The “spring” market kicked in early this year, with buyers actively out looking for property in early January, despite bouts of snow and frigid temperatures. Since inventory has only trickled on since the holidays,
many listings have had multiple bids, and prices seem quite strong. Interest rates have ticked up, as predicted, and are now in the 4.375% range for a 30-year fixed loan (conforming or jumbo), although adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) can still be had in the 3.25%-3.75% range, depending on the terms. More interest rate hikes are likely in 2018. Here’s to hoping more inventory comes on market soon so that buyers can lock in lower rates. Best Real Estate Agent
Best Real Estate Agency
New Listings
67 Church Street #2, Somerville
254 Summer Street #2, Somerville
107 Augustus Ave. Roslindale
This beautiful Union Square condo occupies the upper two floors of a renovated Victorian. The first level has a contemporary open plan living/dining area, gas fireplace, private front porch, bedroom/family room, chef’s kitchen, laundry, full bath, split system C/A. Top floor has office area, spa bath, and two bedrooms, one with walk-in closet and private roof deck. Private driveway.
Roomy Spring Hill 1 bedroom + study condo between Porter and Union Squares. Wood floors, exclusive garage and driveway parking spaces, and private basement storage and laundry. Lovely landscaped common front and back yards.
Dreamy Colonial SF with 3 bedrooms and 2 1/2 bathrooms on a large double lot with great views. Beautiful mix of new and old including a gorgeous family room addition and commanding deck off the kitchen. Lovely foyer, staircase, and restored mouldings and doors. Large, lovely yard and driveway. Near Roslindale Village commuter rail.
$949,000
Commercial
Current Art Show
62 Bow Street Unit #60-b, Somerville
366 Somerville Avenue, Somerville
This highly visible, centrally located, street-level commercial condo is in the heart of Union Square with residential condos above it. Open room with exposed brick, picture windows onto the street, half bathroom, and separate area. Currently used by the owners as a small music lesson/performance space, previously used as a drop-off (no plant onsite) dry cleaner, it could be used for other retail or office purposes. (Buyers should review Somerville zoning code and condominium documents for any restrictions on use) Near restaurants, grocery stores, businesses, offices, residential neighborhoods, universities. Quick access to Boston and Cambridge by public transit, car, bike, or foot. On several bus lines, including the CT2, 85, 86, 87, 88, and 91. Steps from longawaited Union Square Green Line Extension subway stop (now slated to open 2021). Close to several highways, including Routes 93, 38, 28, 90, 16, and 2. Excellent opportunity at an exciting time.
Class A office space in prime Union Sq. location with 2 dedicated parking spaces in the parking lot next to the building. The 3,918 sq.ft. space is fully built out, consisting of most of the first (above ground) floor of an elevator building, including 3 large private offices, kitchenette/breakroom, storage room, and 2 bathrooms. Shared use of front reception area with bathroom and partial use of 33’x21’ conference room. Space is built out as offices; if tenant wants additional buildout, it can be done at tenant’s expense. Asking $35 per sq.ft. triple net. Initial lease term of 5 years with annual rent escalation of 2%. Option to renew for 3-year term. Available immediately. MBTA bus stop in Union Square include the CT2 (to Kendall, Ruggles, Sullivan); 85 (Kendall, MIT, Lechmere); 87 (Arlington Center); 91 (Sullivan, Inman, & Central Square); and 90 (Davis Square, Assembly Row, Wellington Station). Future Green Line stop nearby.
for sale at $299,000 or for lease at $2,800/month
$35 nnn
Stop by our office to see recent work by Somerville painter, Bill Grainge, through April 4th.
Coming Soon Cambridge condo – Classic 1 bedroom/1 bath with updated kitchen in charming Mid-Cambridge brick building between Harvard and Central Squares.
Medford condo – Roomy 2+ bedrooms, 1.5 bath condo on two levels. Garage and driveway parking. Somerville condo – Large 3-level townhouse with 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, private deck, yard,
Thalia Tringo
President, Realtor ® 617.513.1967 cell/text Thalia@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
and driveway.
Free Classes
Niké Damaskos
First Time Home Buyers:
an overview of the buying process Tuesday, March 20th
6:30 – 7:45 pm
If you’re considering buying your first home and want to understand what’s in store, this is a quick and helpful overview. Led by our agents and a loan officer from a local bank, it includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided.
How to Buy and Sell at the Same Time: for homeowners contemplating a move Wednesday, March 28th
6:30 – 7:45 pm
If trying to figure out the logistics of selling your home and buying a new one makes your head spin, this workshop will help make the process understandable. This workshop, led by our agents and a loan officer from a local bank, includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided.
Eco-Friendly/Green Homes Thursday, April 5th
6:30 – 8:00 pm
If you’re dreaming of a home that’s the ultimate in energy efficiency, join us for a presentation about green homes, also known as passive homes. We’ll discuss the lingo associated with this technology, show various examples of homes that use the passive home design/standards, and the various programs currently available to retrofit your home. Presented by a local Architect/Designer, Tagore Hernandez with Group Design Build. 1 hour presentation and 20 minutes Q&A. Handouts and refreshments provided.
Mitigating Water Issues on Your Property Monday, April 9th
6:30 – 7:45 pm
Every year, homeowners struggle with the consequences of water infiltration through foundation, roof, siding, flashing, or elsewhere. Repairing the damage can be costly and time-consuming and can result in more serious issues, including mold. Join us to learn ways to diagnosis and prevent water issues before they occur, whether from street flooding, ice dams, poor drainage, roof damage, and other causes. Lead by our team and a local home inspector.
How Individuals Can Buy Property Together as a Group: a primer for non-traditional homebuyers Tuesday, April 10th
6:30 – 8:30 pm
When two or more people, whether or not they are related, buy property together, what are their options for taking title? How do you determine each one’s financial contributions, percentage legal interest in the property, and expense allocation? What kind of arrangements can be made in the event one or more parties want to move on but others want to keep the property? What type of financing is available? We will address these and other questions, followed by a Q&A session. Lead by our team and a local real estate attorney. If you are a first time homebuyer, please attend the First Time Home Buyers Workshop (March 20th) or make an appointment with one of our agents so you’ll have your prerequisites for this class. To reserve space in any class, please email Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com. Admission is free, but we appreciate donations of canned goods for the Somerville Homeless Coalition.
Upcoming Event Annual Raise the Roof Gala
Residential Sales and Commercial Sales and Leasing 617.875.5276 Nike@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Jennifer Rose
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.943.9581 cell/text Jennifer@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Lynn C. Graham
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.216.5244 cell/text Lynn@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Brendon Edwards
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.895.6267 cell/text Brendon@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Adaria Brooks
Executive Assistant to the President, Realtor ® 617.308.0064 cell/text Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
About our company... We are dedicated to representing our buyer and seller clients with integrity and professionalism. We are also commi ed to giving back to our community. Our agents donate $250 to a non-profit in honor of each transaction and Thalia Tringo & Associates Real Estate Inc. also gives $250 to a pre-selected group of local charities for each transaction.
to benefit the Somerville Homeless Coalition Saturday, April 7th
6:30 – 10:00 pm
Center for the Arts at the Armory, 191 Highland Avenue, Somerville
Catered by Redbones BBQ (with a vegetarian option) Live music by The Loomers
For tickets, call 617-623-6111, email rbg@shcinc.org, or reserve tickets online at https://shcinc.givezooks.com/events/under-the-roof-benefit-2018-tickets All monies raised through this event will help shelter and feed homeless and hungry families and individuals. This event supports SHC’s programs, including: an adult shelter, a family shelter, food programs, and permanent housing programs. These initiatives involve homeless prevention and provide affordable housing with home-based support services to the most at-risk homeless individuals and families in our community.
Visit our office, 128 Willow Avenue, on the bike path in Davis Square, Somerville.
Caring, Comprehensive, Educational Approach
A
t MedWell Health & Wellness we understand the stigma associate with using cannabis as a medicine. That’s why we take a caring, comprehensive, and educational approach to helping you obtain your Medical Marijuana Certification. We offer services to meet the needs of all of our patients. Whether you take advantage of one of our 3 convenient locations, or opt to have us visit you in your own home to be certified, you will always receive the care and consideration you deserve. We are now proud to offer our In-Home Certifications for those patients who aren’t able to visit one of our offices. From the comfort of your own home, our medical assistants and certifying physician will educate, and complete your certification without you ever having to go anywhere. The paperwork is done either online, or by mail, and the ID is mailed directly to you. Unfortunately, many of the patients who needed this medicine the most, were getting left behind or forgotten about due to the regulations set on the Medical Marijuana Program. Recent changes to the program have really opened up the patients that can
now gain access. One important change was the addition of “Institutional Caregivers”. This allows patient in many scenarios, whether it be hospice / palliative care, assisted living, or nursing homes, to be legally administered the Medical Marijuana from their caregiver. The facilities themselves are able to register as their patients caregivers, and coordinate deliveries from the dispensaries. Many dispensaries, such as Somerville’s own Revolutionary Clinics, now offer delivery services where the medicine can be delivered right to your front door. These changes, in conjunction with MedWell on-site evaluations have allowed patients who are home bound, or facility bound, to access the medicine they desperately need, form a safe clean and reliable source. As always we also invite patients to stop by any of our 3 physical locations, in Somerville, Brookline, and Brockton to learn more about the benefits associated with Medical Marijuana, to meet our kind caring staff, and to get answers to the questions you have. At MedWell we strive to provide you with a better quality of life, through the holistic natural remedies available to you.
NOW OFFERING
IN-HOME CERTIFICATION
Dr. Robert Walker Certifying Physician
OUR PHYSICIANS WILL COME TO YOU.
NOW DELIVERIN G!
Revolutionary Commitment to Local Art
R
DO YOU HAVE YOUR MEDICAL DO YOU HAVE YOUR MEDICAL MARIJUANANEW, CARD?
evolutionary Clinics is committed to patients and supporting local artists - and proudly feature their work in (and on!) our dispensary at 67 Broadway in Somerville.
EXPANDED MARIJUANA CARD? For March, we are featuring MIKE KERWIN of Peabody, a patient, artist HOURS! and team member at Revolutionary Clinics with an inspiring story to tell. Mike was diagnosed with epilepsy in high school, had a successful, rare brain surgery, and is now back in hot pursuit of his dreams. We also feature a permanent display of local glassblowers curated by Witch Doctor Glass in Salem and you may have already seen the light displays projected on our building by local artists from Zebbler Studios.
Monday-Saturday: 8am-8pm Sunday: 11am-4pm
If you are a local artist who would like to be featured, contact Meg at Revolutionary Clinics.
www.RevolutionaryClinics.org
RANGE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA PRODUCTS FULL RANGE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA PRODUCTS FULLFULL RANGE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA PRODUCTS Expanded Hours: Sunday: 11am-4pm Monday - Saturday: 8am-8pm
617-213-6006 RevolutionaryClinics.org RevolutionaryClinics.org RevolutionaryClinics.org 67 BROADWAY 67 BROADWAY 67 Broadway, Somerville SOMERVILLE, MA SOMERVILLE, MA Minutes off Route 93 Free, easy PARKING/REVCLINICS
/REVCLINICS
/REVCLINICS
MARCH 12 - MAY 14, 2018 ::: VOLUME 50 ::: SCOUTSOMERVILLE.COM
contents Portraits of local artists
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE 18 // FROM TRASHCAN ART TO MINI EXHIBITIONS All our art has to go somewhere! Check out local museums that highlight the tiny, the bad, and the historic. 22 // STILL LIFE: PORTRAITS OF SOMERVILLE ARTISTS Somerville is brimming with artists, so we took the chance to feature some of the people creating art in our city. 26 // BUILDING BOW MARKET Consider this your complete guide to Bow Market. We learned all about the quirky building that will bring 28 businesses to Union Square and profiled all of the confirmed vendors. 32 // FINDING ROOM FOR ART Abandoned buildings laid the groundwork for Somerville’s artists, but as rents rise and space fills up, what’s next for the art community?
22
38 // STAYING PUT: PLANNING A THOUGHTFUL RENOVATION IN SOMERVILLE Want to stay in the ’Ville but feel like your home’s a bit cramped? We’ve got tips from local architects on how to maximize your space. 40 // THE CURIOSITIES OF SOMERVILLE Somerville’s full of bizarre buildings and optical oddities. Here are the backstories behind a few of our weirdest, most beloved buildings.
8 // EDITOR’S NOTE 10 // WINNERS & LOSERS On the downside: a local site that handles toxic chemicals is in an area that’s prone to flooding. On the upside: we might be getting a new plan to mitigate I-93 pollution. 12 // WHAT’S NEW? Assembly Row is getting 10 new businesses, and we have the details of the new zoning overhaul proposal.
48 // SCOUT OUT: STRIVING FOR INCLUSIVITY, ONE INTERPRETATION AT A TIME LIPS teaches bilingual high schoolers interpretation skills so that they can translate at community events and meetings, exploring concepts of social justice and language-based inequities along the way. 52 // CALENDAR 54 // SCOUT YOU
16 // NEWS: UNION SQUARE NEIGHBORS SEEK COMMUNITY BENEFITS AGREEMENT WITH US2 Get the rundown on the redevelopment project that will transform Union Square over several decades.
12
44 // REDEMPTION AND REUSE ON ATHERTON STREET The Round House and the Carr School once faced demolition. Now, they’re considered buildings that galvanized Somerville’s push toward historical preservation.
Photo, top: Tap dancer Ian Berg. Photo by Chris McIntosh. Photo, bottom: Bicyclists using Hubway. Photo by Kelly Davidson. On the cover: “Ridgleys Whimwire” by Rachel Mello.
Hubway introduces “SNAP Card to Ride,” a more affordable membership for lowerincome residents.
Photo by Geoff Hargadon www.not-rocket-science.com
“
In Somerville, our artist community contributes directly to the well-being of the people who live here, not only providing things to do and a more attractive community to live in, but also contributing directly to the vitality of our local business community. We must continue to foster the collaborative environment that sparks innovation and the creative arts with more than words. During the past decade we’ve increased our Arts Council budget 403% -- that means we now spend more than half a million dollars a year on it -- and supported important public projects like ArtFarm. Somerville is off the charts in terms of its municipal support for the arts, setting a standard not just in this region, but nationally. A community without art is hollow. When you go to Open Studios, PorchFest, ArtBeat
and any of our numerous street festivals, you’ll see the beating heart of our city on display. Our commitment to the arts even extends to our proposed zoning overhaul, where we’ve designated spots for new artist/maker spaces all across the city, allowing more artists to live and work in Somerville. And we’ve steadily increased our investment in art, music and fabrication education in our schools. Somerville High School now features its own Fabrication Lab and students in our system still receive music instruction for no fee, which sadly has become almost unheard of in this day and age. We do these things because we want to insure the vibrant arts community that has spurred a better quality of life in our present endures into our future.”
– MAYOR JOE CURTATONE L E A R N M O R E A B O U T M AY O R J O E AT J O E C U R TAT O N E . C O M
EDITOR’S NOTE
Y
ou’re holding the 50th edition of Scout Somerville, and it seems fitting to honor this milestone by zeroing in on two of the things that make this city so special. No one who’s lived in Somerville needs to be told that our dynamic artistic community is deeply integrated into the fabric of the city. But the figures are still striking: Somerville is home to the second highest number of artists per capita in the country, following only New York City, according to the city’s website. We took this opportunity to speak with some visionary local artists who show the great versatility of the artistic community and poked our heads into museums, the buildings that gather local art—whether historical, tiny, or bad. But everyone who’s lived in Somerville also knows about the challenges that face artists and many other residents: rising rents Photo by Adrianne Mathiowetz. and disappearing space. We asked leaders of the city’s art centers to weigh in on what the future holds for Somerville artists, as the abandoned buildings that once became artistic spaces dry up. Which brings us to buildings. You can see old Somerville structures mixing with architecture from the city’s recent renaissance, can see how the city pays homage to its historical routes by renovating buildings for future-oriented uses. As writer Matt Ellis reminds us in his article on the Somerville Museum, this city has a lot of history under its belt. And throughout that history, some truly bizarre buildings have been built, saved, and sometimes repurposed. In this issue, we take you on a tour of those curious buildings. A prime example of reusing old, bizarre buildings for experimental purposes is Bow Market. We spoke to the owners of the marketplace to learn about how they reworked the “vaguely pentagonal” complex, and to get the rundown on the building that is sure to help shape the future of Union Square. Our arts scene and our architecture are huge parts of Somerville’s identity, and we enjoyed taking this deep dive into our roots. We hope you enjoy it too.
