These are just some of the municipal meetings and civic events for the coming week. More are on the City of Somerville website.
Body-worn cameras on police
City Council hearing, 6:30 p.m. Monday. There’s a summer deadline on whether to equip Somerville police officers with body-worn cameras, an issue bouncing around City Council and committee meetings for several months. (We wrote about it here.) After the council’s Finance Committee voted 4–1 on July 7 against accepting a $231,635 purchase grant, citing the half-million-dollar annual operating cost the city would have to pay as a result, the full council debated the issue July 9 and sent the grant back to committee. A Surveillance Technology Impact Report detailing how camera data will be collected and stored was also sent to committee in anticipation of a hearing, called for in a June petition signed by 89 residents. Mayor Jake Wilson, who supports accepting the grant, said he called this special meeting and hearing “not to preempt but in addition to the requested hearing.” Watchable by Zoom videoconferencing.
Five stories at 84 Broadway
Neighborhood meeting, 6 p.m. Wednesday. The two-story building at 84 Broadway, East Somerville, would be restored and get a three-story addition overhead, ending up with 20 residential units and a commercial tenant (Amigos Market is now at its base) in a proposal by LaCourt Realty and Joe the Architect. The owner of LaCourt, Mouhab Rizkallah, has a project languishing at 13 Elm St., which has been empty for 10 years since the abrupt closing of the Aguacate Verde restaurant. Rizkallah said he wanted to combine the former restaurant with his neighboring properties at 15 Elm St. and 2-6 Porter St., but the city and Rizkallah got into a dispute over who wasn’t responding to who, and there’s been no action at the site. Watchable by Zoom videoconferencing.
Bus Network Redesign proposals
MBTA community meeting, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The MBTA presents possible changes to Boston Avenue bus routes 67, 80, 94, 96 and 350 through Medford, Cambridge, Somerville and Arlington. There are three options, including versions that could see Route 80 extended to Arlington Heights or Route 96 shifted to Boston Avenue from George Street. Hear the plans and give feedback in person at Medford City Hall, 85 George P Hassett Drive, Medford.
Combining two public schools
New School Building Project School Building Committee, 4:30 to 6 p.m. Aug. 3. More work on construction of a 925-student complex at at 115 Sycamore St., Winter Hill, to meet the needs of the combined communities of the closed Winter Hill Community Innovation School and aging Benjamin G. Brown School. Watchable by Zoom videoconferencing.
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