Traces of soil contaminants have been found on the grounds at Conway field and playground, forcing its continued closure until a full cleanup is completed.

By Kalina Newman

Conway field and playground will remain shut down, after risk assessors from Watson & Sampson, an environmental service company, along with The City of Somerville Parks and Recreation, examined soil solutions around the playground. Representatives from Watson & Sampson met with the public last Tuesday to discuss their findings.

(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)

This letter is being written in response to the announcement last week from Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan that the investigation has been completed into the fatal crash that took the life of Bernard “Joe” Lavins. As you may remember, Joe Lavins was riding his bicycle through Porter Square in Cambridge on the morning of October 5, 2016 when he was struck and killed by a tractor trailer. The DA’s report concluded that there would be no criminal charges brought against the driver and that the design of the intersection at Porter Square had nothing to do with the crash.

On Friday, April 20, the Dave Martini and Nick Peters Scholarship Fund is having A Night with Jim Plunkett. The event is being held at the Dante Club, 5 Dante Terrace off Craigie Street here in Somerville. It’s a great time and lots of fun. Tickets are $40, and include well-known local singer Jim Plunkett, plus a 50/50 auction, lots of raffles, and a buffet dinner. For tickets, please contact: Janet7345@yahoo.com or you can purchase tickets at the Eventbrite page, www.eventbrite.com/e/dave-nicvk-scholarship-fundraiser-with-jim-plunkett-tickes-44716590526

On Tuesday, April 3, Environment America was joined by Massachusetts State Representatives Mike Connolly and Christine Barber for a panel on renewable energy at Tufts University.

It’s not just another three-day weekend, folks. It’s a huge part of our regional – not to mention our national – heritage.

Patriot’s Day was established over 100 years ago to commemorate the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775, the first battles of the American Revolutionary War. Re-enactments are staged and speeches are given, and a generally festive air of patriotic zeal pervades.

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Winter Hill Brewing produces small batches of various specialty beers that are offered on a rotating basis. Check out their website to view current and future releases. You can pair your favorite beer with one of multiple gourmet, scratch made sandwiches and accoutrements.

By Donald Norton

The Burlington Rotary Club ran its annual Friday Night at the fights, with over 350 turning out to have a great dinner and see some great boxing bouts. Pictured here is a small group of regulars from Somerville who always attend every year. It was a great night and the club raised over $35K dollars.

~Photos by Claudia Ferro

The Fifth Annual FULL HEARTS 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament, a school fundraising event, took place at the East Somerville Community School Gymnasium last Friday, April 6. Qualifying 6th, 7th, and 8th graders (predetermined at each school) faced off in friendly games of 3-on-3, and there were plenty of opportunities to win raffle items and other prizes.

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Recently, Diana Der-Hovanessian, the longtime president of the New England Poetry Club, passed away. She was a very influential person on the poetry scene. Here is an interview I conducted with her some years ago:

Diana Der-Hovanessian is the president of the venerable literary organization: The New England Poetry Club. Based in Cambridge, MA, it was founded by Amy Lowell, Robert Frost and Conrad Aiken almost ninety years ago. Lowell’s vision was to bring well-known poets to large audiences.

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Gustavo Pereira is a Brazilian-American living in the area for the last 28 years. The written words, their sounds, effects and alignments are a call to write, experiment with his own mixture and concoction to express in poetic form much of what we dwell on. A BPS Teacher of Mathematics on leave, Gustavo is working on publishing both his English and Portuguese poems.