May 2016 New Listings...
88 Ossipee Road, Somerville ~ $1,175,000 Walk to Davis and Teele Square from this beautifully renovated 4-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom 3-story single family with driveway and fenced backyard. Contemporary finishes blended with lovely original details. Dreamy master suite occupies entire top floor.
1 Summer Street #5, Somerville $2,450,000 Stunning, award-winning renovation of a historic church in the heart of Union Square. Grand living and entertaining space with 65 ft. ceiling; 500-bottle wine storage in dining room; 3-4 bedrooms and 3 1/2 baths on 3 levels; chef’s kitchen; 2 garage parking spaces.
11 Chandler Street #2 ~ $779,000 Just a block from the Davis Square T stop, this bright unit has 2 bedrooms, 2 full baths, and a study on 2 levels. Private front porch and back deck; exclusive basement storage; private garage and additional driveway space.
51 Bow Street #1, Somerville ~ $495,000 Enjoy living in the heart of Union Square from this 2-bedroom, 1-bath condo with lovely shared backyard and basement storage.
51 Craigie Street #2, Somerville ~ $395,000 Large 1 bedroom/1 bath condo with 2 side-by-side parking spaces, and treetop views. Walk to Porter Square T station and to shops and nightlife in Porter and Union Squares.
Coming Soon
Thalia Tringo
North Cambridge Townhouse
President, Realtor ® 617.513.1967 cell/text Thalia@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Walk to Davis, Porter, or Alewife T stops from this 3-bedroom, 2.5-bathroom
Davis Square Loft-style Condo Steps from the Davis Square bike path, stunning 2 bed, 2 bath unit with parking.
Teele Square Condo First floor 2-bedroom, 1 bathroom with private yard and porch near Teele and Davis Squares.
Commercial FOR LEASE – ASSEMBLY ROW
East Somerville /Assembly Row $14-$25/SF NNN
Steps from Assembly Row Orange Line T stop and just off Rt. 93. This 4,500 sq. ft. space on 2 levels has exposed brick walls and abundant natural light from windows on 3 sides and comes with 12 parking spaces. Lease terms subject to build-out requirements and whether the property is leased wholly or subdivided.
Free Classes How to Buy and Sell at the Same Time for homeowners contemplating a move Monday, June 6th
6:30-7:45 pm
If trying to figure out the logistics of selling your home and buying a new one make 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.
How Individuals Can Buy Property Together as a Group: a primer for non-traditional homebuyers Tuesday, June 14th
6:30-7:45 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 in this class with a follow-up Q&A session. Lead by our team and a local real estate attorney.
What to Look for When You Buy—or Own—a House: advice from a home inspector Wednesday, May 18th
6:30-7:45 pm
Are there warning signs you should look for as a house hunter or homeowner? What regular maintenance do you need to do to prevent major problems? Led by a local home inspector, this class includes a 45-min presentation and 1/2 hour Q&A session. Handouts and refreshments provided.
To reserve space in any class, please email Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com. Admission is free, but we appreciate donations of canned goods or coats/gloves/hats for the Somerville Homeless Coalition. Also email Adaria@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com for future class dates.
Todd Zinn
Residential Sales Specialist, Realtor ® 617.852.1839 cell/text Todd@ThaliaTringoRealEstate.com
Niké Damaskos
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. Visit our office, 128 Willow Avenue, on the bike path in Davis Square, Somerville.
MAY | JUN 2016 ::: VOLUME 20 ::: SCOUTCAMBRIDGE.COM
contents 6 // EDITOR’S NOTE 8 // WINNERS & LOSERS Au revoir, Au Bon Pain. 10 // NEWS: VISIBILITY, INTERSECTIONALITY AND INCLUSIVITY The work of LGBTQ activists didn’t end with the right to marry. 12 // WHAT’S NEW? East Coast Grill is coming back, baby. 36 // SCOUT AND ABOUT Here’s where you can say hi to our staff this spring.
GET OUTSIDE
10
16 // LYNCH FAMILY SKATEPARK BUILDS A COMMUNITY ON WHEELS Whether you’re a boarder, a BMXer or a rollerblader, there’s a space for you in the city.
38 // SCOUT OUT: GETTING PAST MASS. AVE. Area eateries that are a little out of the way but well worth the trip. 40 // SCOUT’S HONORED Time to nominate your favorite local spots! 42 // CALENDAR 44 // MARKETPLACE 46 // SCOUT YOU
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18 // DOG DAY AFTERNOONS A guide to the area’s pup-friendly parks, paths and patios. 22 // SAFETY FIRST: CAN A “COMPLETE STREETS” POLICY PROTECT CYCLISTS AND PEDESTRIANS? More than 30,000 people are killed on American streets each year. Cambridge officials want to see that number shrink. 24 // A “BIBLIOBURRO” BECOMES A BOOK BIKE Two-wheeled travelers promote learning in the summer months. 28 // SPROUTING FROM STEEL A Central Square restaurateur takes farming into his own hands—in his own parking lot. 32 // MAKING CAMBRIDGE GREEN AGAIN Say, “Trees!”
Photo, top: The True Colors theater troupe provides a place for LGBTQ and questioning youth to express themselves—and have fun doing so. Photo by Jess Benjamin. Photo, bottom: Just some of the reading material available thanks to Cambridge Book Bike librarians. Photo by Lee Gjertsen Malone. On the cover: Taking a break during a mid-March skate session at Lynch Family Skatepark. Photo by Jess Benjamin.
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scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
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EDITOR’S NOTE
PUBLISHER Holli Banks hbanks@scoutmagazines.com EDITOR IN CHIEF Emily Cassel ecassel@scoutmagazines.com emilycassel.me DEPUTY EDITOR Katherine Rugg krugg@scoutmagazines.com
W
The Get Outside
hen we decided, way back in February, to make our feature: really, just May/June feature about getting outside, we knew an elaborate ploy to hang out with dogs we’d have to contend with that whole “April showers” for work. Photo by thing. And let me just tell you how many times we had to Jess Benjamin. reschedule this issue’s interviews and photo shoots around the rain: so many times. I know, I know. The only thing more painful than being strong-armed into small talk about the weather is having to read an editor’s note about it. Too bad. I don’t mind talking temperatures; in fact, I kind of like chatting about the rain, about humidity, about how ridiculous it is that we had snow in April. The weather is one of the things that binds every single person in a given geographical region together. It doesn’t matter if you’re a dog owner (p. 18), an urban farmer (p. 28) or even if you’re just running out to grab a bite to eat (p. 38). When it’s raining, we all reach for our waterproof jackets. When it’s sunny, we put on our shades. A springtime snowstorm makes nearly everyone—drivers, pedestrians and cyclists (p. 22) alike—groan. Anyway, a little precipitation wasn’t enough to stop the ol’ Scout team. We worked around the rain, checking the weather obsessively, and the photos on the following pages are sun-drenched, not soaking wet. All in all, we had a blast putting this magazine together, and we hope it will encourage you to get outside—to plant a tree (p. 32), check out the Book Bike (p. 14) or just take your dog for a walk. Weather permitting, of course.
OFFICE MANAGER Melinda LaCourse mlacourse@scoutmagazines.com ART DIRECTOR Nicolle Renick design@scoutmagazines.com renickdesign.com PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Jess Benjamin jbenjamin@scoutmagazines.com jsbenjamin.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Frederick Choi, Laura Quincy Jones, Lee Gjertsen Malone, Hannah Walters NEWS CORRESPONDENT Marisa Dellatto COPY EDITOR Joshua Eaton BANKS PUBLICATIONS c/o Scout Cambridge 191 Highland Ave., Ste. 1A Somerville, MA 02143
Emily Cassel, Editor in Chief ecassel@scoutmagazines.com
FIND US ONLINE
#ICYMI ONLINE-ONLY CONTENT FROM MARCH AND APRIL
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Office Phone: 617-996-2283 Advertising inquiries? Please contact Holli Banks at hbanks@scoutmagazines.com.
BYO BAG: The plastic bag ban is officially in effect. Luckily, you can buy stylish, reusable bags at a number of local shops. scoutcambridge.com/totes 6
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
MAN OF THE YEAR: Sean O’Connell is using Mario Kart, kickball and flip cup to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. scoutcambridge.com/LLS
CIRCULATION 40,000 copies of Scout Cambridge are printed bimonthly and are available for free at more than 250 drop spots throughout the city (and just beyond its borders). You can find a map of our pickup locations at scoutcambridge.com/pick-up-spots or sign up for home delivery by visiting scoutcambridge.com/shop.
LEAVING TOWN? We’d LOVE to help you go away!
Empty paper towel boxes from the supermarket and crumpled ‘Metros are a recipe for disaster – COME SEE US for the right materials to keep your stuff in one piece from here to there.
We can pack your stuff here or provide you with the materials and instructions for you to D.I.Y.
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True Home Partners: We Partner With You
LISA J. DRAPKIN
DEBBIE LEWIS
Mobile: 617-930-1288 Lisa.Drapkin@NEMoves.com
Mobile: 617-461-6797 Debbie.Lewis@NEMoves.com
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“Lisa engenders immediate trust, with a strong knowledge of the real estate market, great ideas for how to prepare for a sale, and an infinite network of connections to help you get the job done.”
NANCY M. DIXON REALTOR®
REALTOR®
LAURIE CRANE REALTOR®
Mobile: 617-866-8865 Laurie.Crane@NEMoves.com
Mobile: 617-721-9755 Nancy.Dixon@NEMoves.com “We were selling our family home after 61 years, and we had much to work through, both emotionally and physically. Nancy had all the resources we needed and was most generous with her time throughout the entire process.”
• A partnership of five full-time Coldwell Banker real estate professionals. • Full-time Transaction Manager. • Combined 65 years of experience.
DAVE WOOD REALTOR®
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• Honed negotiation skills. • Innovative marketing. • Intimate knowledge of current market conditions.
