greyhound bus back to Boston.
Why would I wait another week and fly home? I really can't tell you
because I don't remember. Maybe it was a cash thing. I think I just
wanted to get back and wasn't in a clear mind. At any rate, I'm on a
bus for 5 days. I hooked up with some other passengers on the way home
who were quite the partiers. We all got tossed off of the bus in
Albuquerque New Mexico. We had to wait 6 hours for the next bus. The
really tough part about being on a bus for 5 days is personal hygiene.
I got real good at washing my feet in the restroom sinks. I was one of
the lucky ones who had plenty of clean socks. I wish I had some Febreze
and Lysol spray, because I would have sprayed a few passengers. When
you're on a long bus ride, you make friends with people, and then one
by one they get off at their destinations. I must say it was pretty
emotional saying goodbye to friends you spent 2, 3 and 4 days with in
such close conditions. We all took each other's phone numbers. I never
heard from any of them ever again.

So I finally make it home
to good old Somerville! I'll never forget the first time I went back
into my girlfriend's house since returning. Her dad gave me the usual
protective, smile-less, "I hate you" stern father's sneer. What her
uncle said made me feel very comfortable – he looks at me and says:
"Don't tell me you're back again." And he wasn't fooling. Yes it was
great to be home. What's so great about California? The heck with the
built-in pool, the freedom of my own pad, the cool job, the awesome
weather, the fun of being with my sister and her baby. I was finally
back with the love of my life. WRONG! The rekindled romance went down
in flames. But hey, I had gained a lot! I got to move back into my
little room on Hall Avenue with the psychedelic wallpaper and listen to
my dad snore while I was trying to watch TV. I was back to helping mom
with housework too. I had gone from Mr. Independent to Mr. Loser who
moves back in with his parents. I recovered, and was soon playing in
another band, and would soon start my radio career at Kiss 108 FM. I
was back in Somerville and back with my buds and the fam. You can
always go home when you live in Somerville. My friends were still on
the same bar stools they were on when I left, so I didn't miss a beat.
But I will never take a five day bus ride again. Oh, and there were a
few other women since then who had me jumping through hoops. Someday,
I'll tell you about the boy from Somerville who moved to Florida for a
year with a girl. So I will never again hop on a bus, Gus, unless it's
to visit my friend in Jersey, or if my truck breaks down.

On May 27th at approximately 11:00 p.m., a lone
man entered the store at 96 Highland Avenue, displayed a gun and
demanded money. After tying the clerk's hands using a plastic wire tie,
the robber proceeded to take cash from the registers. He then fled on
foot. Although shaken up, the clerk was not injured; no one else was in
the store at the time.

The suspect is described as a young,
dark-skinned black male in his early to mid twenties, and about 5 feet
six inches tall. He has corn rows in his hair and some facial hair. He
was wearing a black jacket with a hood that covered most of his hair,
and white sneakers.

During an agenda-packed neighborhood meeting last
Wednesday night at the Cross St. Senior Center that attracted over 50
interested residents, Mayor Joseph Curtatone vowed that the substation
would remain open, said Ward I Alderman Bill Roche.

"Budget
cuts are tough this year," he said. "But the people expressed the
difference that the substation made in East Somerville. It's active.
The visibility of the substation has really affected the neighborhood."

The
police substation at 81 Broadway opened in October 2008 in efforts to
increase the reporting of neighborhood crime and make the area safer
for residents and businesses.

Also of interest on Wednesday
night was how to handle repeat code violations. It has come to the
attention of neighbors and city officials that the same people tend to
mishandle trash disposal and fail to shovel snow. Oftentimes, the
culprits are absentee landlords, Roche said.

It was decided
that neighbors can help monitor the offenses. Roche said that if
someone knows that it's an absentee landlord issue, they should call
the citywide hot line number, 311, to report the offense. Otherwise,
people can ask Roche to talk to landlords, in case they don't
understand the procedures for handling trash, keeping a property clean,
shoveling snow, and so on.

The Harris Park land swap with Stop
& Shop is also well underway, Roche said. He hopes to hold
neighborhood meetings in the fall to go over the park's design. The
plan involves moving Harris Park behind the Cross Street Senior Center,
away from the noise and pollution of I93. Also coming to East
Somerville will be a new dog run and tranquility park at 0 New
Washington Street.

In other news, in July, the air pollution
study (in partnership with Tufts Medical School) will be underway, said
Ellin Reisner, the president of the Somerville Transportation Equity
Partnership and Mt. Vernon Street resident who is helping with the
study. You may notice a van in the neighborhood that will measure the
volume of particulate air pollution, especially within 400 meters of
I93. Those conducting this study will also randomly interview residents
along the I93 corridor and ask for voluntary blood testing and blood
pressure samples, Reisner said.

"We have over 250,000 cars going through Somerville each day, so we want to look at the cardiac impact of pollution," she said.