The nomination period is extended  through Friday, Dec. 1, 2017.

The Somerville Historic Preservation Commission (SHPC) is now accepting nominations for the 2018 Preservation Awards. During its annual celebration in honor of Historic Preservation Month in May 2018, the Commission will honor Somerville residents who performed significant restoration or maintenance efforts on designated historic buildings, or on non-designated buildings erected before 1966. The nomination period is open through Friday, Dec. 1, 2017.

Freelance photographer and software engineer Lee.

By JT Thompson

Lee is a freelance photographer and software engineer who has been the director of the Washington Street gallery and studios, just outside Union Square, for the last fifteen years.

When we meet at bloc 11 café, he is wearing a 2006 brown and blue Art Beat t-shirt, glasses with black, rectangular frames, and a red cloth hat which looks something like a hunting cap. He says he thought it would add a nice touch of color to his photo.

Amendment will establish panel to study policies affecting justice-involved women

State Representative Christine P. Barber of Somerville and Medford spoke in the House chamber on Monday evening in support of an amendment she filed to the House omnibus criminal justice reform bill to establish a justice-involved women policy review panel. The House voted unanimously to adopt Barber’s amendment.

By Jim Clark

A police officer assigned in plain clothes was making his way to the police station in an unmarked car on Washington Street from the McGrath Highway side last week, when he noticed that the street was gridlocked and moving very slowly.

He eventually found that the source of the gridlock was a box truck making deliveries at a Washington St location.

By Joseph A. Curtatone 

(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)

Taking a closer look at notable city data – and interesting numbers.

39 percent of pipes over 100 years old: We’ve spent the year celebrating Somerville’s 175th birthday. Astonishingly, some of our water and sewer pipes aren’t far behind with 39 percent of them being more than 100 years old. But unlike our city, these pipes aren’t getting better with age. The expected lifespan of water and sewer mains is about 50 years, meaning roughly 40 percent of our system is more than a half-century overdue for an upgrade. And Somerville is not alone. The aging infrastructure crisis across the country – whether it’s bridges, roads or utilities like electric and water – just keeps mounting while much needed federal support just hasn’t kept up.

~Photos by Claudia Ferro

Somerville Seniors gathered at the Holiday Inn on Friday, November 10, for a Thanksgiving celebration with Mayor Curtatone.

Measures to increase protections against second-hand smoke contamination at public parks, playgrounds and playing fields in the city were recently adopted by the Board of Aldermen.

By Jim Clark

An order was put forward at the latest meeting of the Somerville Board of Aldermen Legislative Matters Committee on Thursday, November 2, asking that the Director of Health and Human Services report to the on Board whether smoking tobacco and marijuana is restricted to beyond a 50 foot radius around parks, playgrounds and athletic fields, and, if it is not, to work with the City Solicitor’s Office to change the regulations to prohibit such smoking on public property within 50 feet of parks, playgrounds and athletic fields.

By State Rep. Christine Barber

(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)

After waiting for many years, there is finally some good news about the Green Line Extension (GLX) to Somerville and Medford. Federal approval is moving forward, the state has met all of its milestones, and the contractors who will re-start the project will be chosen in the next few weeks. The first portion of the GLX project, Phase I, will run from Lechmere Station to College Avenue in Medford, near Tufts University, with a separate spur from Lechmere to Union Square. The news that the GLX is moving forward is positive and it’s about time.

State Representatives Christine P. Barber, Denise Provost, and Mike Connolly voted last week to ensure affordable access to contraception. H.536/S.499, An Act relative to advancing contraceptive coverage and economic security in our state, known as the ACCESS bill, will ensure that the 1.4 million women in Massachusetts who currently use some form of birth control can access it when they need it. This bill protects against rollbacks of coverage for preventive services at the federal level.

By Donald Norton

The Little Sisters of the Poor Annual Harvest Bazaar this past Saturday looked like a huge success. The halls of the first floor and second floor cafeteria were packed with people.