By Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

Just one hundred yards across the Mystic River from Somerville’s burgeoning Assembly Square neighborhood lies the proposed site for a 19-story casino in Everett. Somerville and other cities in the region, none of which have a vote on the proposal, are staring down the negative impacts this casino would levy on our local businesses, economic activity, social well-being and our health.

On Somerville’s side of the Mystic River at Assembly Row, we are building a livable, walkable, bikeable, transit-accessible community with a sustainable economic base. It’s the payoff from prudent investments in infrastructure. We’re bringing in transit with the new Orange Line station. We’re breaking ground on new homes and office buildings, restaurants and stores. We’re unlocking the magic of the waterfront with a new 6-acre park. We’re building a neighborhood that will both cultivate a better quality of life and strengthen our tax base to help pay for citywide public services. We have learned from the past to play the long game not the short game, to be diligent not desperate.

On the Everett side of the river, it’s a very different story. They are talking about building a casino, a myopic and volatile strategy that has a detrimental impact on quality of life and drains the tax base, requiring more and more city expenditures and services to counter its impact. The data shows that when casinos go up, crime and other social ills go up with them while spending at area businesses goes down. What looks now like the promise of glamour and glitz is nothing more than fool’s gold. There could not be a bigger contrast between two sites a hundred yards apart.

Playing the short game with a casino threatens the local businesses that form the backbone of our city and regional economy. One of the dollar figures being waved in front of Everett’s nose is $50,000 worth of vouchers to Everett restaurants and local businesses. These vouchers would be given for free to gamblers at the casino. But gamblers do not tend to stand up from the slot machine and decide to drive elsewhere to shop or eat. The longest distance gamblers travel when visiting a casino is from the parking lot to the casino’s front door.

In Atlantic City, one-third of the city’s retail businesses closed within four years after the casinos opened. Within 20 years, two-thirds of the city’s independent restaurants had also closed. Similar statistics abound in casino areas. No amount of free vouchers can compensate for the decimation of one- to two-thirds of local businesses.

Somerville’s core value is to make our city a great place to live, work, play and raise a family. Casinos hurt families. Between 1990 and 1998, as increasing numbers of states legalized casinos, Gamblers Anonymous chapters more than doubled according to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission. In a survey of nearly 400 Gamblers Anonymous members, 28 percent reported either a gambling-related divorce or separation and others admitted their gambling had led them to stealing, bankruptcy or thoughts of suicide. We should be building healthy families, not introducing ways to break them.

An Everett casino would also worsen traffic and pollution. Somerville and communities around the proposed casino site already have several environmental justice zones, where people face a disproportionate burden of traffic-related pollution. We’re working to correct this by investing in alternative transportation, or by advocating for the grounding of McGrath Highway, which the state just announced it will transform into a ground-level boulevard. But now, just as we’re making progress, we again face increased traffic impact. An exhaustive study by MIT and University of California at Berkeley researchers pinpointed the most traffic-congested Boston-area neighborhoods, and Everett was one of the worst. A casino would only exacerbate that problem, rippling through the entire metro area.

In 2007, as president of the Massachusetts Mayors’ Association, I hosted a panel of casino experts in Somerville. Two were in favor of casinos and one was opposed, but they all agreed on one thing: You do not place casinos where you already have an established economic base. You create a destination resort. Not only has the Commonwealth taken the ill-advised step of allowing casinos in Massachusetts at all, but it is also allowing one in the urban core. It defies common sense.

Massachusetts’ casino law alludes to regional cooperation in terms of mitigation, but then contradicts itself by taking a narrow approach to who has a say in where casinos are placed. Only Everett residents can vote on whether Las Vegas tycoon Steve Wynn can build his casino here on the Mystic, but Somerville, Charlestown, Chelsea, even Medford and Malden and beyond will be impacted. None of those communities have a say. The facts will have to instead speak loudly for us. We need to slow down and look at the data, not the spinning dollar signs.

