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| Last week there was a sort-of public hearing on a proposed new park down on New Washington Street. The hearing was held by the Director of Parks and Open Space. When one of our Newstalkers arrived, it appeared there were more city employees then residents to hear about the new proposed park. Well, apparently the director doesn't interact well with questions and started to get annoyed that our guy was asking them. You'd think if it was a public hearing, and he was the director of the department, that the city would at least give lessons on how to react to questions being asked, wouldn't you? Too bad because we would have liked to hear about the new park. This isn't the first time public employees have either been rude or blocked entrances to public hearings… If you're holding a meeting and you're a governmental agency, especially holding a hearing, its open to the public, isn't it? |
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Is war ever good for business? Not when you serve waffles and you want your customers to feel safe. The bright minds behind two of the city's most thriving breakfast spots actually came to blows this weekend after years of building tension. We have watched with amusement as both Sound Bites and Ball Square cafe served good food along with petty bickering – in New England's most densely populated city, we appreciate a good feud among neighbors. |
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| By George P. Hassett
A $3 million roadway project began in Magoun Square last week but the neighborhood's ward alderman continues to voice concerns about the neighborhood's economic struggles. Ward 5 Alderman Sean O'Donovan submitted six strongly worded items at last week's Board of Aldermen meeting regarding the negative impact new city parking regulations are having on locally owned businesses already dealing with a severe economic downturn. |
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By Tom Nash As the city prepares to defend itself against accusations that it mishandled the application for a controversial restaurant and hotel project, a review of city records shows information required for the project's approval was never officially submitted. The Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously approved a 35-room hotel and restaurant development at 371 Beacon St. in January after a group of residents made the case that it would overwhelm the area. |
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Ashley Troutman The Somerville High School Auditorium was nearly full last Thursday during the Annual Spring All-City Elementary Concert. Hundreds of local children have been studying music during school for this event. Richard Saunders, Director of Music, said, "We take students from chorus, orchestra, and band from around the city. We like to have every school represented in the ensembles. We have one concert in the winter and one in the spring." The evening began with the All-City Elementary Chorus' rendition of "Toccata for Voices." The 46 children, directed by Beverly Mosby, then wooed the crowd with "Let My People Go," followed by "Iko Iko." |
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Somerville discusses its educational culture Lauren C. Ostberg Most communities have heard it by now: it takes a village to raise a child. But Somerville's youngsters have an entire city, and an active educational community, to get them ready for school. The Third Annual Community Conversation on Getting School-Ready united community-based childcare agencies, education-based non-profits, parents, teachers, and two local health groups on Wednesday. The conversation focused on "The Many Cultures in Our Lives." Organizers broadened the definition of culture beyond the usual national origin, linguistic and urban-rural divides to include classroom culture. "A classroom is a cultural community with shared practices," asserted Dr. Jayanthi Mistry, Chair of Tufts University's Department of Early Childhood Education and the event's keynote speaker. |
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(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 morning of April 5th marked the beginning of the much anticipated renewal of Magoun Square along with (finally) validating those obnoxious green signs at the beginning and in the heart of the square announcing the renovation. One would think that I, both a resident and daughter of a former Magoun Square business owner, would be relieved to see the State and City walk the walk after talking the talk for so long, but I must admit that I am worried.
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By Julia Fairclough Some people put their "foot on the gas" when under stress and become keyed up, overly emotional, and find it hard to sit still. Others may put their "foot on the brake" and become withdrawn or depressed. Still others may put a "foot on both" and freeze under pressure and can't do anything. "This is important for you to think about because everyone is different," said Patty Contente, LICSW, a social worker and clinical youth specialist for the city of Somerville. "Think about when you're stressed and what your typical reaction is." |
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