Somerville’s Board of Health unanimously approved the city’s proposed extension of the eviction moratorium. The moratorium now has a 60-day sunset period and will end on June 30. The city urges tenants and homeowners to use this period to seek assistance if they are facing housing instability. The Office of Housing Stability (OHS) is ready to help and can be reached at 617-625-6600 ext. 2581. Landlords are encouraged to contact OHS on a tenant’s behalf rather than pursuing eviction. For more information, visit somervillema.gov/ohs

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Open Studios 2022 will take place on Saturday and Sunday, April 30 and May 1, from 12:00 to 6:00 p.m. Artists across Somerville will open their studios to the public to display their latest work and meet visitors. www.somervilleopenstudios.org.

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The City of Somerville is participating in National Prescription Drug Take Back Day this month, hosting two collection events for residents to safely dispose of prescription medications. On Saturday, April 30, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., join the Community Outreach, Help, and Recovery (COHR) Department and the Prevention Services Division at 220 Washington St. and 6 Newbury St. Staff will be onsite at both locations to collect unused or expired medications and provide overdose prevention information and resources. Free Narcan will also be distributed at each location. In addition to collection events each spring and fall, Somerville offers 24/7, year-round disposal kiosks at the Public Safety Building, 220 Washington St. for medications and sharps (needles and syringes).

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Happy birthday this week to several locals: Big happy birthday to our good friend over at Ball Square Café, Mike Moccia. Happy birthday this week to Linda Beebe, who is celebrating this week. We hope she celebrates big time, she deserves it. Also, happy birthday to Anthony Fraser, who grew up in East Somerville. We wish all of our Facebook friends, such as Dom Panzino, Chris Lavelli, Joseph DeSousa, Rose Lister, George Sharpe, Charlotte Scanzillo Perkins, Barbara A. Balkwill and G.P. Redmond 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.

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The city is hiring Crossing Guards to help protect student safety at intersections along school routes. Uniforms and on-the-job training provided. The ability to work both morning and afternoon shifts is required. Applicants must pass a pre-employment CORI and drug screen. For more information, contact School Safety Officer, Joseph Teves, at (617) 625-6600 ext. 7248 or visit somervillema.gov/CrossingGuards

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The City of Somerville and Center for Teen Empowerment will hold a Somerville Youth Peace March, May 13, at 6:00 p.m. March with them from Foss Park to City Hall as they raise awareness of violence in our community and work together to create peace. The march starts at 6:00 p.m. The vigil and rally at City Hall starts at 7:15 p.m.

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Stay protected and up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines. A reminder for two vaccine clinics happening this week on Wednesday, April 27, and Saturday, April 30. The Pfizer vaccine will be available for all people 5 years and up, and boosters will be available for all people 12 years and up. The clinic is free, regardless of immigration status or health insurance. Identification is not required. NOTE: Pre-registration is required for the April 27 clinic. To register and learn more, visit: www.somervillema.gov/vaccine.

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Reconstructed is a photography exhibition that explores the ideas of belonging, origins and home by bringing together the work of five photographers: Astrid Reischwitz, Eleonora Ronconi, Hugo Teixeira, Iaritza Menjivar, and Yorgos Efthymiadis, who is also the curator of the exhibition. Reconstructed will run from April 17 to June 4 at FPAC Gallery, 300 Summer St., Boston, with an opening reception on April 21 from 5.30 to 8:00 p.m. http://www.fortpointarts.org/. To see the work of Somerville photographer Iaritza Manjivar, visit https://www.iaritza.com

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Reminder: Street sweeping began for the season on Friday, April 1. Make sure you know when your neighborhood is swept and where you can park by checking signs in your neighborhood and visiting www.somervillema.gov/sweeping.The schedules are currently being updated. Street sweeping helps keep leaves and other debris out of storm drains, which helps prevent flooding. Help keep the streets clean – and avoid getting a ticket – by moving your car on street sweeping day.

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East Somerville Main Streets hosts Spring Neighborhood Cleanup, Saturday, April 30 at 10:00 a.m. Come join your neighbors, friends, and larger community to help clean up and beautify East Somerville. Meet at the East Branch Library, 115 Broadway, at 10:00 a.m. Pickers, trash bags and gloves will be available. Feel free to bring your own gloves or tools, as well.

