The deadline to register to vote or update your party affiliation or address for the September 14 preliminary election is Wednesday, August 25, at 8 p.m. Massachusetts voters have the option to register online or via a paper form. To register by mail you can call (617) 625-6600 ext. 4200 and request a form be mailed to you, or you can download one from the Elections website. Don’t forget that your form must be returned to the Somerville Elections Department by 8 p.m. on Wednesday, August 25. You can also visit the Elections Department in City Hall to register to vote. Please note face coverings are required in all City buildings. This year there will be preliminary votes held to narrow the field of candidates for Mayor, Ward 5 City Councilor, and Ward 7 City Councilor.

***********************************

The Somerville High Class of 1961 is holding their 60th reunion on September 28, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. at Seasons 52, 6 Wayside Rd., Burlington. The cost is $40, you can mail checks to SHS Class of 1961 c/o 30 Murray Hill Rd, Cambridge, MA, 02140.

***********************************

Help to reimagine the Union Square Plaza and join in for an in-the-plaza session this Saturday, August 7, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. (rain date, Sunday, August 8, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) on the Union Square Plaza. Come on out and join the conversation: Learn more about the Union Square Plaza and Streetscape redesign project and more ways to get involved at https://voice.somervillema.gov/union-square-p-and-s?fbclid=IwAR0qPEqfxtJ5kEvmaMt8ckW-Lmc8eDOZ5jI8ooIAE70vLl4VQ2pabDWnc5A

***********************************

Happy birthday this week to several locals: Happy birthday to a local guy, Zach Zasloff. We wish him a great day. Happy birthday to Maria Mancini, formerly of Winter Hill. We hope she has a great birthday. Wishing a very happy birthday to our own Bobby Potaris’ daughter Natalia. We wish her a very special day. To Kaitlin Norton, we wish her a very happy birthday. We know she will enjoy it with her family. And finally, happy birthday to Alicia Lafuente, we wish her the very best. We wish all of our Facebook friends, such as Michele Oliphant Spinale, Jane Sherrill, Zach Corey, Keith Anderson, John Alan Roderick, Heather Hanson, Heather Marie Driscoll and Dale Hodgkins a very happy birthday. We hope everyone has a great day. To all the others we may have missed, we sincerely wish them the very best of birthdays.

***********************************

The City of Somerville’s Economic Development Division recently published its second Diversity Catalog, which highlights women-, minority-, veteran-, and LGBTQIA-owned businesses in the city. The Diversity Catalog can be found at www.somervillema.gov/diversitycatalog. The catalog serves as a marketing tool for Somerville businesses that want to offer their products and services to customers throughout the region and the information gathered to create it helps Economic Development staff design business support programs that meet the needs of local businesses.  For more information about the Diversity Catalog, contact Daniela Carrillo, Economic Development Assistant, at dcarrillo@somervillema.gov.

***********************************

The Somerville High Class of 1971 is looking for classmates for their 50th reunion on Saturday, October 23, at Anthony’s Function Hall in Malden from 7:00 to 11:00 p.m. The price is $65 per person. Please contact Rosalie DeLucia or Jimmy Del Ponte, or the SHS71 page on Facebook for more information. Wave high your guilded banners as SHS 71 celebrates their 50th!

***********************************

A town hall meeting focused on the potential impacts of a supervised consumption site (SCS) on neighbors and businesses originally planned for Tuesday, July 27, has been postponed to Thursday, August 12 at 6:00 p.m. Attend the town hall online or by phone: The meeting will be hosted on Zoom, and there will also be an option to call into the meeting from a phone. Visit somervillema.gov/virtualtownhall at the start time of the meeting to join live or get call-in information. Call-in information will also be available on the day of the meeting on GovTV, RCN channel 13 and Comcast channel 22, or by calling 311. All of the town halls will be shown live on GovTV, RCN channel 13 and Comcast channel 22, and at youtube.com/somervillecitytv. They will also be rebroadcast on GovTV and available to watch later on YouTube.

