The Community Budgeting meeting originally scheduled for Monday, Feb. 10, has been rescheduled to Thursday, Feb. 27. The meeting will still be held at the West Somerville Neighborhood School, 177 Powderhouse Blvd., at 6:30 p.m.

By Nidhi Mathson

Caesar’s Pizza on Somerville Avenue, Leone’s on Broadway and Prospect Hill tower are just some of the well-known Somerville hot spots featured in the Robert Richardson’s debut novel, Penny Hike.

“[The novel] shines a great light on the city of Somerville,” Richardson, who spent the first 33 years of his life in Somerville, said. “You get all of these books now that are about Whitey Bulger and the Winter Hill Gang, which shines a negative light on Somerville. I wanted to shine a good light on it, and I think this novel does.”

Evaluation of developers will identify finalists to be interviewed prior to final proposals

The City of Somerville received 10 responses to the Somerville Redevelopment Authority’s Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for a Union Square and Boynton Yards master developer partner, with several respondents displaying previous experience of working within existing urban neighborhoods to create new mixed-use, transit-oriented developments.

By Jim Clark

Police were summoned to Rockland Trust Bank on Highland Ave. last week on reports of vandalism at that location.

Investigating officers were briefed on the situation by the reporting party, the bank’s branch manager. They were shown a section of the building’s wall in the front ATM vestibule that had been severely damaged. A section of the wall underneath a table built into the wall reportedly had a hole in it approximately two feet square.

Friday, Feb. 7

Basketball: Girls Freshman Game, Everett at Everett High School – 3:45 p.m.

Basketball: Boys Freshman Game vs. Everett at Somerville High School – Field House -3:45 p.m.

By Joseph A. Curtatone

(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)

After the latest property tax bills went out, some property owners found themselves with larger increases than most of us have seen in Somerville for some time. I sympathize with every resident and small business owner facing those increases. This community has a legitimate concern, shared by myself and everyone at City Hall, about residents being priced out of their homes and small businesses priced out of our neighborhoods. It’s a concern shared across the metro region, well beyond our city’s borders, as property values across the metro area rise. It’s why we’ve been working to address affordability via a range of efforts for some time, and it’s why this week we began the first of three public meetings to build on existing strategies and develop new tools to tackle affordability and create a strong, effective housing agenda.

By Tom Bannister

The field at Hodgkins Park was damaged over the weekend by rough use by a person or people possibly wearing cleats. City officials said they will have to wait to see the full extent of the damage once the winter passes, but it does appear reseeding and regrading will likely be necessary at a cost yet to be determined.

All Schools and district offices will be open February 6.

The City of Somerville will lift its snow emergency as of 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 5. Residents parked in municipal or school lots during the snow emergency will have a two-hour window starting at that time in which to move their vehicles. Cars still parked in City lots at 8:30 p.m. may be subject to ticketing and towing.

BeardFest 2014 held at The Center for Arts at the Armory
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Some of Somerville’s fuzziest fun seekers got to let their hair down at SAC’s 2014 Beard & Moustache Contest on Sunday at The Center for the Arts at the Armory. – Photo by Claudia Ferro

By Erica Scharn

The 2014 Beard & Moustache Contest celebrated facial hair of all shapes and sizes this past Sunday. The facial hair artistry on display included a button beard, a glowing beard, braided beards and curly moustaches.

Mixed-use proposal for site moves forward
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An architectural rendering of the five-story, 55-foot building proposed at the site of Patsy’s Pastries in East Somerville. – Photo by Khalsa Designs.

By David R. Smith

Patsy’s Pastry Shop could close as early as the end of this month as plans to demolish the East Somerville landmark with a new five-story commercial and residential building move forward.