"We have worked hard to develop a reduction-in-force model that allows us to maintain service delivery at current levels," said Curtatone. "Many other local communities have had to resort to much deeper layoffs across the board. So far, we've been able to avoid that approach – but we're facing a state-imposed budget shortfall that may run as high as $13 million next year, and we're going to need a whole package of cost savings and revenue enhancements to bring our budget into balance. For example, if we don't see more city unions join the police patrolmen, superior officers and E911 operator unions – and our non-union workforce – in accepting zero-percent salary increases and furloughs, we may have to eliminate even more jobs. We may also have to revisit staffing levels if the state makes additional mid-year cuts in aid to cities and towns. Of course, the reverse is also true: we may be able to restore some of these positions if the state budget situation improves – but with the House, Senate and governor all in different places on taxes and on aid to cities and towns, we have to plan conservatively."

The Mayor indicated that the cuts would have been deeper if the city had not been able to save $2.8 million by setting the city's health care contributions for retirees at 75 percent – the average for municipal retirees across the state, and the same amount that active, nonunion city employees will be paying effective July 1st. "Without changes on the health insurance side, we would be seeing a loss of firefighters, deeper cuts at the police department, and the closure of Engine 4 and both of our new police substations," Curtatone said. "This plan still pinches, but it doesn't represent a retreat from the progress we've made in expanding services over the past five years."

The 24 eliminated positions include 21 union positions are spread across 10 City departments: Capital Projects (one vacancy); City Clerk (one vacancy); Department of Public Works (six layoffs); Finance (one vacancy); Health (one vacancy); Information Technology (position eliminated post-retirement), Library (four layoffs); Mayor's Office (one vacancy); Police (four officer vacancies); and Recreation and Youth (four layoffs).

"In all cases, our department heads have developed plans to ensure that are no reductions in service levels or in hours of operation for City facilities," said Curtatone. "It won't be easy, but we'll make it work. It's also important to recognize that the layoffs aren't about people but about positions. These are dedicated, professional employees and we will be sorry to lose their services – but their jobs must be eliminated to help close the budget gap."

By not having to pay the salary and benefits costs for the 24 eliminated positions, the City expects to save a total of $1,175,895 in FY2010.

Redbones,
Davis Square's long-time barbecue restaurant, will host this year's
bike party on Monday, June 8, from 5 to 9 p.m., in the street outside
the restaurant. The event will feature food, music, and prizes. For
$15, attendants get bicycle valet parking, a sandwich (pulled pork or
portabello), a drink (hard or soft), and a raffle ticket. Additional
raffle tickets are $2 each or three for five dollars. This year's grand
prize is a cargo bike donated by Alternative Needs Transportation and
valued at $2,500. Event proceeds will benefit bike advocacy groups
NEMBA (New England Mountain Bike Association) and MassBike.

13
sponsors will set up 10×10-foot posters on the street informing
attendants about their products or organizations, while many more will
donate prizes for the raffle. Second Line Social Aid & Pleasure
Society Brass Band, or SAPS, will provide lively street music.
Throughout the night, Redbones owner and biker Robert Gregory will
raffle off items from the pickup of Redbones' unmissable red Chevy
truck.

Redbones enthusiasm for biking starts with its owner,
Robert Gregory. Gregory is a member of NEMBA, an organization
dedicating to enjoying and preserving New England's bike trails,
including this area's own Middlesex Fells. Gregory's enthusiasm for
biking led him to found the Redbones bike party in 1997, along with
another innovation: bicycle valet parking.

To encourage biking
and reduce traffic, Redbones staff will take your bike and lock it in a
secure storage facility, then retrieve it for you when you are ready.
The key feature of this service is that, unlike traditional valet
parking, which conjures up images of dressed-up diners tipping tuxedoed
drivers to park their Mercedes, Redbones bike valet parking is free
with no strings attached. Redbones offers the valet-parking service not
only to Redbones patrons, but to anyone out on a bike in Davis Square.

Gregory
introduced bicycle valet parking at Redbones first Bike Party, in May
of 1997. That year, the event drew 50 people to Underbones, the
downstairs bar of Redbones. Since then, the event has grown and moved
out into the street. Last year, the event raised $11,000.

Traditionally,
the Bike Party took place on the Monday of Bike-To-Work Week, in
mid-May. Since last year's party had to be postponed due to rain on
that day, Redbones decided to move this year's party from May 11 to
June 8. Ironically, it didn't rain during Bike-To-Work Week this year
(May 11-15), while the chance of rain on the eighth is 40%, according
to Weather.com. Rain date for this year's bike party is June 15. With
any luck, next week's weather will be good. And with bicycle valet
parking, your bike, at least, can stay dry come hail or high water.

