The Somerville News Blog

City looking for volunteers for health risk study

Project looks at air quality along the I93 corridor By Julia Fairclough If you are over the age of 40 and live in either Ten Hills, East Somerville, or the Mystic River Apartments, researchers want to talk to you about whether living by the highway is a health risk. Tufts University is working with Somerville Transportation Equity Partnership (STEP) on the "Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure and Health" study, of which the first part entails asking eligible participants to have their weight and blood pressure taken, as well as answer specific questions about health issues. Data from interviews in Somerville will be taken through this summer. The study will then move on to South Boston, Dorchester, and then Chinatown, said Doug Brugge, a Tufts Medical School professor who is directing the project.

Cambridge Health Alliance expands sports-related medical services

Lee Durocher The CHA expansion into professional level sports is a reflection of the growth of its sports medicine program. Local up-and-coming sports franchises benefit from the services of the Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA). The Boston Blazers (National Lacrosse League), Boston Breakers (Women's Professional Soccer) and the Boston Militia (Women's Professional Football) are amongst the CHA's clients. The organization has long been involved with local high school athletics especially Somerville High School and Cambridge Rindge & Latin High School. Much of the work that the CHA does with students and athletes is done at its sports medicine facility in Assembly Square, Somerville.

Someone's getting old!

Jimmy Del Ponte On The Silly Side (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) My son turned 14 this past Saturday - it seems like only yesterday I was pushing that stroller down to Davis Square and stopping at the playground across from Osco, Brooks, Rite-Aid. Next year he will be starting high school and soon he will be asking for the car keys. I know it sounds cliché, but where did the years go?

Somervillians experience first cultural exchange in Tiznit, Morocco

Somerville artists take a moment to talk to local children while touring Tiznit artist studios. ~Photo courtesy of Cynthia Maurice Mayor Joseph Curtatone tours the local schools in Tiznit. ~Photo courtesy of UME By Julia Fairclough Somerville artist Pauline Lim learned while in Tiznit, Morocco, that making a collaborative mural with children-an activity that the painter had always avoided-can be fulfilling, entertaining and educational. "The other artists chided me for trying to control the outcome of the project too much," she said, "But it was true, because I always think collaborative murals end up looking like a chaotic mess. This one did too, but (Cynthia Maurice, a fellow Brickbottom artist) taught me to see the beauty and energy in it." Lim is among a dozen city officials, artists, and other community members who came back from last month's week-long professional development trip in Tiznit, who looks at life a bit differently. The Sister Cities Civic Participation and Leadership Initiative was created by the University of the Middle East (UME), a program based in the Armory building on Highland Ave. UME promotes educational leadership and civic engagement through cross-cultural understanding. This week-long trip was the first official meeting of the two communities as part of the partnership, which UME Executive Director Ray Matsumiya hopes will expand to a multi-year relationship. "This partnership exposes us to all of the ways that the city (of Tiznit) works, from the transportation to the artist community," Matsumiya said. Galia Shokry, UME's senior program manager, added that people abroad are always so impressed by Somerville's diversity. It's powerful what this city can offer to others for partnership ideas.

CPCU Credit Union collects and donates much needed toiletry items and canned goods to the Somerville Homeless Coalition.

CPCU Credit Union set up collection boxes at both of their Somerville and Cambridge branches to collect much needed toiletry items and canned goods for the Somerville Homeless Coalition (SHC) after an email communication was sent out outlining their disparity for donations. For three weeks before the holidays, CPCU collected in conjunction with their membership, shampoo, conditioner, and soaps as well as non-perishables to donate to SHC. In addition to the collection, CPCU donated many necessities such as baby wipes, toothpaste, soups, etc. in bulk packages to help those in need during the holiday season.

The voice of Somerville resigns

By Tom Nash Tom Champion, known to city residents with landline phones as the Voice of Somerville will be resigning from his position at City Hall on Friday. Champion, who had served as head of Mayor Joe Curtatone's communications department since 2005, emerged as one of the most recognizable voices in the city thanks to the phone calls residents receive on issues ranging from snow emergencies to U2 concert-related street closures. The calls, especially his classic early-morning snow emergency update, created a devoted following. A Facebook fan page was created in his honor in 2007. A techno remix of the snow emergency message became one of the unlikely hits of 2009.

