Community Corner

🌱 Patch AM: How to actually get to Somerville’s 2026 inauguration on time

Make time for New Year's Eve - Candlelit Meditation on the Somerville Patch calendar

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Hi there, Somerville! We've got your morning read ready! Read on to stay connected. ☕️️

In today's newsletter:

  • How to actually get to Somerville’s 2026 inauguration on time
  • How is Somerville’s biggest health system opening more behavioral health doors?
  • Why a Medford firefighter’s case is headed to Somerville District Court

Also on today's calendar: New Year's Eve - Candlelit Meditation and 9 more events.

Find out what's happening in Somervillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Today's riddle: I think I’ll wear only one boot today. 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

Find out what's happening in Somervillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

  • Wednesday: Mostly cloudy and breezy, with a high of 33 and low of 26 degrees.
  • Thursday: Partly sunny and breezy, temps: high: 31, low: 13. ⛄️ Brr!
  • Friday: Brisk and cold with some sun, with a high of 25 and low of 20 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Plan ahead: Getting to Somerville's 2026 Inauguration Ceremony and public reception (thesomervilletimes.com) — Somerville residents heading to the 2026 Inauguration at Somerville High School and the public reception at the Somerville Armory on Saturday, January 3 should plan ahead for tight parking and rely on shuttles and transit. The city will relax permit rules that evening, open several overflow lots, and run free shuttle loops connecting Highland Avenue, Central Street, and Belmont Street throughout the ceremony and reception.
   

2. Mass General Brigham's playbook to expand access to behavioral health patients (ramaonhealthcare.com) — Somerville-based Mass General Brigham is pushing to expand access to behavioral health care, boosting new patient visits by roughly 10% to 11% in fiscal 2025. Leaders say clear goals, workforce growth, operational redesign, and telehealth are key tools, offering a glimpse of how a major local health system is trying to ease the region’s mental health bottlenecks.
   

3. 'Man Arrested for Dissemination of Matter Harmful to Minors in Medford (thesomervillenewsweekly.blog) — A Medford firefighter has been arrested on charges related to allegedly sending harmful material to someone he believed was a minor, according to the Middlesex District Attorney. The case, investigated by Medford Police and the DA’s Office, is moving forward with an arraignment scheduled in Somerville District Court, underscoring the regional role of Somerville’s courthouse in serious criminal matters.
   

4. Immigration crackdown, an assisted living facility fire, university tragedy: Some of the top local stories of 2025 (bostonglobe.com) — A Tufts graduate student was detained by federal immigration agents in Somerville in March, one of several major stories highlighted in this year-end regional news roundup. The piece surveys 2025’s biggest New England headlines, from campus violence and a Fall River assisted-living fire to political shifts in Boston and growing climate and flood concerns across the state.
   

5. One Lawyer's Standoff With Trump's Deportation Machine (nytimes.com) — A Tufts graduate student was dramatically arrested in Somerville in March, then moved through multiple states and held in a Louisiana ICE facility before a federal judge ordered her release without electronic monitoring. The article follows her Massachusetts-based immigration lawyer’s tense fight with the Trump administration’s aggressive deportation policies, highlighting how one Somerville-linked case became an early test of those tactics.
   

📸 Around Somerville

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • I have a rat infestation in my shed and now in basement.
    I have a cat to protect and also don't want rat poisoned rats to wander around and het eaten and kill hawks. I left message for Somerville rat… (Nextdoor Winter and Central Hills)
  • Cost Plus, Inc. - World Market posted a job opening for Assistant Manager: Freight Flow in Somerville. Apply here.
  • SAS Retail Services posted a job opening for Travel Retail Sales Merchandiser in Somerville. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Somerville here.

Ok Somerville! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I heard there’s only a 50 percent chance of snow.
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