TrueHomePartners.com Call us to find out how we can partner to sell your home or find your next one. scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
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W&L WINNERS
LOSERS
2016 JAMES BEARD AWARD NOMINEES Of the Massachusetts-based chefs nominated for James Beard Awards this year, three hail from Cambridge, and all four are women. Shepard’s Susan Regis was nominated for Best Chef: Northeast, Maura Kilpatrick of Oleana got a nom for Outstanding Pastry Chef and Flour’s Joanne Chang was an Outstanding Baker nominee. Additional congrats to Karen Akunowicz of Joanne Chang’s restaurant Myers + Chang in Boston, who was also nominated for Best Chef: Northeast. Who run the world?
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS Given the legacy of Native American displacement and enslavement that followed Christopher Columbus’ journey across the Atlantic, should we still have a holiday dedicated to the explorer? That question was raised at a December 21 City Council meeting, and it resurfaced in March. According to Cambridge Day, councilors are considering replacing the holiday with a celebration of Italian-American heritage and introducing a separate Indigenous Peoples Day. Cambridge Day’s Marc Levy reports that at the December meeting, Mahtowin Munro, co-leader of United American Indians of New England, said, “We literally weep when we think of the genocidal cataclysm that began with Columbus and his men.”
OUR CREDIT SCORE For the 17th straight year, Cambridge earned a AAA rating from each of the nation’s three major credit rating agencies, which is great! The bad part, as Cambridge Day reports, is that the city’s long-term projects— especially school construction projects—are increasingly expensive and complicated. City Manager Richard Rossi explained in March that the city must be more and more selective about which infrastructural projects to complete. “I think some people may have the feeling Cambridge can do anything it wants,” Rossi said, according to Cambridge Day. “There is a limit, and that’s really what we have to talk about.” HARVARD’S CULTURE VULTURES Our local Ivy League institution has had itself quite the star-studded spring. Carrie Fisher dropped by in April to receive a lifetime achievement award from the Humanist Community at Harvard and the Harvard College Community of Humanists, Atheists and Agnostics. Questlove, of The Roots and Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon fame, also visited the school in mid-April to discuss his new book Something to Food About: Exploring Creativity with Innovative Chefs. And the celeb sightings don’t stop there—Parks and Recreation star Rashida Jones will be on campus May 28 to speak at the annual Class Day Celebration. In the words of Leslie Knope, “Ann, you poetic and noble land-mermaid.”
GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY “Cambridge leads its neighbors in arbitrary public records fees,” MuckRock’s Brian Sparks reported in April. Staffers at MuckRock, a news site that hopes to make politics more transparent by providing citizens with access to government documents, have noted that the city is less likely than other municipalities to waive the fees associated with public records requests. In 2014, for example, Cambridge assessed a fee of $54 to a request for dog registration data—information that Somerville supplied free of charge. AU BON PAIN FANS The iconic Au Bon Pain patio in Harvard Square—famous for its cameo in Good Will Hunting and beloved by locals who came to the bakery to snack, chat and play chess— is no more. After more than 30 years, that ABP location closed at the end of March to make way for renovations to Harvard’s Smith Campus Center and Forbes Plaza. Natalie Handy of the Cambridge Chronicle spoke with several locals who told her how much the plaza has meant to them and wondered where people could gather now. “A lot of older and disabled Cambridge residents come here to read, play chess or meet friends,” Cambridge’s Klaus Lowenstein told Handy. “There are not a lot of other places in the square to do that.”
Someone rustle your jimmies or tickle your fancy? Let us know at scoutcambridge.com/contact-us, and we just might crown them a winner or loser. 8
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
OUTSIDE, ONLINE Head to scoutcambridge.com for even more on the great outdoors.
GYOSTUFF A mom and pot—er, pop—shop in North Cambridge helps customers with all their hydroponic needs. scoutcambridge.com/gyostuff
A-PLUS A-FRAMES We talk sidewalk signage with some of our favorite local artists. scoutcambridge.com/aframes
RED LINE CAFE CRAWL Red Line experiencing severe delays? Just exit the station and head to your nearest coffee shop—we’ve rounded up options at each Cambridge T stop. scoutcambridge.com/cafecrawl
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
IMPROVBOSTON • 40 PROSPECT ST. CAMBRIDGE - IMPROV, SKETCH & STANDUP COMEDY + BEGINNER AND ADVANCED CLASSES, YOUTH PROGRAMS AND MORE! scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
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NEWS
True Colors youth have some fun during an April rehearsal.
VISIBILITY, INTERSECTIONALITY AND INCLUSIVITY LGBTQ Activism After the Right to Marry
“S
By Katherine Rugg Photo by Jess Benjamin
ay a black woman is an immigrant; she migrated here from Haiti. So she is a woman, she is black and she is an immigrant. Now there are three intersecting identities for which she can be discriminated [against]. And we haven’t even started talking about whether or not she is straight or gay.” Boston Black Pride board member Charlene Charles is explaining intersectionality—the ways in which multiple identities, from gender to race to sexual orientation, are present in just one individual. The idea is that the systems of oppression linked to those identities are interconnected; they cannot be examined separate from one another. Promoting this concept is a key focus for organizations like Black Pride, which aims to increase visibility, raise awareness and establish a community for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people of color who might otherwise feel disconnected from white LGBTQ culture. “And though we are Boston Pride, our reach is to the Greater Boston and Metro Boston surrounding areas,” Charles explains. (The group has held numerous events in Cambridge, including a recent screening of The Same Difference, a documentary about gender roles in the lesbian community, at Kendall Square Cinema.) In 2004, Cambridge became the first city in the nation to issue marriage certificates to same-sex couples. There have been major advancements in the 12 years since the legalization of these unions in Massachusetts, including the Supreme Court ruling almost a year ago that requires states to license and recognize same-sex marriages. But marriage equality doesn’t mark the conclusion to the fight for LGBTQ rights. Programs like Black Pride exist because the marginalized 10
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
members of the community, especially transgender people of color, continue to be underrepresented and at risk of both racialized and transphobic violence. “There is a great value in these organizations,” says Mayor Denise Simmons. “While Cambridge may be a very tolerant, inclusive city in 2016, we need to remember that this didn’t just happen because the calendar turned over. This is the result of generations of people working to raise awareness around issues of intolerance, of bigotry and exclusivity.” Boston Pride has itself come under fire from activists demanding a greater emphasis on intersectionality. Last year, an LGBTQ group interrupted the 45th Boston Gay Pride Parade by sitting in the middle of the route for 11 minutes—one minute for each trans person who was killed in the US in the first half of 2015. Prior to the sit-in, the activists released a statement addressing the disconnect between the successes of the marriage equality movement and the lack of resources available to trans people of color. “We are a group of black, Latin@, Asian and white people, queer and trans allies who are interrupting this annual party to declare that all our struggles are interconnected,” the statement read. “We won’t wait for the advances of the most privileged of our community to trickle down to the rest of us. We live in a society that has declared war on black people, women, immigrants, trans people, poor people and—at the intersection of all that—trans women of color.” For many, claiming more than one identity may not mean that they have multiple welcoming communities but rather that they have none
at all. It’s an awareness that’s spurring the efforts of both activists and arts-based organizations like The Theater Offensive, which strives to “present the diversity of [LGBTQ] lives in art so bold it breaks through personal isolation, challenges the status quo and builds thriving communities,” according to its mission statement. One of The Theater Offensive’s programs is its youth theater troupe, True Colors, which supports and provides a safe space for its LGBTQ or questioning members and their allies age 14-29. “Everything we do comes from a personal story told through theater,” explains Nick Bazo, associate director of programs and director of True Colors. “It’s the root of social change, and providing space to amplify those stories is quite literally what we do.” The troupe includes one transgender youth who experienced neighborhood violence, who was not accepted at home and had limited access to resources. “To watch this person not only transition to becoming a woman, but also transition to becoming an activist and an artist, has been so moving,” said Bazo. “From four or five years ago, seeing her
“While Cambridge may be a very tolerant, inclusive city in 2016, we need to remember that this didn’t just happen because the calendar turned over.” — Mayor Denise Simmons develop such strength and resilience … I’m proud of her and I’m proud that True Colors was a part of that journey.” True Colors’ unique approach caught the attention of filmmaker Ellen Brodsky, who profiled the troupe in her documentary The Year We Thought About Love, which received the “DIYDS” award from the Do It Your Damn Self National Youth Film Festival at the Community Art Center in Cambridge earlier this year. Brodsky and her crew went behind the scenes with this diverse group of LGBTQ youth, and her film tells the story of how they transform their personal struggles into theater for social change. According to Brodsky, a student once raised her hand during a screening of the documentary and said, “I don’t have any questions—just wanted to thank you. Watching your film is the first time I’ve seen two black women kiss on screen. So, thank you.” Increasing visibility and encouraging intersectionality remain key issues among activists in Greater Boston. “Every time I look at something, I’m looking at it through a very diverse cultural lens because, for me, that’s reality,” says Boston Black Pride’s Charlene Charles. There’s still plenty of work to be done; in many states, employers still have the right to fire staff members for being gay. Earlier this year, two black transgender women were killed within 24 hours of each other— one in Philadelphia, another in San Antonio. “Certainly, my very public identity as the city’s-slash-state’s-slashcountry’s first black, openly lesbian mayor is something that I am proud of and that I use to promote our tolerance and acceptance for people from all walks of life,” says Simmons, who also advocates for and supports local projects centered around intersectionality. “Certainly, our GLBT Commission and our periodic LGBT Town Hall Meetings are important initiatives that help spread these messages and help us take a reading of how far we’ve marched—and how far we have yet to go.” “Even if Cambridge is a shining example to other communities,” she adds, “we know that once you leave this community, there are other communities that have much more work to do.”
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WHAT’S NEW?
