Mary Elizabeth (Byrne) Snow, of Somerville and Dania Beach, FL, passed away at home surrounded by her family on March 9, 2021. She was 83. Born and raised in Somerville she was the daughter of the late Rita E. (Callan) and Charles C. Byrne.  In addition to her role as a devoted wife and mother, Mary was a general partner in Captain’s Development Company and Investment Firm and Vice President and Treasurer of Captain’s Builders Group Inc., offering investment advice and council for various company ventures. She was also a legal secretary, serving the R.A. Snow Law Firm, Davis Sq. Somerville for over 55 years.

Raised garden beds create visual interest and an ideal growing environment.

Fairly easy to construct and even easier to maintain, raised garden beds are a great way to raise plants and vegetables in the comfort and convenience of your backyard.

In a recent episode of the Exmark Original Series, Done-in-A-Weekend-Extreme, landscape designer and show host, Doug Scott, spoke to organic gardener Joe Lamp’l of Growing a Greener World about the ins and outs of raised garden beds.

Because COVID-19 is less likely to be transmitted in outdoor settings, the City of Somerville has updated its COVID-19 guidelines to allow some outdoor performances to resume, both in public and private spaces, such as parks, plazas, or restaurant outdoor dining areas. Performances must have no or very low aerosol projection, meaning activities that do not include speaking or other vocal projection. For example, dance performances or instrumental music using non-wind-instruments are allowed, but a performance involving singing, speaking, or playing a woodwind or brass instrument is not. Crowd size is capped at current outdoor gathering limits of 25 persons or at the approved venue capacity.

This story was originally printed on July 12, 2008. I decided to update, tweak, and recycle it as The West Branch Library renovation nears completion.

As in all of my recollections, this timeline is as close to reality as my memory allows it.

About 10 years ago, my oldest boy and I went to the West Branch Library on College Avenue. Up the winding, creaky stairway on the top floor of the library is the attic – or rotunda, if you will. There is (was) a small stage along the back wall (see photo) – a stage that local bands, including my band Shadowfax (in photo) used to perform on during a very short period in the early 70’s. You see, there use to be a Teen Center on top of the West Branch Library, until the craziness of those times destroyed it.

Join Andre Green, Ward 4 Somerville School Committee member and SMC’s Joe Lynch for their School Committee update.

Join Ben Ewen-Campen, Ward 3 and SMC’s Joe Lynch for their city council update.

Among the agenda items addressed at the latest meeting of the City Council Legislative Matters Committee was discussions pertaining to police officer hiring policies.

By Joe Creason

The Legislative Matters Committee held a meeting on Wednesday, March 18, to discuss pending issues on the city’s agenda. Many of the Committee items being discussed this past week focused topics of public safety, health and the police.

Disposal of fats, oils and grease – such as those produced by restaurants and other sources – was a major topic undertaken by the city’s Board of Health at their latest meeting.

By Max Eidelman

Somerville’s Board of Health met for a virtual meeting this past Thursday, March 18.

The bulk of the meeting addressed the city’s FOG (fats, oils, grease) regulation. Per the EPA’s website, “Grease from restaurants, homes, and industrial sources are the most common cause (47%) of reported blockages” in sewage systems.