An
enterprise that requires exploiting addiction or ignorance to make
money is morally bankrupt. Yet that is precisely what the Commonwealth
of Massachusetts is doing.

Our political leaders don't have
the courage to adopt a just tax policy or cut the excess costs that
result from favoritism toward well-connected interest groups. Instead,
they consider approving the most predatory form of legalized gambling
in the United States.

Although the Massachusetts Senate voted
31-to-6 against a proposal to install 2,500 slot machines at
racetracks, many Senators explained that their intention was only to
postpone the decision and separate it from the budget bill. House
Speaker DeLeo, Senate President Murray, and Governor Patrick say that
they want to reconsider the question in the fall.

The Senate
did agree to offer Massachusetts's residents (whose per capita
expenditures on the lottery and scratch tickets together is already the
highest in the country) another means of losing money. They voted to
join the multi-state Power Ball lottery. Meanwhile, Treasurer Tim
Cahill suggests building slot-machine-only casinos.

The
rationale is that slot machines would produce much-needed revenue for a
beyond-broke state budget. Okay, but slots would also reduce the amount
of taxable economic activity that would be produced by people spending
their hard-earned money on things other than gambling. And such
economic activity creates more jobs per dollar spent. Nor does the
rationale account for the increases in public welfare, social service,
and public safety costs that slot machines would produce.

Beyond
these abstract economic projections awaits profound human misery. I'm
not talking about gamblers who visit a casino a few times per year as
entertainment or buy the occasional scratch ticket. The casinos would
go bankrupt if those were their only customers.

I'm talking
about the 10% of casino patrons who produce 90% of casinos' revenue-the
addicts. Casino managers' aim is to entice gamblers to "play to
extinction." That is a gambling industry term that means playing until
you have no more money and no access to any.

Scholars who
study such things tell us that slot machines are the most addictive
form of legalized gambling. Casino managers use every means available
to encourage and exploit those addictive qualities. They use video
screens and buttons instead of mechanical wheels and levers so as to
increase the number of plays per hour from 300 to as much a 900.

They
program the results presented on the screen so that the player believes
he or she "almost" hit the jackpot. They build a credit card receptacle
into the machine itself.

They identify addicts and potential
addicts by renting lists from companies that operate ATMs in casinos
and target them with direct mail and email offers. They provide free
alcohol and free or reduced-price lodging to keep people playing.

They
design stools so that players can sit for hours without cutting off
circulation to their legs. When a player seems ready to call it quits,
a casino employee will offer a small cash voucher to keep him or her
chasing the elusive jackpot.

M.I.T. professor Natasha Schüll
says that slot-machine addiction isn't about the urge to win. It's
about entering a trance-like state that casino operators call "the
zone," which produces the same kind of dopamine release in the brain
that addictive drugs provide.

This is what the Commonwealth
will promote by licensing slot machines. Perhaps we can generate even
more revenue by licensing crack houses.

Very few crack dealers
use crack, and even fewer gambling executives use slot machines. I
wonder if any legislators will get into "the zone," or even understand
what they have created.

Some apologists for legalized gambling
say that objections like mine are "elitist." Would they believe that
trying to prevent one's children from becoming crack addicts is
elitist? Or whether trying to spare another family the hardship and
misery that comes from a gambling-addicted parent is elitist?

Our
political leaders would serve us much better if they took a hard look
at, and exercised political leadership on a just tax policy. They wet
their pants when they are accused of increasing taxes. Yet they take
credit for the police and fire protection, education, roads, and
services on which our wellbeing depends but that only taxes can pay for.

Although
Massachusetts is seventh highest among all the states in per capita
personal income, we are in the bottom half in the amount of taxes that
we pay as a share of that income. Our problem isn't so much that our
flat income tax is too low or too high. Our problem is that our income
tax is flat.

We demand that the poorer that people are, the
greater percentage of their income they pay in taxes. Joining the 34
other states that ask their citizens to support their government based
on ability to pay would not only increase economic justice. It would
increase our capacity to avoid the kind of fiscal catastrophe that we
now confront.

But that would require political leaders with courage, moral fiber, and a sense of justice.

Save our Somerville (SOS) united with local
supporters in a vigil to reflect on the loss of Somerville residents
who lost battles to depression, drugs, and violence.

"Tough
times call for tough people," said Matt McLaughlin, SOS founder, in a
call to action urging the community to be more proactive in finding
solutions for the drug addictions and deaths impacting the city.