CAFE CULTURE HARVARD SQUARE
TATTE BAKERY
T
he Harvard Square Panera Bread (1228 Mass. Ave.) closed on February 29 to make way for a sixth Tatte Bakery location, much to the disappointment of bread bowl-loving Ivy Leaguers, who told the Harvard Crimson that they were, among other things, “horrified.” The newest Tatte location will have a full brunch menu Friday through Sunday and will host baking and cooking classes. (And, as Eater Boston pointed out, disappointed Harvard students can still get Panera soups and salads a full 1.2 miles down the road in Porter Square.) KENDALL SQUARE
EAST CAMBRIDGE
Barismo’s newest outpost, Barismo 295 (295 Third St.) is just about ready to fling open its doors and start serving your coffee. The renovations have wrapped up at the former home of Voltage Coffee & Art, according to Barismo’s website, but the spot can’t reopen until some lastminute construction and ventilation work is completed. Check @barismo295 for updates.
Coffee and puns are both near the top of the list of things we love, so we couldn’t be more pleased to hear that Haute Coffee from Concord, Mass., is expanding into Lechmere (1 Canal Park). The Concord shop serves homemade baked goods, fresh salads and snacks—even dog treats that are made in house. The shop’s second location could open by June.
BARISMO 295
NORTH CAMBRIDGE
HAUTE COFFEE
GOING GREEN
Ever considered getting solar panels for your property? A new city initiative called Sunny Cambridge wants to encourage residents to do just that by connecting homeowners with solar installers in the area. The city says that all property types can be accommodated and that the long-term financial savings are significant—and, of course, that solar power is better for the planet. You can learn more at sunnycambridge.org. 12
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
COMING SOON
CITY OFFICIALS
HARVARD SQUARE
SUNNY CAMBRIDGE
A North Cambridge sweet-slinging staple shuttered in April over issues of rent non-payment. Cambridge Day reports that Verna’s Coffee & Donut Shop (2344 Massachusetts Ave.), which opened in 1951, had its property seized after owner Richard Brunet failed to appear for a March 17 hearing over late rent. There’s no word from Brunet yet on Verna’s future.
AU REVOIR MEDICAL MARIJUANA
CITYWIDE
VERNA’S COFFEE & DONUT SHOP
A medical marijuana dispensary called Sage Cannabis has received approval from city council to occupy a belowground space at 1001 Mass. Ave. That building is outside the districts that were created in 2013 to allow for dispensaries, but in April, councilors voted 7-0 to rezone the property and allow Sage to move in. In early April, Cambridge Day reported that even developers who were once huffing and puffing about the proposed dispensary have changed their tune. Central Square landlord Patrick Barrett, who had initially opposed the space, said, “What they do is good work,” according to Cambridge Day. “I have no problem with where they’re going and what they’re doing.” Susan Flannery
A number of longtime Cambridge officials announced their departures in March and April. After three years as city manager and more than 45 years with the city of Cambridge, Richard Rossi said in March that he would not seek a contract extension. “As someone who grew up and went to public school in Cambridge, I am so proud that I have been able to play a role in helping my city—our city—become the great city that it is today,” he wrote in a statement to the city council’s Government Operations, Rules and Claims Committee. Police Commissioner Robert C. Haas will also retire at the end of May after nine years spent leading the department. And Cambridge Public Library director Susan Flannery, who held that position for more than two decades, retired on April 1. A big ol’ thanks to all for your years of service! Photo, top, courtesy of Tatte Bakery.
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FOOD TRUCKS FOR THE SUMMER SEASON
CAMBRIDGE CHRONICLE RELOCATES
The Scout staff is losing two great neighbors. The Cambridge Chronicle and Somerville Journal, which have long been located on Central Street—just down the road from our offices on Highland Avenue in Somerville—are moving out. “Due to changes in our business model and in technology, we find it makes sense to concentrate our staffs in fewer locations,” publisher Chuck Goodrich said, according to the Journal. The good news is that we’re not really losing a neighbor at all. As Goodrich added, “That’s not a difficult choice given the fact that technology today enables our journalists to be out in their communities more than ever.” He said that reporters will continue to work directly out of the cities they cover, filing stories remotely.
Your lunch options in Kendall Square will be the wheel deal this summer. From June 6 through October 14, food trucks will be parking at Third and Binney Street, according to a statement from the Cambridge Redevelopment Authority. “In May 2016, the CRA will undertake a series of interim improvements to the site to create seating areas, introduce plantings and build a special paved pad designed for two food trucks or other mobile food/beverage vendors,” the CRA said.
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Just steps from Davis & Porter Squares 2302 Mass. Ave. | Cambridge | 617.945.1170 fabolamail@gmail.com | fabola.net
CITYWIDE
BIKE PARKING MAP
We’re finally having great bike riding weather, which means you need a safe place to park your two-wheeled whip. Don’t forget that there’s a citywide bike parking map, available at cambridgema.gov and newly updated for 2016, that shows all public bike racks. If you spot a broken, damaged or missing rack—or if you’d just like to request a new one—you can file a report using seeclickfix.com or by emailing bikerack@cambridgema.gov.
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What’s New?
FOOD FOR THAW
Temperatures are heating up, and so is Cambridge’s dining scene. Here are just a few of the new eateries slated to open later this year. INMAN SQUARE
EAST COAST GRILL
That exploding sound your phone made on April 15? That was Twitter, Facebook—the entire internet, really—blowing up with the news that East Coast Grill will reopen this summer thanks to Mark Romano, who owns Highland Kitchen in Somerville. Romano told Eater Boston that he plans to keep the name, the concept and the focus on “big, spicy flavor,” but that he might expand the drink menu. “I think everybody was a little bummed out that East Coast Grill closed,” he told Eater. “We were kind of looking for another place as well.” HARVARD SQUARE
EN BOCA
It’s been a long and winding road for En Boca, which was initially slated to open in the old Sandrine’s Bistro space (8 Holyoke St.) last summer. According to Eater Boston, En Boca will eventually be serving up Mediterranean-inspired small plates, but there’s no timeline yet for the eatery.
KENDALL SQUARE
THE SMOKE SHOP
S
tep one: Go to thesmokeshopbbq.com. Step two: Salivate—actually salivate—while feasting your eyes on the site’s splash page, a minute-long video of wings, ribs, seafood and more being artfully prepared. The new eatery from Andy Husbands will open at 1 Kendall Sq. this May.
EAST CAMBRIDGE
BLAZE PIZZA
The Italian food answer to speedy eateries like Chipotle, Blaze Pizza will open a Cambridge location at 1 Canal Park this spring. We’re not kidding about the fast thing, either: Blaze’s pies cook in 180 seconds flat. KENDALL SQUARE
MAMALEH’S DELICATESSEN
Eater Boston says you can expect a “May-ish” opening for what will likely be your new favorite Jewish deli. The State Park and Hungry Mother (RIP) team has been working on this concept for years, and it’s finally 14
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
readying to open at 1 Kendall Sq. A sign on the building’s front door promises pastrami, bagels and lox, knishes, latkes, malted milkshakes—and, wonderfully, a full bar.
will be designed by New Yorkbased firm Bentel & Bentel, which also worked on the swanky NYC eateries Eleven Madison Park and Gramercy Tavern.
HARVARD SQUARE
LAMPLIGHTER BREWING CO.
CONDUCTOR’S BUILDING RESTAURANT
Love Island Creek Oyster Bar and Row 34 but don’t feel like crossing the river? Soon, you won’t have to— the team behind those restaurants is looking to open a new restaurant in the the Conductor’s Building at 2 Bennett St. Details are still scarce, but Eater Boston reports that the restaurant
AREA IV
We know, we know: A watched beer never brews. But we can’t stop monitoring Lamplighter’s social media accounts for signs of life as they convert the old garage at 284 Broadway into a beer lover’s haven. According to Instagram comments from late April, Lamplighter is hoping to be open for growler fills by mid-June, barring any further “construction surprises.”
PORTER SQUARE HOTEL
STEAKHOUSE
The Porter Square Hotel (1924 Massachusetts Ave.) opened up on May 1, and sometime in the not-too-distant future it should have something to offer more than just travelers. The Cambridge Chronicle reports that a steakhouse will eventually open in the hotel, honoring the memory of Zachariah Porter, who operated Porter’s Hotel in the late 1800s and coined the term “porterhouse steak.” “We’re going to tap into that history and open up the steakhouse to resurrect a very unique part of Cambridge history,” George Soderberg, vice president of the group that manages the hotel, told the Chronicle.
Photo, top, by Good Life Productions. Photo, bottom right, courtesy of Honeycomb Creamery.
CAMBRIDGESIDE GALLERIA
PIZZAREV
What’s that you say? You need more than one pizzeria that can cook your ‘za in three minutes or less? If Blaze Pizza doesn’t do it for ya, then consider PizzaRev, which will open at the CambridgeSide Galleria food court (100 Cambridgeside Pl.) this spring and lets you choose any number of their 30-plus toppings for one price. CENTRAL SQUARE
ROXY’S/A4CADE
Nothing goes together like 8-bit games and burgers— making the upcoming collaboration between Roxy’s Grilled Cheese and Area Four, Roxy’s/
A4cade (300 Mass. Ave.), pretty ideal. Surprisingly enough, Boston magazine reported in April that this dream duo’s decision to team up was something of a coincidence. James DiSabatino of Roxy’s and Area Four’s Michael Krupp decided to join forces when they realized they were eyeing the same real estate. “We both realized we were looking at the same space,” DiSabatino told Boston. “We had a conversation where I said, ‘If you don’t want to handle food … why don’t we come in and do something together?’ We’re perfect arcade food!” Their barcade should open up this summer.
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HONEYCOMB CREAMERY
T
he Cambridge-based small-batch “ice creamery and waffle conery” Honeycomb Creamery, which was founded by husband and wife Rory Hanlon and Kristen Rummel last year, is looking to move into a permanent storefront (1702 Mass. Ave.). “We’ll be churning 16 flavors of completely from-scratch, locally sourced ice cream,” Rummel tells us, “as well as baking and cooking a variety of different flavored waffle cones, toppings and pastries.” The duo got their approval from the city in April and are looking toward a late June opening.
