Finalists in the Police Chief Search to participate in October 10 public interview sessions open to community attendance

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and Somerville’s Police Chief Search Committee invite the community to join or watch the public interview sessions being held for the three finalists for the Police Chief search. Interviews will be held on Tuesday, October 10, between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. at City Hall, online, and on the city’s GovTV via live cablecast and later streaming. To learn more about the finalists and the process, visit somervillema.gov/policechief. 

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has announced that, following an inquest, Judge John Coffey has issued a Report regarding the death of 20-year-old Sayed Arif Faisal. Faisal died after being shot by Cambridge Police Officer Liam McMahon on January 4, 2023, in Cambridge.  The inquest was conducted between May 22-25, 2023. The Court heard sworn testimony from twenty-nine (29) witnesses, received fifty-three (53) exhibits into evidence and conducted an in-person viewing of the scene.  In his Report, Judge Coffey found that: 

Parents and Mothers Out Front volunteers engaging in discussion at an April 2023 climate café. — Photo by Kristine Jelstrup

Join Mothers Out Front and Mass Audubon on Sunday, October 15, 2:00-3:30 p.m., to discuss ways to talk about climate change with our kids. Meanwhile, the kids can have their own adventure in the park with Audubon staff.

The Center for Arts at the Armory (CAA)  is delighted to announce the appointment of Gary Stoloff to its Board of Directors. Gary has been a director of the Coolidge Corner Theatre Foundation for more than two decades where he was a key player in the conceptualization, design, fundraising and construction of The Coolidge’s new wing, nearly doubling the size of the facility, scheduled to open this Fall.

CultureHouse and the Union Square Neighborhood Council (USNC) announced today the development of CultureHouse Union Square, a community-driven pop-up located in a vacant storefront at 64 Union Square that will serve as a living room for the community, a one-stop-shop for healthcare resources, performance space, community meetings and gatherings, information for new neighborhood residents, a senior and youth center, and a library. The project’s community input phase has launched, and will be open till December, inviting community members to be part of the process and share their input to help shape the free-to-enter intergenerational pop-up public space pilot, expected to open on January 10, 2024.  

HONK! Festival 2023 festivities kick off this Thursday, October 5, with the Pre-HONK! Brass Band Blowout in Union Square.

HONK! Festival 2023 gets underway this week, with this year’s participants hailing from all across the United States.

HONK! is a very unique musical movement that first began right here in Somerville back in 2006. Out of those humble beginnings, HONK! has become a recognizable worldwide phenomenon.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

Between Davis Square and Teele Square there is no parking on Holland St. there is a public parking lot but no other spaces on the street. Here are your comments in quotes:

After an intensive, equity-driven community engagement process that sought out voices not always heard, the newly released 25% Design Ideas & Vision Plan proposes adding over 1.3 acres of open space and reimagining streets to prioritize people 

After nearly five years of innovative public engagement that brought in a broad range of voices followed by design work to transform that input into plans, Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and the City of Somerville are pleased to share initial plans to redesign public open space in Union Square. The Union Square Plaza and Streetscape Redesign project has reached its first major design milestone, documenting the community’s vision for the Plaza and surrounding streets in the 25% Design Ideas and Vision Plan.