ZBA approves Beacon Street hotel plans

By Tom Nash The Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously approved a controversial 35-room hotel and restaurant project at 371 Beacon St. last week despite only receiving a complete application on the day of the meeting. The project has been unpopular with neighbors who say the site where the project would be located, an abandoned gas station on the corner of Somerville Avenue and Beacon Street, is too congested with traffic. Residents have also expressed concerns that the developer would not have the funds to complete the hotel.

Newstalk for January 27

The Tauro Family wants to offer their complete appreciation and thanks to the Cota Family and especially to Phil Cota and his staff for their professionalism this past weekend in assisting with the loss of Steven Tauro. Phil and his staff did an exceptional job containing the steady flow of the overwhelming number of visitors that attended the services this past weekend in East Boston. ***************

Attorney General: F.W. Russell violated wage laws

By Tom Nash The Massachusetts Attorney General's office said last week that Somerville's trash contractor was in violation of state wage and hour laws even as it was up for a contract extension before the Board of Aldermen in November. FW Russell, the trash removal and recycling contractor recently given a one-year contract extension and new five-year contract valued at $10,923,324.22 by the Board of Aldermen, was accused of wage violations two years ago during a labor dispute.

The View From Prospect Hill for January 27

Last week, across this city, a ripple that started like a small pebble in a fresh water lake had morphed into a full-blown tsunami by Tuesday of this week. All because the inevitable happened - some smart residents decided to take action into their own hands and speak out against the privileged attitude of some property owners, developers, appointed members of city boards and even elected officials themselves. You don't have to be a card-carrying member of Mensa to grasp the phrase "money begets money," so there's no shock that when people that have it want more of it, they hire former members of boards, contribute to political campaigns, hire well-connected local attorneys. You get the idea.

Cartoon of the week for January 27

Agreement reached to rebuild ESCS

ESCS immediately after the selective demolition process began. ~Photo courtesy of the City of Somerville By Cathleen Twardzik The Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) and the City of Somerville recently reached an agreement regarding the renovation of the East Somerville Community School (ESCS), which serves children from grades K-8. In December 2007, the structure was severely damaged by a fire. Based on close cooperation and negotiations between state and local officials in which the school rebuilding project became the [foundation of] the MSBA's new emergency response protocols, the Authority has recommended to its Board of Directors that Somerville be moved into the schematic design phase of its capital pipeline, according to a press release.

A Huge Week in Politics and Government

By Joseph A. Curtatone (The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.) From a political perspective, there was a lot going on last week in Massachusetts and in Washington - and all of it will affect Somerville.

Education Reform amendments pass with help from Rep. Sciortino

Representative Carl Sciortino helped push multiple amendments onto the Education Reform Act's final draft. By Jeremy F. van der Heiden Last Thursday, January 18th, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed a final version of the Education Reform Act. Representative Carl Sciortino helped push multiple pivotal amendments onto the bill's final draft. The bill's major function will be to allow state and local officials to intervene in the event that a school or district is not meeting proper standards, as well increasing the number of charter schools allowed in the state. In addition, multiple amendments were added to further the success of the bill, and thus the schools themselves. These amendments include a regulation on the amount of funds a charter school can keep on hand. The idea behind this is to push the charter schools to take in only what funds are necessary in hopes to take some of the financial strain off of the host district.

David Bowie tribute show hits Johnny D's

Maddie McWilliams and Matthew Cuddy of the School of Rock perform vintage David Bowie Tunes to a sold-out crowd at Johnny D's on Saturday afternoon. Taylor Dill adds a little Old School Motown Spread during "another one of David Bowie's vintage tunes"~ Photos by Mike Rubin By Mike Rubin For one day, the sounds and croons of David Bowie could be heard throughout Johnny D's. And throughout three hours, parents, siblings and patrons alike were dancing to the tunes of the famed artist. "It's great to see so many people come out to the event," said School of Rock General Manager Anderson Mar. "Each concert, we're getting more and people to come out to the shows and see what we're all about. The parents are having such a great time, and they're so into it. It's great to see." With an estimated crowd of approximately 150 on hand, children ages eight to 16 displayed their fine skills on such songs as "Let's Dance", "Ziggy Stardust" and other popular hits that the British artist recorded during the 70s, 80s and 90s. Students performed over 15 songs, while receiving a standing ovation after each number was completed. "It's great to see the kids are so into it," said Mar. "They're into the same music that their parents grew up with. It brings families closer together, and this experience will be something that they'll remember for the rest of their lives."