Reena Karasin Reena Karasin, Editor-in-Chief rkarasin@scoutmagazines.com
8 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
PUBLISHER Holli Banks Allien | hbanks@scoutmagazines.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Reena Karasin | rkarasin@scoutmagazines.com ART DIRECTOR Nicolle Renick | design@scoutmagazines.com renickdesign.com PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Adrianne Mathiowetz | photo@scoutmagazines.com adriannemathiowetz.com CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Jerry Allien | jallien@scoutmagazines.com STAFF WRITER AND SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR Tim Gagnon | tgagnon@scoutmagazines.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Adam Sennott, Emily Frost, JT Thompson, Kat Rutkin, Matt Ellis CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Annie Maroon, Chris McIntosh, Ben Wright COPY EDITOR Joe Palandrani BANKS PUBLICATIONS 519 Somerville Ave., #314, Somerville, MA 02143 FIND US ONLINE scoutsomerville.com somervillescout
scoutsomerville scoutmags
Office Phone: 617-996-2283 Advertising inquiries? Please contact hbanks@scoutmagazines.com. GET A COPY Scout Somerville is available for free at more than 220 drop spots throughout the city (and just beyond its borders). Additionally, each edition thousands of Somerville homes receive a copy in their mailbox, hitting every neighborhood in the city throughout the year ... sometimes twice! You can find sign up for home delivery by visiting scoutsomerville.com/shop.
YOUR FUN, NEIGHBORHOOD PUB A few of your neighbors have taken over the space formerly known as On the Hill Tavern. We’ve updated the menu, brushed up the look and welcome you to come by and hang with us.
4 9 9 B R O A D WAY, S O M E R V I L L E
Make a good impression on your friends, family, & co-workers.... ...not your couch. NEW TO IMPROV? Check out our 100% FREE Intro-to-Improv drop-in Every Saturday from 1-230PM. Find out more at improvboston.com
Best Comedy Show or Club
IMPROVBOSTON • 40 PROSPECT ST. CAMBRIDGE - IMPROV, SKETCH & STANDUP COMEDY + BEGINNER AND ADVANCED CLASSES, YOUTH PROGRAMS AND MORE!
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture
9
W&L WINNERS
LOSERS
LOCAL ARTISTS AND LIBRARY LOVERS If you couldn’t guess, one of our big goals in this issue is to celebrate local artists. But obviously—and thankfully!—we’re not the only ones looking to highlight Somerville’s booming artistic community. The Somerville Public Library will host a series of exhibits in April and May featuring local artists who “represent Somerville’s cultural diversity and vibrant artistic community.” Submissions for this round of exhibits wrapped up in early March, but open calls for exhibits in June through August and again in November and December will be announced soon.
CENSUS NON-RESPONDERS The city’s census response rate was at just eight percent as of mid-February, according to a letter from Mayor Joseph Curtatone published in the Somerville Times. Census data is important for a whole host of reasons, including that it helps the federal government decide how much funding to give a city. Last year Somerville got 59 percent of its residents to respond, according to the letter, landing it ahead of many neighboring cities. You can email your form to census@somervillema. gov or fax it to 617-625-5643, and can get a blank form at somervillema.gov/vote. Get responding, Somervillians!
REFORMED PRANK CALLERS What’s considered funny certainly changes every generation—pretty much anyone under the age of 20 won’t find a joke funny unless it’s framed as a meme—but prank-calling has held strong in the joke canon—until now. After a local boy prankcalled the Somerville Police Department on Jan. 10, Officer Randy Isaacs made a pit stop at the local elementary school for a quick lesson on calling 9-1-1. Soon after, the officer received a letter from a “very sorry” student owning up to the prank, promising he’ll “never ever do it unles (sic) it is a emerginsy,” according to the Somerville Patch. A lesson learned is always nice, but the sweetly misspelled resolution especially won us over.
CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE A “major failure,” in which a woman suffering from an asthma attack died while struggling to locate the entrance to Somerville Hospital, was the latest in a series of safety and quality rule violations for Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA), according to the Cambridge Day, hitting eight violations in the past two years. CHA denied any wrongdoing, citing that “the woman wasn’t in the emergency room and therefore was not a patient.” CHA declined to comment further on any of the active cases.
CLEANER AIR The Massachusetts House of Representatives went forward with Representative Mike Connolly’s amendment to “address I-93 air pollution in the city,” Somerville Patch reports. The amendment, which will utilize $500,000 in bond funds, will have to be approved by the Senate before being put into action.
FLOOD ZONES A site on Innerbelt Road that handles toxic chemicals falls within an area that is prone to flooding, according to the New York Times, making it one of thousands nationwide. Although the City of Somerville has held Household Hazardous Waste Drop-Off Days in the past, state and federal laws aren’t doing much to prevent potentially hazardous situations from occurring on an industrial level. “Industries that handle toxic waste aren’t required by federal law to take extra precautions during flooding, and state and local regulations requiring action plans are particularly nonexistent,” the Somerville Patch reports.
Someone rustle your jimmies or tickle your fancy?
Let us know at scoutsomerville.com/contact-us, and we just might crown them a winner or loser. 10 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
SCOUT TO THE SOUTH Here’s just some of what you’ll find in the Arts & Architecture Issue of our sibling publication, Scout Cambridge.
HOW CENTRAL SQUARE’S GRAFFITI HAVEN CAME TO BE
The Wall, an ever-evolving art installation lining the corridor between Central Kitchen and Hilton’s Tent City, is a rarity—it’s the only place in the Greater Boston area where graffiti artists can paint without fear of being arrested.
CONNECTING THROUGH THE LENS
Meet Mark Ostow, renowned photographer, teacher, and owner of Cafe Zing.
BLUEPRINT TO A NEIGHBORHOOD In East Cambridge, a community tells its story in stone churches.
Know someone who you think is a real leader in our community? We want to hear about them! Email us at scout@ scoutmagazines.com to recommend people for our upcoming issue: Do-Gooders, Key Players, & Game Changers.
Come in as a customer
, leave as a friend.
It’s an art finding your perfect car.
Call John directly on his cell at
617-512-5511
181 Somerville Ave (across from Target)
johnsautosales.com
QUALITY USED CARS BOUGHT AND SOLD FOR 40 YEARS
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture
11
WHAT’S NEW?
ELECTION PLANS, TRAINS, AND AMAZON BIDS
AYANNA PRESSLEY’S IN FOR A CONGRESSIONAL RUN
A
fter months of buzz about a congressional run, Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley announced her campaign against incumbent Rep. Michael Capuano, a fellow Democrat, for the 7th Congressional District seat. The district includes Somerville, Boston, and part of Cambridge. Named by Boston Magazine as one of “the city’s most powerful people in 2015,” Pressley has been a promising name in local political circles since her election as the first woman of color on the Boston City Council in 2009. Her opponent, Capuano, was the mayor of Somerville before being elected to Congress.
Square’s recent construction of over 1,000 housing units qualifies it as a transformative area, the Journal article adds, while Davis is considered an area to enhance and existing residential neighborhoods across Somerville are places to conserve.
SOMERVILLE GETS FEDERAL GRANT TO COMBAT HOMELESSNESS
FROM “BOARD OF ALDERMEN” TO “CITY COUNCIL”?
Alderman-at-large Bill White pointed out that even cities that preach inclusivity, like Somerville, still have room for improvements. He addressed rising complaints about the term “alderman” for its impled exclusion of femaleidentifying members. Outlining in a Facebook post the history of the term “alderman”—stemming from the idea of “old wise men or patriarchs” before women had the right to vote—White concluded that the term is outdated and proposed a charter change to the term “City Council.” 12 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
In a promising development, Alderman Ben Ewen-Campen tweeted that the Legislative Matters committee unanimously approved of the name change in mid-February, sending it to the Board for a vote.
ZONING RULES ARE FACING AN OVERHAUL
The city has long been working on an overhaul of its zoning regulations, and it just rolled out its latest draft. Director of Planning George Proakis laid out a new strategy of categorizing zones by whether they need transformation, conservation, or enhancement, according to the Somerville Journal. Union
The Somerville-Arlington Continuum of Care (CoC), a housing and funding coordination program for homeless individuals and families, received nearly $2 million in federal grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the City of Somerville announced in a press release. Along with providing more housing and expanding on CoC’s data entry systems, the grant will help build up a “Coordinated Entry system” that essentially gives priority to individuals and families who have experienced longer periods of homelessness or have particular needs that make them more vulnerable.
GREEN LINE EXTENSION
In a huge step forward for
the Green Line Extension Project, the Somerville Patch reports that pre-construction property surveys, which entail investigations into the soil and rock where workers intend to dig, were on schedule to begin in early 2018 from Magoun Square to East Somerville. This will eventually lead to laying out excavation work in March and on through the rest of Spring.
SOMERVILLE’S AMAZON BID
Amazon announced its short list of locations for its next headquarters earlier this year, and for a moment no one could tell whether Somerville was still in the running. Boston Business Journal reports that, although the shortlist only named Boston, an Amazon representative clarified that “the proposals from the Boston’s Metropolitan Area (sic) that were selected to move to the next phase were Boston and Somerville.” The City of Somerville’s proposal included prospective sites along the Orange and Green Lines with “an initial buildout” in the ballpark of eight million commercial square feet.
Photo, top left, courtesy of Ayanna Pressley. Photo, top right, courtesy of Urban Axes.
STAY ACTIVE, SOMERVILLE
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URBAN AXES
COMING SOON
MOVED
B
izBash reports that Somerville will be home to an outpost of the latest national craze in meeting spots and events: axthrowing bars. Yes, you read that right. Urban Axes gives visitors the chance to throw 1.5-pound hatchets at wooden targets painted like dart boards. The ax-throwing trend has already made direct hits on a handful of cities across the country (Detroit, Austin, Philly, and New York, to name a few), and locally in places including Agawam, Eater Boston reports. Housing several ax-throwing areas, a fully functioning bar with an expected capacity of 80 to 100 people, and a team of “axeperts” to give much-needed instruction and safety tips, Urban Axes is expected to herald the start of Union Square’s axthrowing days this summer. UNION SQUARE
ALLEN STREET GARDEN PLAYGROUND
COMING SOON
We understand “stopping to smell the roses” in your day-to-day is a bit challenging with little kids in tow, but you and your children might find a happy balance at the Allen Street Garden in the near future. The City of Somerville plans to build a playground in the garden, the Somerville Patch reports. The city hasn’t released a tentative date for when the playground will be completed.
SNAP CARD TO RIDE
As Hubway stations seemingly multiply every few months (Curbed Boston reported 70 new stations would pop up across Cambridge, Somerville, and
Brookline between 2017 and 2019) and now stay open during the winter, Mayor Joseph Curtatone announced further steps that the MOVED bike rental service is taking to get more of Somerville riding on two wheels instead of four. “I’m proud that in 2018 we will see nine new Hubway stations and two miles of protected, low-stress bike lanes,” Curtatone wrote in the Somerville Patch on Hubway’s latest membership, “SNAP Card to Ride.” The membership, which is specifically designed for lower-income residents, offers a $5/month or $50/year plan and unlimited 60-minute trips without standard fees. The plan’s only requirements are that riders must be at least 16 years old and have a household EBT card handy upon signing up at a kiosk or on Hubway’s website.
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a Posada is Somerville’s spot for delicious, hand-crafted Latin American cuisine. Chef Johe Posada and his family crew develop and prepare original meals with the freshest ingredients daily. The menu is filled with unique family recipes and classic Latin American dishes. From perfectly crafted pupusas to tacos with distinctive garnishes, the menu is full of innovative and delicious offerings. Come in to get the La Posada experience, or get their delicious dishes delivered directly to your door.
505 Medford St. Somerville • 617-776-2049 www.laposadasomerville.com scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 13
WHAT’S NEW?
DAVIS, DECONSTRUCTING (AND RECONSTRUCTING)
DAVIS SQUARE
REVIVAL
COMING SOON
MOVED
J
ust in case the name “Steve ‘Nookie’ Postal” sounds familiar (aside from the crassly funny nickname), here’s a laundry list of titles he’s held: former executive chef at Fenway Park, contestant on Bravo’s “Around the World in 80 Plates,” columnist for Eater Boston, and current chef/owner of Commonwealth in Kendall Square. Prepare to add one more title to the list, though, since Postal is opening Revival, a set of two cafés in Davis and Alewife co-owned by Crema Cafe’s Liza Shirazi. With tentative opening dates in April, the dual Revivals will focus on “an amazing coffee program” akin to Crema and “a 100-percent-from-scratch food program,” Postal tells Eater Boston. DAVIS SQUARE
WHEN PIGS FLY GETS A NEW LOCATION
COMING SOON
The impossible is happening … When Pigs Fly is floating from Highland Avenue to Elm Street. A post in a Davis Square Facebook group first documented the bread company’s sign in the window of Julie’s Nails, which Eater Boston confirmed will be switching to a new location on Highland. Highlighting the benefits of “more foot traffic and parking,” When Pigs Fly’s Director of Retail Operations Fred Fleisher confirmed the planned February move to the Davis Square group. 14 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
DAVIS SQUARE
DIVA INDIAN BISTRO
With a brief but heartfelt note taped to the door, longtime Davis Square institution COMING Diva Indian Bistro surprisingly SOON announced its permanent closure in the first weeks of the year, citing the pursuit of “new ventures.” The family-owned Indian restaurant had been in business since the ’90s and was owned by the One World Cuisine restaurant group, along with Bao Nation and Dosa Factory in MOVED Cambridge. “The people of Davis Square welcomed us with open arms some 20 years back, and for that we will be forever grateful,” the note read. DAVIS SQUARE
DAKZEN
With a name based on a Thai slang word meaning “chow down,” DakZen’s fully leaning into a casual, street-cuisine vibe ahead of its summer opening date. Authentic soups full of
COMING SOON
broth mixed with pork blood are its focus, Eater Boston reports, but the restaurant will also offer a customizable noodle bowl special and a menu stocked with stir fry options. DakZen will replace a MOVED restaurant in Davis that has yet to announce its closure. DAVIS SQUARE
OPA GREEK YEEROS EXPANDS
COMING SOON
Two spaces down from When Pigs Fly’s vacated Highland Avenue location, Opa Greek Yeeros is also making moves, albeit slightly more localized ones. The Greek restaurant is expanding into its former neighbors’ spaces, moving into the empty When Pigs Fly and former skate shop Maximum Hesh. The expansion, which will MOVED let Opa increase its seating by 20, is anticipated to be finished in the late spring. A promising development for the restaurant, the expansion announcement comes two years after its opening.
Rendering, top, courtesy of Revival. Photo, bottom left, courtesy of When Pigs Fly. Photo, top right, courtesy of Gracie’s Ice Cream.
MOVE
OPENINGS, ADDITIONS, AND ... A RESTAURANT WITH A MAGAZINE?
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UNION SQUARE
GRACIE’S ICE CREAM
After a month-long break, Gracie’s is back to cater to our MOVED strange, uniquely COMING New SOON England craving for cold treats in the frigid late-winter/early-spring months. The ice cream shop has some new tricks up its sleeve, according to a recent newsletter, adding egg creams and flights of ice cream (yes, like what breweries serve) to its menu. Also added: cereal, because the shop always has a surplus from making flavors, and you know you’re kinda curious about what Fruity Pebbles taste like with added marshmallows.