EXPERIENCE. VA L U E . www.VisitGriffin.com scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
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GET OUTSIDE
LYNCH FAMILY SKATEPARK BUILDS A
COMMUNITY ON WHEELS
“A GOOD SKATEPARK SESSION IS LIKE THERAPY.” BY KATHERINE RUGG PHOTOS BY JESS BENJAMIN
T
he Lynch Family Skatepark doesn’t just provide the area’s skaters with 40,000 square feet of bowls, ramps and railings. Skateboarder Maya Volpacchio, age 18, loves the park’s layout. Its three bowls—essentially, empty swimming pools—of different sizes allow beginning skaters to start small, working their way up. She’s also a fan of the mini street section. “There’s a lot of variety,” Volpacchio says, “and the surface is really smooth. It’s fun to just cruise around.” Renata von Tscharner, president and founder of the Charles River Conservancy, is pleased by how well-received Lynch has been in the short time since its grand opening on Education Street in November. “The skatepark was designed and built by the best experts in the country,” she says. “Whenever you have really talented people working together, you end up with a wonderful product.” For skaters like Volpacchio, the park is more than a fun place to kill time on a Saturday afternoon. She and friend Bowie Lam, age 19, have discovered self confidence while skating at Lynch, as well as an encouraging network of female athletes. Lam builds connections with other skaters across the country through social media, and she’s met lots of local skaters at Lynch. She’s there four or five days a week, and she hopes to see more girls join her. “I hear girls say a lot that they don’t want to go to the skatepark because there are too many guys or they’re too intimidated,” says Lam. “But once when you love skateboarding enough, none of that stuff really matters anymore … and it doesn’t really matter how fast you progress, because as long as you’re having fun, that’s what’s important.” “I used to care so much about what other people would think about me when I was skateboarding,” Volpacchio adds. “But it’s not about what other people think about you. It’s about doing what you love and just pursuing it.” It’s that community building that has made Lynch such a valuable resource for 16
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the athletes of East Cambridge. The project was launched by the Charles River Conservancy, in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and with major funding support from the Lynch Foundation and Vans. After 15 years of effort from these organizations and others, the Lynch Family Skatepark is now the only mega complex park of its size and quality on the East Coast. “DCR’s Lynch Family Skatepark serves as an excellent example of state government and private partners working together to create a unique, outdoor recreational experience for the public to benefit from,” says Troy Wall, director of communications for the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation. “The results of this partnership will have a lasting effect on the skating community, as a whole, and we are proud to have the skatepark part of DCR’s portfolio.” Teens aren’t the only people taking a spin at the skatepark—for many, an afternoon at Lynch is a family affair. Skateboarder Gregg Hammerquist, along with his 7-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son, shows his love for Lynch by doing his part to keep the space clean and by teaching his children the importance of maintaining the park. “Without the tenacity of Renata von Tscharner and the Charles River Conservancy, this park would not exist,” says Hammerquist, who also appreciates the work of Vans—and of the individual skaters and BMXers who he says were involved in making the park a reality from day one. “A good skatepark session is like therapy,” says Mandi Marino, a Boston Roller Derby skater who has frequented Lynch over the last few months. “It’s really satisfying to see your growth, and it’s super exciting to finally land that trick you’ve been working on forever.” Marino, along with fellow skaters Emily Erdman and Caitlin Boag, created the Boston chapter of Chicks in Bowls, a movement that started out as just a handful of rollerskaters taking over skateparks in New Zealand. According to Erdman, the community that Chicks in Bowls creates has been important because it brings women into a space where they may not feel like they belong, and it pushes them to try something new while they’re there. As Cambridge residents, Marino and Erdman didn’t have many local options for skateparks before Lynch opened. “There are a few parks spread out over the Boston area,” Marino says. “But for the most part, they are really small and in poor condition.” Before Lynch was completed, she and Erdman had to drive nearly an hour outside of the city to find a decent park. Both Erdman and Marino have worked hard, not only to hone their own skills, but also to create a network of athletes here in the city—one that welcomes new skaters and encourages them to have fun and challenge themselves. In the short time since its grand opening, the Lynch Family Skatepark has provided a space for a growing community of skaters and riders of all ages and skill levels. Hammerquist grew up skating and is able to spend Saturdays at Lynch with his kids thanks to the park’s “wheel friendly” policy, which welcomes skateboards, scooters, roller skates, roller blades, bikes and wheelchairs. His son, Luke, likes being able to meet new BMXers during these family skatepark sessions, since Lynch brings in people from all over the area. “As a father who skates, who has a son who’s an avid BMXer and a daughter who skates, being able to come here … all of us can enjoy
what we do together,” Hammerquist explains. That’s exactly what von Tscharner of the Charles River Conservancy had hoped for in the 15 years spent planning and building the park. She always wanted Lynch to be an urban hub open to everyone. “It was absolutely crucial to us that Lynch be free to the public,” she says. “I go on a regular basis and see it being used by people of all ages and abilities. Everyone really seems to enjoy being with each other and learning from each other in this space, and I think that’s really powerful.” scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
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GET OUTSIDE
Dog Day
s n oo n r Afte YOUR GUIDE TO THE CITY’S PUP-FRIENDLY PARKS, PATHS AND PATIOS
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May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
Photo by Lee Gjertsen Malone.
BY LEE GJERTSEN MALONE
C
ambridge’s human population isn’t the only one that’s growing—the number of canine companions in the city is increasing as well. As of 2015, there were 3,262 dogs licensed in Cambridge, according to Mark W. McCabe, director of the Cambridge Animal Commission. He estimates there are actually as many as 4,500 dogs living in the city. That’s an awful lot of dogs—where can they go? Cambridge has plenty of outdoor spaces, including two parks with completely off-leash, dog-friendly dedicated areas: one in Danehy Park and another at the Pacific Street Park. But there are also a number of shared off-leash facilities where dogs can roam freely along with other park users. The largest of these is Fresh Pond Reservation, which is hugely popular, and for good reason. The park has a 2.25mile path that circles the reservoir. On a nice day you’ll find lots of locals running, walking and biking with their furry friends. You’ll also find dogs taking a dip in Lily Pond, where canine swimming is allowed—though it’s important to note that only dogs that are licensed in Cambridge are allowed to be off-leash in the park. (And yes, the rangers do check.) While it’s one of the most popular parks, Fresh Pond isn’t the only one that allows dogs off-leash. Fort Washington Park on Waverly Street in Cambridgeport also lets visiting dogs run free. And several parks—including Gold Star Mothers Park, GreeneRose Heritage Park, Hoyt Field, Raymond Park/Corcoran Field and Joan Lorentz Park—allow dogs off-leash on a limited basis from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. There are often areas where dogs are not permitted, including the playgrounds, so it’s important to check the signs in any particular park before you bring your dog. The outdoor fun isn’t limited to specialized dog parks. Though four-pawed friends must be leashed at all times unless signs say otherwise, the walking paths along the Charles River are popular with dog owners, as are most other city parks. And on Sundays from the end of April through mid-November, Memorial Drive between Western Avenue and South Auburn Street is closed to cars but open to pretty much everyone else: walkers, bikers, runners and, yes, leashed dogs. Shopping and dining out are two fun warm weather activities that aren’t usually thought of as dog-friendly, but Cambridge does have a few options. Many area farmers markets welcome dogs on leashes, and a few restaurants allow dogs at their outdoor seating areas. Dot Baisly, behavior and enrichment manager at the Animal Rescue League of Boston, says the best strategy for finding out if a dog is allowed somewhere is to just ask politely—though it’s not a foolproof way to get Fido inside. “For many retail stores, dogs are not allowed,” she adds, “and I don’t even bother to ask unless a sign is in place stating that pets are welcome.“ One restaurant popular with dog owners is the Cambridge Brewing Company in Kendall Square, where servers will even bring bowls of water to dogs sitting with their human friends on the patio. “We don’t have an official set of rules, per se, but dogs that are happy to hang out under or near a table with their beerloving humans are totally cool in our book,” Laura Peters, general manager of the restaurant, says. Of course, before you and Fido hit the town, there are some things to consider.
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scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
19
Get Outside
Dogs are a great way to meet people—just ask Pepper the Miniature Australian Shepherd, who was making all kinds of friends at this year’s Spring Classic 5K. Photo by Emily Cassel.
“I always tell clients to stop and ask themselves one question before taking their dog anywhere: Will this stress my dog out?” - Dot Baisly
“The most important thing to keep in mind when taking a dog in public is simply the dog’s stress level,” says Baisly. “I always tell clients to stop and ask themselves one question before taking their dog anywhere: Will this stress my dog out?” On top of keeping your dog on a short leash, she recommends assessing public places for how crowded and loud—and potentially overwhelming—they could be for your pup. Since taking your dog out to enjoy the city means that they will be interacting with other people and canines, that can sometimes 20 May | June 2016
scoutcambridge.com
lead to tense situations, especially with children. “Kids should always be told from any adult possible to not approach dogs without asking the owner first,” Baisly suggests. “I politely tell any child that they must ask my permission before petting my dogs; this is for their own safety.” And if you own one of those 1,000 or so dogs that the Animal Commission’s McCabe says aren’t licensed? The city hopes that a new program allowing residents to license dogs online will increase the number of owners who do so, as they are, again, required by law. Head to cambridgema.gov/doglicense to register your pup.
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DOG-FRIENDLY DINING Want to bring your furry pal along for a meal? There are plenty of local restaurants that welcome canine diners at their patios and beer gardens.
HARVARD SQUARE
Charlie’s Kitchen | 10 Eliot St. Grendel’s Den | 89 Winthrop St. The Red House | 98 Winthrop St. (Allows dogs “on the smaller side,” according to an employee.)
