Mayor Joe Curtatone met with a wide cross section of Somerville residents March 29 at his office hours in Ball Square coffee shop True Grounds. ~Photo by Andrew Firestone

Residents call for cleaner streets, better business

By Andrew Firestone

Mayor Joe Curtatone met with a wide cross section of Somerville residents March 29 at his office hours in Ball Square coffee shop True Grounds, fielding questions about education and flicking cigarette butts in the street.

“Are you an attorney, Mr. Mayor?” asked C. Bill Best.

Police Detective Mario Oliveira returned to work the way many members of the department do their job each day: quietly.

The decorated detective was shot five times in November, almost dying on Gibbens Street as he served an arrest warrant on a gun dealing suspect. During his recovery Oliveira said he learned a lot: about himself, his colleagues in law enforcement and his community.

By Ashley Taylor

A consultants claim that Assembly Square can be developed without adding any extra police or city services to the area was met with disbelief by one alderman last week.

“I can’t even begin to believe that we wouldn’t need one more firefighter?” Ward Six Alderman Rebekah Gewirtz commented after Paik’s presentation.  “We wouldn’t need one more police officer?”

Sixteen poets took part in one of the oldest grudge matches around, Boston versus New York, last week. ~Photo by Max W. Lauf

By Max W. Lauf

Sixteen poets took part in one of the oldest grudge matches around, Boston versus New York, last week.

The evening opened with music from The Whiskey Boys and Ruby Rose Fox, and a comedic monologue from Aimee Rose Ranger. Following the introduction of the judges (among whom were included Regie Gibson, Meg Taintor, and Richard Cambridge), Kevin Spak and Megan Thoma, both from Boston, were sacrificed to them as warm-up poets.

On April 2, the Elizabeth Peabody House was transformed into a pizza party.

Peabody house organized pizza contest, fundraiser

By Carrie Stanziola

Normally, the Elizabeth Peabody House serves as a daycare and emergency food service pantry to Somerville’s neediest families. On April 2, it was transformed into a pizza party, where, for $10 at the door, citizens of Somerville could sample the wares of local pizza parlors, all for a good cause.

By George P. Hassett

A North Street man who tried to shoplift a bottle of rum punched a liquor store owner in the face when  the store owner tried to stop him from leaving, police said.

Steeve Milice, 19, was arrested at 115 Alewife Brook Parkway Saturday and charged with assault and battery, possession of a dangerous weapon and shoplifting.

Whenever I teach poetry workshops I tell poets to walk and keep a little memo book in their back pocket because you never know what you may see or hear. Poet Lawrence Kessenich takes a walk and comes up with a nifty little piece.

Harris Gardner, founder of the Festival and Boston Poet Laureate Sam Cornish.

For the past 10 years I have read and hosted for the Boston National Poetry Month Festival founded by Harris Gardner. And like every year there will be a number of Somerville-based poets included.  Union Square denizen and yours truly Doug Holder, Harris Gardner (a new resident of our burg), Ifeanyi Menkiti (owner of the Grolier Poetry Book Shop), Timothy Gager ( Co-founder of The Somerville News Writers Festival), and Gloria Mindock (founder of the Cervena Barva Press) will all be reading from their work.

Arrests:
*

Katrina Brown, 41, of 111 Babson St., March 28, 2:29 a.m., arrested at 567 McGrath Highwayand charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

Jamie Nucci, 38, of 170 Newbury St., Peabody, March 28, 10:12 a.m., arrested at 220 Washington St. and charged with failure to register as a sex offender.

Keisha Lubin, 25, of 1366 Broadway, March 28, 12:06 p.m., arrested at home on a warrant charge.