Civic Action

Approximately fifteen people crowded around two small tables this afternoon at the Danish Pastry House in Medford to share their concerns and questions in a wide-ranging conversation with State Representative Carl Sciortino at his first district coffee hour of the year.  …

Davis Square Task Force Meeting

Wed. Feb. 24, 7:00 PM

Tufts Administration Building (TAB)
169 Holland St.
Somerville MA (map)

This is the regular meeting of the Davis Square Task Force, one of the longest running activist groups in Somerville. It came into existence around the extension of…

Banks and Verizon need to be held to the kind of standards they use to torture their customers.

Committee on Legislative Matters

Tues. Feb. 9 7:00 PM

Aldermen’s Chamber
Somerville City Hall
93 Highland Ave.
Somerville MA (map)

Agenda (PDF)

This is a special meeting of Committee on Legislative Matters, meeting as a whole. The Committee does the final review of ordinances…

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In this close race, your vote counts more than ever!

Find your polling place here and then go vote while you can before 8pm…

Are you a Somerville resident 21-35 years old? 

Do you have recommendations to offer to improve city services?

Are you interested in becoming more active in the Somerville community?

Are you interested in getting more Young Somerville residents active in the Somerville community?

If you answered “Yes” to any of those…

In RE: Joe Lynch on Joe’s Original Crosswalks

The situation you describe, Joe, in which the Magoun Square project consultant told you that cost is the reason that a principal location, one where safe wheelchair access is crucial, will not be built in compliance with ADA specifications- is scandalous. I join you…

As part of ‘Our Voices, Our Vote,’ a civic participation campaign, Centro Presente would like to invite you to an Electoral Forum (Oct 7, 6pm) to hear from local candidates on the issues of concern to the community of Somerville, to talk about how to increase civic participation in the city, and to educate ourselves about the next electoral process.

I received this via email from Sean O’Donovan, my alderman, as a follow-up to a phone conversation about trash citation screw-ups.  Would it be useful for others to contact their aldermen as backup?…

2 degrees of warming. 350 parts per million. Does it seem as though we are on track to achieve these? Are you concerned about the chance of passing a meaningful global climate treaty in Copenhagen? Do you want to have a say in the future of our planet? Come to our Climate Action Party! [October 3rd, 7 p.m.] We will broaden our local network of activists, strategize how to make our voices heard, and plan for the days between now and December.

A new online tool exists to plot crimes on a searchable map. This would empower residents to know how safe their neighborhood is and where and what to watch to deter crime. It would probably catalyze neighborhood crime watches and make our streets safer.

Q:  Why Didn’t the Rolling Somerville Pedestrian Cross the Road at the Crosswalk?

A:  Because the City of Somerville Deciders have been playing chicken with standards.

This photo essay will show 30 lost opportunities to create a safer community on Mayor Curtatone’s watch.…

About a month ago, on Aug 16th, I submitted a 311 service request through the new SeeClickFix tool to repair a loose utility wire tied to the fence at Hodgkins-Curtin Park along Simpson Ave (see photo below). After an initial flurry of promises from a Somerville 311 rep to have the issue fixed asap, it was ignored. Today the wire is still there, menacing passers-by and testifying to the failure of the 311 system.…

Almost half of the Aug 27th BOA mtg agenda (pdf) basically consists of 311 service requests like orders to fix potholes and sidewalks. The other half contains some interesting items including these highlights (emphasis added by me):

Note that Ward 7 Alderman Bob Trane was the only member to not have sponsored any items. The Aldermen each earn a salary of $24,521.03 in FY2010.…

On Monday, August 31, 2009 beginning at 6:45 p.m., the Somerville School Committee will conduct a public hearing on the issue of participating in the inter-district-choice program for the 2009-2010 school year. …

Sign a 350-ft. banner for a national climate change project – first stop Somerville! Send a message to the Obama administration
for strong global climate policy.

to Jaclyn Rossetti <JRossetti(at)somervillema.gov>
cc Thomas Champion <TChampion(at)somervillema.gov>,
John Gannon <JGannon(at)somervillema.gov>
date Wed, Aug 26, 2009 at 9:16 AM
subject Public Records Request : 311 Service Requests

Dear Public Information Officer Jackie Rossetti, (cc Thomas Champion, Exec Dir of Communications and John Gannon, City Solicitor)

In the public interest and per MA public…

In preparation for the parking tickets story, I have submitted the following request for public records to the City:

—————–

to Jaclyn Rossetti <JRossetti(at)somervillema.gov>
cc Thomas Champion <TChampion(at)somervillema.gov>
date Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 10:16 AM
subject Public Records Request : Parking Meter Revenues

Dear Public Information Officer Jackie Rossetti…

In preparation for the parking tickets story, I have submitted the following request for public records to the City:

—————–

to Jaclyn Rossetti <JRossetti(at)somervillema.gov>
cc Thomas Champion <TChampion(at)somervillema.gov>
date Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 10:10 AM
subject Public Records Request : Parking Officer Data

Dear Public Information Officer Jackie Rossetti…

In preparation for the parking tickets story, I have submitted the following request for public records to the City:

——————

to Jaclyn Rossetti <JRossetti(at)somervillema.gov>
cc Thomas Champion <TChampion(at)somervillema.gov>
date Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 10:00 AM
subject Public Records Request : Car Towing Information

Dear Public Information Officer Jackie Rossetti…

In preparation for the parking tickets story, I have submitted the following request for public records to the City:

——————

to Jaclyn Rossetti <JRossetti(at)somervillema.gov>
cc Thomas Champion <TChampion(at)somervillema.gov>
date Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 9:55 AM
subject Public Records Request : Parking Ticket Appeals

Dear Public Information Officer Jackie Rossetti…

In preparation for the parking tickets story, I have submitted the following request for public records to the city:

——————

to Jaclyn Rossetti <JRossetti(at)somervillema.gov>
cc Thomas Champion <TChampion(at)somervillema.gov>
date Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 9:21 AM
subject Public Records Request : Parking Ticket Data

Dear Public Information Officer Jackie Rossetti…

The SeeClickFix tool on the Globe’s local Somerville website allows anyone to report and track 311 service requests on a map of the city.  You can even include a photo of the problem. All reported requests are visible to everyone, so it’s easy to view what others have submitted and add your support to those that you care about.…

Thanks to SomervilleVoices for providing this venue to post our Public Information Requests -and to share the responses (or lack therof) that we receive.