Police officers were dispatched to a Radcliffe Rd. residence last week on reports of a vehicular breaking and entering.

As officers arrived at the reporting party’s residence, they were informed that two suspects matching witness descriptions had been detained by police at a nearby location.

The reporting party reportedly told police that he had observed the two suspects breaking into several parked vehicles. The witness stated that the two individuals, both juveniles, had rifled through one vehicle’s glove compartment, apparently attempting to locate the car’s trunk release latch.

Having no success with the first car, the two then reportedly moved on to another vehicle and searched through its contents.

Investigating officers examined the vehicles and noted that items in the vehicle had been scattered about and appeared to be cluttered.

The witness agreed to perform a “show up” identification of the two suspects and positively named them as the individuals he saw rifling through the vehicles.

Both individuals were placed under arrest and charged with felony nighttime breaking and entering.

Ward 1 residents got updated reports from city officials and analysts last week. – Photo by Harry Kane

By Harry Kane

On Thursday, East Somerville residents gathered at the Cross Street Senior Center to listen to presentations from city officials regarding the current affairs most important in the community.

The City of Somerville collects and analyzes large amounts of community data. City representatives then release these statistics at community forums called ResiStat meetings. Qualitative analyses of these statistics may also be used to inform public policy. For example, some of the talking points on Thursday revolved around subjects such as finance, education, transportation, rodent control, park renovations and crime statistics.

Community Engagement Specialist Meghann Ackerman provided the residents of Ward 1 with a brief introduction to begin the meeting.

Ackerman relayed the importance of the community-generated input used to create each ResiStat meeting. “We look through the topics and pick things that people are really interested in hearing about,” she said enthusiastically.

Somerville is on the “cutting edge of so many elements of municipal management,” said Bradley Rawson, economic development planner for the City of Somerville. Rawson listed the ResiStat meetings, childhood obesity program (Shape up Somerville) and the 311-call center as just a few of the programs that give Somerville the edge and establish the city as a “national leader.”

Rawson’s overview of community planning focused on the “Somerville by Design” initiative, a city-wide program that aims at “creating safer, friendlier, and more efficient streets,” according to the City of Somerville’s website. The hope is to make the City of Somerville more accessible. “It is really a step beyond the city’s traditional role of planning, zoning, community development, transportation,” said Rawson.

Two core elements contribute to the “Somerville by Design” initiative, said Rawson. Firstly, the City of Somerville has been pro-active in finding innovative ways like community conversations in neighborhoods and increased web activity to promote community input. Secondly, the city has focused on urban design. “We try to get ahead of change,” he added.

The “Somerville by Design Street Series” recently finished in Gilman, Magoun, and Ball Squares to ready the communities for the Green Line. The program will be expanding into East Somerville to talk about the “big picture, master plan for the neighborhood,” continued Rawson.

Over the next six months there will be meetings and open studio sessions to address the design concepts for streets while respecting and preserving the historical character of the neighborhoods. On May 28, at the Michael E. Capuano Early Childhood Center, a “Somerville by Design” meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the next six months of work.

Hayes Morrison, the City of Somerville’s director of transportation and infrastructure, spoke to Ward 1 residents about the ongoing East Broadway streetscape project. The roughly $8 million construction project will include an overhaul of water, sewer, and drainage systems. Pedestrians will have better access due to larger, ADA accessible sidewalks. Plus, crosswalks may have chirping sounds for added safety.

The East Broadway streetscape is going to implement the “Complete Streets” design, said Morrison. “It is an implementation method to make roadways in our city safe for all users: pedestrians, cyclists, transit users and motorists,” explained Morrison.

The “Complete Street Series” is an extension of the “Somerville by Design” initiative, and took place in February, March and April to solicit community feedback. The city will compile the information into a typology book in the coming months.

The presentation then shifted to the Green Line Extension. The City of Somerville broke ground with the first phase of construction in December of 2012, according to Morrison. New inside information which Morrison couldn’t divulge much of, concerns the MBTA’s interview of the final three candidates for the construction manager general contractor position.