ASSEMBLY SQUARE
10 NEW ADDITIONS TO ASSEMBLY ROW
COMING SOON
Assembly Row’s heading into its “Phase 2,” which involves bringing 10 new businesses to the area this year, according to a press release. Among the new neighbors: Polo Ralph Lauren will premiere its only outlet store in the Boston Metro area, celebrity chef Andy Husbands plans to serve up a new location of his Smoke Shop BBQ, and Lucky Strike Social will bring its multi-hyphenate gastro-kitchen/ bowling alley/arcade fun to the Row in the coming months. UNION SQUARE
OF JULIET
Turns out the crew at Juliet can cook and write. While a restaurant newsletter might suffice for customers looking to know more about their favorite restaurant, Of Juliet, the spot’s new triannual magazine, captures the full experience of being involved with the restaurant, pairing together photo essays with haikus, recipes, and profiles of the owners. Our favorite section? The short stories in “I Was Listening,” which are inspired by “snippets of conversation from our dining room.”
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scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 15
NEWS
UNION SQUARE NEIGHBORS SEEK COMMUNITY BENEFITS AGREEMENT WITH US2 The Redevelopment At a Glance WHO: The City of Somerville selected Union Square Station Associates (US2) as the developer for the Union Square Revitalization Project. WHAT: US2 will develop over 15 acres of land, 60 percent of which will be commercial space and 40 percent of which will be residential. The $1 billion project is expected to create 5,000 jobs and over $11.3 million annually in new property tax revenue. WHEN: US2 plans to break ground on the first parcel this fall and wrap up construction on that parcel by 2021. The entire Union Square Revitalization Project will take an estimated 20 to 30 years to complete, according to the neighborhood plan. WHERE:: The first parcel is currently a vacant lot on the corner of Prospect Street and Somerville Avenue. US2 will build about 175,000 square feet of commercial office space on the parcel, including research and development space, retail, restaurant, and service establishments. 16 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
The agreement also calls for around 400 housing units on the parcel. WHY: Union Square’s local economy collapsed when streetcar service stopped in the mid-twentieth century. The city is continuing its efforts to return the neighborhood to its former glory by transforming it into an “employment center that takes advantage of the close proximity to downtown Boston, Harvard, and MIT,” according to the neighborhood plan. WHAT’S HAPPENING NOW: The Union Square Neighborhood Council is trying to negotiate a community benefits agreement with US2 to mitigate concerns about business and residential displacement. The president of the Somerville Community Corporation says priorities include affordable housing, job opportunities for residents, a job and community center, a larger percentage of open space, and a commitment to conduct studies on the impact development will have on the environment, small businesses, and families.
BY ADAM SENNOTT
I
n the early 1900s, Union Square was a vibrant community bustling with grist mills, brick manufacturing, and ink, glass, and copper tubing factories. Street cars made 88 stops each day in the area, bringing people in and out of Boston, according to the Union Square Neighborhood Plan. The street car system eventually stopped running as more and more people began driving automobiles and bypassing the city, the neighborhood plan explains. The transformation caused the local economy to collapse. “Union Square lost density and urban character,” the plan reads. Parts of the workforce did return to open automotive niche businesses, and by the 1990s young people began looking to Union Square for an affordable place to live. The square has been experiencing a renaissance ever since. The city is looking to help return the neighborhood to its former glory by transforming it into an “employment center that takes advantage of the close proximity to downtown Boston, Harvard, and MIT” through the Union Square Revitalization Project, according to the neighborhood plan. The City of Somerville selected Union Square Station Associates (US2) as the developer for the Union Square Revitalization Project. US2 will develop over 15 acres of land, 60 percent of which will be commercial space and 40 percent of which will be residential. The entire project will create nearly 1,000 new Photo, top, courtesy of US2. Photo, right, by Adrianne Mathiowetz.
housing units, 20 percent of which will be affordable, according to US2. The $1 billion project is also expected to create 5,000 jobs and over $11.3 million annually in new property tax revenue. The project is broken up into seven “D-parcels,” which make up about 2.4-million square feet of development opportunity, US2 said in an email. The parcels surround the heart of Union Square. US2 is aiming to break ground on the D-2 parcel on the corner of Prospect Street and Somerville Avenue his fall, according to Tom Galligani, Somerville’s director of economic development. The space is currently a vacant lot. The company hopes to have the D-2 part of the project completed by 2021. The entire Union Square Revitalization will take an estimated 20 to 30 years to complete, the neighborhood plan says. US2 will build about 175,000 square feet of commercial office, retail, and housing space on the D-2 parcel. The agreement also calls for around 400 housing units to be built in the space. The commercial office space will include a seven-story building containing a commercial office and lab with ground floor retail and a 25-story mixed-use residential building with retail on the first floor, according to Galligani. Galligani says the city is “looking to bring back Union Square to its former prominence as a job center.” A portion of the parcel will also be used for the Green Line Extension Project, which Galligani says is the “impetus for development” and will become integral to Union Square. “It’s the reason why we’re able to do this [project] now,” Galligani says. “And to really encourage [and] stimulate development opportunity now.” While many residents support the project, concerns run through the neighborhood about the impact the development will have. Ben Ewen-Campen, who describes working as a community activist before being elected as the alderman for Ward 3 in November, says he’s particularly concerned that current residents will get displaced by the influx of new residents looking for housing. “I think the basic premise that everyone buys into is economic development, from the perspective of a city’s bottom line, is unambiguously good,” Ewen-Campen says. “More money for the city, you can spend it on the stuff you want.” “But I think we all know that typically the benefits from this kind of development are often not distributed equitably,” he adds. “In particular, there’s a lot of displacement, both of residents, and of small businesses, and we have certainly seen that.” Ewen-Campen hopes that a community benefits agreement, negotiated between
in early December, according to the Somerville Journal. So far the members have “impressed the hell out of all of us,” Ewen-Campen says. The council is still developing its main negotiating priorities. Bill Cavellini, co-chair of the 15-member council, says he thinks the project has been a “missed opportunity” for the community so far. “You have an opportunity to address some needs that are long standing in Somerville, open space, jobs, commercial tax base, and keeping the eclectic mix that is so attractive,” Cavellini says. “It’s not easy to do, but it’s doable if the developer, particularly, and the city are willing to forgo astronomical profits.” Prior to the formation of the neighborhood council, residents spent three years lobbying for a Community Benefits Agreement through another neighborhood group called Union United, but failed to get US2 to the negotiating table, according to Cavellini. Cavellini points out that the city might not have another chance to address this many issues in a single project. “If you don’t do it when you have big developments like this—as they call [them] transformational developments, like Assembly Square and Union Square—where are you going to do it?” Cavellini asks. US2 says the company has been following the city’s process in terms of community benefits. “US2 looks forward to negotiating a benefits agreement that will address outstanding community priorities in addition to the range of benefits already included in the development covenant and as part of the zoning ordinance,” a spokesperson for the company said in a statement. Greg Karczewski, President of US2, said in a statement that the project is a “culmination of decades of careful planning by residents, stakeholders, business and the city.” A Nexus Study examining the city’s linkage fee rate—the money that developers have to pay the city toward affordable housing—found that the impact of the commercial development in Union Square would create demand for 591 new units of housing for very-low-income, low-income, and moderate-income households. The study noted that, under the previous linkage rates, the city faced a $162.5 million financing gap to build the needed amount of affordable housing. In December 2017 the Board of Alderman voted to increase the city’s linkage fees from $5.15 per 30,000 square feet of commercial development to $10, according to the Somerville Journal, in an effort to shrink the gap.
“The basic premise that everyone buys into is economic development, from the perspective of a city’s bottom line, is unambiguously good ... But I think we all know that typically the benefits from this kind of development are often not distributed equitably.” members of the community and the developer, could help mitigate some of the negative impacts the project could have on residents. “If you don’t have real community involvement and buy-in on this, I think there’s going to be a lot of upset people here,” EwenCampen says. Resident Van Hardy, board president of the Somerville Community Corporation, echoed hopes put forward by several residents: that the community benefits agreement will include increased affordable housing, job opportunities for residents, a job and community center, a larger percentage of open space, and a commitment to conduct studies on the impact development will have on the environment, small businesses, and families. “We need to know who’s at risk, and set up programs that will mitigate any of the harm,” Hardy says. “So that if people are displaced they have the right of return.” He hopes the agreement will be finalized this year—ideally by the end of the summer, before construction begins. US2 formally agreed to negotiate with residents in its development covenant agreement with the city. Residents recently formed the Union Square Neighborhood Council to discuss terms with US2. The 15-member council was elected
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture
17
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
From
Trashcan Art to Mini Exhibitions
BY MATT ELLIS
Take A Peek Inside Somerville’s Museums THE FRIEND SMITHSONIAN MUSEUM
M
artha Friend is, by all definitions of the word, an artist. After retiring from full-time work a few years ago, she dove headfirst into full-time creativity. “I was just dying to do something big and creative,” she says. That big and creative thing? A tiny museum. With help from a Somerville Arts Council grant, Friend commissioned the construction of a box that is 24 inches high, 36 inches wide, and 30 inches deep. It sits right on the front of her lawn on Highland Avenue. Living on such a public street gave her the idea to create
18 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
a tiny museum that anyone who walks by could check out. “I just thought it would be such a great addition to the cultural life of Somerville to have this changing exhibit that people could access by simply walking by.” The museum hosts a rotating cast of exhibits made by her artist friends. Any form of threedimensional artwork is welcome within the Friend Smithsonian Museum, as the tiny museum is known. Previous works include “Tiny Miny-City,” a collection made up of crumpled cityscapes printed on aluminum, forming their own tiny city, and an exhibition by Suzanne Lubeck that consisted of “an homage to the sea and to tiny boats.” Throughout the winter, Friend’s sister exhibited a steampunk piece created using found metal and other materials. The exhibition featured an
intricate forest landscape with various metal objects standing in as the trees. The museum’s size allows for a depth that gives viewers plenty to dissect and observe. Friend’s creativity isn’t limited to the tiny museum— her entire house is fair game. “My living space is kind of a museum in itself. There’s really not a lot of room left in here to live,” she says with a laugh. Projects include Emerald City (a green glass piece in the backyard), Sapphire City (blue glass on the front porch), and Teapot Graveyard (a cast-off metal installation). Future plans include building Ruby City and expanding the rest of her projects. Friend has found Somerville to be the perfect place to pursue all of her many artistic passions. “I’ve been here about 40 years.
I’ve always found Somerville to be very accepting of eccentric creativity. You can paint your house a crazy color and nobody really objects.” She thinks this ethos comes from the individuals that make up the community. “I find people very tolerant here, in the positive sense of the word. They appreciate things being a little off-center, so to speak.” The Friend Smithsonian Museum is her way of giving back to this wide-open community. “I think the museum makes people happy,” Friend says. “People walk by and they look inside and it’s such a wonderful thing to stumble upon.” The Friend Smithsonian Museum is located at 135 Highland Ave. It is lit 24 hours a day. For more information on Martha Friend, visit marthafriend.com.
MUSEUM OF BAD ART
T
ucked away in the basement of the Somerville Theatre is a museum that explores the outer edges of art. This isn’t the place to find masterpieces or envelope-pushing exhibitions. Instead, you’ll find art that confuses, confounds, and elicits belly laughs. This is the Museum of Bad Art. MOBA has been operating in the Somerville Theatre
for nearly two decades, and admission is included for free when you buy a movie ticket. But the museum got its start in 1993 when Scott Wilson, an arts and antiques dealer, found a painting in the trash. He liked the frame but not the artwork itself. The piece made its way to Jerry Reilly, a West Roxbury art enthusiast, who then, with the help of friends, began collecting the type of art that makes observers cock their heads. After an incredible turnout at a showcase of the growing collection, the Museum of Bad Art was born.
Photo, left, by Chris McIntosh. Photo, right, courtesy of MOBA.
Louise Sacco, the permanent acting interim executive director of the museum, says MOBA’s relationship with Somerville has been fantastic. “Somerville ended up as our primary location and we love it, it’s perfect,” she says. The theater’s location—only a few feet away from the Red Line—benefits MOBA by making it easily accessible. And being located between Tufts and Harvard opens the museum up to college students, Sacco says, who are a natural audience for this type of experience. “The Somerville arts
community involves a lot of unique, different, and imaginative people,” Sacco says. “They get us and they have welcomed us. I can’t think of anything negative we’ve heard from Somerville.” The Museum of Bad Art showcases objectively bad art, but this isn’t some sort of cruel joke at the expense of amateur artists. On the contrary, as Sacco puts it, “We’re celebrating an artist’s right to fail.” What hangs on the wall of MOBA may be a misconstrued attempt at art, but if there’s no bad art, how can there ever be good art? Somerville’s reputation as an artists’ haven might at first seem like a bad fit for a museum of bad art. But the city’s constant celebration of everyone’s right to make art has enabled the perfect partnership. “Somerville is probably the best town around to do this, in terms of a fit with other things that are going on in the community,” Sacco says. Art might find its way into MOBA through the trash, a flea market, or even the donation of an artist aiming to give their works a platform they wouldn’t receive otherwise. The original piece that put everything in motion, dubbed “Lucy in the Field with Flowers,” depicts a woman sashaying through a field of daisies. The sky is an unnatural neon yellow, the proportions are all wrong, and the woman wears an expression not befitting someone skipping through a field of flowers. But, instead of merely being discarded and forgotten forever, the piece lives on in immortality. The artworks MOBA displays gain a second life, and actually receive critical appraisal and attention. The creations at MOBA might not be ready for the Louvre, but that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve to be seen. The Museum of Bad Art is located in the basement of the Somerville Theater at 55 Davis Square. A movie ticket gains you admission to MOBA, or a free pass to the museum can also be arranged by contacting MOBA at 781-4446757. For more information, visit museumofbadart.org.
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 19
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
From Trashcan Art to Mini Exhibitions
SOMERVILLE MUSEUM
F
rom laying out and implementing SomerVision to building a new high school, Somerville’s eyes are turned to the future and to advancement. But don’t forget: Somerville has been around a long time. Technically incorporated in 1842, the city has been running since 1630, initially as a part of Charlestown. And Somerville was hardly a bystander—the city was right in the thick of many important events in the country’s history. It’s this desire to see Somerville’s rich history celebrated that has motivated Evelyn Battinelli for decades. She’s the executive director, secretary, and treasurer of the Somerville Museum. But Battinelli has been with the museum since before it was known as the Somerville Museum. She joined what was then called the Somerville 20 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
Historical Society in 1973, and she’s been on board ever since, including when the society was reorganized as the Somerville Museum in 1988. What drove her interest in the history of Somerville in the first place? “I joined because of Isabel Cheney,” she says. Cheney was a longtime civics teacher. “She was a wonderful teacher in the Somerville schools for many years. She continued afterward to represent and showcase the rich history of Somerville.” Cheney’s passion for ensuring Somerville gets its due was contagious, especially when it came to early American history. “Our seal says 1842, but all of our history before that, all our participation in the Revolution, it doesn’t show up,” Battinelli says. She continues, with a clear desire for rightful recognition in her voice: “Somerville has a place in the warning of the British coming. It’s all those little things. It’s almost like we weren’t there, but we were.” Somerville played a crucial role during the early stages of the Revolution, Battinelli says.
