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By Mayor Joseph Curtatone

Taking a closer look at notable city data—and interesting numbers. 

69% City census response rate: Each year the City is required by law to conduct a local census and last year nearly 70% of households responded. While that’s a pretty good response rate, we always want to get as many completed census forms as possible. The annual census helps us maintain the voter rolls and have up-to-date population numbers, which are helpful for things like planning for resource allocation. There are also federal, state, and grant funding sources that use population information, so having an accurate count ensures Somerville is getting its fair share. Census forms will be hitting mailboxes in the next few weeks, so keep an eye out. The form only takes a few minutes to fill out and you can return it in an included pre-stamped envelope, by email, fax, or by dropping it off at a library branch or City Hall. If you don’t get a census form (or misplace it), you can visit www.somervillema.gov/elections to print one out or call 311 to request one. 

1,015 veterans: On the 2018 City census 1,015 residents self-reported being veterans, but national census data estimates that another 700 veterans live in Somerville. If you’re a veteran, please check off that box this year when you complete your City census. More accurate numbers help our office of Veterans’ Services better plan to work with and assist our local veterans. If you’re a veteran or a family member entitled to benefits who needs assistance applying for benefits, completing U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs paperwork, or need emergency assistance, contact the Department of Veterans’ Affairs at veterans@somervillema.gov or 617-625-6600 ext. 4700.

427 kindergarten students: This school year the Somerville Public Schools welcomed 427 kindergarten students, which is just shy of 9% of our total enrollment. That’s in line with the average enrollment over the past four years, which was 431 students. Kindergarten registration for the 2019/2020 school year opened on January 12, and we’re excited to see how many new students will be entering the Somerville Public Schools. Registration packets were mailed in November to families of children eligible to register for kindergarten. If you didn’t get one or a new to the City, you can visit www.somerville.k12.ma.us to register a student online or contact the Parent Information Center at 617-629-5670. Students need to be five years old by August 31, 2019, to enroll for the next school year.

148,416 library patrons: During the first half of Fiscal Year 2019 (which began July 1, 2018), nearly 150,000 visitors stopped by our Somerville Public Library branches. That’s a slight increase over the same time period last fiscal year, which is impressive given the recent closure of the West Branch Library for renovations. (A temporary location recently opened at 167 Holland Street.) The increase in visits isn’t surprising, though – the Somerville Public Library has a great collection of books, media, and nontraditional items (like birding kits and musical instruments) to lend out and there’s always something fun going on from story times, to coding clubs, to food-themed book clubs. Visit www.somervillepubliclibrary.org to find a reason (or reasons) to visit one of our libraries.

Data-based decision making is at the core of how the City of Somerville develops policy and sets priorities. Every day we check the latest 311 stats, and throughout the week we meet for in-depth review of departmental data and city trends. The Data Download column shares some of the data we’ve been reviewing recently, as well as interesting updates. To see more Somerville Data, visit the online Somerville Data Farm at www.somervillema.gov/datafarm.