July Calendar

Please contact me for more information on any of these, and help make this schedule more complete for next month by contacting my office about your local event or calendar!

July in Cambridge
City Calendar of Events

July in Somerville
City Calendar of Events
Growing Center Calendar

City Dance Party (Cambridge)
Friday, June 27 7-11pm
Mass. Ave @ Cambridge City Hall map
Come on down and dance in the streets outside city hall! All ages are welcome and encouraged for an old-fashioned block party.
More Info

Cambridge Sq. Dedications
Saturday, June 28
10am - Bryan Lounsbury Sq., Van Norden and Middlesex St. map
In memory of Cambridge resident and Private First Class in the United States Army in Fort Hood TX, Civil Air Patrol member Bryan Lounsbury.
11am - Chief Reagan Sq., South Normandy Avenue and Sunset Road
map
In honor of the late Cambridge Fire Chief Daniel J. Reagan.
12pm - Collins and Foster Sq., Merrill St. and Broadway Ave map

Centro Presente Press Conference
Monday, June 30 @ 11am
54 Essex Street, Cambridge map
Centro Presente, a local organization to assist the Latin American immigrant population in MA, will be announcing its move from Cambridge to Somerville.
More Info on Centro Presente

Grand Feast of the Imperio Mariense
Sunday, July 6
Filharmonica Santo Antonio, 575 Cambridge St, Cambridge map
Casa do Benfica, 178 Elm St., Cambridge map
The Feast will start at 10am in Saugus with Mass and the famous soups of Divino Espirito Santo. Then it moves to Cambridge for music and dancing.
2pm - Music at Filharmonica Santo Antonio
4pm - Dance group Rancho Folclorico at Casa do Benfica
5pm - Music of Tony Borges at Casa do Benfica
6pm - Music of Jorge Ferreira at Casa do Benfica

East Cambridge Planning Team Alexandria Roundtable
Wednesday, July 9 @ 7-9ish pm
East End House, 105 Spring St, Cambridge, MA 02141 map
The East Cambridge Planning Team will be hosting a round table discussion with Alexandria Realty to address neighborhood concerns about this large development and to see how we can work together to make this project work. Neighbors are invited to attend.

Wellington-Harrington Neighborhood Association Meeting
Wednesday, July 9 @ 7pm
Vin-Fen, 950 Cambridge St., Cambridge map
All residents and businesses of the Wellington-Harrington neighborhood, also known as Inman-Harrington neighborhood, are encouraged to attend this informational meeting.

50 Tufts Street Contamination Meeting
Thursday, July 10 @ 7pm
Capuano Early Childhood Center, 150 Glen St, Somerville map

The Friends and Neighbors of Glen Park, a neighborhood association concerned about environmental contamination originating at 50 Tufts Street, Somerville, will hold an informational meeting for all interested parties.

Gloucester Hornpipe and Clog Society
Sunday, July 12 @ 7pm
The Growing Center, 22 Vinal Ave, Somerville map
Growing Center July Calendar
A five-member band with lively, fun music for all ages. Sponsored by The Growing Center in Somerville, who work to promote community events in Somerville.

Holy Ghost Parade
Sunday, July 13 @ 9:30am
26 Springfield St. Somerville map
The Portuguese American Civic League Holy Ghost Committee holds its annual Feast on July 11th,12th, and 13th, with a parade on Sunday morning.

East Cambridge Planning Team Meeting
Wednesday, July 23 @ 7-9ish pm
East End House, 105 Spring St, Cambridge, MA 02141 map
The East Cambridge Planning Team will be hosting their second monthly meeting for residents of East Cambridge. Meetings are regularly scheduled for the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month. Neighbors are invited to attend.

Mayor Simmons' Harvard Yard picnic
Wednesday, July 30 @ 11:30am
Harvard Yard, Cambridge map
This is a picnic for resident seniors in Cambridge, hosted by Mayor E. Denise Simmons and Harvard President Drew Gilpin Faust. Tickets can be obtained by calling the Mayor's office at 617-349-4321 or at the Cambridge Senior Center across from City Hall.

