MBTA moving Green Line Extension into next phase

State transportation planner Matt Ciborowski (right) reviews a preliminary sketch of the planned Gilman Square Green Line Station with residents David Dahlbacka and Jane Sauer. - Photo by Elizabeth Sheeran

By Elizabeth Sheeran

The Green Line extension chugged a little further along the tracks in September, as the MBTA stepped into the driver’s seat and officially kicked off the design phase of the project.

“We are committed to getting this project done,” said MBTA General Manager Richard Davey to over 100 residents at the Argenziano School in Somerville on September 28, who braved torrential rains to get the latest project update from state and local officials.

Davey said the MBTA will be primarily responsible for building the Green Line Extension as it moves out of the planning phase, but will continue to work with the team of planners at the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) who have been involved in the project for years.

By George P. Hassett

A 25-year-old Medford man was strangled by an unruly movie goer at The Somerville Theatre Friday night, police said.

The victim asked two drunk men in the movie theatre to lower their voices, police said. Instead, one of the men placed a shoestring around the victim’s neck and pulled, police said.

Jean-Dany Joachim

Well – I interviewed the Poet Laureate of Boston Sam Cornish, the Poet Laureate of Portland, Maine Steve Luttrell, and just recently the Poet Populist of the Republic of Cambridge, Jean-Dany Joachim. Both Jean and I teach at Bunker Hill Community College, and both of us are poets. One day perhaps I will be able to interview the Poet Laureate of Somerville if the city ever gets off its haunches. Jean-Dany Joachim was born in Port-au-Prince Haiti. In his online bio it states “…his writing found its voice in the never-ending, complex reality of his country.” Joachim is the author of ” Chen Plenn-Leta”, and his work has appeared in anthologies and numerous literary magazines. I talked with him on my Somerville Community Access TV show “Poet to Poet: Writer to Writer.”

Haitian Coalition of Somerville staff and supporters traveled to Haiti this summer to maintain the organization’s commitment to the country’s reconstruction by participating in three special projects:  They plucked unknown artists from obscurity in a singing contest, brought a group of Boston volunteer educators to the Haitian countryside to train current Haitian teachers and advanced a collaborative initiative that will result in a new environmentally sustainable community-health center and maternal ward in Balan, Haiti.    

By Mike Rubin

In a fierce battle, the St. Clement’s football team suffered another heartbreaking loss.

Despite an impressive performance by Jon Alphonse, the Anchormen suffered a tough 21-20 defeat at the hands of league archrivals Matignon on Saturday morning’s clash at Dilboy Field.

With the loss, the Anchormen fell to 1-3 overall.

By Mike Rubin

Despite an abundance of injuries, the Somerville High School boys soccer team has managed to right the ship. Key setbacks for the Highlanders this season included star defenseman Lesley Andrade, who tore his ACL over the summer during the Bay State Games. Also missing time was last year’s Greater Boston MVP Homero Morais along with team captain Kevin Montiele along with starters Bipul Pyakaryul and Pedro Rolim.

Weathering the storms, the Highlanders pulled through with a 2-2 tie with league rivals Everett followed by a 3-2 win over Newton North on September 25. With last week’s 1-0 loss to Madison Park, the Highlanders currently stand at 3-3-1 overall.

Somerville poet Tam Lin Neville has a new book out from Somerville’s Cervena Barva Press  “Triage.” Here is a poem from this fine collection.

By Mike Rubin

After a promising start, the Somerville High School girls volleyball team continues to search for victories.

Following a tough 3-0 loss to Lawrence Sept. 27, the Highlanders responded with a strong effort against Everett on Wednesday. Even with a 1-0 lead, the Highlanders couldn’t secure the victory en route to a 3-1 loss to the Crimson Tide on Wednesday night. Finishing the week at 0-2, the Highlanders have now dipped to 1-7 overall.

By Ashley Taylor

A raindrop looking down on Somerville would not see many cushy places to fall.  That’s because about three-quarters of the land in Somerville – 73 percent, according to Somerville’s Office of Sustainability and the Environment – is impermeable to water, making Somerville the most water resistant city in the region.

Instead of being absorbed, rain that falls on these surfaces, mainly pavement and rooftops, drains into the city’s storm water and sewer system, which, as the July flash floods showed, can’t always handle that much water.

By George P. Hassett

Detectives recovered a gun and a variety of drugs in a raid on a Hamlet Street drug house Saturday, police said.

Police executed a warrant to search Christopher J. Federico, 21, and his home at 31 Hamlet St. and allegedly found Federico in his driveway selling OxyContin to Dennis Orellana, 23, of 353 Washington St.