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CENTRAL SQUARE The Middle East | 472-480 Mass. Ave. (“Especially when the dogs are friendlier than some people,” jokes a staffer who shall remain anonymous.) Thelonious Monkfish | 524 Mass. Ave. 1369 Coffee House | 757 Mass. Ave.
PORTER SQUARE Hi-Rise Bread Company | 1663 Mass. Ave. Temple Bar | 1688 Mass. Ave.
NORTH CAMBRIDGE Jose’s | 131 Sherman St. Gran Gusto | 90 Sherman St. Frank’s Steak House | 2310 Mass. Ave. (“As long as they’re well-behaved!”)
amortondesign.com 617.894.0285 info@aMortonDesign.com scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
21
GET OUTSIDE
SAFETY FIRST
CAN A “COMPLETE STREETS” POLICY PROTECT CYCLISTS AND PEDESTRIANS?
W
BY EMILY CASSEL PHOTO BY GRETCHEN ERTL
hen Cambridge kicked off its second round of participatory budgeting last year, giving citizens the opportunity to vote on how $600,000 in public funds were allocated, there were lots of flashy potential projects on the ballot: free wifi and solar-powered charging benches in area parks, a block party trailer and interactive technology for the library’s main branch. But when the votes were tallied and the projects finalized, four of the seven winning proposals fell into the “really important but kind of boring” category. Constituents opted to improve signage for cyclists on Mass. Ave. and to build designated bike lanes separated from traffic. They also voted to paint green bike lanes in Central and Inman Squares and to install a signal priority system that speeds up the #1 bus. Clearly, Cambridge residents are concerned with issues of transportation infrastructure—a fact that isn’t lost on Brooke McKenna, assistant director for street management in the Department of Traffic, Parking and Transportation. “People in Cambridge are very interested in having a safe, sustainable city, and that includes the transportation system,” McKenna says. “I think we’ve been kind of ahead of the curve—and the people of 22
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
Cambridge have been kind of ahead of the curve—in terms of really valuing safe, sustainable transportation pretty early in the game.” And the city council is listening. On March 21, councilors unanimously passed resolutions to formally adopt Vision Zero and Complete Streets policies, two programs aimed at improving transit for all users. Complete Streets are those constructed in a way that provides safe access to all users by ensuring that roadways have features like bike lanes, sidewalks, pedestrian signals and medians in addition to lanes for cars. Vision Zero, first introduced in Sweden in the 1990s, takes that one step further by providing a strategy to eliminate all trafficrelated fatalities and severe injuries. Cambridge is only the 17th city in the country to adopt Vision Zero, a “cross-disciplinary collaboration” that brings together everyone from city planners and engineers to policymakers and police officers. “Vision Zero is a great way to articulate exactly what your goal is beyond just saying that you want safe transportation for all ages and abilities,” McKenna explains. “What exactly is safe transportation? It’s doing everything we can possibly do to prevent serious injuries and deaths.”
Cambridge already has a host of policies in place designed to improve roadways, encourage sustainable transit and protect vulnerable users. The Vehicle Trip Reduction Ordinance was adopted in the early ‘90s, once again putting the city ahead of the curve. The Five-Year Street and Sidewalk Reconstruction Plan, introduced last year, was laid out using a Complete Streets framework, as was the Cambridge Bicycle Plan, which was formally adopted in October. Last spring, the city launched Safe Routes to School, which encourages students to safely walk and bike to and from class. McKenna explains that committing to Vision Zero and Complete Streets will bring together these existing policies, and many others, and will encourage city departments like transportation to work with departments that might not be directly connected to transit issues, such as the police department and the department of public health. She says that in Cambridge, city departments already work closely together, but that committing to Complete Streets and Vision Zero builds off of and formalizes those relationships. And this won’t happen in a bubble—there’s a public and educational component tied into these programs as well. Assistant City Manager Iram Farooq adds that this comprehensive look at transportation safety will allow for a more data-driven approach. For example, the city will map crash sites to pinpoint dangerous
“
People in Cambridge are very interested in having a safe, sustainable city, and that includes the transportation system.” — Brooke McKenna
intersections and prioritize those streets for redesign. Whether or not a crash resulted in injury, police records usually show exactly what people were doing when it occurred—turning, continuing straight, crossing the street. Working with police, city planners can begin to identify patterns. Maybe, for example, cyclists are continually being struck by cars making right turns at a given intersection. “From there, we can develop an action plan that looks at all of the data and gives us a path toward greater safety,” Farooq says. In many ways, Cambridge is already a bike- and pedestrian-friendly place. Local surveys have found that between 7 and 9 percent of residents commute to work by bicycle, and for every 100 households in the city, there are approximately 150 bikes. The city has a Walk Score of 87, putting it in “very walkable” territory. But it isn’t perfect, either; last March, Cambridge resident Marcia Deihl was killed after being struck by a truck while riding her bicycle. Just this past February, a Cambridge police officer was placed on administrative leave after he was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run with a cyclist. “There’s always room for improvement,” McKenna says. “One death or serious accident is too many.” And don’t worry, car owners: The city isn’t coming for your parking spaces. McKenna acknowledges that different people have different transportation needs, and adds that, when implemented correctly, these changes will benefit pedestrians, cyclists and drivers. “The more that we build the bike network, and the more that we make our streets safer for pedestrians and users of all ages, the more attractive the changes become to everybody,” she explains. “As we make these really positive changes, it becomes more a part of the fabric of the city.”
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GET OUTSIDE
” o r r u b o i l b i A “B Becomes a
Book Bike 24
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
BY LEE GJERTSEN MALONE
B
ikes and parks have long been a source of summertime fun for kids—and one dedicated group of Cambridge volunteers wants to make sure books are an equally important part of that equation. The Cambridge Book Bike, which launched in 2014, brings new, free books to children throughout the city during the summer months. Book Bike coordinators invite kids of all ages to area parks, where they can work on craft projects, listen to stories read by librarians and other volunteers and leaf through new favorites they then get to take home. The current program is a joint initiative of the Agenda for Children, the Center for Families and the Cambridge Public
Photo, top left: Courtesy of the Cambridge Book Bike on Facebook. Photo, right: Story time! Photo by Lee Gjertsen Malone.
Library. But it was originally the brainchild of one local school librarian, Liz Phipps Soeiro of the Cambridgeport School. After Phipps Soeiro read a book to her elementary school students about a Colombian man named Luis Soriano who created a traveling library—a “biblioburro”—on the back of a pair of donkeys, she realized a similar program would work here in Cambridge. “What an enchanting way to instill a love of reading,” she says. “I wanted to do something similar for my own community.” With some help from friends and funding from local organizations, she built a set of shelves for a bike and launched the program in Greene-Rose Heritage Park. Since then, the program has added a second bike and
scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
25
Get Outside
expanded to include visits to Hoyt Field, Danehy Park, Gold Star Mothers Park and Russell Field, reaching hundreds of children each summer. In most parks, the bike’s visits are coordinated in a partnership with the Cambridge Summer Food Program, which provides free lunches to the city’s children and families. “When dreaming of the book bike, our hope was to share the joy of books and reading with children outside of a school environment,” Phipps Soeiro explains. “Many students are only exposed to books and reading in a prescribed and didactic way, but we know that when children have choice and quality books to choose from, that is where the magic happens.” The Book Bike provides “such a fun atmosphere,” adds Michelle Godfrey, director of the Center for Families at the Cambridge Department of Human Services Programs. “It’s magic when all those kids see the rider arrive.” In addition to handing out free books, the events feature volunteer readers who share up to five books a session, an area set aside for children who want to read quietly and one or more art activities, usually related to the theme of the books being read. The Book Bike synchronizes its park visits with the Summer Food Program, but its services are available to every kid in the city, not only those who get free lunches during the school year. In addition to the books, activities and meals provided by these groups, Godfrey says that the staff is a wealth of information on resources throughout the city. If a parent has concerns about, for example, childcare options, Book Bike volunteers can point him or her in the right direction. 26
May | June 2016 scoutcambridge.com
The books themselves are carefully selected by a committee of nine, who spend hours poring over options to find books that accurately reflect the Cambridge community. That means tracking down titles written in languages other than English—it also means finding books that are interesting and enticing to the children who visit the parks. “We’re putting literature in the hands of young kids, and we hope that we have some influence on the summer slide and that we get kids reading more,” Godfrey says. The “slide” she’s referring to is a welldocumented trend where many students—especially those already struggling in school—slide backwards in reading, math and other skills during the summer months. Recreational reading is one way that kids can avoid falling behind over the summer. And although there are plenty of reading options at Book Bike events, Godfrey says that the focus is not on giving kids summer homework. Instead, the idea is to let children pick their own books, “giving kids books they actually want to read, not always what their parents think is the most important.” A number of people have offered to donate used books to the program, but Phipps Soeiro says that, from the beginning, she wanted to give out new books, not lend books or hand out used donations. “Lots of kids have no books, so owning your own book is really important,” Godfrey explains. Having an unused book to call their own is a unique experience for some of the children who visit the Book Bike. “I think it’s more than just giving out books, more than just giving out free lunches,” says Godfrey. “It’s really meeting families where they are.” Photos courtesy of the Cambridge Book Bike on Facebook.
