Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone Gets Ready To Say Goodbye

SOMERVILLE, MA — Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone will host an in-person town hall as he prepares to leave office in January.

The community conversation will be moderated by Emmy Award-winning journalist Byron Barnett, who recently retired from WHDH. It will reflect on both city and community efforts during his administration, check in on the pandemic response and discuss the city's future.

Attendees are invited to ask questions of the mayor. A casual outdoor reception with local food will follow, and city staff will be available to check in with community members on specific questions.

"Community conversations over the years have kept me inspired and informed and I want to get out one more time to check in with the people of Somerville, thank them for all they do, and talk about where we are heading next," Curtatone said. "I may be stepping away from City Hall, but Somerville is my home, and we have so much more important work ahead of us. So I think of this not as the last conversation, but rather one of many more to come in different forms."

When & Where: The town hall event will take place on Thursday, October 28, 2021, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the East Somerville Community School, 50 Cross St. The event will include both indoor and outdoor components, taking advantage of the improved ventilation systems within the school buildings to maximize protection from COVID-19.

The community conversation will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. in the school auditorium, where masks will be required at all times, seating will be socially distanced and ventilation systems will be running. Afterward, community members will be invited outside for a casual reception with refreshments from local food establishments.

The town hall portion of the event will be live streamed at somervillema.gov/virtualtownhall and available for later viewing at youtube.com/SomervilleCityTV. Live simultaneous Spanish interpretation and English captioning will be available. Portuguese, Haitian Kreyol, and Nepali interpretation can be requested in advance by emailing sbernt@somervillema.gov.