Quality of life issues addressed efficiently, better service over the counter and on the phone

In a move to provide enhanced customer service, City of Somerville Inspectional Services is introducing several new improvements this month that should benefit residents, businesses and contractors alike. New Inspectional Services office hours were introduced on July 1 that align better with both contractors’ work schedules and resident needs, and a new permitting process will make it easier to submit applications for permits and receive approval.

Ceremonial Groundbreaking for East Broadway Reconstruction Project, Ribbon Cutting to officially re-open Chuckie Harris Park

Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone and Ward 1 Alderman Maureen Bastardi announce two events to celebrate the ongoing renovation along East Broadway. On Monday, July 15 the City of Somerville will partner with East Somerville Main Streets (ESMS) for a ceremonial groundbreaking for the East Broadway Reconstruction Project that began in Fall 2012. The city will also officially re-open the recently renovated Chuckie Harris Park on Cross Street East. The events will begin at 6 p.m. at Chuckie Harris Park, followed by a short walking tour of East Broadway led by the Mayor. A reception will follow the tour, and light refreshments will be served at Harris Park prior to the speaking agenda.

The City of Somerville’s “Somerville by Design” community planning series continues this month with Visioning Sessions for the East Somerville and Davis Square neighborhoods. The Visioning sessions will be the second of four events in each process to help the city create a roadmap for future development based on community needs and wishes in these areas. Somerville by Design series were conducted for Station Area Planning surrounding the proposed Green Line Extension in 2012. Upcoming meetings in each neighborhood are as follows:

Hundreds of years of horticultural knowledge and lore are accessible through collecting books on gardening, according to Kenneth Gloss of the Brattle Book Shop.

By Kenneth Gloss

Pardon the pun, but gardening books are a perennial favorite with collectors. They have been around from the very first days of writing because they served as guides for the all-important agricultural tasks people had to do each day. The earliest versions of gardening books were nothing like what we think of today. They were advice books, filled with information on how to till the land, what seeds to select, when to harvest, etc. For a good example of a recreated 15th century gardening book, look for De Boke (The Garden Book) by Jenny Day Haynes, published in 1906. This book is a replica of what one might find 500 hundred years ago.

James Fox and Akil Williams, together with The Friends of the Somerville Public Library and Trustees of the Somerville Public Library, created a phone box lending library in Ball Square outside of True Grounds. It is filled with fiction, non-fiction, children’s literature, and foreign language works to be freely taken and enjoyed by passers-by, with no return necessary. Books are restocked each week by the Friends of the Library, but visitors are also encouraged to take one, leave one. The project was produced in association with the Nave Gallery phoneboxartproject.

Somerville’s COA  had a wonderful stroll down memory lane as we relived the heyday of Revere Beach with enthusiast Bob Upton, pictured here with Mary Alice Couture. This program was sponsored by Home Instead Senior Care.  Join them  on Friday, July 19, for a trip to Revere Beach to see sand sculpting contest. The cost is $9.

There’s an app for that
*

Residents who spot a pothole, an unshoveled sidewalk, a burned out streetlight or other quality of life issues in Somerville can now report those issues to the city immediately, along with a photograph, using the Commonwealth Connect smartphone app.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

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

I have a pretty big birthday coming up this month. As a matter of fact, most of my childhood friends are also turning…the same age this year. Oh what the hell…the big 6-0. Wow!

American Red Cross volunteers met with 5 residents of a single family house a 68R Dane Street. Emergency funds for food were given to 5; emergency hotel was given to 1; smoke packs were given to 5 residents.

There’s plenty for kids to do this summer to have fun and stay fit, thanks to the efforts of city programs provided by Somerville Recreation.

By Martynas Limantas

With schools out and summer in full swing, Somerville offers a variety of activities for youth ranging from sports to arts, and many others to get involved in over the break.