Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, Ward 5 Councilor Naima Sait, and the City Council invite Somerville community members to the Ward 5 “Slice of the City” meet-up event on Monday, July 22, at Trum Field playground (1 Franey Road at Cedar Street), from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. This event was originally scheduled for Thursday, May 16, but was postponed due to weather.

Somerville and Cambridge residents can access free technology assistance through a new program offered by nonprofit Somerville-Cambridge Elder Services (SCES). The Technology Access Program (TAP) launched on July 1 with the goal of helping older adults use technology to find information, services and social connections easily and quickly. 

The MBTA is reminding riders of the upcoming multi-day Red Line service suspension and providing an update on weekend service outages on July 27 – 28.  

Planned Red Line service change during the weekends of July 27 – 28 have been extended with service suspended from Alewife to JFK/UMass. This decision comes after a thorough review of the work required and logistical challenges following recent overnight work to prepare for the work taking place during the service outage. With the goal of significantly improving service reliability and reducing travel times for thousands of daily riders, the extended outage during these weekends allows for the installation of over three and a half miles (19,200 feet) of new rail that will allow the MBTA to lift seven speed restrictions along this heavily traveled corridor. 

(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 State Senator Pat Jehlen

The next two and a half weeks in the legislature are going to be packed!

Monday I wrote about important pieces of the Senate’s version of the Housing Bond Bill.  This is about why the bond bill is not enough.  Following will be newsletters about the immediate emergency, and possible solutions to keep people in their homes.

The Somerville Growing Center will be hosting a celebration of poet Amy Lowell, featuring readings by notable local poets, This coming Saturday, July 20.

Come to the Somerville Growing Center on Saturday, July 20, from 4:00 to 5:30 p.m., to gather, listen, and celebrate the garden poetry of Amy Lowell. This special event will focus on poetry by and in connection to Amy Lowell, with readings from Jennifer Clarvoe, Lloyd Schwartz, and Denise Provost.

ArtBeat, Somerville’s annual multicultural arts showcase, returned on Saturday, July 13. For this year’s theme, artists and attendees explored all that is “wild”. The festival featured 100 vendors and community groups, music, dance, theater, food, and much more. — Photos by Bobbie Toner