These are just some of the municipal meetings and civic events for the coming week. More are on the City of Somerville website.
Tree removal for a driveway
Urban Forestry Division, 5 p.m. Aug. 28. The city requests feedback about whether a 13-inch Norway maple tree in fair condition should be removed. The public tree is in front of 9 Taylor St., Ten Hills, and the property owners need the tree removed so they can build a driveway. Watchable via videoconferencing.
Overdose remembrance event
Prevention Services and Public Health, 6 to 7 p.m. Thursday. In the first event of Recovery Month, the city plants flags and lights candles for eight residents who died from a substance use-related overdose in 2024. The city invites people to bring memorabilia or small items in remembrance. A flag and light display remain in place through the end of September. At the lawn outside City Hall, 93 Highland Ave., Central Hill.
Council reconvenes after break
City Council, 7 p.m. Thursday. In the first full council meeting since early July, councilor Ben Ewen-Campen proposes to have the mayor speak to a community process for a redesigned Highland Avenue, which “appears to have been postponed indefinitely, despite repeated statements that it was to begin during summer 2025.” Councilor Kristen Strezo asks mobility staff to explain whether the city can apply for a state grant to fund microtransit and last-mile transit solutions, and councilor Naima Sait asks that city staff tell the council when speed limit signs will go up along the community path. The mayor asks the council to meet without the public watching to strategize ways to recruit laboratory space tenants; MassBio, a biotech industry group, says venture capital investment in Massachusetts dropped 17 percent in the first half of 2025, and the state is set to lose nearly $500 million in National Institutes of Health funding. In-person at city hall, second floor chambers, 93 Highland Ave., Central Hill or watchable via videoconferencing.
Demolishing two older homes
Historic Preservation Commission, 6:45 p.m. Tuesday. Developers seek to demolish a two-unit residential structure at 15-17 Oak St. in Ward 2 near Inman Square. Hope and Prospect Development is building a multiunit residential building on the Somerville and Medford border at 595 Broadway, between Ball and Magoun squares, after buying the property in June for $2.3 million, according to the register of deeds. At 29 Lowell St., Spring Hill, a developer wants to demolish a structure more than 75 years old after getting approval in July to demolish the garage behind the three-story structure. Plans for afterward haven’t been posted. Watchable via videoconferencing.
Zoning board meeting canceled
Zoning Board of Appeals, Wednesday. The board canceled its first meeting in September – it meets the first and third Wednesdays of each month – due to a “lack of business.”
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