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27
GET OUTSIDE
SPROUTING FROM STEEL FOUR BURGERS GOES FREIGHT FARM BY HANNAH WALTERS PHOTOS BY EMILY CASSEL
A
40-foot stainless steel box with orderly rows of plastic tubes and an aura of violet light—this isn’t one of the idyllic farms that make up patches in the quilt of the American midwest. But for a parking lot in Central Square, it’ll do. And then some. Four Burgers (704 Mass. Ave.), a burger joint with an eight-year residence in the square, just got itself a Freight Farm—a refurbished refrigerated shipping container outfitted with computers, pumps, lights and all the components of a hydroponic system. Freight Farms is a six-year-old startup based out of the Seaport, and they say that their product is “the next generation of food supply.” There’s little to no waste, no pests (or pesticides), barely any soil—and virtually no environmental variables to contend with. “Watch for the hose,” warns Four Burgers owner Michael Bissanti as we walk through his kitchen towards the back door of the restaurant. Indeed, a hose coils down from the faucet of an industrial kitchen sink, snaking out the back door and into the farm. Thanks to its white paint job and bright green logo, the shipping container-turned-farm stands out against a backdrop of speckled concrete and the brick perimeter of Four Burgers’ rear lot. The rumble of Mass. Ave. gives way to the
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hum of water pumps and a refrigeration unit as Bissanti steps inside the Freight Farm—which is nestled about 10 feet from the restaurant’s back entrance—and closes the door. Inside, a stainless steel table is lined with shelves where Bissanti has perched black plastic trays of soil pods with seedlings. They’re waiting to be planted inside white plastic towers that extend from floor to ceiling, side-by-side one another along the length of the container. Together, these towers make up several aisles of vertically growing greens inside the freight farm. Filtered water mixed with plant nutrients drips down from the ceiling into the tops of the towers. The water percolates through the pillars, nourishing every leafy green along the way. The produce sprouts through a long, narrow opening running up and down each column. Looking down the aisle, it’s as if you’re inside a corridor of edible, green wall art. Kale, mustard greens and various kinds of lettuce grow vertically, one on top of each other. Strings of violet lightbulbs encased in a clear plastic tube dangle down from the ceiling, running down the middle of each aisle of towers. “Four Burgers is the first restaurant solely operating their farm,”
says Freight Farms community manager Caroline Katsiroubas. Most other small businesses, she explains, are buying their Freight Farms produce from independent Freight Farmers who may be dealing their crops to multiple clients. But Bissanti has the space—and the support of the Cambridge community—which has made it easy for him to control his own supply. “I was having lunch with my friend Heather [Onstott], who is the CFO at Freight Farms, and she was telling me about the product … and I thought, ‘That’s really cool,’” he says. Within a few weeks, he had brought up the idea of installing a Freight Farm with his fellow Central Square business community members. “[I found] tons of support from everyone I spoke to, but that’s Cambridge … everyone is so proactive,” Bissanti adds. In December, he parked his farm in the restaurant’s rear lot, with the city and his neighbors in full support. Bissanti says he was drawn to Freight Farms for both business and ethical reasons. “You’re constantly looking for ways to differentiate
FREIGHT FARMS DOES LOCAL HYPERBOLICALLY— A TEN-FOOT-COMMUTE KIND OF LOCAL. yourself as a business. What are you doing to stay relevant?” he explains. “Local sourcing is a big thing for us.” Indeed, Freight Farms does local hyperbolically—a ten-foot-commute kind of local. Inside the Freight Farm, Bissanti moves up and down the aisles of sprouting towers with a self-assured ease. He has each pillar labeled with the type of produce and the date it was planted. He shows me the water pump and filtration system. “The water and lights are on 18 hours a day,” he explains, which makes the Freight Farm an optimal growing environment for plants. It’s as if it’s the summer solstice every day of the year—minus all the unpredictable pests and weather events that could kill a harvest. The violet lights are the ideal balance between red and blue light, encouraging photosynthesis. Freight Farms is all about farming smart— when the container is planted to capacity, Bissanti says the yield will be comprable to that of a two-acre farm. While Bissanti wouldn’t call himself a farmer, the vocation is in his lineage. His grandfather owned a farm—the traditional kind—and he spent summers there during his youth. Decades later, Bissanti finds himself walking up and down a 15-foot aisle, checking on rows of vertical greens that sprout from an automated hydroponic system in a second-use shipping container. “We pride ourselves on opening up farming to all different background … you don’t have to have an agricultural background,” Katsiroubas says. Many Freight Farmers are retired professionals or veterans—some even came from Wall Street. For Bissanti, the learning curve was fairly short. “[Freight Farms] walks you through what to do on a daily basis, which really isn’t much,” he says. “I want to say I’m in [the farm] 10 hours a week, maybe.” Once the wheels are in motion, most of the farm’s growing parameters are kept constant by the system’s computers. Bissanti can control the environmental and water settings remotely using his smartphone. Once Bissanti’s farm is planted to capacity, he’ll be able to produce
NIGHT MARKET H A RVA R D S Q U A R E R ESTAU R A N T
BEER WINE SAKE SKEWERS NOODLES VEGGIES
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Get Outside
enough greens for his restaurant and make food donations to Club Passim, where he’s the food and beverage director. Until then, he’s been filling the gap with greens from his traditional produce supplier. And he says there’s no comparison between those greens and the ones harvested from the Freight Farm. “When you cut [produce] and then process it, and then put it in a bag, and then put it in a truck, and then send it to a produce guy … and then put it on another truck … stuff just goes to hell,” Bissanti explains. Once you’ve tasted produce that was harvested mere hours before you ate it, he insists, you’ll know the difference. We’re not kidding—this thing is in the heart of Central Square.
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IT’S AS IF YOU’RE INSIDE A CORRIDOR OF EDIBLE, GREEN WALL ART. The cost of a Freight Farm? Katsiroubas quotes $82,000 as the purchase price and says annual operating costs range from $8,000 to $16,500. Bissanti says his monthly energy bill is about $700, which he finds reasonable. And if the initial price tag seems a little high, Bissanti believes that in the long run, Four Burgers will save money by growing its own veggies. The restaurant’s bill from a conventional produce supplier—for greens alone—hovers at around $30,000 a year. Bissanti’s major marketing initiatives and menu changes postFreight Farms are currently in the works, but he speaks about his farming future with a sense optimism, contentment and confidence. “If [the farm] goes well,” he says, “I’ll get another one. I’ll stack them one on top of the other!”
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GET OUTSIDE
MAKING CAMBRIDGE GREEN AGAIN BY LAURA QUINCY JONES
ARCHIVAL PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE CAMBRIDGE HISTORICAL COMMISSION
E
ver seen one of those old 19th century photos of Cambridge? Back then, city streets were lined with huge elms and maples, their branches arching over the same paths we still walk today. But by the early 20th century, archival photos show not a tree in sight along many of the city’s thoroughfares. Instead, the roadways of this
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industrializing area were lined with storefronts and tram cars, with factories looming in the distance. Today, trees are a subject of renewed enthusiasm for the city, with residents and neighborhood groups interested in re-arboring Cambridge and keeping this urban forest healthy.
Salt& O live
CITY ARBOR-WORKS
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he vision of “a vigorous tree canopy throughout the whole city” is what motivates Florrie Wescoat, co-chair of Cambridge’s Committee on Public Planting. She and her colleagues know that trees are a critical part of the local ecology—they help combat the urban heat island effect and provide habitats for local wildlife, preserving a diversity of species. But Wescoat says that there are parts of the city where it’s hard to grow any trees at all due to dense building, traffic and other environmental conditions. The city’s approach is to improve conditions by minimizing factors like road salt and pollution. They work with both contractors and residents to maintain good health for new and existing trees and to choose hearty species that can survive in an urban environment. Cambridge’s City Arborist, David Lefcourt, explains that there are a number of scenarios that lead to the planting of new trees. Sometimes, the city is replacing old ones that were lost due to disease or weather damage. Other times, a construction project provides a planting opportunity. Lefcourt and his team will scout out potential planting sites, and often, residents request trees. A city initiative called the Back of Sidewalk Planting program lets eligible property owners request that the city plant a tree on private land within 20 feet of the sidewalk. All of this amounts to a good deal of planting. In 2015, Lefcourt’s team planted 500 new trees throughout the city. Finding a diverse collection of tree species that will thrive in their urban New England environment is a key part of Lefcourt’s job. It’s a lot to ask of a tree to put up with confined growing spaces, soil compaction, road salt, pollution from cars, heavy pedestrian and bike traffic, heat from the sidewalk and minimal biodiversity, so species resiliency is essential. And Lefcourt can’t stick with just a few winners—he aims for diversity of species to guard against massive losses due to pest or disease. Thinking ahead to warming climate conditions, he chooses some varieties from mid-Atlantic states that may have better longevity in Cambridge in the future. Still, native trees remain crucial for providing habitat and biodiversity of bird, insect and microfloral species. Lefcourt counts the few native types that typically do well in urban environments as an important part of the city’s tree portfolio. New, city-planted trees are now a relatively familiar sight, but it’s still a challenge for those little guys to survive their first few years. It takes a community to cultivate an environment, and these trees are all of ours to steward. That’s why the city has a few programs in place designed to help maintain new plantings and encourage resident involvement. Through the Junior Forester program, local children ages 5-13 can adopt and care for a newly planted tree in
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SO, HOW DO I KEEP THAT TREE HEALTHY? Local landscaper and gardener Ned Wise has more than a few tips for planting and maintaining trees—no green thumb or horticulture degree required!
FIND THE RIGHT TREE, ONE THAT’S WELLSUITED TO YOUR ENVIRONMENT AND NEEDS. Wise says that red maples, white and red oaks and small ornamentals that will mature rapidly are winners around here. “Fruit trees are good fun, too,” he adds.
CONTROL WHAT’S HAPPENING UNDER THE GROUND SURFACE.
Soil compaction can severely stress trees and prevents roots from spreading, so mixing and breaking up soil is a must. Underground gas leaks will suffocate trees from the roots, which means that finding and stopping leaks is crucial; they can usually be identified by smell or by chronically dying foliage. Before planting, try dipping your tree’s root ball in a micorrhizal inoculant. It sounds fancy, but these are just tiny fungal filaments that help roots absorb more nutrients and allow the tree to acclimate to its new microbial community underground.
MANAGE WATER AROUND THE TREE.
Impermeable sidewalks divert rainwater and prevent it from reaching tree roots; permeable sidewalks, including paving stones and new surface materials like porous asphalt, are a better bet.