Day of Portugal Parade rolls through Cambridge and Somerville

CAMBRIDGE - King Open School 850 Cambridge St map
SOMERVILLE - Portuguese Sq. Concord Ave map

MAPS Somerville Office map
MAPS Cambridge Office map

It was another great year for the Day of Portugal Parade, which danced, marched, and crashed its way through Cambridge and Somerville this past weekend. The Portuguese community here came out in large numbers for an energetic and exciting parade. There was music, flags, fun, old-fashioned carriages, and a lot of Portuguese pride on display.



The Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers, which has offices across the state and in both Cambridge and Somerville, helped to bring the group together and marched with their banner:


MAPS provides a strong support network and organizing base for the Portuguese community in our district and across the state. They are an invaluable resource and asset for the 26th Middlesex district.

More photos, courtesy of MAPS:

Street design, pedestrian safety top concerns on tour of Lower Broadway

SOMERVILLE- Lower Broadway, Sullivan Sq. area map

My staff and I had the opportunity to take a walking tour of Lower Broadway in East Somerville with Carrie Dancy of East Somerville Main Streets and Dorie Clark of Clark Communications. Dorie gave us a detailed description of the specific challenges the area faces in terms of pedestrian access, pollution, and safety concerns.


Lower Broadway and the Interstate 93 bridge serve as the gateway for East Somerville from Sullivan Square in Charlestown. Although the Sullivan Station bus terminal and Orange Line stop are both located in Charlestown, they are primarily used by residents of East Somerville. Besides being loud and unfriendly to pedestrians, the walkway under the bridge is also poorly lit and littered with trash.


Under Interstate 93: the ominous, neglected gateway to East Somerville.

Because of the split ownership of the land--between Somerville, Charlestown (which is technically part of Boston), the MBTA, private property, and Mass Highway--there has been neglect in coordinating and enforcing necessary repairs, redesigns, and regular maintenance. The area has become dangerous for pedestrians and impassable for the physically disabled, particularly in winter when ice and snow block access to the sidewalks.


Dorie Clark provided a diagram of the unusual ownership lines around Sullivan Sq.

I also had a chance to talk with a diverse array of local businesses about their concerns, including the managers of Boulter Plywood Corp, Taco Loco, Fusion Microtech, Vinny's Restaurant, the Boston Spine Clinic, and Awards Unlimited. Every time I'm on Lower Broadway, I'm surprised by how many different types of businesses and services there are over just a few blocks--sometimes even within the same store. It's a mixed-use area with plenty of great food and one-of-a-kind specialty stores.

Along with a general discussion of business visibility, there were also concerns raised about the traffic and business impact of a proposal from the city to widen the sidewalks and reduce parts of Broadway to one lane. Although it may improve pedestrian access and reduce dangerous traffic speeds, some businesses felt the proposal could hurt customer parking and truck deliveries. Final plans for the proposal are expected to be released by the city in July.

Grand Opening of Rodizio Brazilian Steak House on Lower Broadway draws large, hungry crowds

SOMERVILLE - map



Tony Morales kicked off the Grand Openings of his new Brazilian Steak House Rodizio and Mexican eatery Maya Sol with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Both restaurants are on Lower Broadway in East Somerville, which is quickly becoming the hub of Central and South American food in the Greater Boston Area.

I presented Mr. Morales with a citation to honor his newest venture and wish him many years of success. Congratulations Tony!


From left to right: Carrie Dancy of East Somerville Main Streets, Tim, Tony Morales of Rodizio, Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone

CAAS Hosts a Conversation on Housing

SOMERVILLE - map

Cambridge and Somerville face some pretty unique challenges when it comes to housing. Both cities are growing and developing, with large student populations and an increasing gap between the wealthy and the lower-income residents.

The Community Action Agency of Somerville (CAAS) decided to bring in community leaders, organizations, and statewide housing partnership programs to have a conversation on housing in Somerville. Our goals have always been to maintain affordable housing and help the residents here cope with the rising cost of living. CAAS, along with the Somerville Community Corporation (SCC), spearhead assistance for families having difficulty paying their rent.

The conversation was a huge success, but it's not over yet. It was encouraging to see the Somerville delegation of legislators, the Metropolitan Boston Housing Partnership (MBHP), the Somerville Homeless Coalition, Cambridge/Somerville Legal Services, and dozens of other organizations and individuals together, discussing our challenges and shaping our path going forward.

The important thing to know is that Somerville does have excellent organizations in place to help people wth their housing and other community issues, and I encourage anyone who needs help to get in touch with them.

CAAS map
SCC map
MBHP