Here is the COVID-19 update for Friday, February 5. Please also check somervillema.gov/covid19 for information and resources that are updated frequently.

Join Somerville Media Center’s Joe Lynch and Andre Green, Ward 4 Somerville School Committee member for our school update.

By Jim Clark

Somerville Police officers were dispatched to the Walgreens Family Company–Pharmacy Store on McGrath Hwy, last week on reports of larceny. Police were informed that the suspect, Terrell Dorest, of Medford,  who was an employee, was in the office with manager.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

I grew up in Somerville with second generation Italian parents. My friends were of many different ethnicities and most of our grandparents were, as they said, “Off the boat,” a term I never liked.

Rosa (Masciave) Moccia passed away peacefully at home in the company of her loving family. She was 74. Born and raised in Corato, Bari, Apulia, Italy, she was the daughter of the late Nunzio and Teodora Norina (Fiore) Masciave. She came to the United Sates in 1965, met Vittorio and the two were married. They lived in Somerville before settling in Medford. A loving wife, mother, grandmother and sister, Rosa was devoted to her family and friends. She and her husband operated Victor’s Deli in Ball Square for 37 years. Rosa along with her husband worked hard to build what became one of Somerville’s landmark establishments. Rosa cooked and served delicious home cooked meals to their large customer base. Whether they came for Italian specialties or simple American fare, every customer left satisfied and well fed. At home she delighted her family with her cooking and always looked forward to time at the ocean and being with her beloved grandchildren.

The Urban Design Commission is currently considering approval plans for a multi-unit building for 73 Summer Street, which is currently the location of a now closed service station. — Photo by Bobbie Toner

By Max Eidelman

The city’s Urban Design Commission met on Tuesday, January 26, to approve new rules and regulations, as well as listen to presentations regarding proposed unit developments.

Among the new rules and regulations, which were unanimously approved, is a revision concerning the high-rise district that now allows for 7-story buildings in the affordable-housing overlay. This is intended to “maximize the buildout potential of those buildings to maximize the amount of affordable housing that they produce.” Other revisions were addressed but the bulk of the meeting focused on proposed building developments.

By Joe Creason

On Thursday January 28, the Somerville City Council held a regular meeting via teleconference in accordance with Govern Baker’s executive order in regard to the Open Meeting Law.

The City Council meeting began with a series of remembrances for recently deceased residents. After the memorializations, there were several infrastructure items on the agenda to determine the maintenance of roads, including the installation of conduit and manholes at Somerville Avenue, Prospect Street and Medford Street.

Mayor Joe Curtatone announced that certain Phase 3 Step 1 businesses, including fitness clubs and gyms, may once again open in Somerville as of Monday, February 1, the same day that related rollbacks will end in Boston, and one week after early closing requirements were lifted statewide by Governor Baker. Businesses impacted by recent activity rollbacks and restrictions on operating hours may also revert to Somerville pre-rollback operating hours, which allow outdoor seating until 11:30 p.m.

(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)

Dear Editor,

Jack Connolly’s letter last week highlights the conflict between the parking and the bike lobbies, both of which want to use the streets to their ends. The restaurants in Davis Square would like to have the outside dining extended – so would their customers. The “experiment” of last summer and fall worked. Traffic still moved and pedestrians were safer because the traffic was calmer. Taking parking spaces for outside dining has an impact, but it serves customers. Taking parking for bike lanes and peak hour bus lanes makes cycling easier and safer and is helpful for bus commuters.

Layla, from the Argenziano School, contributed this piece of artwork to the project directed by art teacher Diana Taremi.

Argenziano School art teacher Diana Taremi says, “We are spending a lot of time in our homes, walking on our own blocks and spending time in our communities right now because of the pandemic.” Taremi draws on her decades of teaching experience to engage her students in exciting projects within the remote learning environment.