HAVE A BUDGET AND PLAN FOR PROPER PRUNING AND CARE OF THE TREE FOR THE FIRST FIVE YEARS.
Along with watering the trees you care for, Wise suggests using a compost tea as a fertilizer, which you can make by steeping compost in water. Harvard research supports compost teas—the university even uses them as a component of their organic care of Harvard Yard.
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Get Outside
A LEAFY HISTORY
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lenty of famous folks—from E. E. Cummings to Ben Affleck—have called the People’s Republic home. But the city also has also housed a number of famous trees. Perhaps the most legendary of Cambridge’s superlative trees was the Washington Elm on the Cambridge Common. That tree is long gone, but it was mythical in its time. According to local legend, this was where George Washington took control of the American Army. (As sticklers for historical accuracy will tell you, there’s no specific recorded event involving Washington and that tree.) There’s the Houghton Beech (1008 Mass. Ave.), the city’s only living historical landmark, and the Longfellow Linden (105 Brattle St.), a tree nearly 200 years old that rests on the former home of the poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. And then, there’s the Winnie the Pooh House at 17 Hurlbut St., a delightful bit of whimsy and craftsmanship from local artist Mitch Ryerson. Early Cambridge Chronicle articles find writers swooning over pear trees blossoming in the moonlight and locals reminiscing about playing in the Old Pine Woods on Prospect Street, north of Broadway, where they dug for tomahawk arrows. In the 1800s, large swaths of forest and marshland separated Cambridge neighborhoods. For much of the century, the largest orchard and nursery in New England stood where the Cambridge Hospital now rests. On the corner of Linnaean and Garden Streets, Asa Gray, a respected Darwinist considered by many to be the foremost botanist of the 19th century, operated a renowned botanical garden. The extension of Harvard Street from the university east through then-wilderness was opposed by Judge Dana, who owned the land, and a rogue midnight party constructed a house in the middle of the path to block growth. And in the late 1990s, the Emerald Necklace Conservancy was founded, resulting in an explosion of green that flourishes today.
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their neighborhood—even outfitting the tree with a special name tag—while learning about trees and their care. Elena Saporta, landscape architect and board member of Green Cambridge, a group of residents working on environmental and climate issues, says out that two city-planted trees appeared on her block at the same time, one with a Junior Forestry tag. “The one cared for by the kid really took off,” she cheers, emphasizing that even the youngest Cantabrigians can make the city greener. Water by Bike is another community-based city program, a five-year-old initiative that finds three interns with bike trailers toting 300-foot hoses that they attach to fire hydrants and use to water new trees. Young street trees in the city get green “gator bags,” bladder bags at the base of the trunk that can be filled with a hose and slowly drip water to the tree. The bags now have tags explaining their purpose, and door tags and literature are distributed to neighborhoods when new plantings are made. The city’s Urban Forestry Division guarantees that all new plantings will have basic in-house maintenance for at least two years and that all city trees get pruned by contractors once every six years. The importance of “a supportive community that loves trees” can’t be overstated, says Lefcourt, nor can “anything residents can do to help young trees get off to a good start.”
GRASSROOTS TREE STEWARDSHIP
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ongtime Cambridge resident and current Green Cambridge vice president John Pitkin takes a long view, putting a challenge to citizens. “If we really want to re-arbor Cambridge, there needs to be a cadre of citizens who think of themselves and act as tree
stewards, people who roll up their sleeves and do the watering, planting, pruning and work with the city. The city can provide leadership and education, so citizens can be a part of it.” Pitkin advocates for the big picture in all regards. “There’s a public perception that trees are like big potted plants—not true,” he says. “The tree is the entire tree, roots to tip of leaves. Trees are connected to one another in a kind of urban forest, a community of trees that sustain humans and other species.” Pitkin’s view is shared by Cambridge Trees, a group within Green Cambridge that welcomes participants, volunteers, staff and donors to help with local tree-planting projects, primarily on private property. The initiative formed because, as organizer Susan Labandibar points out, “Trees need friends.” “Cities and towns usually have an arborist or a tree warden, but it’s really not enough,” she says. “They’re constantly being asked to take down trees, plant new trees, manage invasive species and weather, road salt, aging trees. It’s endless.” As private citizens, Labandibar and her colleagues are excited to be “friends of the urban forest,” and they look for tree-related projects that need neighborly attention. Cambridge Trees’ first project will be giving residents an opportunity to order small, native, bare-root trees that typically have a high success rate and can be planted by an amateur in their yard. Planting a tree is “kind of like having a baby,” Labandabar says. “It takes a lot of care.” She proposes that neighbors get together and establish a watering plan for city-planted trees, or even make a “tree plan” for the neighborhood.
“If we really want to re-arbor Cambridge, there needs to be a cadre of citizens who think of themselves and act as tree stewards, people who roll up their sleeves and do the watering, planting, pruning and work with the city. - Green Cambridge Vice President John Pitkin
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Labandibar says it’s not enough to simply replace old trees. “The life of street trees is typically short. If we care about long-term tree stewardship, we have to care for our heritage forest,” she explains. She has her personal favorite oldie-but-goodie: the craggly Ancient Maple in Longfellow Park. It inspires her to wonder, “Why did these very old trees live so long?” That level of engagement with and concern for our urban environment is what helps it thrive—and what makes it fun to share.
Information Sessions May 19th, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. June 14th, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. 1000 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge RSVP - info@cambridgecollege.edu
CambridgeCollege.edu | 1.800.829.4723
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It’s time to play favorites. NOMINATIONS ARE NOW OPEN FOR OUR 2016 SCOUT’S HONORED AWARDS. THIS IS YOUR CHANCE TO SHOUT OUT YOUR FAVORITE BIKE SHOP, BURGER JOINT, BARTENDER AND MUCH, MUCH MORE.
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HA BEST MEC T SPOT NIGH E T A D T S BE RVICE E S G N I K WAL BEST DOG ISTA BEST BAR 36 May | June 2016
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SCOUT OUT!
GETTING PAST MASS. AVE. By Frederick Choi
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very city has its thoroughfares, places where restaurants are plentiful, nightlife is booming and crowds throng the sidewalks. In Cambridge, we have Mass. Ave., which wends its way from south of Boston through the heart of our city, snaking past MIT and Harvard, cutting through North Cambridge and continuing to Arlington and beyond. But outside of this artery, you’ll find some of the city’s best restaurants tucked away on side streets, away from the hustle and bustle—often just steps away from more heavily-trafficked areas.
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Iggy’s
iggysbread.com 130 Fawcett St. Who doesn’t love a good bakery? Iggy’s has been in business since 1992 and is a familiar part of the local scene— their breads are available at an ever-growing number of grocery stores, restaurants and farmer’s markets. What you may not realize is that they also have a retail location near Fresh Pond, down a back street that doesn’t see much in the way of car traffic, let alone foot traffic. The store serves breads and pastries and also provides the lunchtime crowd with sandwiches on fresh baguettes and slices of gourmet pizza. Be sure to try their sticky buns, which have a croissant-like flakiness and are covered with caramel and walnuts.
Genki Ya
genkiyasushi.com 231 Alewife Brook Pkwy. Tucked between generic chains like CVS, Dunkin’ Donuts and Chipotle, Genki Ya is a gem hidden in plain sight. This is the place to go for all-natural, organic sushi. Their menu also offers 38 May | June 2016
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gyoza (dumplings), kushiyaki (grilled meat on a skewer) and katsudon (breaded fried cutlet over rice). Their sushi comes with fanciful names like “Super Dragon Roll” and “Salmon Monster Roll,” and most can be made with brown rice. The signature Genki Ya Roll is a highlight—it not only includes sweet potato tempura, but is also deep-fried.
Jose’s Mexican Restaurant josesmex.com 131 Sherman St.
It can be difficult to find authentic Mexican fare in New England— that is, if you’re not familiar with Jose’s in North Cambridge. They have the usual range of quesadillas, burritos, tamales and tostadas, and you can order most dishes with pretty much whatever meat you want. Try the enchiladas with either mole negro (made with chocolate, chili peppers and spices) or mole verde (made with tomatillos, pumpkin seeds and herbs). As an added bonus— especially in Cambridge—they have their own parking lot next door with plenty of space.
Sofra
sofrabakery.com 1 Belmont St. There are many reasons Ana Sortun is such a beloved fixture of the Cambridge food scene. Sofra, which she co-founded with pastry chef Maura Kilpatrick, is definitely one of them. Their bakery is located on the WatertownCambridge border, just steps away from Mount Auburn Cemetery. Its menu provides a feast of flavors from Turkey, Lebanon and Greece. Their takes on Middle Eastern favorites such as falafel, hummus and chicken or lamb shawarma are all memorable. If you’re looking for something a little different, try the shakshuka—poached eggs with a tomato-curry broth and a dollop of zhoug, a Yemeni spicy paste made from chilies—or the fried cauliflower with tahini remoulade. Or, bring these worldly flavors home with the wide variety of spices and prepared foods they have for sale.
L.A. Burdick
burdickchocolate.com 52 Brattle St. It’s cheating a bit to include L.A. Burdick—after all, it’s not far from the center of Harvard Square— but we’ll take any chance we can get to highlight the best hot chocolate in town. Their hot chocolates are thick and intense, and their European-inspired desserts are legendary—the Linzertorte, an Austrian jam-filled torte, and Engadiner Nusstorte, a nut-filled torte named after a region in Switzerland, deserve special mention.
Amelia’s Trattoria
ameliastrattoria.com 111 Harvard St. Amelia’s Trattoria is an Italian highlight. It’s just steps away from 1 Kendall Square, but it’s down a side street and easy to miss.
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Amelia’s has range of paninis, salads and entrees, but you’ll want to go right for their pastas. Many have multiple meat options, and all are packed with robust flavors. For an additional price, most meals can be prepared with their freshly made pasta.
onions and za’atar, an herb and spice mixture guaranteed to make your tastebuds tingle. Also, don’t miss their “cherbat,” a lemonade that’s made with rose petals, mint and spices.