***********************************

Groundwork Somerville is excited to announce their 2021 South St. Farm Open Hours. Stop by any Saturday between July and September, 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m., 138 South St., and check out Somerville’s very own urban farm. This time is set aside for our community to tour the farm, enjoy the green space, volunteer, or have a picnic. No registration is required, just come by. http://www.groundworksomerville.org.

***********************************

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. Yart Sale will take place on Saturday, August 14 (rain date August 15), from noon to 6:00 p.m. Visit https://somervilleartscouncil.org/ for more information. Deadline to sign up is August 8.

***********************************

All city buildings are now open, with limited staffing. Both visitors to city buildings as well as staff will be required to wear face coverings while inside the buildings. Staff will be available on a walk-in basis in all departments for quick transactions like paying a bill or picking up a document. For matters that will take longer, residents will need to schedule an appointment with city staff. Many city services are also available online and, whenever possible, residents are encouraged to continue to use online services.

***********************************

The Somerville Flea kicked off their 10th year in Davis Sq. on Sunday, August 1, at 10:00 a.m., 56 Holland St. The best local vintage purveyors and artisans are back. Come on out and support them after a year-long hiatus. Shop local!

***********************************

Enjoy Live Music Fridays at Assembly Row at Assembly Square. Join them on the new green space, located between Night Shift’s Owl’s Nest and PKL Boston, for free, live performances on select Friday nights, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.

***********************************

Visit the East Somerville Market this Sunday, August 8, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Deano’s Pasta parking lot, 15 Garfield Ave. Shop local small businesses, pre-ordering is available. For a full list of participating vendors visit https://www.eastsomervillemainstreets.org.

***********************************

The City of Somerville’s annual SomerMovie Fest returns this year with a series of seven family-friendly films being shown in parks around Somerville. Screenings begin at sundown and the remaining schedule is as follows: Thursday, August 5, Coco, East Somerville Community School; Thursday, August 12, Black Panther, Baxter State Park; Thursday, August 19, Guardians of the Galaxy, Seven Hills Park. While attendees are not required to wear masks, anyone who is not fully vaccinated is advised to wear one whenever they are in a crowd.

***********************************

Walk-in vaccinations are available at multiple locations: You now can get a COVID-19 vaccination without having to pre-register or make an appointment. There are walk-in vaccination sites all around Somerville, and just outside it as well. Cambridge Health Alliance vaccine clinics have larger supplies of doses and can vaccinate kids ages 12 – 17. You do not need to be a CHA patient to use these clinics. They are free and open to all. Local CVS pharmacies and the Stop & Shop on McGrath Hwy. are also offering walk-in vaccines. Local Walgreens pharmacies require a brief pre-registration, but can process people quickly if they have open slots and you walk in. Here are the CHA walk-in sites: CHA Somerville Vaccine Center at 176 Somerville Avenue in Somerville, Mon. – Thurs. 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Fri. 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tufts University Gantcher Center at 161 College Ave. in Medford, Wed – Thurs. 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Encore Boston Harbor at 1 Broadway Center in Everett, Mon. – Thurs. 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Fri. 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

***********************************

Individuals younger than 18 will need parental or guardian consent to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. A parent or guardian can either accompany a minor age 16 or 17 to their vaccine appointment, or fill out a consent form that the minor can then bring with them to the appointment. Consent forms in multiple languages are available at the state’s website. Parents must accompany children ages 12 – 15 to their vaccine appointments.

***********************************

Help support your neighbors through the Somerville Cares Fund. If you’re lucky enough to have some extra money, please consider a donation to the Somerville Cares Fund. This donation-based fund provides direct assistance to Somerville residents, workers, and parents of school children so that they can cover basic expenses like housing, food, and utility bills. If you’re unable to donate you can still help by sharing information about the Somerville Cares Fund with your friends and family.

***********************************

Don’t forget, if you would like to subscribe to receive a digital edition of our paper, go directly online to our website over to the right side and fill out your email address to receive a free, full PDF copy of the paper.