SOMERVILLE – Join Mayor Curtatone and City staff for Somerville’s annual holiday celebrations, kicking off on Thursday, December 1, with the Christmas Tree Lighting and visit from Santa Claus, on the City Hall Concourse. Also part of the 2016 events are the Somerville Arts Council’s Illuminations Tour on December 16, and a ceremonial lighting of a Menorah on the City Hall Concourse on December 24.

SOMERVILLE - The Somerville Redevelopment Authority (SRA), which is tasked with implementation of the City's urban renewal plans, is seeking applicants to fill a current vacancy on the five-member board.

The public is invited to two upcoming meetings hosted by the MBTA and MassDOT to find out the latest updates on the Green Line Extension project. Meetings will be held:

A section of the Community Path will be repaved in the spring of 2017 thanks to funding through the Community Preservation Act (CPA). The Friends of the Community Path worked with the City on a plan to repave the path between Cedar and Grove streets. There are also plans to make improvements to the path west of Davis Square later in the year. The new pavement will make for a smoother journey for people using any mode of transportation on the Community Path.

Mayor Curtatone is seeking applications from Somerville residents to serve on the Mayor's Commission on Energy Use and Climate Change (CEUCC). The CEUCC advises the City and the Mayor's Office of Sustainability and Environment on climate change and energy policy issues and assists the City in program design and outreach related to these topics.

The City of Somerville announced today that it is forming a community advisory committee to assist in the review and recommendation of capital improvement projects for upcoming fiscal years. The committee, which will comprise five community members, will work with City staff to review and provide feedback and recommendations, on behalf of the entire community, on project prioritization.

Join the City of Somerville for the next conversation in our continuing Equity and Inclusion Conversation Series, with a conversation focused on LGBTQ issues.

Hosted by Betsy Allen, Manager of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion for the City of Somerville’s Department of Health and Human Services, the December 14, 2016, conversation will be moderated by:

Join the City of Somerville for an Arbor Day celebration on Monday, December 19, from 11 a.m. to noon, in the Aldermanic Chambers at City Hall. The event will include a presentation and discussion about urban forestry and an official proclamation read by Mayor Curtatone. Light refreshments will be served.

The City of Somerville is committed to increasing its tree canopy, and to that end, hired its first full-time Arborist this fall. Join us on December 19 to meet City Arborist Vanessa Boukili, and to learn more about the City’s urban forestry efforts.

SOMERVILLE – In its annual tradition, the City of Somerville will kick off the New Year (and Somerville’s 175th Birthday celebrations) on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2017, with a reenactment ceremony for the 241st anniversary of the "Grand Union" flag-raising ceremony at Prospect Hill Park. The ceremony begins at Prospect Hill at noon, however a processional led by a re-enactor portraying General George Washington on horseback will leave from the City Hall Concourse at 11:30 a.m. As always, members of the public are invited to participate, and are encouraged to wear traditional colonial clothing.