Somerville's MA Alliance of Portuguese Speakers Finds New Home

SOMERVILLE, MA — The Massachusetts Alliance of Portuguese Speakers (MAPS) has announced that it has signed a lease for a new office in Somerville.

The new office is located at 362 Somerville Ave., and the organization said it hopes to open to the public in December.

For the last 45 years, the organization was housed in the city-owned old firehouse, located at 90-92 Union Square.

However, that building was forced to close in August due to significant water intrusion. Another tenant in the firehouse, Somerville Media Center, already has relocated to Somernova, Somerville's innovation hub, located at 12 Tyler St.

Now, MAPS also has found a new home.

According to the organization, the new MAPS space will be smaller than the Union Square location and will host a smaller team of MAPS staff.

Among the programs offered at the new office will be: immigrant integration services (IIS), HIV/STI prevention and screening services and court-mandated programs, including driver education classes and intimate partner abuse programs.

The new office also will host several MAPS outreach events throughout the year, including: World AIDS Day, the White Ribbon Day campaign, Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Sexual Assault Awareness Month and regular vaccination and health clinics.

"We are committed to serving the large Portuguese-speaking community in Somerville, and so it was imperative that we continue to look for an affordable space in the city," said Paulo Pinto, MAPS CEO. "We are thrilled to have found an adequate space that meets our needs and budget and look forward to inviting our community to a grand opening, hopefully later this year."