As part of its multi-pronged response to resident concerns regarding the “Boston Straight Pride Parade” and counter-protest of August 31, 2019, the City of Somerville invites all members of the public to participate in a community dialogue. The forum will be held just outside of Union Square, in the Argenziano School Cafetorium at 290 Washington St., on Wednesday, January 22, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Join the Somerville Engineering Department, Ward 3 Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen, and Ward 5 Councilor Mark Niedergang on Monday, February 3, for a community meeting to discuss upcoming sewer and roadway infrastructure upgrades planned in the Spring Hill area. The meeting will be held from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. in the Somerville High School cafeteria, 81 Highland Ave.

Somerville residents can now easily license their dogs directly through their smart phone.

Somerville residents will now be able to license their dogs online and on their mobile device thanks to a new partnership with Cambridge startup GoPetie.

The annual MLK Day Celebration will take place at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, January 20 at the East Somerville Community School, 50 Cross St. All city offices and public schools will be closed for MLK Day. Parking meters/resident parking won’t be enforced on Monday. Trash/recycling pickup will be on a one-day delay for the rest of the week.

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers.)

By Joseph A. Curtatone

Taking a closer look at notable city data—and interesting numbers.  We recently released a draft of the City’s Vision Zero plan. Below are some of interesting numbers from it, and you can see the full plan and learn more about getting involved at https://www.somervillema.gov/visionzero.

0 traffic fatalities or serious injuries: Somerville is one of around 40 communities in the U.S. to join the international Vision Zero movement. The idea behind Vision Zero is that there should be no traffic fatalities and no serious traffic injuries and that communities have the power to reduce and even eliminate crashes with severe consequences. Vision Zero also emphasizes that drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians are people who will make mistakes on the road, so communities need to adopt policies and design their roads and other infrastructure to account for human error.

The Shirts and Shoes will perform at the “Music Meeting” event.

With media consumption at an all-time high thanks to the digital age, internet-based radiop series Boston Emissions host Angelle Wood hopes to bring back the human connection to Greater Boston’s music scene. Thursday January 23 kicks off the first of many planned events inviting bands and other industry workers to come together to discuss how to foster a more communal environment for Boston musicians.

By Jim Clark

Police officers were dispatched to the corner of Dimick St. and Waldo Ave. last Saturday morning on reports of a dispute.

Upon arrival, officers met with delivery workers for a furniture store who said that they had a furniture delivery on Dimick St., a two-way street which has cars parked on both sides of the street.

Please take notice: Ward 1 City Councilor Matthew McLaughlin invites interested parties to participate in a neighborhood meeting on Wednesday, January 22 at 6:00 p.m. to discuss a development proposal for 74 Middlesex Avenue/845 McGrath Highway in the Assembly Square Mixed-Use District of Somerville. The neighborhood meeting will be held at 165 Broadway in East Somerville.

— Photo courtesy of Mothers Out Front.

For the first time in the city’s history, Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone and the Department of Infrastructure and Asset Management (IAM) have allowed National Grid to replace a gas main during the city’s winter moratorium to expedite efforts to eradicate gas leaks in Somerville.

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

I was extremely fortunate to land a primo job at Kiss 108 FM in 1987. My friends were all very impressed and thrilled that I was actually on the number one morning radio show every day.

My dad, who was born in Somerville in 1920, was happy I landed the job because I was always bringing him free hats, jackets and food!