Bill Barton, President & CEO of Bob’s Discount Furniture (right) toasts the opening of the company’s flagship experience location in Somerville alongside Rachel Nadkarni, Director of Economic Development, City of Somerville (center) and Felicity Beal, Director of Development, Greater Somerville Homeless Coalition (left) – Bob’s newest community charity partner.

On Friday, October 18, Bob’s Discount Furniture hosted an invitation-only VIP Sneak Peek of its new flagship experience in Somerville, MA.  Bob’s Discount Furniture, the 9th largest U.S. furniture chain with 189 stores across 24 states and over $2B in annual sales, is excited to announce the grand opening of its new flagship experience in Somerville, Mass. (38,012 square foot store, bringing approximately 20-25 new jobs to the region).

Owner Jim DanDee of Lumentation Lab and Curator Claire Ogden present “Shoot Your Shot,” a photo exhibition of 35mm prints from local photographers on display from October 9 – November 13. Shane Woolley is the photographer of “Queen of Forty Foot – Leap,” featured in the exhibit. Claire Ogden took the installation photograph.

By Harry Kane

The love of film photography has made a comeback in Somerville with a community photo exhibition curated by Claire Ogden and presented by Lumentation Lab. The show is currently on display at the Rooted Armory Café, and will continue until November 13.

CultureHouse and the Union Square Neighborhood Council (USNC) released a report that details the impact of CultureHouse Union Square, an intergenerational community pop-up located in a once vacant storefront at 64 Union Square. CultureHouse Union Square, funded by an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant, was the result of a partnership between CultureHouse and USNC with the intent of informing the design of and showing the case for a long-term community center for the neighborhood. 

Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

Back in the early 80’s a Somerville pal got his pilot’s license. I was a lot less fearless back then so I agreed to go up with him for a ride. The airport was on Billerica Rd., Tewksbury, or something like that so we picked a day and hit the field.

— Photos by Bobbie Toner

The final SomerStreets festival of the year, the spooky and fun “Monster Mash” took place last Sunday on Somerville Ave. between School St. and Warren Ave. The family friendly event featured a Halloween Parade led by School of Honk, the Good News Gus interactive puppet show, parkour, pumpkin carving with Somerville Recreation, spooky games with Event Them, Knucklebones , Cate the Greate, Felice the Magician, a crafts and vintage market with Blue Bandana Relics and Tiny Turns Paperie, and the day find the Wicked Awesome Dancing Witches of Greater Boston.

The Somerville Lions Club members once again joined several other organizations in the city to celebrate Monster Mash. The Lions Club members with the help of the Lions 33K members and our eye mobile were able to examined several members of the Somerville Community in testing their eyes, also looking for problems with glaucoma as well as checking their blood pressure.  The Somerville Lions Club are always pleased to also assist the Somerville school children that are in need of eye glasses with parents that do not have the resources to purchase them by having the Somerville Lions club purchase the glasses for them as well as the examination.

This photo depicts “examples of the block building type.”

By Cathleen Twardzik

A land use public hearing occurred virtually on Thursday, October 17, at 6:30 p.m.

The hearing’s main goal “was to discuss a zoning map amendment for 501 Mystic Valley Parkway. The proposal seeks to change the zoning from a neighborhood residence (NR) district to an urban residence (UR) district, which would allow for increased residential density and a broader range of housing options,” said Grace Munns, Deputy Director of Communications.

(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)

From the Mayor’s Desk
By Mayor Katjana Ballantyne

Violent storms have dominated the national news, putting a stark focus on the resilience of our communities and our stormwater infrastructure. While Somerville hopefully never experiences something as tragic or devastating as the hurricanes that just battered the Southeast United States, we can’t ignore that climate change will bring us more unpredictable and heavier storms in the future.