Please join Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone, Superintendent Mary Skipper, and local elected officials for a ribbon cutting to celebrate the renovated and reconstructed Somerville High School campus on Wednesday, December 8, at 6:00 p.m.

Please join Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone and special guests for two of Somerville’s annual holiday celebrations.

The festivities will begin with the annual Christmas tree lighting on Thursday, December 2, at 5:00 p.m. on the City Hall concourse. After the tree lighting, Santa Claus will join us for a meet and greet next door at Somerville High School (don’t forget your camera if you’d like a photo). Santa will be escorted by the Somerville Fire and Police departments, with a gift and cookies for each child in tow. Live entertainment will feature the Somerville High School Chorus, Somerville High School Orchestra, El Sistema Somerville, and the Somerville High School Jazz Band.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

Thanksgiving is a day where friends and relatives join together to give thanks. Like any other large gathering there are bound to be disagreements, funny episodes and unexpected circumstances.

Beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 25, the annual Gobble Gobble road race will be held in and around the Davis, Teele, Ball, and Magoun square areas. Short traffic delays may occur in the areas of Holland Street, Broadway in Teele Square, North Street, Powder House Boulevard, Broadway in Ball Square, Medford Street in Magoun Square, and Central and Summer streets headed toward Davis Square. There will also be detours in place near the start and finish lines in Davis Square beginning at 8:00 a.m.

Plug your lights in, don your bike helmet, and hit your high notes for Somerville’s interactive Illuminations extravaganza. This year Illuminations includes self-guided car tours, a bike tour, porch caroling around town, and a community lantern project.

A possible reduction of parking spaces is a major concern in planning the Highland Ave. Redesign Project, scheduled to begin next year. — Photo by Bobbie Toner

By Eileen Qiu

Drafting designs for the Highland Ave. Redesign Project will start this winter with the goal of having a concrete blueprint by spring 2023 and starting construction at the end of 2023, according to Senior Transportation Planner, Viola Augustin.

The Union Square Farmers Market wrapped its highly successful 2021 season last week in Union Square. ~Photo by Fernando Cervantes Jr.

By Fernando Cervantes Jr.

Back in June, The Somerville Times covered a story on the beginning of the Union Square Farmers Market in Somerville. Last Saturday, was the last week of the season for the market.

Located in Union Square and running from May 15 to November 20, the market was advertised as a COVID-19 cautious market as it was held outdoors week in and week out.

By Eileen Qiu

Covid cases are expected to rise in the city as the holiday season nears, Director of Health and Human Services, Doug Kress, said during last Thursday’s Board of Health Meeting.

There were 210 new cases in November at the time of the meeting, but the number is expected to rise to about 300, Kress said.

By Joe Creason

The Mayor’s Office of Strategic Planning and Community Development held a public hearing on Thursday, November 18. The purpose of the hearing was to present the consolidated annual performance evaluation report (CAPER) for the July 2020 – June 2021 program year.

We here at The Times wish everyone a happy and safe Thanksgiving holiday. Please observe all safety guidelines to make sure we’ll all be together again for next year’s celebration. And don’t forget to shop local when starting your holiday gift shopping. This year more than ever it is important to support local businesses.