The battles of Lexington and Concord put those two towns on the map, but much of the fighting happened on the retreat from those places. As the British made their way back east, they maneuvered down present-day Beech Street and Elm Street while militia members fired upon them. The history of modern America was made upon the streets of Somerville. But the museum is not primarily concerned with artifacts. By hosting a wide variety of programs and exhibitions throughout the year, the museum uses art to create a unified vision of the City of Somerville, bringing together the past, present, and future through the work of artists. The Somerville Museum’s mission, Battinelli says, is to “showcase the history, the art, and culture of the city.” The museum has hosted a range of programs including a historian’s presentation on the history of Prospect Hill, a photography exhibit on the working history of Union Square, and a panel discussion about the history of
immigration and its effect on Somerville’s economy. One of Battinelli’s favorite times of year is the Somerville Open Studios each spring, when the museum hosts workshops that give visitors the chance to see what artists are working on firsthand. An upcoming exhibition that will run from Feb. 22 to April 7 highlights the work of mosaic artists from across New England. Over 60 artists will present contemporary creations made of modern materials, but the works use techniques that date back centuries. Battinelli says she wants museum visitors to gain an appreciation of Somerville’s long history, diverse culture, and commitment to the arts. She loves being able to find so many different cultures and ideas within the city. “We could travel the world in Somerville,” she says with a smile. The Somerville Museum is located at 1 Westwood Rd. For more information, call 617-666-9810 or visit somervillemuseum.org. Photo by Chris McIntosh.
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DR. KATIE TALMO received her DMD from Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in 2010. Upon graduation, she joined her father, Paul Talmo, in his practice located in the historic English Tudor house at 180 Highland Avenue on the corner of Highland Avenue and Benton Road. Dr. Talmo graduated first in her class from Tufts and continues to be involved in her alma mater where she teaches parttime as an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Comprehensive Care.
Her patient-centered treatment philosophy focuses on prevention and conservative treatment modalities. She is a member of the American Dental Association and the Massachusetts Dental Society and is a fellow of the International College of Dentists. She is engaged in the community, serving as the Advisory Committee Chair to Somerville High School’s Dental Assisting Program. Dr. Talmo also travels to the Dominican Republic to provide dental care as part of a global outreach mission project. Schedule an appointment to visit Dr. Talmo in her newly renovated office space.
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
STILL LIFE: PORTRAITS OF SOMERVILLE ARTISTS A SAMPLING OF THE PEOPLE CREATING ART IN YOUR CITY BY TIM GAGNON
Ian Berg W
hen you Google Ian Berg, the first video result shows a circle of 20- and 30-somethings gripping Solo cups and cheering loudly over his tap dancing. Berg’s long curly hair bobs seconds after the rest of his body as his feet move at hummingbird speed. I tell him the crowd is so energetic and youthful, you might guess he was breakdancing or in a footwork battle, not tap dancing. “We don’t really do proscenium performances,” Berg says about the stance that Subject:Matter, his company, has adopted on formal shows. “Nothing we make is appropriate or reads on a proscenium stage. It’s about the interaction … tap dancing is half dance and half music, both of which are equally as important. Many would argue that the music half is more important.” His training began in “one
22 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
of those strip mall, Dolly Dinkle sort of studios” in the suburbs outside Chicago. Eventually he became a pre-professional at the Joffrey Academy of Dance, home to the Joffrey Ballet, and a member of the MADD Rhythms tap company before graduating high school and moving to Boston to continue his education at Boston Conservatory. What Berg couldn’t have anticipated was the “very unique flavor” of tap dancing awaiting him in Somerville, stemming from fellow Chicagoan-turnedBostonian tap dancer Leon Collins. Following tap dance’s resurgence through the ’70s, Collins moved his studio to Brookline and taught a new generation his signature Routines, key exercises for strengthening tap dance technique, until his death in 1985. Three of Collins’s students, Dianne Walker, Pamela Raff, and
C.B. Hetherington, continued educating dancers in his style. “The school burned down, but the community really stuck together,” Berg says. “What you have now is a community that’s older and has other jobs, but also a connection with all the people, that the younger people in the tap dance community look up to.” Tap dance in Somerville has found a new home at the Deborah Mason School of Dance, Berg says, where Walker teaches the Routines on Thursdays nights. Berg says this is “the perfect time to be here as a tap dancer.” He strives to make dance more inclusive through Subject:Matter. The company breaks down dated conventions surrounding gender and audience dynamics within the dance world with shows that
incorporate improvisation and break the boundary between the performer and the audience. As the company works on an evening-length piece based on the Herbie Hancock soundtrack for the 1966 film “Blow Up,” Berg’s direction is a warm, “throw it at the wall and see what sticks” style that’s already carved its own niche in the local dance scene. “I’ve had a lot of experiences with directors, especially in the ballet world, that are just awful—verbally and emotionally abusive, really manipulative, just a lot of things inside the world of concert dance that make you feel like you’re really worthless,” Berg says. “Tap dance is a form that is so based on the individual. Everyone has their technical approach, everyone sort of looks a little different when they’re doing it, and that’s OK!”
Photo, left, by Chris McIntosh. Illustration, right, courtesy of Jen Epervary.
A
Jen Epervary
rticulating struggles with mental health through art can seem like a daunting task, but illustrator Jen Epervary broaches the subject with warmth—and occasional references to the Travel Channel’s “Ghost Adventures.” “It’s about this super buff Hot Topic cashier that yells at ghosts, but [it’s] this idea that there is a different world living within our world that souls live in that really pertains to me,” Epervary says about the show. “Mental health is one of those things where it’s so real when it’s experienced, but explaining it to somebody is like explaining ‘Ghost Adventures.’” In Epervary’s comics, holes in bus station ceilings have personalities, nocturnal goblins with insatiable appetites for Vine compilations haunt bedrooms, and giants roam freely across the woods and suburbs as protectors. Epervary only began illustrating and developing comics full-time within the last year, but their ability to effortlessly meld the painfully human with the fantastic began at a young age. “Before I’d go to therapy as a kid, I used to draw myself in the corner of all my workbooks,” they recall. “If I felt something I couldn’t process, I usually drew it. I have this makeshift Barbie journal with tigers in it and then a huge picture of an emo kid crying.” Their self-reflective doodling eventually translated into a spot at the Art Institute of Boston and a job as a junior studio designer for an advertising agency after college, but drawing for the fun of it had
to take a backseat. “When I’d go home and want to draw for myself, I was so drained,” Epervary says. “I was making all of this really cool work for my job and they were thinking about giving me a promotion, but I had to quit because I thought, ‘Is this worth the anguish of not being able to make what I want to make?’” Epervary credits the community of illustrators that frequent events like Boston Hassle’s Black Market arts fair as instrumental in their move to creating full-time under the name Cloudy Days. Epervary believes Somerville’s scene shows an “unreal” supportiveness as artists continue to find their voices, noting Julia Emiliani’s “super bright and feminine style I want to try for myself,” Liz Bolduc’s ruminations on mental health, and Tiffany Mallery’s years of friendship and collaboration. “I think it’s such a great time to be in, figuring your stuff out and making a bunch of trash,” they add with a laugh. “I used to go to the Black Market a lot in college and I’d see other artists figuring themselves out in a space with very professional artists who have been vending for a very long time. When I leave [Black Market] now, my heart is full … I come home with more stuff than I brought.” Having created commissioned work for The Stranger, Emerson College, and the recently discontinued Take Magazine, Epervary is now working on a web comic called “What Comes After Hunger.” The comic centers around a poem by local librarian Meg Ramette that ties together
themes of growing up in Salem, the witch trials, and “the ecopsychology of the woods and how they can refresh you.” “I really like mixing the reality of interaction and human experience with this weird, almost surreal universe that lays over us,” Epervary says. They are working on their “Haunted” comic series alongside “What Comes After Hunger,” continuing to contend with the mental goblins and ghosts lying under the surface of
everyday life. When asked if it’s tough to recreate the struggles of mental health in comics, even after years of self portraiture, Epervary is certain. “A lot of my journals as a kid were me processing emotions and crying a lot. It was a way for me to figure out how I was feeling,” they conclude. “I know how I look and I know how I want to reflect myself, so drawing myself has always been so easy.”
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 23
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
From Trashcan Art to Mini Exhibitions
o ll e M l e h c a R
“M
ost people look at my work and say, ‘Oh god, it’s so obvious you were an architect,” Rachel Mello says. While the business of zoning maps and floor plans can easily overwhelm the blueprint-illiterate, Mello’s house-shaped canvases bearing painted images of nature evoke the ephemeral state of neighborhood development and time’s passage more than anything most architects could ever dream of drawing up. Her work is the logical culmination of her entire career, which started with an architecture major at Rhode Island School of Design, continued with a master’s in theatrical set design and scenic art at Brandeis University, and jumped to her mural painting company after graduate school (because “backdrops are the fun part of scenic painting”). But Mello draws inspiration from long before her schooling—from the simple fascination of looking around the neighborhoods of her childhood home in Baltimore City, a habit that continued in her adopted home of New Orleans, and later in Somerville, her home of 30 years. “The thing about New Orleans architecture or Baltimore architecture or Somerville architecture is that it all tells stories,” Mello says. “When I go walking around Somerville, I can quickly glance at a house and see how many units it was built to have and how many units it has now. Sometimes, houses built as multi-family have been turned into one family, and others were built as two-family that now have three or four.” These details, although seemingly minor, create a fuller picture of a neighborhood with layers of history. Mello writes in her artist statement that “roofs, windows, antennas, trees, and
24 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
wires weave a story,” a claim that shines in her paintings. In one, blue skies surround a house overrun by weeds. A series of canvases shaped like cranes along the ever-changing Boston Harbor skyline show a pastoral scene of a tree illuminated by a sunset. The Sky Cranes hint at Mello’s interest in urban planning around Boston, but they also easily evoke the nuanced emotion of seeing your childhood home replaced by new developments. Sometimes, the layered ways in which her work resonates with viewers surprises even Mello herself. Case in point: a phone box outside of Somerville High School that she worked on as part of a citywide arts project often attracts kids, who peek and invite their dolls into the diorama-like painting of power
lines through a field. “I am delighted to hear that,” Mello says of her younger fans. “There were a few choices I made that I think intentionally led to that. All the artists that participated in the project had an option of having the city install a plexiglass cover to protect the work in there. I didn’t want the plastic to get scratched or scuffed up, so I just thought I would make the actual piece as durable as I knew how so there wasn’t that temptation just to mess with it. The pieces in there are steel and power-coated and it could be damaged with spray paint, but nobody has and it’s been there for several years now. I’m really flattered by that, honestly.” Mello speaks warmly of local destinations like The Nave Gallery and fellow artists like Martha
Friend, Kelvy Bird, Susan Berstler, and Tori Costa, but takes careful pause when asked the “big, heavy question” about how Somerville serves as a home for art. “This city tries,” she begins. “The community and residents mostly are hugely supportive, and I really appreciate hearing the mayor talking about how important the arts are, but there are some ways in which the city falls very short of its own stated goals. If you value artists in a community, affordable housing and art really have to be linked.” Mello reiterates that, while the discussion around arts is positive, she’d rather “see the dollars that back it up.” “It’s the same story you see in every place where there’s a density of art,” Mello adds. “The artists go to an area that is very inexpensive, they start working and renovating in their own communities, they attract people that are interested in the art that say, ‘Great, I want to go live in this arts place,’ and then the patrons price out the artists.” Still, there’s an overwhelming sense of hope when Mello discusses the future of arts in Somerville—specifically when she mentions the Somerville Open Studios in May, for which Mello was a coordinator and board member for several years. “We did a lot of research into other open studios around the country and found that Somerville’s is actually in a really rare category in terms of size and scope,” Mello says. “I really hope people in Somerville realize how special the Open Studios are when you look at the number of artists, participating buildings, trolleys, and group shows that we have. You could hit an open studios every weekend [in other communities] from March until Christmas, but we have something really going on here.” Photo, top, courtesy of Rachel Mello.
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
BUILDING
BOW
MARKET BY REENA KARASIN
DRAWINGS COURTESY OF BOW MARKET. DEVELOPER PHOTOS BY ADRIANNE MATHIOWETZ. VENDOR PHOTOS ARE COURTESY OF THE VENDOR.
“T
he building’s a little bit baffling in terms of how they built it and why,” Matthew BoyesWatson says of the former carport that will introduce 28 businesses into Union Square this spring. He chuckles, recalling the discovery that many wall angles are slightly off. “Nothing is square, it’s a nightmare.” He and fellow owner and manager Zachary Baum have stood by the bizarre building that sits forgotten in the middle of a block, bearing with it through missing foundations, straddled zoning, and 8,000 extra radiators. When Bow Market opens this spring—planned for May 1, as of press time—the complex will revitalize the “vaguely pentagonal” structure and offer
up tiny storefronts for budding businesses. Many of the spaces clock in at around 160 square feet. From nabbing the renowned Comedy Studio from Harvard Square to providing brick-andmortar spaces for beloved local pop-ups, the marketplace bears the opportunity to fundamentally change the way that people conceive of and patronize the already vibrant Union Square. The Bow Market building was constructed in 1920 as a carport for neighborhood residents. The individual garage doors were later filled in with cinder blocks and the building became a place for furniture storage. “It’s always sort of been this found space in the middle of the block,” Baum says. Boyes-Watson had admired market setups when he traveled
abroad, particularly to Morocco, and toyed with the idea of opening one in the Boston area. He even considered launching a marketplace project in Central Square five years ago. The Bow Market building seemed to lend itself to a series of garage-sized shops and restaurants with a seating courtyard in the central open space. But unlike in other countries, the marketplace concept is unusual here. BoyesWatson and Baum had many, many conversations to get the endeavor off the ground. First, the neighbors. Bow Market is set in the middle of a roughly triangular block of land between Bow Street and Somerville Avenue. Visitors will have to walk past people’s homes to get into the complex. Baum
and Boyes-Watson have involved those residents throughout the process, and say that they have been supportive of the complex. The next step was to seek out potential vendors in order to prove to banks that the project was viable. Finding vendors was a winding process rife with referrals, wandering around farmers markets and pop-ups, and roaming through Instagram accounts. “That has been a total trip,” Baum says of the process, noting how generous community members and restaurant owners were in connecting them with potential vendors. The building lies on top of two different zones, which meant the owners had to face extra obstacles during the year they spent rezoning the property. (Continued on page 28)
26 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
MEET THE
VENDORS FOR A NIGHT OUT THE COMEDY STUDIO
The Comedy Studio topped the Hong Kong Restaurant in Harvard Square for decades, but it’s finally finding new ground in Somerville. And having its own space is going to open up a world of possibilities, according to founder Rick Jenkins. “Now we will be able to do whatever a comedic person can think of,” he says. “We’re planning to shoot video, record podcasts, we’ll have shows, writer’s workshops, pretty much anything that can help the scene.” The 110-seat theater will have a bar area, and people can bring in food from the complex’s other restaurants. Jenkins sees Somerville as having much of the feel that Cambridge had when he first started shows there. “Harvard Square is going through their own renaissance. Bow Market and Somerville fit in more with our original feelings,” he says. “There’s no problem with Harvard Square, it’s just if you want to go to a small, independent comic book store, you have to go to Somerville.”
REMNANT BREWING
Bow Market’s largest tenant will be a brewery capable of making 30 kegs of beer at a time, offering a barrel room, a tap room, and a beer garden. The brewery’s name is a nod to the Bow Market building’s history. “We got a lot of influence from the structure itself,” says co-founder Dave Kushner. “The building is this leftover of that time period when Somerville had an explosion of commercial and industrial land use, and it’s literally a remnant that’s been sitting back there from that time period. That’s really motivated us to find other remnant materials in the area to use in our space.” Remnant Brewing’s owners don’t plan on distributing their beer, at least at first. Instead, they hope to encourage visitors to engage with the entire complex, according to Kushner. The brewery will host both private and public events, including TED-style talks and beer garden movie nights. In the morning, people can grab a coffee and do work in the space while watching the head brewer make beer.
“We got a lot of influence from the structure itself. The building is this leftover of that time period when Somerville had an explosion of commercial and industrial land use, and it’s literally a remnant that’s been sitting back there from that time period.”