McLaughlin
addressed the "Somerville slump," a stance when youth realize that
dreams of starring in competitive sports is not as easy as expected,
when jobs seem more competitive to attain, and when a college degree
does not guarantee success. At this realization, many turn to drugs as
a medium of escape.

"We have lost friends to drugs and not
only physically," said Anna Rodriguez in a reflective reading about her
personal encounter with substance abuse. Rodriguez narrated how at some
point drinking and drugs defined the Somerville youth lifestyle.

Half
a dozen tables from Cambridge Health Alliance and other supporters
containing brochures and contact information for residents seeking drug
rehabilitation or help coping with loss were displayed throughout the
ceremony.

A series of residents read letters and poems to
deliver their story, their loss, and their tragedy. "I'm filled with a
shattered heart…hoping to heal," said Renae Lister mourning the loss
of friends but stating her desire for a better future.

"Remembering
the past to change the future" themed the event- a banner with this
slogan was spread out for anyone who wanted to write a message to a
lost one and T-shirts with the same statement were offered for free.

Sandra
Milton fought back tears remembering her son Stephen Pacheco who
accidentally overdosed last August and the difficulties he encountered
trying to get medical help. "It's not easy to get help for heroin
addicts," said Milton. Friends and family of Pacheco wore black shirts
in his remembrance, in the back, his last name served as an acronym for
the cause: Public Awareness Can Help Every Child Overcome.

Among
the speakers, Leon David categorized loss as a common denominator
between residents but labeled SOS as the "collective voice and shaker"
of Somerville.

McLaughlin encouraged the community to
accompany him June 10 to the State House to advocate fund increases for
rehabilitation centers. "In the struggle we find purpose in our lives,"
said McLaughlin.

***************

The
deadline for pulling papers for local office this year is Monday the
8th at 5p.m. and the deadline to turn them in is Wednesday the 10th at
5p.m. So far (as of Tuesday the 2nd), Alderwoman Gewirtz from Ward 6
has an opponent with Jim Campano of the "The Somerville Pundits" TV
show. Ward Four/Winter Hill School Committeeman, our own James Norton
has an opponent with a PDSer supported candidate Christine Rafal (oh
come on now, you know exactly what the PDSers endorsements will be –
Gewirtz in Ward 6 and Ms. Rafal in Ward 4 – how much you want to bet?)
Remember the PDSers are "reformers." Ms. Rafal, a PDSer herself, pulled
papers last time around but didn't turn them in, but if her buddy from
Ward 5 Mr. Neidergang has anything to say about it, she'll hand them in
this time. Should be interesting in Ward 4, since Christine is telling
everyone that she is taking the low road and going negative – again
that's the PDSers for you!

***************

Another very
nice man passed away recently, our condolences go out to the family of
Joseph Silva. Joe was the electrical inspector for Lights & Lines
here in Somerville for many years; he came into contact with a lot of
people here. He was a gentleman and an all around just plain nice guy
who never had a bad thing to say about anyone. Recently Joe was an
active member of the Somerville Lion's – he will be missed all over the
city by a lot of people.

***************

Big city cuts
with a lot of concern – according to sources, four Somerville police
officers will be laid off as well as four more vacant positions will
not be filled! Also, eight Somerville Fire Fighters and we hear at
least ten DPW workers are slated for layoffs. It's unfortunate for all
concerned and we feel for anyone that loses their job and hopefully it
won't be permanent.

***************

The Sunsetters
audition to find new talent was held this past Monday night – our own
Jimmy Del Ponte held the talent search – which was up at the West
Somerville Neighborhood School Cafeteria. All talent contestants had to
be between 12 & 17 years and about 20 were chosen out of 40 very
talented young people. We're sure Jimmy selected a good group of
performing and wish them all the best, both the ones that were selected
and not selected.

***************

Mayor Joseph A.
Curtatone and Recreation Superintendent Jim Halloran announced that the
88th annual All City Track Meet will be held on Friday, June 5th at
Dilboy Stadium, beginning at 6:00 p.m. The meet is the culmination of
ongoing elementary school sports competitions, including basketball,
flag football, indoor soccer, indoor volleyball, and a swim meet. The
school with the most points following the final track meet will take
home the "Mackey Trophy." The scoring system is based on the number of
students attending the program, practices, games, sportsmanship, and
win-loss records.

***************

The Taste of Somerville
(a culinary tour and evening of fun to support SCM Community
Transportation) will be held on Tuesday, June 9th from 5:30 to 8:30
p.m. at the Somerville Holiday Inn (30 Washington Street). More than
twenty-five top restaurants and hundreds of supporters will be be
mixing it up and also joining in a silent auction, which will feature
items ranging from Red Sox tickets to a 50-inch plasma HD TV. The event
is coordinated by the Somerville Chamber of Commerce.