Lechmere Station, Washington Street Station and the Union Square Station are all funded with state bond money that is in the final stages of approval at the State House, said Morrison. The three stations will open in 2016. The plan is to construct each station at the same time and open all three simultaneously.

Some audience members had questions concerning the construction of the Green Line. One attendee asked whether Somerville residents would be guaranteed jobs during construction. Morrison responded by saying that the interested party would have to contact the MBTA for further information. Morrison has signed a confidentiality agreement and was prohibited from speaking further about that information.

Another resident asked whether there was going to be an increased frequency in trains running to and from the new stations. “They’re not increasing the number of trains,” said Morrison. “The headway, if I remember correctly, and I will double check for you, is every 10 minutes to Union and every 8 minutes to Washington Street at rush hour; every 15 minutes at off-peak hours.”

Morrison did note that as part of the project, 24 new green-line-cars would be provided for the estimated increased transit ridership.

Another resident asked if there would be an express train. The answer was no, there isn’t enough room. “There’s a pinched lane in the right of way, right in the vicinity of about the Medford Street Bridge where you can squeeze this in, and an 8-foot bike path, that’s it,” Morrison said. “In fact, some of the engineers called it ‘building a diorama in a shoebox.”’ Laughter and applause followed this last comment.

Next, Senior Planner Luisa Oliveira spoke about the Chuckie Harris Park construction. The park is located directly behind the Cross Street Senior Center at 15-25 Cross St. “We’re starting to put in the play sections,” said Oliveira, “and we hope to be completed in about a month’s time.”

The park is made in memory of a boy named Chuckie Harris, who died in 1970. There will be a small memorial for him at the entrance of the park.

Homages to historical landmarks were incorporated into the play elements of the park, including a constructed hill with a slide. This hill is a symbolic reference to Mt. Benedict,  “an oval mound of clay formed by glacial movement,” according to the East Somerville Main Streets website.

There is a toddler area with a factory building, which is a “nod to Assembly Square,” said Oliveira. As well, some new-age features include a waterfall movie screen. “When it’s summer, there’s like a mist that comes down, so you can play on it,” said Oliveira, “and then there’s a screen. You can sit on the lawn and watch movies.”

The next speaker was Maria Carpenter, director of Somerville Public Library. During the month of February, Somerville competed in a library card sign-up campaign between Arlington, Belmont and Lexington to see which community could increase more library memberships overall. “We rocked the house,” said Carpenter. Somerville was the winner with a 320 percent increase in cardholders. That translates into 1,054 residents with library cards.

“We worked very closely with our super school system,” said Carpenter, “and almost all of our school children from kindergarten through 8th grade, now have their library cards.”

The libraries are now open on Saturday mornings, said Carpenter. There is also more multilingual programming. Currently, there are plans to renovate the libraries, and $3.5 million has been earmarked in the capital plan for design work.

Following Carpenter’s enthusiastic speech about library successes, Former Superintendent of Inspectional Services Douglass Kress informed the attendees of the latest status on rodent infestation.

“Rodents, I hate to tell you, but they’re a lot like us,” said Kress. “They are going to go after the same things that we’re going to go after.” Kress listed food, shelter and water as the necessities that rodents seek. The biggest rodent problem is the rats.

The city is going to continue baiting the sewers. Standing water and food need to be properly disposed of, and due to serious problems in the past, trash regulations will be strictly enforced. The city is cracking down on the rat infestation, but Kress said that it wasn’t going to be solved unless the entire community was pro-active in deterring the rats. It’s important to call 311 if rats are sighted, said Kress, because the city tracks the hotspots where rats are spotted and then baits the sewers in those locations.

Some residents like Toni Brogna were understandably upset with the ongoing rat infestation problem. “The rats that I do see are the size of a cat,” said Brogna. “They are morphing into something else!” While Douglass Kress listened to her comments, he didn’t respond with any comforting suggestions.

Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone entered and presented next. “I always find the rat conversation riveting,” he said. But the Mayor quickly changed course and presented information regarding fiscal planning, and Assembly Square.

“We are now in the budget development phase…we will submit to the Board of Aldermen, I believe, the day is June 5,” said Curtatone.

Fiscal 2014 begins on July 1. “We must submit a balanced budget. We cannot submit a budget with deficits,” he added.

The Mayor said the City of Somerville has started to see some incremental progress in terms of how much the city is spending and how much revenue is coming in. For the first time in a while, according to the mayor, Somerville is starting to see revenues surpassing expenditures. “We’re starting to see the daylight, the light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.

Back in fiscal 2002, Somerville was in the “best of times – the high water mark in terms of money you get from the state – state aid,” said Curtatone. At that time, a little over 40 percent of the revenue came from the Commonwealth state aid. Since 2008, “We’ve had to do a hell of a lot more with a hell of a lot less,” said Curtatone.

Controlling costs, which have skyrocketed over the last decade has been critical to the Curtatone administration. In 2002, the City of Somerville paid approximately $12 million to cover municipal heath insurance. Fast-forward a decade and the price of health insurance has tripled.

Diligent efforts have been taken to provide affordable health care coverage. Somerville switched to the Group Insurance Commission (GIC) for employees, retirees and dependents. There was a savings of $9 million, allowing for an “incredible amount in fiscal flexibility to invest in more quality of life and neighborhood services,” said Curtatone.

The City of Somerville now has a 3.9 percent unemployment rate, said Curtatone. “We’re trying to construct our budget with a lens of looking at how our policies create a system that make-up our community,” added the Mayor.

“We have to know where we fit in this constellation, this universe of systems or stars…we need to know how we manipulate, invest, leverage and improve the system around public service, around public safety…recreation, transportation, property, housing to reach that overarching purpose,” said Curtatone.

Progress at Assembly Square is ongoing. There will be some 23 thousand new jobs over the next several years, said Curtatone. And, according to the ResiStat handout, “Assembly Square will make up 29 percent of Somerville’s new growth.”

The Mayor ended his presentation by answering questions about a proposed casino in Everett. Mayor Curtatone vowed to fight against Steve Wynn’s casino. Curtatone said, “Casinos don’t build neighborhoods…casinos are a plan of desperation,” and they “polarize communities.”

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Don’t forget tomorrow night, Thursday, May 23 for the Annual Somerville Lions Club “A Night of Comedy & Fun” at “Giggles Comedy Club on Rt. 1 South in Saugus. The event will begin at 6:30 p.m. with three top comedians, raffles and all the pizza and salad that you can eat. All proceeds support Lions Club charities and programs. Tickets are $25 per person and available at the door or by contacting Billy Tauro for tickets and RSVPs at (617)293-2016.

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This Sunday, May 26 we celebrate Memorial Day here in the city. A huge parade takes place every year and this year is no different. It’s boasted to be the biggest so far (they say it every year and its true). It kicks off at City Hall around 1p.m. and will end up at Clarendon Hill to the Veterans cemetery ceremony. Line the streets of Highland Avenue through Davis up Holland onto Broadway.

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Some Happy Birthdays this week, first to Somerville City Treasurer Pete Forcellese Jr. Well-known political guru Feargal O’Toole is celebrating this week, a rising star in the making with local personality Brian Roche of the Gilman Square Roche’s. Mike Legee is celebrating this week. Mike is the son of well-known Jim Legee, retired ISD inspector.     Scott Diamond from West Somerville, as well as Iona O’Brien, we wish both a Happy Birthday. And let’s not forget another fan of The News, Tatou Hilaire.

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Congratulations to our good friend Amanda Marie Eddy who graduated this past weekend from Salem State University. Amanda, we here at The News wish you all the best! Also, happy graduation to our good friend Diane Gentile who graduated this past weekend from Bentley College. Diane is a sharp girl and we wish her the very best in her future endeavors!

