Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone, Ward 2 City Councilor J.T. Scott, Ward 3 City Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen, and the Union Square Community Design Team invite you to participate in a series of community engagement pop-ups to inform the future of Union Square’s public spaces. The Community Design Team is a diverse group of 11 Somerville residents leading the research and engagement effort for the Union Square Plaza and Streetscape Redesign project. This team is using participatory action research (PAR) to engage community members to imagine and share new ideas for Union Square. To kick things off this summer, the Community Design Team is hosting three pop-up events with activities designed to collect public opinions about Union Square’s streets, plaza, and public spaces. Join in at one of the next two events: Friday, July 23, 5:00 – 8:00 p.m., Union Square Plaza (rain date: Friday, July 30, 5:00 – 8:00 p.m.) and Saturday, August 7, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., Union Square Plaza (rain date: Sunday, August 8, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) For more information, visit bit.ly/UnionSqRedesign.

By Rachael Hines

The Somerville Commission for Women (SCW) met virtually on Monday night to discuss their transition to the Department of Racial and Social Justice, the Somerville Safe Streets Alliance, and the hiring of a new commissions coordinator.

The city’s Food and Nutrition Services Department is once again engaged in its annual summer meals for Somerville youth program. Kids under the age of 19 can get free meals at various locations throughout the city from now through August 13.

It’s a great way of making sure that the city’s youth get the nutritional support they need, regardless of financial or social standing.

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Review by Karen Klein

They don’t call Elizabeth McKim, aka e/liz, the Jazz Poet of Lynn for nothing. The 3 R’s she so skillfully employs aren’t the “reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmatic” we learned in grade school. Hers are rhyme, repetition, rhythm. Listen to them as in HEY DANGER, she insouciantly calls “Come on in/We’re waitin’ for this dance to begin….” repeating her invitation.

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My friend, the poet Julia Kanno, wrote this poem for my wife Dianne Robitaille. Dianne is at our home and is receiving hospice care. Julia is one of Dianne’s great caregivers. Julia writes: “I am the mother of two amazing young men ages 27 and 17. I am from Appalachia and Botswana. I am an artist and also work in healthcare. I have self-published with my co-pilot levin pfeuffer two books of prose a storm is cuming and The hardest helmut. My first reading was done at Northeastern University and since then I have read at the Somerville Armory two times. I consider myself an introverted artist/writer. I give birth to my works including those that have been displayed at the Decordova Museum as well as Howard University and local gems such as The Middle East and Out of the Blue gallery. I will be published in Tell magazine featuring my textiles and art in the spring. Currently, I am studying behavioral science and psychology because there is a need for more people of color to be there for people of color to help end the stigma of seeking mental health.”

Arrests:
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Fernanda Ferreira, of Everett, July 12, 1:12 p.m., arrested at McGrath Hwy. on warrant charges of operation of a motor vehicle with a suspended license and failure to stop or yield.

Did your children make tons of macaroni artwork during quarantine? Did you find the post card collections from your great, great, great grandparents in your basement? Or are you an artist making lots of artwork and need to sell or exhibit? Bring your quarantine artwork outdoors! 

Yart Sale is an opportunity for you to showcase or sell from the comfort of your yards, driveways and porch. Think of a yard sale but with ART! 

By Jim Clark

Family members and friends of 27-year-old Jeanica Julce, of Somerville, are mourning her loss after she was found dead in Boston Harbor last Saturday, the apparent victim of a boating accident.

The incident reportedly took place at around 3:00 a.m. on Saturday. Coast Guard and Boston Harbor Police units rescued seven individuals after a small private boat reportedly crashed into a day marker buoy.

The City of Somerville is currently seeking applicants for a newly created Fair Housing and Anti-Displacement Task Force to explore whether, and how, to incorporate principals of federal, state, and local fair housing and anti-discrimination laws into Somerville’s Zoning Code. This is a volunteer effort, and the aim of this initiative would be to determine whether zoning changes might help to mitigate the displacement of persons of color, immigrants, low- and moderate-income residents, persons with disabilities, and members of other protected classes that may result from new development. This task force will include City of Somerville staff from the Office of Housing Stability, Housing Division, Mayor’s Office, Planning and Zoning Division, and the Racial and Social Justice Department; one or more members of the City Council; and members of the community selected to participate. The task force will have up to 14 members.  

Permit Tracking System aims to make development permitting in Somerville more streamlined, straightforward, and transparent

As part of ongoing efforts to overhaul planning and zoning in Somerville, the city has launched a new web-based permitting portal for proposals that require approval by the Planning Board or Zoning Board of Appeals.