***************

Wow,
we just heard that Ms. Hickey (Ms. Frump to her old friends that got
stabbed in the back) from the Council on Aging, is holding a "Veterans
Dinner" on June 23rd at the Tab building and is charging a $30.00 per
person for a ticket – we also hear that its not on the Calendar of
Events for June for the council members. We're so glad she's gotten
over her dislike for Veterans Services Director Frank Senesi and is, we
assume, working so closely together to help raise some funds for
Veterans Services – at least that's what we hope is being done,
especially for $30.00 a plate to Honor our Veterans at a cafeteria in
the old Tab building!

***************

Remember the
Sovereign Bank employee that made front page headlines last month for
pushing the envelope with allegedly making threats and exposing a bank
customer's personal information for a pair of U2 tickets? We hear that
the court found sufficient evidence to proceed further with an
arraignment on June 19 at 9 a.m.

***************

Congratulations
to 10-year-old Haley Soares – who we heard will be one lucky student of
the month at the Winter Hill School for June. We wish her the best,
along with all the other students in the past year for Student of the
Month at the Winter Hill. By the way, most of us know her father and
mother and were not surprised – she's a smart student.

***************

Aside from the obvious person here at this
newspaper that knows firsthand what it is like to be under the kind of
pressure our elected officials are in this budget crisis, it is hard
for the rest of us here to wrap our minds around it. Sure, there are
plenty of other people to be much more concerned about – especially the
people that will lose their jobs – but this is supposed to be a
collaborative effort, working together to make sure that the pain will
be as minimal as possible and making sure we as a city don't have to go
through this year after year until the economy gets back on its feet.

An overflow crowd, mostly senior
citizens, attended the meeting to hear what was expected to be a vote
on whether retired employees would face increased health insurance
payments. Instead, they watched as the Board learned their approval
wasn't required and that only a "housekeeping amendment" stood in the
way of Curtatone increasing the payments from 10 to 25 percent for most
retirees starting July 1.

The day before the meeting, local
media outlets published an editorial by Curtatone stressing the need
for the Board's approval of his new plan.

"I understand that
this is a hard vote," he wrote. "We can all agree that dealing with
this crisis will require everyone to make some sacrifices … But when
that spirit of shared sacrifice is extended to our retirees, it's not
surprising that some aldermen are reluctant to make the call."

The
Board learned Thursday from City Solicitor John Gannon that after
speaking with state officials Wednesday he learned a vote was not
needed – the power to change the rates lies with the Mayor. The only
thing standing in the way of Curtatone raising the contribution for
retired city employees from 10 to 25 percent was a 1979 ordinance that
left the city open to lawsuits if it remained on the books.

Responding
to the Board's reluctance to put their indirect stamp of approval on
the rate increase, both Gannon and Curtatone warned the city could be
sued if the law remained.

"I should note strenuously that this
is just a housekeeping amendment," Gannon said. "The requested action
would bring intellectual honesty to the order."

"You leave
ourselves quite exposed if we don't fix it, and that's the bottom
line," Curtatone added. "Whether you agree on this or not, we're
exposed either way."

While acknowledging the vote's necessity, several Aldermen criticized the Mayor's administration for keeping them in the dark.

"(Health
care) is a problem that's been ignored for a long time,"
Alderman-at-Large Bruce Desmond said of the impending rate increase.
"It appears they're taking away the ability for the Board to make this
decision."

"I am a little disappointed we didn't know about this
before," Ward 3 Alderman Tom Taylor said. "It would've saved a lot of
heartache and grief."

Citing the need to discuss the
possibilities of litigation being filed against the city, the Board
voted to discuss the issues in executive session. The audience waited
as the Aldermen left the room and discussed the issue behind closed
doors for an hour.

Carl Stauffer, a retired Somerville High
School teacher, explained while waiting for their return that even a
slight increase could push some retirees over the edge.

"The (retirees) who have been out 20 years – for someone making $1,000 a month, a $50 increase would kill them," he said.

"I'd like to see some transparency, not just sudden decisions," Stauffer added.

When
the aldermen returned, they voted unanimously to rescind the 1979 law,
leaving Curtatone open to increase the percentage retirees will pay for
their premiums.

Beyond the planned increase to a 25 percent
contribution, various options for Medicare plans remain on the table –
some of which could leave as many as 53 retirees unqualified for
coverage. Possible plans will be discussed in upcoming Finance
Committee meetings – although the final authority remains with
Curtatone.

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.