Beginning around 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, December 17, the annual Jingle Bell Run road race will be held in and around the Davis, Teele, and Ball square areas. 

Detours will be in place around the starting line on Elm St. in Davis Square. Please observe posted signage.

“Burning Down The House: Women and Art in an Uncertain World” will be on exhibition at Brickbottom Gallery January 11 – February.

Brickbottom Gallery, a non-profit exhibition space run by the Brickbottom Artists’ Association (BAA), will present an exhibition of five established Boston-area women artists in its groundbreaking new show Burning Down The House: Women and Art in an Uncertain World.

East Somerville Main Streets hosted their Cozy Holiday Market for Santa photos, warm drinks, tasty treats, art shopping, and an amazing time on Friday, December 8, in the parking lot of Deano’s Pasta, 15 Garfield Ave. — Photos by Claudia Ferro

Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan and the Massachusetts State Police have identified the young woman killed in Wednesday’s crash on Route 93 north in Stoneham as Kayla E. Driscoll, 34, of Somerville.

The topic of rent stabilization being possibly implemented in Somerville was among the issues discussed by the city’s Legislative Matters Committee at their latest meeting.

By Jennifer Purcell

Last Tuesday, December 5, the Somerville City Council’s Legislative Matters Committee held their final meeting of the year, following up on a variety of subjects that have been prominent topics of discussion all throughout the year.

— Photo by Bobbie Toner

With a favorable vote from the MSBA, Somerville will continue its pursuit to rebuild or fully renovate the Winter Hill Community Innovation School. 

Somerville is one step closer to a new school building, thanks to a vote by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) on Wednesday to invite the Somerville Public Schools into MSBA’s Eligibility Period. The Eligibility Period is the first step in the MSBA process to proceed to the Capital Pipeline for funding. Somerville now has 270 days to complete requirements of the eligibility period, including funding a feasibility study, defining local needs, and forming a building committee. Invitation into the Eligibility Period is not an invitation to Feasibility Study, but is a critical next step in the process. 

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne leads the lighting of the Menorah on the concourse or Somerville City Hall on December 12, 2023.

The City of Somerville’s Christmas Tree Lighting on the City Hall Concourse took place on Thursday, December 7, kicking off the holiday season in the city. Attendees enjoyed live entertainment, a meet-and-greet with Santa Claus in the Somerville High School Cafeteria, and more. All children who attended received a special gift from Santa, who was escorted by the Somerville Fire and Police Departments, making his grand entrance atop a shiny red fire truck. ~Photos by Claudia Ferro

The Riders’ Transportation Access Group (RTAG) is working with the MBTA to help find solutions to current platform gap problems. — Photo by Bobbie Toner

By Micah Levine

Back in October, the Riders’ Transportation Access Group (RTAG) came together with MBTA officials to assess the increasing concern of platform gaps throughout many orange line stations. A rider survey conducted in September by the MBTA demonstrated a rise in concern over the prevalence and severity of these gaps, prompting the federal institution to take official action in direct conjunction with RTAG. These hazardous conditions raised the attention of the community-based group, whose mission is to ensure that riders with disabilities have their civil right to utilize public transit equally and effectively.

Members of the Somernova team, Linda Kelley, Russell Preston, Collin Yip, Jhenny Saint-Suri, Kristin Phelan, Carlos Sainz Caccia, Priscilla Burnsed and Majic Alphonse, stand with Somerville Mayor Katjana Ballantyne after receiving the Business Neighbor of the Year award. — Photo courtesy of Somernova

By Bridget Frawley

Somernova became the first developer to receive the Business Neighbor of the Year award at the annual Somerville Chamber of Commerce Powderhouse Business and Excellence Awards on November 30.