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
But the city was helpful in the rezoning process, they say, working with them to develop a zoning package that incorporates the different types of operations. The package is flexible, letting Bow Market operate within the scope of several zoning uses and allowing the space to be somewhat fluid. “The city is so interested in seeing things like this happen that they have been extremely supportive and extremely helpful,” Baum says. “The city was fantastic. They allowed this project to exist by granting us the package of zoning that allowed for flexibility,” Boyes-Watson adds. “Things take a really long time, whenever you’re trying to do something that people haven’t seen before ... The complexity is why people don’t do this.” The building has offered Baum and Boyes-Watson plenty of surprises since they broke ground last April. They uncovered an oil tank, which they had to dig up and remove. They discovered, despite their crossed fingers, that the building didn’t actually have a foundation. They had to handle moving thousands of radiators that were left in the building. But there were more pleasant surprises as well, like when they tore up ugly, mustard carpeting and found a beautiful wood floor underneath. Their vision for the complex has evolved along the way. They were sure that a commissary kitchen for the vendors would be a crucial part of the marketplace, but that larger space will now be home to a brewery complete with its own beer garden. What they thought would be an indoor market with stalls is now slated to be The Comedy Studio’s new home. They ended up using a bigger space in the back of the building as an event area for vendors to rent out for larger events, and reserved two of the vendor spaces for pop-up tenants. Originally, Boyes-Watson and Baum thought that the top (Continued on page 30) 28 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
ART VINYL INDEX
“Connection to others is the most important thing that human beings have ... sending them a note saying I’m thinking of you, I see you, you’re not alone, that’s super important.”
CALLIOPE
Kristina Burkey finds that Somerville gets her sense of humor. She plans to stock her Bow Market stationary store with “sassy” and “sharp” cards, handmade notebooks, pens, and locally made items. She wants her items to be fun, but also to serve a function in people’s lives. “Connection to others is the most important thing that human beings have,” she says. “Whether it’s celebrating with someone or sharing in their grief and just being there for someone, sending them a note saying I’m thinking of you, I see you, you’re not alone, that’s super important. I have cards for infertility, I have cards for breakups, I have cards for serious illness, I have cards for loss, I have cards for seasonal affective disorder. Those are the most important cards to me, because those are the ones that are more needed than any other occasion.”
9000 THINGS
After hitting the market and pop-up scene for five years, art store 9000 Things is settling down in Bow Market. The space seems big to Alexandra Horeanopoulos, who has squeezed into a 30-squarefoot space before, so she’s planning on devoting a quarter of the brick-andmortar location to a small studio. And she’s excited: “Somerville is my spirit animal,” she tells Scout in an email.
HOOKED
Jeremy Sullivan of Vinyl Index wants you to picture his record store as a library: a place where you can browse, learn, and explore. Offering up both new and used vinyl records, this shop will also provide cleaning services and access to the staff’s vast store of musical knowledge.
HOMESLICE
Jillian Melnyk will bring her photography, fiber art, and embroidery to Bow Market to make a shop full of art and home decor. Homeslice will also offer up handmade items created by other artists.
MAKE AND MEND
Embroidery artist Emily Tirella saw how her students struggled to afford art supplies and came up with a solution: cleaning up and selling gently used materials. “There are so many artists in the area, myself included, and it pains me to go to like Blick and buy a $6 tube of paint for something I’m only ever going to use once,” she says. “For my weaving class this year I spent $90 on supplies and I didn’t really fall in love with weaving, so I’m out $90 for a class I didn’t super enjoy. I think a lot of people are in the same position, where they’re trying to find something they really enjoy, but it’s so expensive to start.” Make and Mend will offer up used oil paints, canvases (typically with a new canvas wrapped around a used frame), high-end brushes, sewing materials, and more. She’s able to sell the supplies for about half what they would cost new.
Jimmy Rider, who delivers Christmas trees, fish, and more through his company EverGreen Delivery, will open a fish store and restaurant in the complex. “Hooked” will serve up local fish. Because of the store’s tight quarters (165 square feet), Rider will mostly serve up raw and smoked dishes that fit a ready-toeat, street-food-inspired theme. He’ll partner with chef Jason Tucker, who’s leading the menu’s “creative side.” “I heard about Bow Market, I thought it was a wonderful concept,” Rider says. “I’ve been in Union Square since 2001, and just love Union Square. I liked the idea, and it’s such a small space and the rent’s very low. There is no real fish shop in Union Square, so I thought there could be a good need for people getting local, smoked fish all the time and also provide us a little bit of space to make some creative, fun food.”
FOOD NIBBLE
Nibble, Somerville Arts Council’s culinary arm that supports diversity and entrepreneurship in Union Square, is set to open a kitchen in Bow Market. Nibble began with tours of the square’s international markets and developed into an umbrella organization that runs a culinary entrepreneurship program, cooking classes, and pop-up restaurants—all of which focus on the myriad immigrant communities in Union Square. “Our dream has always been to not be nomadic and have a location where we can do our cooking classes, continue with our entrepreneurship training, but also do regular retail vending to the public in a location that has good foot traffic,” says Rachel Strutt, program manager for the arts council. Strutt says Bow Market felt like a good match for Nibble due to its central location and its startupfriendly setup. She could envision Nibble entrepreneurs graduating from the program and opening their own shops in the complex. “Their project is a great concept,” Strutt says. “It reflects Union Square in that it is international in focus, I think it’s entrepreneurial in focus, it’s a group of young, artsy, entrepreneurial folks who collectively are going to make a very exciting market experience. So we just felt like Nibble was a good fit because of the ethos of the place and also because of the location.”
BUENAS
Melissa Stefanini and Sebastian Galvez, two Miami transplants, are bringing their revered empanadas and sauces to Bow Market. Buenas is the one-stop shop for South American food, whether you want to pick up empanadas to go or grab the ingredients you need to cook at home.
GÂTÉ COMME DES FILLES SAUS
Saus offers 15 signature sauces at its Boston location—from bacon-parm to avo-goddess to hot beer mustard— alongside sandwiches, salads, and poutine. Its Bow Market location will be fully vegetarian.
JAJU PIEROGI
Sisters Vanessa and Casey White will serve up their delectable pierogies hot (or frozen in to-go packages), with flavors ranging from sweet potato and caramelized onion to jalapeño cheddar to the classic potato and cheese.
TANÁM
Owner Ellie Tiglao will use food, cocktails, music, art, and more to tell a variety of stories, including from her own experiences of being Filipino-American.
Chocolatier Alexandra Whisnant first launched her store in Paris, where she studied pastry-making. She specializes in seasonal offerings and makes fresh batches of her chocolates every week. She regularly uses “special” ingredients, she says, like hazelnuts from Oregon or a lemon from her sister’s tree. Her chocolates don’t contain preservatives, so they’re meant to be eaten within a week. The shop will also feature seasonal mousse flavors served in ice cream cones, European-style hot chocolate, and dark chocolate brownies. Whisnant shares a space in Aeronaut Brewing Company with Somerville Chocolate, and is looking forward to having her own store at Bow Market. “I wanted to have my own store but I didn’t want it to be isolated, off by itself,” she says. “I like having this sort of family around me. Aeronaut was good because there are always people around, but this is going to be even more diverse and interesting in terms of what people are doing and how we can support each other.” Her 163-square-foot shop in Bow Market will mostly be an open kitchen where visitors can see her making the chocolates. She hopes to be able to squeeze in some stools or an antique loveseat.
UNION GROCERY
Bobby MacLean thinks Union Square needs better access to seasonal, fresh produce. The store will offer up prepared foods (think smoothies, salads, and soups) and essential shelved items like milk and organic eggs.
“I wanted to have my own store but I didn’t want it to be isolated, off by itself. I like having this sort of family around me.”
NORTH SOUTH (RESTAURANT NAME NOT YET FINALIZED)
The owners of Mike & Patty’s will bring a dueling menu to Bow Market, offering up both roast beef and bar pizza—North Shore and South Shore staples, respectively.
MACA
This macaronerie melds characters from “Star Wars” to “Pokėmon” to “Despicable Me” with bold, original tastes. Rotating flavors have included Fruity Pebbles, maple bacon, and lychee rose.
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 29
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
CLOTHING, ACCESSORIES, & BEAUTY ADELANTE SHOE CO.
floor of the complex would be for artist studios, and even put in skylights to make the space appealing for them. But that idea got scrapped when they saw how much interest there was from vendors. The owners explain that shoppers tend to find it confusing to navigate to a second-floor vendor in a closed building, so a secondfloor storefront is unusual and typically considered undesirable. But the structure’s open courtyard and exposed walkway are intended to alleviate that concern. “The first door you walk in is always the door to a store,” Baum explains. The central courtyard, which will be full of seating and heated during some of the cooler months, is also victim to the property’s quirks. The land sloped 18 inches from end to end, which Baum and BoyesWatson made into a nongradual increase. They used a piece of history to handle the height change, creating a seating wall made of granite from the Longfellow Bridge. The choice reflects the owners’ desire to root Bow Market in its surrounding community. They point out with excitement that you can see the Prospect Hill Tower from the complex’s second floor. “It’s a huge part of the history here, obviously, and also I think the identity of Union Square, as being associated with the monument and the hill,” Baum says. “It’s a cool reminder of where we are.”
30 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
Adelante pairs up with Guatemalan craftsmen to create made-to-order leather shoes, paying the shoemakers above the “Living Well Line” to make sure that they are compensated fairly. “Our theory is that if we pay our craftsmen over the Living Well Line, they will invest their increased income back into their family and community. This theory is grounded in the belief that economic security is the key driver of social mobility,” the company’s website explains.
WE THIEVES
Who doesn’t love a good vintage clothing store? Sandra Rossi has found objects with histories fascinating since she was a kid growing up in Tampa, Fla. “Always drawn to travel, counterculture, dive bars, and the unpredictability of off-the-beatenpath antique and vintage markets, my idea wheels started turning.
“Prior to being approached by Zach while vending at Central Flea last summer, we [hadn’t] even thought about having our own store. It just seemed unattainable at the time and something we wouldn’t be able to accomplish until much later down the line.”
‘What if I could merge old with new?’” she tells Scout in an email. Rossi had wanted to move We Thieves into Somerville, so Bow Market seemed like to perfect opportunity to transition from a SoWa pop-up into a brickand-mortar location.
FILOMENA DEMARCO JEWELRY
Ashley Vick describes her jewelry as “edgy yet wearable” and “material-driven.” Everything is handmade, and she sticks to gemstones, sterling silver, and gold in her work. Visitors will get to see her crafting new pieces at her workbench in the rear of the store.
“Somerville is very dear to me. I moved here from Brazil when I was 4. I have chosen to cement my life here for the foreseeable future and feel blessed to establish my business here.”
BROWS BY RENATA
“Everyone deserves to feel beautiful,” Renata Goncalves tells Scout in an email. Goncalves works to help people feel that way through facial waxing and eyebrow shaping, striking out on her own after working in an Everett shop for two years. She moved to Somerville from Brazil when she was four years old and says she feels “blessed to establish my business here.”
PESTON
The materials behind what you’ll find at PESTON have a backstory. Whether it’s fabric from a mom-andpop store in Louisiana or vintage beads from Rhode Island, Ellyx Ferguson and Cassandra Cacoq painstakingly source the components of their lifestyle brand. The pair wouldn’t have imagined they’d be opening up a shop in Bow Market this spring. Ferguson teaches children with autism and Cacoq used to be in pharmaceuticals. The two craft accessories and clothing out of their home studio, traveling and exploring thrift stores to find components. “Prior to being approached by Zach while vending at Central Flea last summer, we [hadn’t] even thought about having our own store,” the makers told Scout in an email. “It just seemed unattainable at the time and something we wouldn’t be able to accomplish until much later down the line. Bow Market is such a unique opportunity that gives independent artists like ourselves a way to showcase our products in a manner that aligns with what we believe.”
“Our style and vibe can best be described as mantiques collides with Americana.”
HOME BLUE BANDANA RELICS
Blue Bandana Relics, offering vintage items and antiques, will take up two spaces in the complex. “Our style and vibe can best be described as mantiques collides with Americana,” founder Keith Tate tells Scout in an email.
KMOE
Kmoe unites vintage lighting, leather goods, and modern art under one roof. The company repurposes found objects, giving them a new life with the intention of making “things cooler than they were.” Bow Market will be kmoe’s second brick-and-mortar location, joining a space in Provincetown.
THE HAPPY CACTUS
Nature can be hard to come by in city living, but The Happy Cactus aims to supply plants to your heart’s content. In addition to succulents and other plants, the store will stock butterflies, fossils, and crystals. The owners of The Happy Cactus are graduating from Northeastern University this spring, and were able to develop the shop through the school’s co-op program.
J
enn Falk’s book project, Lunar Love Flow: practicing yoga with the Moon is both a way of moving with nature’s rhythms and also a love letter to Iceland. She collaborated with arts photographer, Liza Voll, to capture the images and set the proper tone. You can find Liza’s landscape nature photos of Iceland on exhibition at Bloc Somerville through April. Then it will move to the Scandi Center in Newton. Jenn’s book can also be found at Bloc, and will be available at various locations as well as online this Spring.
WWW.LIZAVOLL.COM @LIZAVOLL WWW.YOGINIJENNFALK.COM @JENNPFALK
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
FINDING ROOM FOR
ART ABANDONED BUILDINGS LAID THE GROUNDWORK FOR SOMERVILLE’S ARTISTS, BUT AS RENTS RISE AND SPACE FILLS UP, WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE ART COMMUNITY? BY JT THOMPSON PHOTOS BY ADRIANNE MATHIOWETZ
T
he vibrant arts scene in Somerville, which has defined the modern era of the city and made it a cultural destination, has been nourished over the years by studio communities established in abandoned buildings. Fading industries provided the infrastructure for Somerville’s development into a city that now has the second highest number of artists per capita, following New York City, according to the city’s website. At a time when new condos are rapidly being built and initiatives like the US2 development in Union Square are poised to transform Somerville, we asked leaders at four landmark arts centers to describe their vision for keeping the city’s art scene flourishing as open space diminishes and rents increase. 32 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
ARTISAN’S ASYLUM Artisan’s Asylum, founded in 2010, occupies a 40,000-squarefoot warehouse space in the former Ames Safety Envelope facility. Artisan’s is the go-to place for everything to do with fabrication, from metalsmithing to 3D printing to bicycle maintenance. Ted Sirota is serving his second term as president at Artisan’s. “Artisan’s Asylum will continue to exist no matter what, whether we are in this building or down the street in five years. The biggest strength, the biggest thing that is unique, that is difficult to replicate, is the community of artists and makers that we have. And we already have that. If rent went through the roof, if all hell broke loose, we would still find a way to gather and do these things. Every day there are people who are specialists in their field who talk to other people at Artisan’s Asylum who are specialists in their field, and they figure out how to make amazing things. That’s the combination of industrial designers, electricians, electrical engineers, and artists. But it didn’t have so much to do with this giant open space to do things, it had more to do with bringing
those people together in this space. That said, we are very much focused on raising more money, finding a way to stay in this building, or buy a new building, or build a new building—and ideally everything within in Somerville, ideally not leaving. That is definitely my job and my goal, to make sure that we can have a place to do these things. Exactly how we’re going to do that is the conversation that all the board members and the staff have pretty much on a biweekly and monthly basis. Odds are it will be cheaper for us to either build something or buy something in the long run. And owning a building, as a long-term solution, is a good thing to plan for. We are in touch with some of the other folks that create art. Hopefully organizations like Artisan’s can start providing— and this is maybe way down the line—we are hoping to do things with artist-in-residence programs, we are hoping to convince the city of Somerville to help with things like that, because they have talked to us, and they’ve expressed to us what a benefit we are to the community. Perhaps doing artist
housing through the city could be an option. But it’s definitely an issue. It’s almost impossible to afford to live here. But hopefully the culture around art continues to change in favor of paying artists more for their work. I see a lot of mixing of art and technology here, and in the broader world, and I think that’s good, because it’s technology that makes the money, and art is what makes life worth living. And so the more you’ve got those things collaborating, the more you can have artists survive. A lot of what we do here is try to subsidize art for the sake of art with the technology interests that people have—half of our community is artists, half of our community is different kinds of technologists, like engineers, and so everybody pays the rent. My hope, in our conversations with the city, is that we can ask for more artist housing, and more low-income housing. Especially with the potential of megacorporations like Amazon moving into town—it would be good to have a negotiation where, if you do move in, you have to create 40 percent affordable housing, maybe 20 percent designated for artists.”