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It looks like Six for Alderman At Large so far. This past week Carol A. Dempkowski of Hawthorne Street in Davis Square pulled papers joining Mary Jo Rossetti and Sean Fitzgerald as challengers to incumbents Dennis Sullivan, Jack Connolly and William White. Three more and we would have a primary and wouldn’t that be awesome here in the city? Imagine the debating of ideas and issues, especially for the long time office holders. Catherine L. Thompson has taken out papers for Ward Two School Committee and she joins Michael Nionakis in that race. In Ward Three one more candidate has pulled for papers for Alderman, now making the ward a possible primary. His name is Stephen A. Delani, joining Bob McWatters and Matthew Desmond. A possible primary in Ward One, Three, and Five will be exciting. Hopefully more will join in and pull papers. If you’re considering it go to the Election Department in the basement at City Hall, School Street entrance. Tell them you read it in The News. The only incumbent not to pull as of yet – and we think he won’t – is Alderman Bob Trane in Ward Seven. We still believe that Joe Capuano, the son of Congressman Mike Capuano, is going to pull papers. Look for a last minute pulling of his papers.

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We heard that the new owners of the Union Square Post Office were on a tour walking around the building on Friday sizing up the place, anxious and ready to move in and demo the place. We also heard that it made the postal employees who work there on a daily basis and some of the customers doing their business feel very uncomfortable by their presence, and thought the tour to be very inappropriate and should have been conducted after business hours.

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Our hearts and prayers go out to our good friend, Somerville Police Department Vehicle Fleet Manager Freddy Hartsgrove. Since he was diagnosed with a brain tumor he has had some life changing challenges with a series of eight epileptic seizures. Even with all that going on in his life Freddy is there at the police garage everyday making sure that our city’s fleet of police vehicles are in tip top condition so that our men and women in blue can do their job of protecting us and our fine city with confidence that their police vehicles are working properly and always looking out for their safety.

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Congratulations to the 11 Somerville property owners recognized by the Somerville Historic Preservation Commission for outstanding preservation efforts. And kudos to the SHS students who have created individual artwork pieces representing the properties.  The Preservation Awards ceremony will be held at the Armory on Thursday, May 23.

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Oops! We just heard through our reliable sources that the Farm Team (aka the Journal) recently issued an internal memo recently to all Gatehouse papers here in Massachusetts – remember, the owners of the Farm Team are in upstate NY – looking for yet another reporter. Or is it looking again for another editor? Who knows? They do seem to run through them, don’t they? Maybe the present one will get the wish he asked for not too long ago granted. Or maybe not, unless he recently moved here?

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By the way, for the second time in two weeks Feargal O’Toole was seen wearing a suit, attending Elio LoRusso’s campaign fundraiser last week. And we have to admit, our sources tell us, that it was standing room only in attendance to kick off Elio’s campaign against Maureen Barstardi. We think this is going to be a tight race down in Ward One. We wish both candidates the best.

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Our condolences go out to the family of Louis F. Bortone who passed away not too long ago. He was born and raised right here in Somerville. Lou worked for many years for WBZ TV as an Executive Art Director. He won many awards and commendations throughout his career.

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Pretty nice that finally after years of looking bad the overpass is in the process of being taken down. This is so good to be happening. Last week over a 100 Somerville residents turned out for the first of many hearings on what the proposed new road will look like. Watch for dates of the next hearings and show up to be a part of the process. Now, if we could only get that ugly incinerator removed that would be great.

It is likely that the process of filling interim vacancies on the Board of Alderman will be undergoing significant changes in the not too distant future. – Photo by Harry Kane

By Harry Kane

A special public hearing was held back on May 14 to listen to the perspectives of concerned residents regarding the filling of vacancies for aldermen leaving office with less than one year left on their term.

