Safe Naps for Cambridge Preschoolers
New healthy PVC-free nap mats will help Cambridge preschoolers sleep safely! We will purchase 80 mats for programs still using old mats that are coated with PVC, a chemical associated with negative health effects. All kids in Cambridge preschools deserve a safe nap!
Curbside Food Waste Pickup
In 2009, the City set a goal to reduce residential trash disposal by 30% by 2020, and by 80% by 2050. With that goal in mind, the City expanded curbside food waste pickup to all buildings with 1 to 12 units. 25,000 households (8,100 buildings) are now eligible to participate.
CDC Approves COVID-19 Booster Shots for Moderna and Johnson & Johnson Vaccines
On Thursday, October 21, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) approved the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 booster vaccines for eligible groups. The CDC had previously recommended boosters for eligible individuals who received the Pfizer vaccine series. In addition, individuals will now be able to choose which type of booster shot to get regardless of which vaccine series they have already received.
Get Help Lowering Your Energy Bills
The City of Cambridge offers free, one-on-one help to residents looking to lower their energy bills. Through the Cambridge Energy Helpline (617-430-6230), callers get connected to a trained adviser who can explain cost-saving programs, from fuel assistance and discount utility rates to solar credits and no-cost energy assessments. Support is available to renters, homeowners, and landlords alike—regardless of building type.
Baker-Polito Administration Announces Additional Vaccine Clinics to Boost Vaccination Access in Disproportionately Impacted Communities
The Baker-Polito Administration announced a new initiative, the Vax Express, to help further increase access to the COVID-19 vaccine, particularly in communities with low vaccination rates. The Vax Express aims to further increase the Commonwealth’s vaccination rate by offering a unique, and community-focused approach to encourage more people to get vaccinated. Massachusetts continues to be a national leader in vaccination rates with 80 percent of adults having received at least one dose and over 3.9 million residents fully vaccinated.
Rindge Commons North
Just a Start (JAS) will be building two new buildings at 430-432 Rindge Avenue in North Cambridge. This two-phased project, called Rindge Commons, will create 101 affordable apartments. All units will be affordable to households earning under 80% AMI, with some being more deeply affordable. Additionally, JAS's development will provide community-wide benefits by addressing climate change mitigation and sustainability goals and enhancing the experience of pedestrians and cyclists along Alewife Brook Parkway and Rindge Avenue.
The first phase, Rindge Commons North, will include 24 affordable one- and two-bedroom rental units, as well several floors of non-residential where JAS will be consolidating its training and education programs into a centralized location. The City will also be leasing space to create three Pre-Kindergarten classrooms for children between ages three and five years old, providing much needed affordable early education for Cambridge’s working families. Rindge Commons North is located just steps away from the Alewife T-Station, and shares a site with JAS’s Rindge Tower Apartments.
The second phase of Rindge Commons will begin once Rindge Commons North is complete and will contain 77 affordable family-sized units.
Summer Reading: Fresh Pond Wild Edibles Walk with Russ Cohen (Main)
Cambridge is home to over 80 species of edible wild plants, some of which are more nutritious and/or flavorful than their cultivated counterparts. These include native species like Fox Grape and Shagbark Hickory; non-native weeds like Chicory and Burdock; and invasive species like Japanese Knotweed and Autumn Olive. Join expert forager Russ Cohen on a 2.5 hour ramble around Fresh Pond to learn about over two dozen species of edible wild plants. Keys to the identification of each species will be provided, along with info on edible portion(s), season(s) of availability and preparation methods, as well as guidelines for safe, ethical and environmentally-responsible foraging.
NOTE that this is an educational walk only: no actual foraging will take place, as that activity is prohibited with in the Fresh Pond Reservation.
We will meet at Fresh Pond, in the main parking lot by the ranger station and water department.
Russ Cohen is a naturalist and wild foods enthusiast from Weston, Mass., currently in his 52nd year of leading walks and talks about wild edibles. He has led talks for the Massachusetts Audubon Society, the New England Forestry Foundation, and The Trustees of Reservations. Russ' foraging book, Wild Plants I Have Known...and Eaten, is now in its ninth printing. Russ has taken on the role of Johnny Appleseed for edible native species, collaborating with land trusts, cities and towns, and other groups (including one in Cambridge) to plant plants from his nursery in appropriate places on their properties.