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Spring Garden Day 2022 at the Somerville Community Growing Center, Sunday May 8, 2:00 p.m. Come together in community with others to celebrate Spring Garden Day at the Growing Center. Tour the Pollinator Gardens and learn about native plants and their partnerships with pollinators. Learn about saving seeds and take home some native seeds. Bring seeds or seedlings to exchange with others, or just take some home to nurture. The Growing Center Chorus will premiere several songs. Performances by Red Herring and Branbury Cross Morris Dance teams. Daisy Hebb of Green Blossom Paintings will demonstrate her native and pollinator watercolors, with notecards and calendars for sale. Rain date: Sunday, May 15.

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The Somerville Homeless Coalition (SHC) Big Sleep Out weekend is weeks away. Sleep In Sleep Out, May 13 – May 15, while you sleep in your yard, basement, porch, couch or anywhere that isn’t your bed. SHC members will be sleeping outside (rain or shine). No planning necessary, just register with the link below and share the event with your friends and family. To register: https://app.mobilecause.com/vf/22SLEEPOUT

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Are you a member of Somerville High School’s Classes of 1970, 1971, or 1972? The SHS Class of 2022 is looking for participants for this year’s Class Day festivities, which will take place on Friday, June 3, beginning at 8:00 a.m. at Somerville High School. This year will be the first Class Day that will take place in the new school building. Because there was no Class Day in 2020 or 2021 due to COVID-19, they are inviting alumni who did not have an opportunity to participate in this great tradition on the 50th anniversary of their high school graduation. They are looking for 50 graduates in total from the classes of 1970, 1971, and 1972 to participate. If you were an SHS 1970, 1971 or 1972 graduate and would like to participate in the 2022 Class Day festivities, please call Barbara Favaloro at (617) 625-6600, ext. 611018, or email her at bfavaloro@k12.somerville.ma.us. The SHS Class of 2022 looks forward to seeing you!

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The City of Somerville launched mattress and box spring recycling. This free service is available to all residential households that have city-managed trash collection. Residents will simply need to schedule a pickup and place their items on the curb on the pickup day. For more information on recycling in Somerville, please visit www.somervillema.gov/MattressRecycling.

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Somerville’s yard waste pickup began on Tuesday, April 19. A full yard waste calendar is available at somervillema.gov/yardwaste and will be in the Environmental Service Guide, which will be mailed to all households later this month. Yard waste should be put out with your trash and recycling on your normal pickup day. Yard waste must either be in a paper bag or a trash barrel with a “Yard Waste Only” sticker. Stickers are available free of charge at the DPW Building, 1 Franey Road, or the entrance desk at City Hall, 93 Highland Avenue. To request a sticker be mailed to you, please call 311 or email 311updates@somervillema.gov. For more information on yard waste pickup, visit somervillema.gov/yardwaste or call 311 (617-666-3311).

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The CHA Somerville Vaccine Center is now accepting walk-ins, as supply allows. The center is open to all, five days a week and some Saturdays. You can get booster shots for ages 12+ and initial vaccines for ages 5+. The vaccines are free, regardless of immigration or health insurance status, and you don’t need to show ID. Full hours and details are here: challiance.org/vaccine. You can still make an appointment at tinyurl.com/metronorthvaccine. If you’re a CHA patient you can also make an appointment through MyChart: challiance.org/mychart. If you need assistance finding a COVID-19 vaccine or booster, you can call 3-1-1 (617-666-3311).

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The Davis Square Farmers Market is back with an expanded vendor roster that includes locally grown fruits and vegetables, farm-raised protein and cheese, mushrooms, baked goods, ready-to-eat meals, along with a host of other locally made products. Find the full vendor list here: https://www.massfarmersmarkets.org/davis. The market takes place on Wednesdays and runs from May 18 to November 23, 12:00 – 6:00 p.m., rain or shine, in the municipal parking lot at the intersection of Herbert St. and Day St. in Somerville, across from American Flatbread at 44 Day St. They will be offering a weekly $15 SNAP Match for the second year in a row, and will continue to occupy their expanded footprint that they’ve held since 2020. Follow them on social media (@davissqfarmersmarket) Text DAVIS to 833-409-0774 to get SMS notifications about the farmers market.

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The East Somerville Farmers Market opens on Sunday, May 15, 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. at 115 Broadway. Join them for fresh produce, bread, baked goods, mead and much more. More information is available at www.eastsomervillemainstreets.org/market.

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