Slide from the presentation to the City Council explaining the combined sewer system.

By Jeffrey Shwom

A multi-generational approach to separate unsanitary water from stormwater is taking time and could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The problem is “more than just combined sewer overflows (CSO) … the flooding is caused by runoff and hydraulic capacity of the brook,” Director of Infrastructure and Asset Management Rich Raiche discussed with the Somerville City Council on Thursday, May 22.

Cycling students are all smiles, standing alongside Bicycle Riding School instructor Susan McLucus. — Photos courtesy of Susan McLucus

By Harry Kane

They say that once you learn how to ride a bicycle, you never forget, but sometimes it’s good to get a refresher.

The Bicycle Riding School has offered lessons for kids and adults in Somerville for 40 years. Susan McLucas is the owner of the school who, along with seven other instructors, has been teaching people of all ages how to ride at local schoolyards.

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the Somerville Office of Health and Human Services are inviting all community members to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month at the annual Pride Flag Raising Ceremony on Thursday, June 5, from 5:30 to 6:30 pm on the City Hall Concourse (93 Highland Ave.). The event will feature remarks from Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, city LGBTQ+ Services Coordinator Izzy Starr, and youth representatives from Somerville’s LGBTQ+ community. Live ASL interpretation will be available. For more information about LGBTQ+ programming, events, and information, please visit somervillema.gov/lgbtq-services.

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

By M. Lee

On a recent visit to Somerville, I nearly got hit by a cyclist. Three times.

I came to town expecting raw oysters and friendly chats, not evasive maneuvers that would make a Cirque du Soleil performer break a sweat.

It started innocently enough: I was strolling down Kirkland Street toward Beacon Street after lunch with a friend in Harvard Square. The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, and I was enjoying that rare urban sensation of having nowhere I urgently needed to be. That’s when a blur of bike blew through a stop sign. I jumped back. No helmet. No hand signal. No shame.

Eagle Feathers #330 – Bunker Hill

By Bob (Monty) Doherty

If you drive out of Boston over the Leonard P. Zakim (Bunker Hill) Bridge, the first exit brings you to Sullivan Square at the Charlestown/Somerville line.  This area used to be known as Charlestown Neck.  The site was an isthmus, or small thread of land, that connected Charlestown with what is today Somerville.  These two towns, until 1842, were one.  The Neck was normally a quiet spot, but not at this time.  It was late in the day of June 17, 1775 and the infant Colonial American Army was in the midst of losing its first battle to the British.  They lost control of the battleground they fought on.  Amazingly, later when the story was told and the statistics revealed, the results were staggeringly in the favor of the Americans.  They had just repulsed the cream of the British army during two assaults on their Bunker/Breeds Hill defensive works and only gave way on the third attack because of their lack of ammunition.  This impressed General George Washington, who was in Virginia on his way to Massachusetts.  At that time, he was leery of leading the Colonials, thinking that Lexington and Concord were only skirmishes.  Then, upon hearing of the appalling losses the New England militia inflicted on the British (1,054 British losses vs.  441 American losses), he proudly determined that he would lead these men.

Another year passes, and we pause at this time to congratulate and honor the hard-working students who achieved their goal of successfully completing their courses of study at their respective high schools and colleges.

It takes a lot of dedication and commitment to follow through to completion in this world, which is filled with so many challenges and distractions. It is no small feat to take one’s education to completion, and these moments represent important milestones along the path to success in life.

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A H a n d p i c k e d P o e m

Review by Off the Shelf Correspondent Michael Todd Steffen

From his new book of poems, Pink Dust, in a section with the title Geezer, Ron Padgett writes,

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Mollie O’Leary is a poet from Massachusetts. She holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Washington. Mollie’s chapbook The Forgetting Curve was selected for publication in 2023 through Poetry Online’s chapbook contest and is currently in its fifth printing. Her poetry has appeared in Chestnut Review, wildness, McNeese Review, and elsewhere. Find more of her work at mollieoleary.com.

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

There’s been lots of differing opinions and lots of misinformation swirling about the Union Square Neighborhood Council’s Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) with Somernova. The first thing to clarify is that a no vote for the CBA does not mean a no vote to a  development. A no vote of the CBA means Somernova can still build by right and the community gets NOTHING.