The hearing was productive, and a decision to adopt a rules change was instituted. However, the vacant seat dilemma continues to vex some Somerville residents. They wonder whether a charter change is necessary to once and for all solve the problem.

Nine Aldermen listened to the testimonies from concerned residents regarding both the new rules change and the possibility of a charter modification. While the rules change, known as rule 20, was adopted on May 14, a discussion about a charter change is ongoing.

The first resident to speak was Cesar Urrunaga. He had some qualms with the 40 percent threshold. This refers to subsection A of the proposed methods that would necessitate a charter change.

Proposed subsection A reads, “A vacant position shall be filled by the defeated candidates for the office of alderman at large in the preceding municipal election by their order of finish, provided that such defeated candidates received at least 40 percent of all ballots cast for the office of alderman at large.”

In other words, if an alderman steps down early, this proposed change to the charter would allow for the second place runner-up to become alderman, if he or she had received at least 40 percent of the votes in the election. Urrunaga proposed that the percentage should be 20 percent, instead.

Resident Joel Bennett said he was concerned about the recent School Committee selection process. When Ward 1 School Committee Member Maureen Bastardi became alderman there was a vacancy that needed to be filled in the School Committee. A special selection process was held, resulting in the selection of Steve Roix. However, the process took several months and during that time the School Committee in Ward 1 was without representation.

Bennett said he thought the process was “really good,” but that out of respect, “an alderman isn’t someone that can be appointed.” He continued by saying that there is a “process” for becoming an alderman, and that the appointment of an alderman “just doesn’t feel right to me.”

Resident Paula Woolley liked the idea of an interim appointment. She said that it would “remove abuse” from the system. The interim appointment scenario, which has been heavily discussed, would not allow the appointed alderman to seek election after the term was over. This idea, however, may not be viable.

The consensus by the residents was that the aldermen have had an unfair advantage in the past when appointing their successor. Woolley added, “A charter change would be a good disincentive to a candidate leaving early.”

Ward 3 Alderman Thomas F. Taylor said, “There’s no guarantee that the person is going to win,” in response to the question of whether an incumbent has a better chance after being appointed.

In response to that, Ward 6 Alderman Rebekah L. Gewirtz replied back that the power of incumbency is not to be underestimated, and that 97 percent of incumbents win reelection. “That person goes into that election with a huge advantage,” she said.

Matt Rusteika sits on the board of the Progressive Democrats of Somerville. He said that the most unsettling element was the informality of the process. He added that it is “slightly disenfranchising,” and that it is most important that the process be codified.

In the end, the Board of Aldermen voted for the adopted rules changes, with some minor adaptations to the original proposal. In section 3 of the rules changes, language was added to allow for more public engagement in the process, giving residents from all wards the chance to submit questions for the candidates in a vacancy scenario.

1987 aerial photo courtesy of David Durnan, Class of 1966.

By Donald Norton

This year marks 23 years for the Somerville High Scholarship Foundation. About 75 to 80 board members, friends and supporters of the Foundation had their annual $10K drawing this past Friday night.

Everyone had fun and lots of door prizes were handed out. The winners were the last 10 ticket holders standing. They decided to split it with $1K each. This hard working committee has raised over $1,200,000 in 23 years from donations and fundraisers like this annual $10K ticket drawing.

The amazing hard work over the years by everyone associated with this foundation, and the many students that are served and helped by them is very much appreciated.

If you’d like to donate or help to raise funds they have a “Buy a Brick” program. You can purchase one with your name or any kind of inscription on the brick. Contact SHS foundation, P.O. Box 440275, Somerville 02144.

One of the least popular structures in the city may soon meet its fate, once Mass DOT planners determine the best course of action.

By Donald Norton

A large crowd of residents showed up at the Argenziano School last Wednesday evening for the first of what appears to be too many hearings over the tearing down of the McCarthy Overpass from Medford Street and Highland to Medford Street and Somerville Avenue.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation has begun the process that appears to be a very long one of tearing down the overpass and taking the road to ground level.

