Professor Anne Tate brings 20 years of experience

A final member of the Union Square Civic Advisory Committee with 20 years of experience in sustainable planning has been named at the request of the committee’s chairman Wig Zamore, Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone announced today.

Arrests:
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Roque Pena, 47, of 17 Court St., Boston, January 20, 4:00 p.m., arrested at 180 Somerville Ave. on charges of conspiracy, possession of a burglarious instrument, and larceny over $250.

Janice Sarno, 40, of 230 Main St., Reading, January 20, 4:00 p.m., arrested at 180 Somerville Ave. on charges of conspiracy and accessory after the fact.

Somerville firefighters fought their second  multiple alarm blaze within a week this past Sunday. A fire was reported at 68  Wheatland St. shortly before 10 a.m. Jan. 26. Arriving firefighters found heavy fire conditions on the  third floor of a three-story home. A second alarm was sounded several  minutes later. The fire fully engulfed a third-floor side porch, spreading into  the ceiling of the third floor. Firefighters had to pull down several ceilings  to extinguish fire spreading under the roof. Fire damage was confined to the  third floor, but water damage resulted on the floors below.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan informed the public today that Justin Koser, 31, of Somerville, pleaded guilty to charges of enticement of a child under 16 (two counts) and attempted rape of a child.

Mayor Curtatone, Ward 2 Alderman Maryann Heuston and Ward 3 Alderman Robert McWatters invite all interested residents and stakeholders to the second in a series of meetings to discuss plans for future utility and roadway improvements for Union Square. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 6:30 p.m. at the Argenziano School (290 Washington St). This meeting will provide an update on the design study, introduce the Community Advisory Committee, and focus on ideas for the pedestrian, bicycle and open space and streetscape improvements in Union Square. The meeting is free and open to the public, and Spanish and Portuguese interpretation will be provided upon request. For more information, contact Hayes Morrison, Director of Transportation and Infrastructure for the City of Somerville, at 617-625-6600 ext. 2522 or HMorrison@somervillema.gov.

Kenneth Gloss holds a picture of himself as a child with his father, working together in the book store.

By Shirley Kawa-Jump

Kenneth Gloss is a rarity: he loves to go to work each day. Handling leather-bound volumes of Shakespeare and first editions of Charles Dickens are part of what fuels his passion for books. Gloss, owner of the Brattle Book Shop in Boston, fills his days weeding through old volumes and texts, looking for pieces of buried treasure.

Right Now!, a benefit event organized by We Are Music, is holding a one-night festival of events from 6 p.m. to midnight Saturday, Feb. 1, at Brooklyn Boulders, 12A Tyler St., with 100 percent of ticket proceeds being donated to benefit rebuilding efforts in the Philippines post-Typhoon Haiyan via Architecture for Humanity.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and  do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

If you grew up in the ‘60s and ‘70s in West Somerville and delivered newspapers, you probably worked for Mr. Abe Learner. Abe was the boss. “Better get going” was one of Abe’s favorite sayings as he tried to get us out to start delivering our papers.

Franchot Tone. – Photo by Ben Moon

By Max Sullivan

It’s been a little more than five years since South Hamilton native Franchot Tone started down the road to becoming a lead singer. Now, with one solo album under his belt and another in the works, the reggae/surf/pop singer is on tour with Nick Hexum, lead singer of 311. The tour includes one show at the Sinclair in Cambridge this Sunday night.

Tone has played with plenty of high-profile musicians. He plays lead guitar in the California-based Culver City Dub Collective, a group that has opened for artists like Jack Johnson and Toots and the Maytals. Johnson even recorded with the group on one of their albums.

What’s different with the Hexum shows is that Tone gets to open as a solo artist, something that is still relatively new to him. He did not release a solo album until 2012.

Massachusetts College Goal Sunday program now in its 10^th Year

College Goal Sunday provides students and their families with important information and resources for acquiring financial aid. – Photo by Harry Kane

Somerville High School will host FAFSA Day Massachusetts, a College Goal Sunday program this Sunday, January 26, 2014 from 1-3 p.m. All high school seniors and other adult students considering attending college during the 2014-2015 academic year are encouraged to participate in this free event.  Financial Aid counselors from area colleges will be on hand to help seniors, parents and guardians complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Students are asked to register for FAFSA Day online at www.FAFSAday.org, or by telephone at (877) 424-7627.