— Photos by Joei Chan

The 25th annual Maple Boil Down took place last Saturday at the Growing Center in Somerville. Maple syrup lovers were able to taste fresh local syrup collected from the sugar maple trees from Tufts Campus, while learning the process of sugar mapping, witnessing the process of boiling sap into maple syrup, and connecting with other maple syrup lovers. For more information and to find other events at the Somerville Growing Center visit  https://www.thegrowingcenter.org/

Projects included in latest spending bill will support accessible infrastructure, life sciences, clean drinking water, childcare, economic development, and more

Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) applauded the enactment of a Fiscal Year 2024 government spending bill that includes $10,036,031 in federal Community Project Funding for 11 projects across the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District. These projects will support investments to build a more just and equitable Massachusetts 7th by advancing accessible infrastructure, life sciences, clean drinking water, childcare, economic development, and more.

The MBTA and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) today released the results of the Silver Line Extension Alternatives Analysis (SLXAA), which recommends extending Silver Line 3 (SL3) service from its current terminus in Chelsea to Sullivan Square Station on the Orange Line. The report can be found on the MBTA website at mbta.com/SLX.

By Dennis Fischman

Do you watch murder mysteries on television? Chances are, you’ve seen a good number of series set in Britain. Shows like Midsomer Murders (based on the Chief Inspector Barnaby books by Caroline Graham) and the Inspector Morse series and its prequel, Endeavour (based on the series by Colin Dexter) have crossed the pond and become popular in the U.S. My new favorite mystery author, Ann Cleeves, has two series that have been adapted to TV: the Vera Stanhope mysteries on ITV and the BBC’s Shetland.

Somerville Public Schools have announced the following CTE students who have won medals representing their shops in the SkillsUSA District Competitions held last Wednesday. Each student competed virtually against 10 schools in a completion that tested their Shop Knowledge as well as their Employability Skills and OSHA Knowledge.

Arts at the Armory’s Spotlight Series is thrilled to bring Blind Boys of Alabama to their historic Performance Hall stage on March 14. Hailed as “gospel titans” by Rolling Stone, the Blind Boys of Alabama defied the considerable odds stacked against them in the segregated south, from singing for pocket change in the Jim Crow South, to performing for three different American presidents, soundtracking the Civil Rights movement and helping define modern gospel music as we know it.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

There used to be a facility called Good Time the Assembly Square area. It got wild in there at times. It was a good place for kids’ birthday parties along with the pool tables and other machines. I asked our friends to share their memories of Good Time with us.

Registration for the Somerville Public Schools’ Community Schools Afterschool Program will open from March 19 through March 28, 2024. Families of students in grades PK-5 who are interested in enrolling their students in the SPS Afterschool Program should complete the online registration form during this period in order to be part of the enrollment lottery for School Year 2024-2025.