A large turnout of residents attended to hear and see what the process is going to be.

Mayor Curtatone spoke briefly on what it would mean to have this ugly relic of the 50’s gone while connecting the Eastern part of the city with the rest of the city.

The DOT had suggested three proposals and identified one they would prefer to begin with – called the “Boulevard Proposal” – taking the entire overpass down, and how it would work.

Many of those present suggested that a 6 lane road would be too wide, that 4 lanes would be sufficient and would reduce the flow of traffic through the city.

The DOT representatives stressed that it was just a beginning and that the concerns of the residents would be taken into consideration, but that the planning process is far from being over. They suggested that no end date was able to be determined.

Many residents present expressed pleasure that this was on the drawing board and being considered, that it is long overdue and Somerville would be better off for it.

The meeting lasted for a few hours and about 20 residents spoke.

For more information on what they are considering go to www.massdot.state.ma.us/groundingmcgrath/Home.aspx.

Congratulations to the mayor for standing up and speaking out last week against the vicious hate speech that has been uttered in and around our community of late.

As he so ably indicated, there is no place in a civil society for this kind of mean spirited behavior, and every single right thinking person should likewise stand up for those whose personal lives are not fair game for this senseless bashing.

In a time when bullying in general has come to the fore as a serious social issue, it is saddening that we must turn our attention to this particular brand of bigotry and abuse. But when we witness such barbarity we must deal with it accordingly.

The mayor did just that as he called the perpetrators on their misbehavior. Those who would label and belittle are wielding a sword that can be turned against they themselves, and shall be in the fullness of time.

Alderman O’Keefe, meantime, held the high ground and handled the situation with grace and tolerance. She has already proven herself to be a boon to her ward and the city as a whole. We are indeed fortunate that she has stepped up and agreed to serve us, as undeserving as a few may be.

When bipartisanship is a hard fought for and fleeting thing to achieve, as it seems to be these days, it is especially vexing to have this sort of nonsense muddying the process.

May this ugly incident serve to inspire us all to greater understanding of one another, and may we move on to the important matters that lay ahead of us. Enough said.

Somerville’s Antoinette Toussaint, a senior track and field standout at UMass Lowell, has been named the sixth seed in the 400 meter hurdles in the NCAA Championships and will also be a member of the River Hawks’ 4 x 400 relay team when the big event is held on May 23-25 at Colorado State Pueblo University’s Neta and Eddier DeRose ThunderBowl for the second consecutive year.

Toussaint has made her mark big time this spring at UMass Lowell. The former Somerville High star (she graduated SHS in 2008) earned All-New England Honors at the New England Championships at Stonehill College. Toussaint placed second in the 400 meter hurdles, crossing in 58.22 seconds in the preliminary round, the fourth fastest result in the country this season, before finishing second overall the next day in a time of 1:00.38.

Toussaint was also recognized as an All-New England in the long jump. She placed seventh overall with a leap of 18 feet, 5 inches.

Earlier in the postseason, Toussaint was named Athlete of the Meet while amassing 34 points to lead the River Hawks to a title win in the Northeast-10 Conference Track and Field Championship at American International College.  She also earned the Athlete of the Meet honor during the indoor NE-10 Conference Championship, which the River Hawks also won.

This spring in the outdoor championship, Toussaint, won the high jump with a leap of 5 feet,3 ¾ inches, and ran a strong 2:12 leg on the the squad’s 4 x 800 relay team which placed first with a time of 9:13.23. Toussaint also finished runner-up in the 400 meter hurdles, crossing at 1:01.53.

By William Tauro

This Kayem 77 MA ACT Late Model racecar driven and owned by Jim Linardy of Jim’s Heavy Duty Truck Service and Repair of Somerville has given the City of Somerville bragging rights in the world of auto racing. The car is seen here in the pits at Airborne Speedway, Plattsburgh, NY, awaiting the start of Saturday’s events.