By William C.  Shelton

(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.)

The migration to Somerville of people who make their living as professionals continues to increase. The city now has more residents per capita with advanced academic degrees than any Massachusetts municipality other than Cambridge.

The volunteers of Ladder 2 in Somerville worked hard this year, helping to send grateful kids with special needs to summer camp. The Russel family celebrated the achievement at the station house last week.

By Harry Kane

Firefighters raised 15,200 dollars this year in donations for children with Myotonic Muscular Dystrophy disease. The volunteers at Ladder 2 held a meet with MDA ambassadors and the Russell family on September 22, 2011.

By Jim Clark

The Somerville Police Department Drug Control Unit’s ongoing narcotic investigation of alleged illegal drug activity occurring within the North Street Housing Development complex and adjacent park / playground area yielded positive results last week when a suspected dealer was caught in a sting operation implemented by the Department, police said.

Sugar Law Center director Mark Stern says that an exclusive local hiring ordinance is possible. - Photo by Andrew Firestone

Aldermen weigh local hiring ordinance

By Andrew Firestone

Somerville has long suffered under the disproportionate ratio of jobs to laborers; there are only 21,000 jobs for around 45,000 workers who live in the city. Proposed over the summer by the Somerville Community Corporation, a local jobs ordinance was introduced to the Board of Aldermen, which would require all developers in the city who receive more than $50,000 in public funds to hire 30 percent of their workforce from Somerville.

- Photos by Donald Norton

After years and years of being torn up, full of pot holes and bumps, Temple Street is finally being repaved.  The six block long street will soon be open for business. Residents of  Winter Hill can rejoice until NSTAR and National Grid decide they need to dig one more time.

By Jim Clark

Somerville police were dispatched to a residence on High Street in the early hours of Monday this week in response to reports of noise and a possible fight underway at this location.

– Photos by Michael Merline

Wig Zamore says that the MPO funding plan will not meet the legal obligations of the state. - Photo by Andrew Firestone

Zamore: GLX still in limbo

By Andrew Firestone

The Green Line Extension (GLX) project was given a boon this last Thursday, September 20, in the form of $490 million worth of bonds being approved for Somerville road repaving and design of the project by the Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). The approval, following the abandonment of the Red Line-Blue Line connector and a decision by the MPO to buy 24 additional trains also comes with the expectation that there will be an additional $100 million provided by the federal New Starts program.

We hear from internal sources that were present at the fundraiser for Ward 4 candidate Christine Barber that she had about 25 people who showed up and again only a couple from Winter Hill. Guess she must have flown her contributors in from San Francisco, again? We also hear that Rep. Carl Sciortino endorsed her at the fundraiser. She’s a lucky lady to have his endorsement, isn’t she? Carl, as everyone knows, has two of the three precincts in Ward 4 he represents. Speaking of which, with all the celebrities up in Ten Hills we heard maybe he might have a strong opponent at next year’s state elections.

Mayor Curtatone advocating for GIC last August.

Employees, retirees to pay same rate upon entering

By Andrew Firestone

It seems the city’s health insurance crisis has finally subsided. Beginning January 1, 2012, all retirees and employees of Somerville will join the Group Insurance Commission (GIC), an act that the city says will save $9 million for that year alone. The GIC is a state program that provides coverage to more than 390,000 people.