Elderly Somerville woman struck with Cambridge fire hose

~Photo by William Tauro By William Tauro An 82 year old elderly Somerville woman was injured when a Cambridge fire truck hose struck her in the legs as the fire apparatus was making a turn in Central Square. The fire truck was responding to a dispatched call at about 11:40am. The woman's legs were both seriously injured, and she was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital for surgery from the scene.

Portraits of everyone at Gallery 321

~Photos by Chelsea Whyte By Chelsea Whyte Tucked away on a residential street near Union Square is Gallery 321 at the Washington Street Art Center, a multi-purpose facility where artists keep studio space upstairs and use the gallery downstairs for exhibitions. Saturday night at Gallery 321 was the opening of a group show called, "Hey I Know That Guy." Over forty artists contributed portraits for the exhibition, which was curated by Snow Project. Snow Project is a duo of artists, Alex Feinstein and Michael Dacey. They created Snow Project in January 2009 when they curated their first group show together at the gallery. Alex is an oil painter and keeps studio space at the Washington Street Art Center, and Michael does letterpress production with Repeat Press in Union Square. They rented the gallery space for the month of January and they've put on two shows this month at the Washington Street Art Center, with "Hey I Know That Guy" as their final show. Saturday's opening reception hosted a large crowd that filled up the intimate setting, and with DJs keeping things upbeat, the show eventually turned into a "bit of a dance party," says Alex with a smile on her face. I spoke with her while she was straightening up the gallery, righting the pictures on their hooks after the raucous night. Along with offerings of food and music, the event also had zines for sale, some by participating artists, and a few made by Repeat Press with prints of the portraits on the walls.

Looking at spice from an artistic and cultural point of view

By Julia Fairclough Not many city squares contain ethnic restaurants right near the markets that sell particular spices and ingredients. Union Square, however, is neatly packed with restaurants of numerous nationalities, as well as ethnic markets. And now this weekend you can take a tour of both, while sampling delicious recipes and talking about spice and art. Somerville artist Francisco de la Barra, has created a series of portraits of Union Square chefs by incorporating spices with his paints to reflect their cuisines, and he wants to share his process with you. Co-produced by de la Barra and the Somerville Arts Council (as part of their ArtsUnion series), "Spice Union" will take place this Sunday from 4 to 6 p.m., with a reception at La Taqueria Mexicana from 6 to 8 p.m.

Attorney General finds F.W. Russell violated wage laws

By Tom Nash The Massachusetts Attorney General's office announced today that Somerville's trash contractor violated state wage laws.

Domestic violence awareness program launches at SHS

D.A. District Attorney Gerry Leone points to his White Ribbon in support of the Movement against Women's Violence while speaking to the Students of Somerville High School commencing a day of workshops against dating violence sponsored by his office. The Program is part of a pilot program D.A. Leone hopes to implement throughout Middlesex County. The Students of Somerville High listen to the Mayor speak of the importance of their programs. ~Photos by Andrew Firestone Andy Firestone Somerville officials teamed up with Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone last week to launch an awareness campaign on teen dating violence campaign at Somerville High School. Leone, who appeared with Mayor Joe Curtatone and Police Chief Anthony Holloway, called upon the people in attendance to engage in the 'ethical health' of their peers. "You are important because you're our future," Leone said. "[Teen dating violence] is a real problem, a huge problem, and people see it and don't do anything about it." The program, the brainchild of Leone, saw students go through a day of workshops and seminars designed to help students understand and identify dating abuse among their peers, and work towards stopping it. Somerville High was chosen as the first school to test this program by Leone, who was impressed with a video public service announcement created by a group of students last year.