We Sell Properties
WASHINGTON STREET Washington Street was founded in 1996 in a former school bus depot station that sat in a small industrial complex by the railroad tracks. The Bornstein Flooring Company now owns the building. Lee Kilpatrick, a photographer, has been the director at Washington Street for 15 years. The house where Lee lived in Somerville was sold for a million dollars, and he now lives in Arlington. “I’ve been to zoning meetings before, and people have talked about different things, and at some point they used to talk about the artist and maker spaces, and then they changed it, and started talking about artists, makers, and start-ups. Startups have a potentially different financial model than the other types of places, so there could be a threat from that. I don’t know if I have a vision for how to keep the arts scene in Somerville thriving. But I do know people that have gotten booted out of artist-type spaces because the rent went up. It’s a concern for everyone in Somerville who doesn’t own their own building. But, you know, I don’t think at Washington Street we have any more reason than anyone else to be worried. We have a good Painter Maureen McCabe at work in her studio.
relationship with the Bornstein’s. It’s more like the whole overall changes in Somerville, and the developments, like what’s going to happen in Union Square, that makes things uncertain. We do engage some with the city. There’s a couple different things that are happening, a couple of city regulations that help with affordable housing. One is, when you have a development above a certain number of units, then 12 to 20 percent of them have to be affordable units. And then there seems to be, and I don’t know exactly how this kicks in, but in many cases when developments are made, they will allocate a certain number of the units specifically to artists. Then you come into different questions about artists versus other people who might need affordable housing, and how that would work. But in five years, I hope Washington Street will still be right where it is. It would be nice if there was explicit support from these new developers that they wanted to do artist spaces, or maybe an artist building. But that might also be very expensive, depending on whether it’s new construction. My vision, my basic vision, is that there’s still lots of artists in Somerville, and it stays the same, in that sense.”
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scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 33
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
Finding Room for Art
VERNON STREET STUDIOS Vernon Street Studios is a mixed-use building—it is still the headquarters of the Roberts Foam Company, even as about 100 artists rent studio space there. Vernon celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2014. Heather Baluchnas, who is a painter, illustrator, and mixedmedia artist, has had a studio at Vernon since 2008 and helps coordinate the group’s standalone open studios in December, as well as its participation in the citywide Somerville Open Studios. She lives in Winter Hill. “The history of the building itself, before Roberts Foam bought it, is that it used to be the Derby Desk Company, that made roll top desks. When Rogers Foam came on, it was the first company to manufacture Nerf balls. So it has a very fun history. In 1974, when the artists moved in, Roberts Foam had extra space they weren’t using. They said, “You can use the space, but you have to clean it out.” So there were birds that were inhabiting it, they basically had to clean out the space themselves, and ever since then it’s been artists’ spaces. In the ’90s there was a worry that the building might get sold, but since then Rogers Foam has operations 34 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
all over the country, and this is their headquarters. So it’s a pretty stable situation, for right now. Hopefully it stays that way. Having a mixed-use space is very important, and I think doing those kind of collaborations really works very well, because when you partner with builders, contractors, that have an existing space, they’re already doing work, and it’s a very industrial space that’s not going to be well suited for an office building. So having that existing space is perfect for artists, who get messy. Having that kind of marriage works out really well. So it’s trying to find that particular structure to be able to have it work for artists and also for the developers. If you have a component where the artists have the opportunity to buy a space, that is very beneficial, because then they own that space, and they have more control over it. That, to me, is a very real way to help preserve the arts infrastructure here in Somerville. I work for the Somerville Arts Council as the office manager. There are definitely conversations to be able to work to preserve the arts, and some of it’s by zoning, and preserving it through infrastructure. So there’s definitely projects along the pipeline to
foster and make that happen. And it needs to be a conversation that’s not just from the city, but from the arts community as well. You have to keep having that conversation and try to make that important. Having my artist hat on, I think it’s important to look for opportunities where you’re working with legislation to be able to have that component, to have “x” amount of money that is being wedded to the arts. How do you make that happen in a way that is beneficial to the community at large, whether it’s the cultural community, or whether it’s the broader community? And how do you create that infrastructure? Living space for artists is also an issue, and that’s a conversation that I know is happening not only here in Somerville but in the greater state legislation level. Because the greater Boston area is very expensive to live in, but it’s where a lot of people work. We have cultural institutions, we have educational institutions, and the question is, do you really want to live in New Hampshire and commute in? There is currently a bill in consideration about tenants’ right to purchase, where if a property owner decides to sell a larger apartment building, or even a house, there’s a bill to
propose to sell it to the existing tenants.* And if they are not able to purchase that building, then a nonprofit might be able to purchase it for them, so the building can remain affordable. So that is one way. I’ve already testified on behalf of the bill, our mayor has testified on behalf of the bill. So there’s a number of people supporting it. Of course there’s going to be a lot of people opposed to it. But a similar bill has worked very well in D.C. An important thing is trying to get that information, get the education, to put those policies in place, in order to be able to make things like that happen. It’s having real conversations, and really sitting down to look at the bigger picture, and what’s going to be beneficial, and how do you preserve what you already have, and create the infrastructure to be able to preserve it. I’m an optimistic realist. But people have to talk to their ward alderman, have to go the meetings. It’s on the arts community to be vigilant and get involved with the conversation.” *This state legislation did not proceed with a favorable report, but the city is looking at other ways to promote a similar policy.
Wilhelm Neusser packages paintings for an upcoming group exhibit at MASSMoCA, called “The Lure of the Dark.” The exhibit will be up for the remainder of 2018.
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
Finding Room for Art
BRICKBOTTOM STUDIOS Brickbottom Studios, founded in 1988 in an abandoned cannery factory, is one of the oldest and largest live/work artist buildings in the northeast. Shannon Humphreys, a dancer, is president of the board of directors of the Brickbottom Artists Association. She has been on the board for two years, owns a live-in space, and became the association’s president last April. “The building was purchased by a bunch of artists who were based in Fort Point 30 years ago. Part of the story that doesn’t get told is that they didn’t do it alone—they were supported by the city of Boston and by FPAC, the Fort Point Arts Community, who helped them get 36 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
a realtor and a lawyer and find the building here in Somerville. When they bought this building, it was a bombed-out wreck. It had been a cannery, a factory for the A&P grocery store. It was completely a shell, just a shell of a building. The artists who bought it worked with an architect to divide it up into these units that you see today. And all of the original founding artists, about 80 of them, purchased their individual units. There’s now a total of 155 units. Some of them are live/work, some of them are just live, some of them are just work. It’s a catch-all here. It was all artists to begin with, it was a cooperative, but a couple of years in, financially that wasn’t
working, so they went to condo. So we have two governing boards. There’s the Brickbottom Artists’ Association, which is a non-profit entity that runs the gallery and supports the artist community, and there’s the condo trust. What’s happening with development in Somerville is a huge challenge for the arts community. No one imagined 30 years ago, or even 20 years ago, that any unit in this building would go on the market for more than half a million dollars, and that’s happening! So, how do artists afford that? One of the regrets we have is that we didn’t plan for that, but we couldn’t have seen it—hindsight is 20-20, right? We
didn’t form a land trust, we didn’t invest in that future, so part of the strategy, our vision, is telling our story so that people can learn from our success, but also from our possibly missed opportunities to invest in that. The other piece of it is that we’re a significant voting block, and we all vote here. We have a good reputation for that, and we have a good partnership, a good relationship, with the city, with our alderman, leveraging that. Our alderman right now is J.T. Scott. We had a really close relationship with Mary Houston, and we’re now developing our relationship with J.T. He’s been here, he’s spent a lot of time here since he was elected. So, we have leverage to put pressure on the city to invest in infrastructure, to invest in affordable housing. I don’t think that we can keep development out, that would be holding back the ocean. And it’s not probably a really good idea to hold back the change. But having a voice in it, influencing the change so that when developers come in, don’t say “No” to them, say, “Yes—but. You have to give back to this community.” We have to partner with the developers, partner with the city, make sure the infrastructure is here, make sure that people are able to stay here. And the mayor has given us a place at the table. Four years ago when they knocked down the waste transfer station that was right down here, he came here to Brickbottom and said, “You guys are the creative community. You guys are the innovators. Give us some ideas, what do we do with that space.” And out of that meeting came the birth of ArtFarm. That was born here. And then we went out into the rest of Somerville, partnered with all those thinkers, and ArtFarm is now happening. But if Somerville’s going to stay a creative community, and if this arts scene is going to stay vibrant, the people who make it that way have to be able to afford to live here.” Editor’s note: These profiles have been edited and condensed for clarity and conciseness. Hula hooper Lolli Hoops practices in her space.
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STAYING PUT:
PLANNING A THOUGHTFUL RENOVATION IN SOMERVILLE BY EMILY FROST | PHOTOS BY ADRIANNE MATHIOWETZ
A
stronger economy coupled with a tight housing market means more people in Somerville are choosing to stay in their homes and renovate rather than move, according to local architects. Homeowners who love the area recognize they’re financially better off investing in their property and modifying it to fit their evolving needs, says Aimee Zaslaw of JAZ Design, a residential remodeling company in the Greater Boston area that works with many Somerville clients. In this market, improvements will yield a return on investment and possibly even more, she says. “There are areas like Davis Square where you could put $600,000 into your home and still make a profit. People are fighting to be there,” Zaslaw says. Before diving into a renovation project, however, consider reading up on advice from local architects on the best ways to maximize your space and avoid hassles that come with home improvements.
MAKING SPACE
B
efore thinking about adding to a home’s footprint, local architects advise residents look to their attics and basements first. Adding dormers—windows that project out from a sloped roof—to an attic is a great way to open up the space, says 38 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
Somerville architect Jai Singh Khalsa of Khalsa Design. Similarly, adding lightwells makes a basement more usable, he explains. Basement windows have to be large enough for a person to crawl out of in order to qualify as a point of egress under the building code, says Edrick vanBeuzekom of Somervillebased EvB Design. “In basements, often what we’re doing is making a family room or a playroom or a home office or a workshop,” rather than a bedroom, he says. Mechanical systems like an energy-efficient ventilator can help homeowners meet the light and air requirements for those kinds of uses, according to vanBeuzekom. An open concept floor plan is also a popular option for homeowners who want to create a more spacious feel without adding square footage, explains Bill Boehm of Somerville firm Boehm Architecture. But knocking down dining and living room walls risks creating a “generic open space,” without specific zones, he says, making it hard to figure out where furniture should go. Built-in shelves and drawers, a partial wall, or a vaulted ceiling can help distinguish different sections of the space, he says. By hanging a light from a vaulted ceiling, “suddenly it feels like this is the dining room,” says Boehm.
Boehm and his colleagues look to European designs for inspiration for optimal space utilization, he says. They design many family bathrooms, where a shower and toilet are placed behind a pocket door with double sinks on the other side. This design can decrease the need for multiple bathrooms. “You have someone inside using the shower and someone outside brushing their teeth,” Boehm explains. Homeowners should also consider what they can live without, says Christopher Chan, of Chan Mock Architects. He suggests removing seldom-used chimneys, and vanBeuzekom offers up reclaiming a sun room that’s not insulated by weatherizing it. Multi-use furniture, like a table that’s used as both a desk and a dining room table, has become more popular too, says Annie Mock, Chan’s partner. One of Mock’s clients combined their kitchen island and dining room table to make space for an extra large dinner party, she says.
TIMING AND COST— DON’T GET FOOLED BY REALITY TV
T
he continuing popularity of design TV shows, where homes are seemingly transformed over the course of a weekend, has fostered unrealistic
expectations, says Marc Maxwell of Somerville’s Maxwell Architects. “DIY shows are not our friend,” he says. “They make [renovating] look impossibly simple, inexpensive, and quick.” While his firm gets calls from clients all year, vanBeuzekom says the best time to start plotting a renovation is the fall. Contractors make plans to work in the best weather—in spring and summer—and their time fills up quickly, he says: “By January, you want to have your contractor lined up.” Don’t get seduced by the internet either, Maxwell cautions. Ordering materials online doesn’t pay off if the parts arrive broken, are the wrong size, or too heavy for the homeowner to lift, he says. Instead, it’s better to trust the professionals on your renovation team. It’s important to consider moving out for any work beyond a small addition, and to have room in your budget, he advises. “Renovation is painful. It takes more time than you think and it takes more money than you think,” Maxwell says. Home redesigned by Bill Boehm.
Smaller projects like expanding a dormer or finishing a basement wouldn’t require a special permit, thereby speeding up the process, he explains. Currently, the approvals process is “needlessly complex for simple changes that do not impact neighbors and fit seamlessly with the existing structure,” according to the planning department. But while the permitting process can be a “real headache,” Boehm acknowledges that “the planning staff and the zoning process is clearer and more straightforward and friendlier than in some of our neighboring towns.”
MAKE NICE WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS
A
Rather than having an architect draw up plans that fulfill your wishlist but don’t fit your budget and then get disappointed, vanBeuzekom advises being realistic about what you can afford before the drafting begins. “In general the rule of thumb is around $250 a square foot for a renovation. It depends on the level of quality and type
of builder. $300 is not unusual anymore,” vanBeuzekom says.
ZONING AND PERMITTING
S
omerville residents should keep the permitting process in mind when considering the timeline of a renovation,
architects advise. “Even if what you’re doing seems very reasonable and minor, you’ll be asked to apply for a zoning variance,” Boehm says. Under the current zoning regulations, the vast majority of renovation projects require permission in the form of a variance from the city. “It’s rare to have a project that doesn’t need a special permit or a zoning variance,” says Maxwell. “Generally, it’s a three-to-sixmonth process to get a zoning variance,” says vanBeuzekom. “That really sets your project back a chunk.” This summer, Somerville’s Board of Aldermen will vote on a new zoning ordinance that will change which renovations would need approval from the city. Whether you should wait to see how the vote shakes out or jumpstart renovations now depends on the type of project you’re considering, says Chan. Under the proposed new code, “There are potentially some renovations that are going to be easier to do,” he says.
fter determining that your renovation will need a special permit, it’s time to involve your neighbors in the process, says Boehm. The city notifies neighbors within a close radius, generally the surrounding houses, of renovation plans and invites them to a hearing, he says. “Neighbors have quite a bit of say in what’s allowed and what is not allowed,” Boehm says. To avoid potential lawsuits, the city tends to err on the side of the neighbors, he explains. “It’s surprising how many times you think ‘this isn’t going to bother anybody,’” but it does, Boehm says. “It can really throw a wrench in the works.” If neighbors voice opposition at a hearing, the zoning board might tell a homeowner to come back in a month or two for a second hearing, according to vanBeuzekom. By talking to your neighbors early in the process, you can potentially negotiate with them, Boehm explains, noting that getting a letter of support from them is even better than having their tacit buy-in. Another way to keep on good terms: Collect your neighbors’ emails and offer to keep them updated on your progress and upcoming work that will generally affect their quality of life, Zaslaw advises. scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 39
ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
Curiosities THE
OF SOMERVILLE
THE STORIES BEHIND SOME OF THE CITY’S MOST BIZARRE BUILDINGS
BY KAT RUTKIN AND REENA KARASIN
THE CENTER FOR ARTS AT THE ARMORY 191 HIGHLAND AVE.
