Somerville Voices

East Somerville residents deserve the dream of a better community. Let’s talk together about what costs and benefits the new development will bring to our community and to East Somerville residents.

If a municipality’s Bus stops are unreachable and inaccessible, due to badly built street facilities, then its residents are restricted from accessing public transportation systems, etc..For some individuals, the challenges created by these issues cause them to be nearly or fully housebound.
Do you think such quality of life issues should continue to be put off until “tomorrow?” …

On Monday, I went to the Union Square rezoning meeting held at Somerville High. I took my laptop with me and took the following “live blog” notes. The slides and maps are available on the city website.

Another of the city’s popular family events, Family Fun Day includes a variety of activities for residents of all ages. Obstacle courses, games, watermelon eating contests, dancing, and a dunk tank are only a few examples of the day’s events! Dunk the Mayor! Dunk your Alderman! Eat your weight in watermelon! Bring your children, your parents, and your friends.

Today, 2 residents from the Community Access Project of Somerville (CAPS) took their digital levels and measuring tapes and perambulated down Holland Street. We checked both sides of the sidewalk, from Winter Street to the Traffic and Parking Building (133 Holland St.) and then went back to Davis Square via the other side

So, you are a blind pedestrian at Weston and Broadway and you need to cross after getting off the bus. Because there is no curbcut on the bus stop side of Weston to cross to Dickson, you cross Weston to the corner pictured below. You rely on the tactile strips to guide you straight into the crosswalk and to the curbcut exactly opposite. Now, here: how many steps will it take before you’re a smashed pumpkin at rush hour?

The Pedestrian Signal post at the raised island mid-crossing in Union Square, at Somerville and Washington Street is inaccessible to wheelchair-mobile pedestrians. The pedestrian-activated button is at least seven feet - 84 inches- away from the wheelchair pedestrian’s hand!

The Milk Row Cemetery is a Historic Preservation Commission project, and its improvements triggered sidewalk accessibility improvements by 2005. Below is the copy of the complaint I submitted today. This is at least the third time this issue has been brought to the attention of the City ADA Coordinator in the past year.

For those of you who may not know, Governor Patrick filed the environmental bond bill (H.4446) this past December. Open space for outdoor recreation (as we all know) is extremely limited in Somerville. These funds can be used to develop Foss Park into the Urban Oasis we so desperately need in Somerville. There is tremendous potential to significantly upgrade the park for all who utilize the area. We must maximize this critical moment by taking advantage of these opportunities.

On Friday, June 6, 2008, the Union Square Citizen’s Bank began breaking up the large platform front step that has been dividing this Bank and its services from people with mobility restrictions. Barack Obama won the nomination in 16 months. This access project for just one public accommodation has taken over 18 months already…

In the ordinary course of business, one notices accessible route problems throughout Union Square’s Somerville Reconstruction Project area. During construction, it is very important for the City to maintain continuous, unobstructed, level and safe sidewalks, as well as safe curbcuts and walkways for everyone.

This Saturday, May 31, I’m co-leading a bicycle tour of historical sights around Somerville, on behalf of the Somerville Bicycle Committee and the Somerville Historic Preservation Commission. The ride will focus on the many commuter rail stations that Somerville once had, and on the Green Line stations that will soon take their place.

The ride starts at 10 am at Somerville City Hall …

If you listen to a local NPR radio station like me, you’ve probably heard segments of Living on Earth with Steve Curwood, a program on the environment and environmental policy. After listening to this week’s show, I picked up on the fact that they broadcast from a studio in Davis Square, right down the hall from the office of the Somerville Journal, at 20 Holland Street Suite 408 to be exact.

New England Ford is sponsoring the festival and drove an SUV into the middle of the plaza in Davis. Thanks…