Winter 2010
Features & Articles
First things first: We want to thank the Somerville Chamber of Commerce for naming us the 2009 Small Business of the Year. We are flattered to have received this honor. We share it with the more than 100 Somerville businesses who have helped us bring this free publication to our community.
Stan Koty’s fleet consists of three bobcats, two bombardiers and dozens of pickups, ten-wheelers and six-wheelers with sanders and plows attached.
Koty, commissioner of the Somerville Department of Public Works, wields a total of 42 pieces of “snow-fighting equipment.” Last year, he needed all of it, as Somerville faced a whopping 64 inches of snow (22 inches more than the average annual snowfall).
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Shirley Ortiz founded Choices Restaurant & Lounge (381 Somerville Ave) in 1983. Today, her son Victor Ortiz is in charge.
Tina DeLellis opened Johnny D’s (17 Holland Street) in 1969. Today, her daughter Carla DeLellis runs the show.
Pose Ortiz and DeLellis alongside one another – as Somerville Scout did during a recent interview at Bloc 11 (11 Bow St) – and they hardly look like vocational twins. Ortiz stands 5-10, weighs 240 and has linebacker’s shoulders. He used to be a bouncer in Boston and a police officer in Cambridge. He remains an active firefighter in Chelsea. And he looks like it. By contrast, DeLellis has the lithe build of a ballerina. If she told you she taught dance for a living, you’d believe her. In fact, she is a former programmer at IBM.
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BALL SQUARE
Ball Square Fine Wines (716 Broadway, ballsquarefinewines.com, 617-623-9500) has doubled its space and expanded its food offerings, including a selection of artisan cheeses from around the world. There’s also a new tasting bar for weekly events.
Pescatore (158 Boston Ave, pescatoreseafood.com, 617-623-0003) has completed its dining room renovation.
Eat at Jumbo’s (688 Broadway, eatatjumbos.com, 617-666-5862) has new menu items including calzones and vegan-friendly tofu tenders. Eat at Jumbo’s is also sporting a new storefront sign.
DAVIS SQUARE
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The first and only hair salon in America to be certified a Backyard Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation is in Somerville. Jerry’s Garden Hair Salon (19 Tufts St, 857-222-4620) received the certification three months ago.
In other words: You can get your hair styled or colored while watching goldfinches, orioles and chickadees do their thing…
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The trees are shaking off the last remnants of their leaves on a mid-November afternoon, and that means it’s time for the Somerville DPW yard to be converted into Snow Central. A cluster of yellow plows waits to be affixed to pickup trucks and ten-wheelers. Roughly 1,500 tons of road salt sit in a mountain blocking the view from Department of Public Works Commissioner Stan Koty’s second-floor office. It’s not a pretty sight, but let’s face it: Winter in New England isn’t so pretty itself.
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In the previous edition of Somerville Scout, we went back to basics. We reiterated our essential case for buying local with a list of five reasons to shift your shopping. Here are five more reasons to support local independents in our community.
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- Luis A. Morales – Candidate, Alderman at Large (defeated)
Mr. Morales’ unsuccessful run for Alderman at Large “opened [his] eyes to certain issues, especially parking difficulties in Somerville and the impact this has on small businesses.” Morales claims that
- James (Jim) Campano – Candidate for Ward 6 Alderman (defeated)
In 2010, Mr. Campano resolves to keep voicing his concerns about what he considers to be wayward development in the city, particularly in and around Davis Square. “I would like to see them put a stop to [issuing more] liquor licenses, and restore the time limits on parking meters to a quarter for a half-hour,” Campano says. These and similar steps, Campano argues, are essential to seeing “the neighborhood come back.”
- Rebekah Gewirtz – Alderman, Ward 6
Alderman Gewirtz believes that “there is a big opportunity in this city to do more environmentally,” and in 2010, she is resolved to reduce Somerville’s carbon footprint…
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“You gonna have lunch?” says Vinny Migliore, 61, who has been dishing Sicilian-American cuisine from his eponymous East Somerville institution since 1984. Part chef, part P.R. guy, and part joke-cracking entertainer, Migliore provides great food and hospitality in an informal setting. You don’t come to Vinny’s (76 Broadway) for the surroundings; you come here for the food. There’s nothing precious or pretentious about the restaurant – just freshly prepared stick-to-your-ribs fare at modest prices in abundant portions.
He asks me a few questions about what I like, and then rushes back to the kitchen to whip something together (though he won’t tell me what). Within minutes I’m sitting in front of a plate of…
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With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, the sparkling wine aisles of your local shop will be humming with love-struck customers. More than a few of them will be wide-eyed with sticker shock; bubbly can get expensive. But worry not. There are plenty of options that won’t break your budget and still serve your romantic intentions.
Remember that not all sparkling wine is champagne. All true champagne originates from a small region in France of the same name…
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The average male or female Pilates participant is 45-55 years of age. This is the prime age when both men and women begin to notice differences in their muscle mass. Doctors might also note a difference in their bone mineral density.
Osteoporosis is known as the “silent killer.” At its onset, it is a-symptomatic. In other words, the condition can be prevalent but without proper testing, you will not realize your bone health is deteriorating.
Lifestyle, weight, genetics, medication, exercise and diet can all affect the onset of this disease. At the same time, all of the above can also prevent, reverse or slow down bone deterioration.
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