“I
t’s one of those buildings that only its mother could love,” Executive Director of the Historic Preservation Commission J. Brandon Wilson says about the Somerville Armory. Its overbearing features are remnants of when the Massachusetts National Guard roamed the building. An enormous drill hall, doors big enough for horses to fit through, and thick walls with barred windows combine to form the huge, odd building on Highland Ave. that was built in 1903. When the building went up for sale, Wilson worried that people would gloss over the Armory’s history and demolish it. It was the state’s to sell, and Somerville had little negotiating power. But Nabil and Joseph Sater, owners of the Middle East Restaurant and Nightclub in Central Square, led a push to buy the building in 2004 and transform it into the artistic and
40 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
cultural space that it is today. Architects had to balance repurposing the building and making it ADA compliant with preserving its historical integrity. Wilson participated in long negotiations to keep a ramp at the front of the building, arguing that it was an indispensable part of the Armory’s design, coming across as the drawbridge to the castle. But the ramp was too steep to meet ADA requirements. Ultimately, the city raised the sidewalk in front of the Armory to keep the ramp but also make the building accessible. The drill hall became a huge performance hall, and a flexible cafe space now runs in one of the building’s larger spaces. Smaller rooms are for offices and classes. “Different rooms’ space now is dictated by what they were then,” says Executive Director for the Arts at the Armory Lea Ruscio. The building still has some growing pains from the switchover. Having events in an otherwise
PEARL STREET STUDIOS 226 PEARL ST.
largely residential neighborhood requires a tricky balance. Many neighbors were worried about the change, according to Wilson, and one family moved away after their daughter couldn’t sleep due to noise from Armory guests on the night before she took the SATs. Ruscio says the Armory aims to keep events as quiet as possible, and has strict noise limits for the performance hall—limits that keep the Armory from hosting many musical groups. The Armory is raising money to soundproof the hall. Wilson says she thinks the tensions that emerged during the switchover have improved recently, and that people have grown to appreciate the Armory as a building and what it offers. “Oftentimes we tear things down and we don’t necessarily respect our heritage and where we’ve come from,” Wilson says. “And I think that’s really helpful to people, particularly these days, people need to feel more grounded, and buildings help do that.”
Photo, top, by Ben Wright. Photo, left, by Adrianne Mathiowetz.
18
A
striking brick industrial building nestles among the wood frame structures on the edge of Gilman Square. Its large, multi-paned windows stretch almost a full story each, and a large mural notes the location: “226.” The building is now home to Pearl Street Studios, a three-story artists’ live-work space, but it once housed the Somervillebased Kemp Nuts Company. An original concrete shield finial with a “K” is in the front yard, an appropriately artsy nod to the building’s history. Edward F. Kemp founded Kemp Nuts in Somerville in 1915 in a building located at 172 School Street, according to the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Survey completed when 226 Pearl was deemed a state historic asset. 226 Pearl St. was built around 1920 as the company expanded, and housed manufacturing facilities in addition to a home for Kemp—making it quite possibly Somerville’s original live/ work makerspace. The factory expanded to the surrounding blocks during the heyday of Kemp’s nut production in the early 1900s, including the area that is now Edward Leathers Community Park. The Kemp Factory is one of only a handful of buildings that remain from Gilman’s commercial prime in the 1900s. You can spot the surviving buildings easily; they are the taller brick structures now more likely to house artist spaces. Across the street from 226, an old telephone switching building now houses Mad Oyster studios, and the Knights of Malta Hall at 343 Medford St. holds Somerville Studios and a few other creative economy businesses. Pearl Street Studios is currently home to 13 artists working in a variety of media out of 10 studio spaces, according to the building’s Facebook page. If you’re curious about the interior of this space, Pearl Street Studios is a featured stop during Somerville Open Studios.
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
The Curiosities of Somerville
THE MUSEUM OF MODERN RENAISSANCE 115 COLLEGE AVE.
N
early everyone has seen the bizarre, vibrant building near Powderhouse Circle, yet few people know much about it. The Museum of Modern Renaissance jumps out of an otherwise typical Somerville neighborhood, with bright murals completely covering the A-frame house on College Ave. It’s not a museum in the typical sense. Moscow-born artists Nicholas Shaplyko and Ekaterina Sorokina live there, and have worked together on every bit of artwork in and out of their house. On their website, Shaplyko and Sorokina describe their style as “magical realism” created through “spontaneous collaboration.” They dubbed their home a museum in the Greek sense of the word, meaning a place where muses live. If you think the outside is gorgeous or interestingly wacky or both, you can see the inside for yourself. Shaplyko and Sorokina typically open up parts of their home to amazed visitors during the Somerville Open Studios.
MUDFLAT STUDIOS 81 BROADWAY
M
udflat Studios has been at 81 Broadway since 2011, in the building that began its life as the Broadway Theatre. Built in 1915 and rumored to be part of an elaborate stock scheme, it was soon acquired by the Viano family who owned the Somerville and Capitol Theatres (in Davis Square and Arlington, respectively). The Vianos’ theaters were known for the best fresh popcorn and gimmicky prize nights to boost attendance, according to the Somerville Theatre website. The theater was a neighborhood staple until 1982, when the nearby Sacks Theater in Assembly Square put it out of business. The building was used as a warehouse through the 1990s, and in 2002 the City of Somerville bought it to use as an arts facility. Mudflat Studios, a non-profit pottery school that was outgrowing its home at 142 Broadway, was selected by the 42 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
city to redevelop the building. Mudflat purchased the theater from the city in 2005. After several years of delay, including a lawsuit from a nearby business hoping to acquire the building, construction began on a new home for Mudflat Studios in 2010. The complete $3.8 million renovation was completed in 2011, according to a blog detailing the building’s renovation, and included a full excavation of the ground floor to support a new, poured-concrete second floor. Many interior and exterior details were preserved as part of the new school, including cove moulding in the lobby and an adapted marquee, according to the blog. Mudflat now houses 34 artists and offers classes and workshops for adults and children ages 4 and up, and offers scholarships and partial-pay programs to keep the art form accessible to people from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds. Photos by Adrianne Mathiowetz.
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
REDEMPTION AND REUSE ON
ATHERTON STREET
HOW TWO BUILDINGS GALVANIZED SOMERVILLE’S PUSH TOWARD HISTORICAL PRESERVATION 44 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
BY KAT RUTKIN | PHOTOS BY ADRIANNE MATHIOWETZ
A
t only four square miles in size, Somerville boasts architectural treasures to rival a city exponentially larger. Some of these buildings are in busy squares, such as the Somerville Theatre in Davis, so they’ve become familiar and iconic. But with Somerville’s varying topography and maze of one-way streets, some of these buildings can be far off the welltraveled paths, adding to the thrill of seeing them for the first time. As one of Somerville’s oldest residential subdivisions, Spring Hill is full of beautiful historical buildings. Atherton Street, a quiet, one-way (of course) street halfway up Spring Hill, boasts two of the most magnificent surprises: the Round House and the Carr School. Many Somerville residents only stumble upon the Round House by getting lost in the tangle of local streets. It’s a breathtaking reward for a wrong turn, though, having come a long way since its time on the state’s most endangered historic resources list in 1997. Set on a corner lot at the intersection of Atherton and Beech Streets, the three-story home is truly round. The corner lot setting allows for generous views of all sides of the house, which has been painstakingly restored over the last decade. Built with a wood frame, the third story is set back, mimicking the top of a layer cake, with a crenellated rim. The tip echoes the parapet of a castle, but it’s not likely this crenellation was used to fortify the house or shoot weapons; these are mostly decorative in American architecture. The house was built in 1896 by Enoch Robinson, a locksmith and designer who made high-end hardware known for using ornate glass knobs. The Round House is the only one of its kind in the city—and thought to be the only house Robinson built—and is rare in its distinctive roundness, as octagonal homes were much more common. Robinson wasn’t a developer—
he built the home for his family. It is thought that he built it according to the principles laid out in the book “A Home for All, or A New, Cheap, Convenient, and Superior Mode of Building” by Orson Squire Fowler. Fowler argues that round houses allow for the best distribution of light, air, and heat throughout a home. (While this style never became mainstream, Fowler was definitely onto something. Today, prefab round houses are popular in areas prone to hurricanes, as they are more likely to withstand strong wind.) Robinson’s round house included a circular library and a glass dome in the roof and a generous showing of his custom hardware, most notably his ornate glass doorknobs. Although it’s unknown if any of the doorknobs survive in the Round House, some are still used today in the Omni Parker House Hotel in Boston and in the U.S. Treasury Building in Washington, D.C. In 1965, the house was in danger of being demolished after the death of its then-owner, according to his grandson, Michael Rossetti. The Robinson family had long since moved away. A neighbor, Alice Maneatis, lived on Harvard Street and had always loved the house, according to J. Brandon Wilson, executive director of the Somerville Historic Preservation Commission. Maneatis managed to purchase it, but didn’t have the support or organization necessary to take on such a large restoration project. The house fell into further disrepair and lay vacant. It soon became a hangout for the neighborhood kids, who definitely weren’t there to admire the custom hardware. The Round House ended up on Massachusetts’s most endangered buildings list, and neighbors and preservationists feared the worst. Wilson got to know Maneatis and the plight of the Round House in the early 1980s when she was working on the disposition of the Martin W. Carr School, located just across Atherton Street from the Round House.
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ARTS & ARCHITECTURE
Redemption and Reuse on Atherton Street
Built in 1898, the Carr School is a stunning example of Colonial and Renaissance Revival architecture, which was popular at that time, just after the U.S. centennial. It was designed by Aaron Gould, a prominent local architect. This school is the only known surviving building of his design. It was named after Martin W. Carr, a local businessman and politician who owned a factory outside Davis Square that produced metal items and jewelry. The Carr School was one of five schools that the city closed in 1980 because of declines in student enrollment. Then-mayor Gene Brune decided not to privately sell off the buildings. He asked Wilson, then the newly hired director of the City Planning department, to put together kits to attract developers in a competitive bidding process to reuse or redevelop the school sites. Working with the surrounding neighborhood, the city chose a developer for each site. In the case of the Carr School, the neighbors and the city preferred that the building be preserved and reused as housing. Such adaptive reuse projects were just becoming popular, and it was a brand new concept for Somerville. It wasn’t as easy a sell to the community, as neighbors weren’t used to the process or pleased with so many schools being closed, but Brandon says Brune handled it well. “This was a turning point in city in terms of how we looked at development,” Brandon explains. But in what might be a surprise to those only familiar with the present Somerville development market, this wasn’t an easy task. “Financing was hard to come by, bankers then were still looking at Somerville as Slummerville,” Brandon adds. Further complicating the project was the desire to keep the school feel in the new homes, preserving old chalkboards and incorporating them into apartment designs. “It was a funky type of reuse,” says 46 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
Brandon. Despite the beauty of the building and quality of the proposed condos, banks were still wary of financing condominium projects that would sell for more than $100,000. With the project in jeopardy of falling apart, it was time to think creatively. In order to make the project more feasible financially, city staff worked with the developers to list the Carr School on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. National Register designation made the project eligible for a 20 percent investment tax credit, which had been established in 1976 to encourage the reuse of historic buildings. Before then, the tax code had favored new construction, making preserving old buildings much less desirable compared to demolition. This financial boost enabled the project to go forward, this time
as rental apartments instead of condominiums in order to keep the terms of the tax credits. The developer took great care to preserve the interior as well as the exterior of the former school during the transformation. Original chalk boards remain inside the condos, as well as the school’s grand wooden staircase. Meanwhile, across the street, Maneatis was still struggling to maintain the Round House. In 1986, she connected with a teacher from Boston’s North Bennet Street School, which focuses on intensive training in a fine craft or trade, including preservation carpentry. The school used the house for a case study in one of its classes, with students coming out to the site to repair the house. “The students made a real difference,” Wilson says. Maneatis only paid for materials,
and the house became less of a neighborhood nuisance and began to live up to its potential once more. The students of North Bennet street kept the house together for a few years, but Maneatis’s health began to decline and her relationship with the school fell apart. By 1997, when the Carr School was converted from rental apartments to condominiums, the Round House was formally listed as an endangered property. After 15 years as the director of planning, Wilson became the director of the Historic Preservation Commission. She holds the position to this day, having become a preservationist thanks to her early work on the Carr School and her relationship with the Round House. The Round House’s roof began to leak. Concerned about the interior of the home, Wilson introduced Maneatis to George Saropoulos. Saropoulos, a general contractor with experience in restoring historic houses, also owned a home nearby. Maneatis and Saropoulos bonded over their love of the Round House and their shared Greek heritage. Saropoulos bought the the house in 2006, much to the relief of pretty much everyone who knew the Round House. Wilson was excited to have Saropoulos restoring the house, as she’d awarded him in the past for his restoration work on other historic homes in the city. Maneatis passed away in 2008, missing the chance to see the splendid renovation of the Round House that Saropoulos is close to completing. While interior details are unknown as Saropoulos is using the Round House as his family home, the restoration has brought the building back to its former glory. The restoration was completed with such skill and care that Saropoulos is once again nominated for a preservation award for the restoration.
HAPPY PASSOVER FROM
Temple Brith Temple B’nai B’nai Brith JewishHome Home inin Somerville Your Your Jewish Somerville Welcoming • Inclusive • Egalitarian PASSOVER SERVICES
9:15am: Sat March 31, Sun April 1, Fri April 6, Sat April 7
SPECIAL MONTHLY SHABBAT EVENTS
• Shabbat Together Saturdays 10am followed by lunch at 12pm March 24, April 28, May 26, June 23 • Potluck Fridays March 16, April 20, May 18, June 15 (services at 6-7pm veggie potluck to follow) • Tot Shabbat Saturdays 10am March 3, April 14, May 5, June 2
WEEKLY SHABBAT SERVICES
Fridays at 6pm and Saturdays at 9:15am (10am for Shabbat Together) For information about programs for young adults, email TBB20s30s@gmail.com 201 Central Street 02145 | 617-625-0333 | www.templebnaibrith.org | tbb@templebnaibrith.org
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 47
SCOUT OUT!
S T R I V I N G F O R I N C L U S I V I T Y,
One Interpretation at a Time BY REENA KARASIN | PHOTOS BY ADRIANNE MATHIOWETZ
“W
hat is multilingual justice?” The room of teens is quiet for a moment as they digest the question from interpreter Loreto Paz Ansaldo. The youths, part of the Liaison Interpreters Program of Somerville (LIPS), work with the two interpreters from the Boston Interpreters Collective to define the term. Their definition: “Equal rights and respect for diverse people who speak more than one language so that they have access to information and communication in a comfortable environment.” “What could multilingual justice look like being played out?” interpreter Isabel Catalina Hibbard asks. “This place,” one teen answers.
L
IPS teaches bilingual high schoolers from Somerville and Medford interpretation skills so that they can translate at community events and meetings. Along the way, the teens explore concepts of social justice and language-based inequities and are encouraged to embrace their bilingualism. 48 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
“One of the values that we try to bring to this space is to help immigrant youth see their bilingualism as a gift, when oftentime speaking another language within an education system is almost like, “Well, OK, but really, can you speak English?’” says Alison Kuah, youth programs coordinator. Many of the LIPS youths have been informally interpreting for years, helping parents who don’t speak English navigate living in the United States. But switching to formal interpreting can be a challenge. LIPS is part of the Welcome Project, a community organization that supports immigrant families and bolsters their access to participating in the city. The LIPS program focuses on expanding the teens’ vocabulary, working on speed, and emphasizing the accuracy that is crucial in formal interpretation. Rather than translating the sentiment of what a parent or grandparent is saying, the teens have to deliver a message exactly how the speaker says it.