River Gods
BARAKA CAFE
rivergodsonline.com 125 River St.
Located in the middle of residential Cambridgeport, Baraka Cafe is easy to overlook. It offers traditional AlgerianTunisian and North African cuisine. Although the lunch menu mostly consists of sandwiches, the dinner menu, particularly a range of hot and cold meze (appetizers), is where this spot really shines. The za’atar coca is a flatbread covered with caramelized
Cambridge has no shortage of bars, but River Gods is a nice alternative that provides exactly what they promise: “Dinner, Drinks and DJs.” The lighting is dim, the decor is much plusher than its rivals and it has a cozy, somewhat gothic atmosphere. They have a solid menu, with an entire section dedicated to vegetarian and vegan fare that includes vegetarian tacos and a to-die-for vegan roulade. Nonvegans should go for the brie cheese and the brown butter
barakacafe.com 80 1/2 Pearl St.
chicken. And everyone can enjoy the music—they have a full schedule of DJs spinning everything from techno to hip hop to soul to punk to new wave.
Alive and Kicking Lobsters
aliveandkickinglobsters.com 269 Putnam Ave.
BASTA PASTA
bastapastacambridge.com 319 Western Ave. Basta Pasta’s slogan—”Good food, honestly prepared”—fits it to a T. Here, familiar, hearty fare like pasta with bolognese sauce or eggplant parmigiana are elevated to something memorable with fresh ingredients and careful preparation. Their expansive menu also includes paninis, pizzas and risottos, and their very garlicky garlic bread with cheese is both a delectable, gooey accompaniment to your meal and a potent vampire repellent.
Perhaps there are so few Cambridge eateries specializing in seafood because Alive and Kicking Lobsters more than has us covered. Part restaurant and part seafood market, Alive and Kicking has an unassuming exterior, but their whole lobsters, steamed shellfish and seafood chowders are as fresh as can be. The pièce de résistance is—without a doubt— the lobster sandwich, which is served on toasted, buttered white bread instead of a roll. They also have exterior picnic table seating during warmer weather. Did we miss one of your favorites? Tweet at @ScoutCambridge and we’ll consider it for inclusion in a future issue!
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Ever wondered who, exactly, is behind the magazine you hold in your hands? Come meet us! We’ll be hanging out at a whole bunch of events in Cambridge and Somerville this May and June.
PorchFest 2016 SATURDAY, MAY 21 We’ll be in front of the Armory at 191 Highland Ave. in Somerville
MSPCA Fast & Furriest 5K SUNDAY, MAY 22 Baxter Park at Assembly Row in Somerville
Live Music Thursdays Kickoff THURSDAY, JUNE 2 Baxter Park Amphitheater at Assembly Row in Somerville
Cambridge River Festival SATURDAY, JUNE 4 East Cambridge Waterfront
Taste of Somerville WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8 Davis Square in Somerville
Scenes from last year’s River Festival. We’ll be eating, drinking, dancing and sharing the Scout love at this year’s celebration on Saturday, June 4—come say hi! Photos courtesy of the Cambridge Arts Council. 40 May | June 2016
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CALENDAR
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WHIMSY | May 14
TINY SHIPS FESTIVAL 3 P.M., FREE UNION SQUARE, SOMERVILLE Last year, Greg Cook brought bummer vibes to Union Square with the Pity Party. This year, he’s trading sadness for sea monsters with the Tiny Ships Festival, a “celebration of everything tiny and nautical.” That means kiddie pools filled with mini mermaids and small-scale submarines, plus sea-themed crafting stations and baby-sized boat races— all soundtracked with nautical tunes. Costumes both welcomed and encouraged.
MUSIC | May 21
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FILM | May 13 - June 2
TIME AND PLACE ARE NONSENSE! THE CINEMA ACCORDING TO SEIJUN SUZUKI SHOWTIMES VARY THE BRATTLE THEATRE AND THE HARVARD FILM ARCHIVE, CAMBRIDGE Quentin Tarantino, Jim Jarmusch and Wong Kar-wai are among the contemporary directors who site Japanese B-movie director Seijun Suzuki as an influence, but he’s still mostly a cult favorite. This retrospective from the Harvard Film Archive and the Brattle Theatre brings Suzuki’s campy, chaotic films back to the silver screen.
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PORCHFEST 12 - 6 P.M., FREE CITYWIDE, SOMERVILLE Grab your friends, leash up your dog and strap the kids into their strollers—Porchfest is back! The citywide celebration of al fresco song returns in May, with tons of musicians in every genre serenading passersby from porches. Find the full lineup and a handy map at somervilleartscouncil.org.
ART | May 26
FREE ADMISSION DAY 10 A.M. - 5 P.M., FREE THE HARVARD ART MUSEUMS, 32 QUINCY ST., CAMBRIDGE The museums are offering a day of no-cost admission to celebrate Harvard’s commencement, but you don’t have to be affiliated with the university to get free access to exhibits like “Everywhen: The Eternal Present in Indigenous Art from Australia.” You’ll also be able to catch two new exhibits that open May 21: “Drawings from the Age of Bruegel, Rubens and Rembrandt” and a collection of ancient Chinese pottery.
BOOKS | May 31
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LABOR OF LOVE: THE INVENTION OF DATING 7 P.M., FREE HARVARD BOOK STORE, 1256 MASS. AVE. “You will never swipe right the same way again,” says Empathy Exams author Leslie Jamison of Moira Weigel’s Labor of Love: The Invention of Dating. Weigel, whose book dispels the notion that romance is dying by offering a history of the way we date, joins Boston Globe Love Letters columnist Meredith Goldstein for a conversation about working, hooking up and (probably) Tinder.
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COMUNITY | June 4
RIVER FESTIVAL 11 A.M. - 6 P.M., FREE EAST CAMBRIDGE WATERFRONT, CAMBRIDGE Six stages of local musicians, dancers and performers, plus storytelling tents, community tables, works from local artisans and lots of food. Also: Sculpture Racing is back again. You won’t want to miss it! 3. Photo by Emily Hopkins. 4. Photo courtesy of Harvard Art Museums. 6. Photo courtesy of the Cambridge Arts Council.
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NATURE | June 4-5
HERBSTALK 9 A.M. - 5 P.M., $15-$50 THE CENTER FOR ARTS AT THE ARMORY, 191 HIGHLAND AVE., SOMERVILLE Curious about herbalism? This two-day intensive can serve as an introduction, with classes on everything from urban foraging to herbal oral care to managing stress with natural remedies. Or, take a stroll outside with an “urban plant walk” and learn about the great greens that grow along city streets. Tickets and more at herbstalk.org.
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FOOD | June 8
TASTE OF SOMERVILLE 5:30 - 7:30 P.M., $50 OR $75 FOR A VIP PASS DAVIS SQUARE, SOMERVILLE You know the drill: Dozens of the best restaurants in Somerville bring their most delicious bites to the heart of Davis Square, and the proceeds go to local nonprofits so you can feel good as you fill up. (Last year we tried—and failed—to eat something from every single eatery without getting too full to stand. Maybe 2016 is our year.)
9 RUNNING | June 8
HIGH HEEL DASH 6 P.M., $25 - $30 340 CANAL ST., ASSEMBLY ROW, SOMERVILLE Strap on those stilettos and join hosts Melissa and Ramiro of HOT 96.9 at the Boston area's first high heel dash. Guys and gals will run 50 yards in their favorite two-inch-tall (or higher) heels, then enjoy an afterparty with complimentary appetizers, cocktails, prizes, a silent auction and more. Costumes are encouraged, and all proceeds benefit Project Smile. Find more info at highheeldashboston.com.
10 DANCE | June 24-26
THE FESTIVAL OF US, YOU, WE & THEM PRICES VARY (BUT MANY EVENTS ARE FREE) THE DANCE COMPLEX, 536 MASS. AVE., CAMBRIDGE For the second year, the Dance Complex is throwing open its doors and taking to the streets for a weekendlong celebration of performance art. With pop-up concerts and classes, a choreographer’s showcase, a gallery and “spontaneous actions of creation,” organizers hope to emphasize the inclusive and humanizing nature of the arts and movement. Head to dancecomplex.org for the full festival lineup.
8. Photo by Glenn Kulbak. 10. Photo by Charles Daniels Photography.
11 THEATER | June 9-July 10
BEDLAM’S TWELFTH NIGHT TIMES VARY, $15 - $59 CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER, 450 MASS. AVE., CAMBRIDGE Are you the kind of person who wants to have it both ways? Catch Bedlam’s staging of Twelfth Night, which finds the same five actors performing the exact same play in two radically different styles. The Wall Street Journal calls it “radically innovative and winningly playful.”
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About our company... 1730 Mass. Ave. • 617-930-1288 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.
TrueHomePartners.com
Dedicated to representing our buyer and seller clients with integrity and professionalism. Committed to giving back to our community.
Visit our office, 128 Willow Avenue, on the bike path in Davis Square, Somerville.
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.
30 Newberne St. | 617-616-5091 | thaliarealtor.com
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44 May | June 2016
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thank you again, Somerville, for voting us Best Gift Shop!
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MAKE DUMPLING SCHOOL YOUR NEXT TEAM BUILDING EVENT! scoutcambridge.com May | June 2016
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SCOUT YOU
Photos by Jess Benjamin. Mo Yang and Pashupati Paneru soak in some sun outside of their apartment.
Ali Duceatt of Cambridge works on a project at Gather Here.
Daniel Sarver, manager of the Lilypad in Inman Square, poses in front of artwork by Dan Mayzee.
A boy—or is it a giraffe?—plays in Kendall Square. Michaela Thompson of Somerville enjoys a book at 1369 Coffee House in Inman Square.
Students watch a performance at the Harvard Science Center.
46 May | June 2016
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