Community members are invited to join Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the City Council at the spring 2023 City Hall Community Meetings. These meetings are held twice a year in each of Somerville’s seven wards to share the latest city and neighborhood updates with community members.

The City of Somerville’s annual Water System Flushing Program is set to begin Monday, May 8, and continue through late October. This annual program flushes pipes at high velocities to clean water mains and maintain the highest possible water quality.

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SustainaVille Week’s keynote address with Senator Markey and Mayor Ballantyne. Senator Markey and Mayor Ballantyne speak on the Green New Deal, the Inflation Reduction Act, and how federal funding and priorities can support climate action in Somerville.

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

By Nicole Eigbrett
CAAS Director of Community Organizing and Somerville renter

After an arduous, multi-year process, Massachusetts voters made it clear when they approved the Fair Share Amendment in November 2022 that they wanted the state’s wealthiest residents to make greater contributions to the state’s budget. Communities spoke decisively on this issue during a time of unprecedented inequity.

“Home Speakers Set” by sculptor Hilary Ross, one of the hundreds of the city’s artists participating in this year’s Somerville Open Studios.

Join in for Bounce, the 24th annual Somerville Open Studios, on Saturday, May 6 and Sunday, May 7, from noon to 6:00 p.m. throughout the city. Visit more than 350 visual artists during one of the largest free open studios events in the nation.

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

By State Senator Pat Jehlen

One of the main reasons given for cutting taxes is that we have a surplus. See, for example, the way Priorities for Progress framed its polling question:

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

The old bus pictured here was the type we took back in the day. Riding to the high school in the late 60’s and early 70’s was a lot of fun. Remember the plush leather seats?

— Photos by Claudia Ferro

East Somerville Main Streets hosted East Somerville’s Spring Clean Up this past Saturday. Ola Cafe supplied coffee and pastries Boy Scouts, city officials and residents joined in to help beautify the neighborhood.

Local restaurant operators have expressed a need for flexibility in the requirements for restroom capacity as they hope to carry on with outdoor seating arrangements for customers post-pandemic.

By Fernando Cervantes Jr.

During the pandemic, many restaurants across Somerville added outdoor seating areas to accommodate patrons and keep social distancing. Now that we’re past the days of COVID and social distancing, many want to bring back outside seating to their establishments, but there’s one thing standing in the way: restrooms.

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

By Nate Clauser
Chair, Somerville Ward 5 Democratic Committee

Somerville’s charter is like a constitution for the city, a blueprint for the structure of our local government. The current city charter, which dates to 1899, specifies a strong mayor form of government in which the mayor must initiate the expenditure of funds, and the city council’s only authority in this arena is to either approve or cut from the mayor’s proposed appropriations. The council does not currently have the power to allocate funds on its own, nor does it even have the power to reallocate funds that it has cut from a proposed mayoral appropriation.