“You have to translate like a machine,” says Edson Lima Siqueira, 16, who speaks Portuguese and English fluently. “You can’t change the words. When you’re translating for your family, you’re just like, ‘OK, this makes no sense in your first language, so let me change one or two words so it makes more sense.’ But when you realize that, you’re like, ‘Oh, I may be changing the meaning of the sentence.’ So you shouldn’t change anything when you’re doing the formal one.” They also work on simultaneous interpretation (translating as a person is speaking) and relay interpretation (when some interpreters are translating another interpreter’s translation into a third language). Twenty-four teens are in LIPS this year, speaking Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian-Creole, Nepali, or Bengali in addition to English. LIPS helps youths get involved in community issues by translating at city meetings and events, according to Kuah. “Language is a really great
way for a lot of the youth to see larger institutional and structural barriers to participation in society,” Kuah says. “A lot of times the youth begin to see that the fact that they do speak English gives them greater access, and so see a greater responsibility almost to speak on behalf of those that don’t feel like they have a voice.” “The availability and access of so many interpreters in the community reveals that even minority people, they’re strong,” says Kristina Gurang, 15, who speaks Nepali and English. “There are people who are ready to help them out in the community. Just because they have a language barrier does not mean they’re not good enough. Language can be a powerful tool to break down the language barriers and can bring multilingual justice in the community.” Siqueira noticed the differences between cities’ language accessibility when his family moved from Somerville to Medford. “Somerville had all the support when I got here,” he says.
You are selling a cherished home or buying your first condo. Being transferred to the Greater Boston Area or starting grad school. Moving on at the end of a relationship or moving in with a new partner. “My mom had the help to know what she was signing, what was everything that was going on, the rules, and stuff like that, they had everything in Portuguese. And then when I moved to Medford, there was no assistance, no support, nothing. They don’t have interpreting in the school. I felt that the Medford community has a lack of support for immigrants.” After practicing interpretation skills in the weekly meetings, the youths will develop proposals for community engagement initiatives. Last year was the first, soft launch of the proposals,
Back inside, the interpreters ask the teams how the game made them feel. “We created the rules, so we felt powerful,” one teen says. The controlling team notes that they “felt abusive.” “You realize that it’s unfair,” another youth says. The interpreters help the students relate the soccer game to other situations of power inequality, especially languagebased ones. “It’s our job, as English speakers, to even that power out,” Hibbard says. Ansaldo and Hibbard wrap up the session by challenging the
We are patient, experienced, resourceful, and successful. Here to listen carefully, educate you, and make your buying or selling adventure the best it can be. Your life. Our expertise. Together, let’s find a home.
“A lot of times the youth begin to see that the fact that they do speak English gives them greater access, and so see a greater responsibility almost to speak on behalf of those that don’t feel like they have a voice.” according to Kuah, who says that some of the youths asked community members to explain why they stand with immigrants.
A
nsaldo and Hibbard lead the youths outside and break them into teams. One team gets to set the rules of the soccer game, but doesn’t have to follow them. The team makes its opponents hop around, hold a teammate’s hand at all times, and speak in languages that their partners can’t understand.
youths to relay interpretation. One student speaks Portuguese, which a fellow teen translates into English. Three other interpreters listen to his English translation, and then interpret that into their own languages. The rest of the youths listen to those interpreters. The room becomes chaotic with murmured interpretations, but it is clearly organized chaos— in all the hubbub, 24 teens are helping each other connect across five different languages.
Liz & Ellie Real Estate Residential Specialists 617-444-9644 lizandellie@compass.com lizandellie.com
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 49
HEALTH & WELLNESS DIRECTORY
LOCAL SHOPPING DIRECTORY Please consider shopping with these and other Scout sponsors.
MASSAGE THERAPY WORKS
BLUE CLOUD GALLERY
713 Broadway, Somerville bluecloudgallery.com A unique gift shop that sells handcrafted gifts by 140 local artists.
BALL SQUARE FINE WINES
716 Broadway, Somerville 617-623-9500, ballsquarefinewines.com Well known for stunning selection and service. Made-to-order gift baskets and food platters too.
255 Elm St #302, Somerville 617-684-4000 Leader in clinical bodywork and therapeutic massage since 1997.
MEDWELL HEALTH & WELLNESS
QRST’S
561 Windsor St., Ste A301, Somerville 617-625-3335, qrsts.com Custom screen printing, embroidery and direct-to-garment printing.
DAVIS SQUARED
409 Highland Ave., Somerville 617-666-6700, davissquared.com Fun, modern gifts for him, her, house and baby.
PORTER SQUARE BOOKS
25 White St., Cambridge 617-491-2220, portersquarebooks.com Porter Square Books is your fiercely independent source for great books, magazines, fun gifts and more.
50 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
MAGPIE KIDS
95 Elm St., Somerville 617-764-4110, magpiekids.com Modern gifts for modern kids. Clothes, toys, books and more!
MAGPIE
55 Broadway, Somerville 774-517-5195, medwellhealth.net Medical Marijuana Certifications to fit your needs, in your home or ours.
CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE
617-665-1000, challiance.org A Harvard Teaching Hospital that offers primary care, specialty and emergency services, and more.
416 Highland Ave., Somerville 617-623-3330, magpie-store.com
Unique jewelry, apothecary, art, edibles, housewares and more!
SALT & OLIVE
1160 Mass Ave, Cambridge 857-242-4118, saltandolive.com Unique specialty food and wine shop located in Harvard Square, featuring unusual ingredients, flavors, and gifts from around the culinary world.
REVOLUTIONARY CLINICS
67 Broadway, Somerville 617-213-6006, revolutionaryclinics.org Professional, well-respected medical marijuana clinic offering natural solutions to a wide variety of illnesses and chronic conditions.
CHA PRIMARY CARE FOR ALL AGES
At 11 CHA care centers in Cambridge and Somerville 617-665-1305 challiance.org/primarycare
REAL ESTATE DIRECTORY CHA SOMERVILLE HOSPITAL 230 Highland Avenue, Somerville 24-hour emergency department 617-665-1000 challiance.org/somerville
CHARLES CHERNEY TEAM AT COMPASS REAL ESTATE 617-733-8937 CambridgeRealEstate.com SomervilleRealEstate.com Making your next move a reality.
Prices are already up quite a bit over 2013, which was the strongest market in years. More inventory has started to appear, but it is still not enough to satisfy demand. Consequently, prices should continue to rise in 2014.
DR. KATIE TALMO, D.M.D.
JOANNA KIRYLO AT GRIFFIN PROPERTIES
55A Elm Street, Somerville 617-354-5888, joanna@visitgriffin.com Trust. Knowledge. Experience. Value.
Please call us for more information on the market, or to get a sense of the current value of your home. ~Thalia, Todd, Niké, Jennifer, and Lynn
Our New Listings 180 Highland Ave., Somerville
617-864-6111 Dr. Talmo provides a personalize approach to dental care. Come enjoy This is a very rare opportunity to own a single family home with a comfortable dental experience in garage on one of the largest lots in Davis Square . The her newly renovated office space. Victorian-era house has 4 bedrooms and one and a half baths on two levels. The detached garage ~ $1,495,000
the Morrison Ave. and Grove St., is the very large, open, level yard. Owned by the same family since 1955, this unspoiled home is ready for a new family to make their own updates and memories.
~ $519,000
TEAM JEN & LYNN Jennifer Rose
Residential Sales Specialist, ealtor R ® cell/text Jennifer@ThaliaTringoRe alEstate .com
Lovely Agassiz 2 bedroom/2 bath condo with private porch on a pleasant side street between Harvard and Porter Squares. Near great shops, restaurants, and Harvard campus.
~ $349,000
THE JUICE UNION
Roomy Ten Hills 2 bedroom/1 bath condo with charming details, reonvated kitchen, parking, and storage.
23 Bow St., Union Sq., Somerville thejuiceunion.com Fresh juices, healthy smoothies, nitro lattes and hearty salads.
Lynn C. Gr aham
Residential Sales Specialist, ealtor R ® cell/text Lynn@ThaliaTringoRe alEstate .com
Thalia Tringo & Associates Real Estate Lynn 617-216-5244, Jen 617-943-9581 TeamJenandLynn@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Bringing our expertise and good humor to help you find a perfect home or say good-bye to your old one.
IRENE BREMIS THE IBREMIS TEAM
617-905-5232, irenebremis.com irenebremis@gmail.com Real Estate Consulting, Listing, Marketing, Sales & Rental Specialist.
~ $229,000
Near Medford Sq., this 1 bedroom/ 1 1/2 bath condo is in an elevator building with parking.
Coming Soon
In the heart of Davis Sq., this 2 bedroom/1 bath condo in a brick building has a parking space. Equidistant from Davis and Porter Squares, this 3 bedroom/1.5 bath condo on two levels has in-unit laundry, 2 porches, private yard, and exclusive driveway for 3 cars. Renovated 1 bedroom/1 bath near Prospect Hill with central air, in-unit laundry, private porch, and shared yard.
CHA CAMBRIDGE HOSPITAL
THALIA TRINGO & ASSOCIATES REAL ESTATE
617-616-5091, thaliatringorealestate.com
Our agents strive to make your experience of buying and selling as smooth as possible. From start to finish, we are here to help you. Free classes.
LIZ & ELLIE REAL ESTATE AT COMPASS 617-444-9644 lizandellie.com Your Life. Our Expertise. Together, let’s find a home.
1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge 24-hour emergency department 617-665-1000 challiance.org/cambridge
JENN FALK
yoginijennfalk.com, @jennpfalk Mindful movement through framework of yoga with attention to lunar cycles. Also semi-private prenatal yoga.
scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 51
CALENDAR MARCH 20 Photo by Alan Levine.
MARCH 22-25
Photo by Tara Arseven.
Photo by Evan Sayles.
| MUSIC
PASSIM IGUANA FUND SHOWCASE 7 p.m., Free Club Passim Passim doled out $42,000 this winter to musicians with ties to New England as part of its annual effort to help artists advance their careers. The Harvard Square-based nonprofit’s Iguana Music Fund is designed to enrich local communities by supporting musicians and making it easier to be a full-time artist. At this event, all of the grant winners will put on a showcase highlighting their projects.
52 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
| FOOD
SAP ON TAP MAPLE BRUNCH 11 a.m., Starts at $13 Aeronaut Brewery Groundwork Somerville and Aeronaut Brewing Co. are hosting a maple beer and waffle brunch to wrap up Groundwork Somerville’s 15th Maple Syrup project. The organization is tapping maple trees at Tufts University as part of the project, as well as teaching classes on maple syrup to secondgraders across the city.
APRIL 26 - MAY 13 Photo courtesy of “Wig Out!”.
| COMEDY
THE ANTI-IMPERIALISM NATIONWIDE COMEDY TAKEOVER 8:30 p.m., $7 in advance, $10 at the door The Center for Arts at the Armory If “socially conscious comedy” sounds like your ideal Saturday night, head over to the Armory for a show from Krish Mohan and Andrew Frank. Mohan travels all over the country delivering comedy on war, immigration, and race with “an optimistic philosophical and sociological twist,” while Frank explores subject areas including anthropology, cosmology, and sociology.
APRIL 9
Photo by Rebecca Siegel.
| SCIENCE
CAMBRIDGE SCIENCE FESTIVAL Varies Various locations throughout Cambridge What better way to celebrate Earth Day (April 22) than by diving into science? The Cambridge Science Festival aims to make STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) accessible to people through concerts, debates, plays, workshops, and more. The festival’s collaborators include branches of the city, Harvard, MIT, and the Museum of Science.
APRIL 22
| POETRY
BOWERY BOSTON PRESENTS: NEIL HILBORN 7 p.m., $18 in advance or $20 at the door The Center for Arts at the Armory Slam poet Neil Hilborn claims to be the mostwatched poet ever, accumulating over 150 million views of his poems. He’s most well known for his poems on mental health, especially his poem about dealing with obsessive compulsive disorder, and is the author of the poetry collection “Our Numbered Days.”
MARCH 31
Photo by Horia Varlan.
| FILM
IRISH FILM FESTIVAL BOSTON Varies, $10 to $85 Somerville Theatre Did you know that the Somerville Theatre is home to the biggest Irish film festival outside of Ireland? Now in its 18th year, the festival includes several awards for filmmakers.
MARCH 25
APRIL 13-22
| NATURE
WINTER TREE & SHRUB IDENTIFICATION AND SIGNS OF SPRING 2 p.m., $12 Mount Auburn Cemetery Looking for the first sign of the ever-abysmal winter coming to a close? This program will help you see the changes in Mount Auburn Cemetery’s trees and shrubs as spring descends, and participants will learn how to identify trees based on their bark, twigs, and buds.
APRIL 28-29
Photo by Anders Lejczak.
| THEATER
“WIG OUT!” Varies, Starts at $25 OBERON This show will take you inside the world of competitive ballroom drag performance. Written by the author of the play from which “Moonlight” was adapted, this show promises to bring “the riotous, defiant drag queen sub-culture of the early 2000s to glorious, vivid life.”
| ANIMALS
BOSTON INTERNATIONAL CAT SHOW 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. & 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., $10 Simoni Skating Rink Are you one of those people who lives for cat memes? If so, you’re in luck, because cats from all over the world are coming to town. Check out sphynx, Persians, Bengals, and more as they compete for the judges. You can even speak with breeders to learn about different kinds of cats.
MAY 5 & 6
| ART
SOMERVILLE OPEN STUDIOS 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., Free Throughout Somerville How could we have an Arts & Architecture Issue calendar without including Somerville Open Studios? Take a peek at artists’ studios and the art being created in your city during one of Somerville’s most exciting weekends of the year.
10TH ANNUAL / 2018 ANNOUNCING A VIBRANT NEW SEASON FOR OPEN STUDIOS THIS FALL IN CAMBRIDGE SATURDAY & SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 29 & 30 12–6PM EACH DAY MORE INFO cambridgeartscouncil.org
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scoutsomerville.com | Arts & Architecture 53
SCOUT YOU
Photos by Annie Maroon
Ash and Adam of Bauman’s Botanicals pose at the Somerville Winter Farmers Market on Jan. 27.
Allie Kovalik stands outside of Union Square Donuts on Thursday, Feb. 8.
Mike samples some chili at the 13th Annual Great Chili Cook-off at Olde Magoun’s Saloon on Feb. 4. From left: Nicole, Ciara, and Collette at the 13th Annual Great Chili Cook-off at Olde Magoun’s Saloon on Feb. 4.
Silas Altheimer sits outside the Davis Square T station on Thursday, Feb. 8. 54 Arts & Architecture | scoutsomerville.com
Ashlee and John try some chili at the 13th Annual Great Chili Cook-off at Olde Magoun’s Saloon on Feb. 4.
WE’RE EXPANDING! Watch us in the coming weeks as we triple in size, add seating and further develop our menu.
T
he flavors of Greece can be found in Davis Square at Opa Greek Yeeros. Traditional dishes are served up daily by George and his crew with ingredients imported straight from Greece to ensure the authenticity and quality of every item on the menu. It’s not only the menu that is steeped in tradition; Opa is a family affair. George’s mother has owned and run Sophia’s Greek Pantry for over 15 years and now she keeps Opa stocked with homemade fresh Greek yogurt, delicious desserts and pastries.
Even though yeeros are in the name, Opa offers so much more. The menu is a curated selection of Greek favorites from traditional Greek salads to spanakopita and “the best Greek yogurt” you’ll find outside of the Mediterranean. George will greet you with a smile, a friendly chat and delicious food that will keep you coming back for more.
378 Highland Ave Somerville, MA 617-718-2900 www.opayeeros.com
Best Greek Food
We Deliver: Give us a call or find us on Foodler and Yelp Eat24
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518 Medford St. • Somerville, MA 02145 (617) 776-2600 • www.magounssaloon.com
Best Restaurant in Magoun Square
518 MEDFORD STREET, SOMERVILLE • 617.776.2600 • MAGOUNSSALOON.COM
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