Here’s one example of a PIR response that raises red flags.
June 15, 2009 Request for ADA Transition Plans of 10 City facilities
“TO:  Carlene Campbell,  ADA Coordinator for City…

I just submitted the following query through ResiStat’s public Q/A tool called SomerBlog:
What types of information are stored with each 311 request? (e.g. request, date + time of request / resolution, service location, requester’s name, address, and phone, language, ethnicity, gender, etc…) Which parameters are required and which are optional? How long…

Thursday’s event at City Hall was a far cry from the tense, emotion-high fracas that went down at the Traffic Commission meeting two weeks ago. The stately Aldermanic chamber was likewise filled with concerned Somerville citizens, but this time, the city’s controversial May 21 vote was the agenda.…

Click here to listen: link

Get some bike tune-up help and tips with Ace Wheelworks

and learn how to get involved in the International Day of Climate Action on October 24th

with Somerville Climate Action!

Bike on Over with a Picnic

The Growing Center, Vinal Avenue…

So I get a trash violation citation in the mail — all but illegible & addressed to a misconception of my name — dunning me for $50 for putting out trash too early and in paper bags.  Now, I’m all for clean streets and garbage in containers and doing my part.   Only problem is…

Rite Aid warehouse workers in Lancaster, California need our support. Before workers voted to form a union in 2008, Rite Aid committed dozens of unfair labor practices. And since then, in an effort to prevent them from achieving a first contract, the warehouse workers have faced continuing anti-union terror.

This public hearing will be convened by the Traffic Board in the Aldemanic Chamber at City Hall. I initially noticed this in Deb Filcman’s Aug 7 SJ blog post.  For background about the parking changes, visit the SPARC blog , check out the just-posted video of the 7/27 interview on SCAT’s Progressive Voices of SPARC-co-founder Courtney Koslow,  or see the recent articles on Somerville Voices/Journal/News.…

Take action on climate change, learn skills, and build community! · Help to weatherize a Somerville house · Learn skills you can take back to your own home · Decrease carbon-emissions · Make new friends. … Here’s your chance to make a difference and learn something in the process…

How do we get the silent majority of residents in Somerville — most in this city are either blue-dog, conservative or liberterian — more active and attend city meetings to voice our displeasure with the agenda of the city/state and federal government? We all need to wake up – things are out of control now…

It seems as if the Somerville Traffic Commission has a sticky situation on it’s hands. I attended the regularly scheduled Somerville Traffic Commission meeting at the Tufts Administration building this evening, and from what was printed on the agenda, I expected a fairly run-of-the-mill session. But the 75-odd residents who packed the TAB cafeteria had a different agenda in mind…

I am excited to see that the City has launched SomerBlog: “the open community forum associated with the Somerville ResiStat program.”. Started on July 14th and managed by ResiStat’s Stephanie Hirsch, the blog adds to the City’s growing array of online communications with residents which started with CTY emails and Google email groups targeted by ward and demographics. …

We will look at what makes a radical organizing method by examining winnability, strategy/tactics, coalitions, spirituality, building a majority movement, role of political education, and the effectiveness of well known organizing methods such as 1-1’s, story-telling, relationship-building. The format will be group discussion.

We’re working on educating the public about the incredible amount of money spent on weapon systems, and the need to get the government to redirect that money to basic human needs, such as jobs, education, housing, and health care. … and that’s where you can help. We’re going to ask the Board of Aldermen of Somerville to endorse the campaign. As preparation for that, we’re asking you to call your alderman/ woman to urge their endorsement of this campaign.

Hello my name is Clivia Camara I am a youth member of the Welcome Project.  As a supporter of the Welcoming  Massachusetts Campaign I’m forwarding this information hoping to see you at this such important meeting as part of your support to the Welcoming Massachusetts Compaign and the immigrant  youth of Somerville.…

These are my notes from the great Freedom of Information conference, held at the Boston Globe, 5/1/09 (Bill Shelton was there and had taken part in the planning of it as a member of the sponsoring New England First Amendment Coalition) As an aside, I will say I’ve already used www.pipl.com a bunch of times since the conference and the information that comes up is frequently quite interesting!…

Please join The Welcome Project on June 7 for a graduation celebration for some special people from cultures and countries all over the world. These are the students in our youth language interpretation and adult language learners programs who have just completed a year’s worth of learning as language interpreters and English language learners.

Forum on Gentrification and Displacement!
Thursday, May 14th, 6 PM
Elizabeth Peabody House
277 Broadway (at Broadway & Grant Street) Somerville, MA 02145

Gentrification and Displacement

The City of Somerville, as an Entitlement Community, receives millions of Federal dollars from HUD each year from the Community Development Block Grant, Emergency Shelter Grant, and HOME programs.  These monies must be spent on activities that primarily benefit low and moderate income Somerville residents in three areas:  

Provide decent affordable housing…

The rain date is Sunday, May 10th. For information on where to go in your neighborhood, see: http://www.somervillema.gov/newsDetail.cfm?instance_id=144

Saturday, 5/9, 10:00 a.m., Locations throughout the City…