.

By Joe Creason

The Land Use Committee and the Planning Board held a joint public hearing on June 17 to hear the perspective of residents on several zoning ordinance amendments.

The public hearing began with a conversation regarding a petition requesting an amendment to the zoning ordinance in the Boynton Yards sub-overlay district submitted by 13 registered voters living in a condominium building at 80 Webster which abuts the Boynton Yards project.

(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 Benjamin Echevarria

Systemic racism comes in many forms.  While it is often hard to detect, the signs of systemic racism can be found in the way organizations use their rules to favor their white benefactors at the expense of black, indigenous and people of color (BIPOC). While conservative organizations such as the police, the Republican Party or Fortune 500 companies are often cited as examples of institutions that perpetuate systemic racism, such systems cannot exist without complicity from liberal and even leftist organizations.

— Photos by Bella Levavi

By Bella Levavi

Somerville Eviction Response Network led a protest in Davis Square Tuesday, June 15, in response to the expiration of the eviction moratorium due to occur nationally June 30.

The City of Somerville will host its annual Fourth of July Fireworks Celebration at Trum Field on Wednesday, June 30 (rain date July 1). Live entertainment at Trum Field will begin at 6:30 p.m. with DJ Brother Cleve playing pop, soul, funk, and other classic tunes followed by Booty Vortex taking the stage at 8:00 p.m. Fireworks will begin at approximately 9:15 p.m. While fireworks attendees are not required to wear masks, anyone who is not fully vaccinated is advised to wear one whenever they are in a crowd. To ensure public safety and pedestrian access to events, traffic and parking restrictions will be in place. For more information, please call 311 (or 617-666-3311), or visit www.somervillema.gov.

The Somerville Board of Health has voted to extend the eviction moratorium through September 15 of this year.

By Rachael Hines

In a virtual meeting at on June 17, the Board of Health (BOH) voted to extend the end date of the eviction moratorium to September 15, 2021.

“We’re still in a state of emergency in Somerville, though the state of emergency in Massachusetts has been rescinded,” said Board member Robert Ciccia. “What’s on the table is a sensible next step given the transition that the entire Commonwealth is in.”

*

It’s nice to finally be able to get back to some favorite destinations in Portland since things are starting to get back to normal from the past 15 months.

One of my guilty pleasures is the lobster roll at The Highroller Lobster Company, (https://highrollerlobster.com/about/). Served on a griddled brioche roll, and I highly recommend you get the lobster meat dipped in clarified butter, and topped with the lime aioli. The flavor combination enhances the moist, sweet lobster meat. I’m sure you will order a second one, seriously.

What is more delicious to the young mind than that savory and unrivaled treat, summer vacation? A well-deserved reward for all the hard work and irreplaceable time invested in the previous school year.

As adults, we can look back fondly on those golden days with a warm sense of nostalgia and a longing to return to the carefree days that linger now only in our memories. And yet, we can live those times again vicariously as we engage with the present younger generation who will be making its own special memories.

On June 21, Somerville friends held a memorial at Belmont Park to honor the lives of James Buff Macauley and Mike McLean. Families from both decedents were at the impromptu tribute to discuss and celebrate their lives. Both men, Somerville residents, recently passed and they were honored at Belmont Park, where they spent much of their younger days.

*

As I sat on my porch with my cat Ketz, and a strong cup of coffee – I thought about Somerville writer Joseph Torra’s new memoir, Who Do You Think You Are? Reflections of a Writer’s Life…

*
In his newest volume, Pieces of Bones and Rags, Michael C. Keith brings to the reader more idiosyncratic and laconic narratives designed to amuse, enlighten, and provoke. This quirky collection mines the full range of human behavior and experience for all their varied and distinct manifestations and consequences. The epigrammatic tales between these covers provide a sometimes numinous often harrowing sojourn across landscapes both familiar and exotic.