New Enclosed Bins Combat Rodents and Improve Recycling
The Department of Public Works (DPW) is installing 200 new fully enclosed BigBelly bins starting in September 2025 to combat rodent activity and prevent litter. These new bins, which include both trash and recycling stations, will replace almost all of the open-top trash cans currently in the city.
16-18 Wendell Street
Purchased in July 2024, the Cambridge Housing Authority (CHA) converted16-18 Wendell Street, a dormitory previously owned by Lesley University, into 22 units of permanent supportive housing (PSH) to serve individuals and couples exiting homelessness in Cambridge. The 16-18 Wendell project was awarded annual funding for services from the Commonwealth through the Massachusetts Shelter and Housing Alliance’s (MHSA) Home and Healthy for Good program. There are four full-time service staff on site. In excellent and in near turn-key condition when purchased, the property began lease-up in Fall 2024, following the completion of some minor renovations to create new office space at the property.
Watercolor Workshop (Collins)
Join local artist Brooke Lambert for an introduction to painting with watercolor. Learn at your own pace to paint still life in a relaxed and welcoming environment. This class will introduce techniques in color mixing, observational painting and composition. You will come away from this class with beautiful watercolor paintings and a greater understanding and appreciation for the medium of watercolor.
This class is for adults with all levels of experiences and will cover wet on wet and wet on dry techniques, masking, pressing, shading and light techniques, ink washes and pattern making.
Registration is required and opens Thursday, May 7 at 10 a.m.
City of Cambridge Celebrates Juneteenth With Events and Programming
In advance of Juneteenth – a day that celebrates the end of slavery in the United States, the Mayor’s Office, Cambridge Public Library, Arts Council, Cambridge Juneteenth Committee, and a number of community organizations have come together to collaborate on a range of events, including a parade and music celebration!
Summer Reading: Hip Hop Xpression (Main)
Experience the joy of Hip Hop Xpression with Jarell Howard Rochelle in this fun, high-energy program for kids and teens. Participants will learn simple choreography, explore freestyle movement, and be introduced to authentic hip hop terminology and culture. This interactive class emphasizes connection, creativity, and self-expression, while celebrating the spirit of hip-hop.
No prior dance experience is needed — just come ready to move, laugh, and have fun together. Families and youth of all ages are welcome.
Funding for Summer Reading has been generously provided by the City of Cambridge, Cambridge Public Library Foundation, Friends of the Cambridge Public Library and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.
State Launches Nursing Home Family Resource Line
To assist families throughout the Commonwealth, the state’s Executive Office of Health and Human Services launched a Nursing Home Family Resource Line on April 8. Through this dedicated telephone line, staff are connecting families of residents in nursing homes or rest homes with the information and resources they need.
Art Talks for Older Adults: Tulipmania and Dutch Flower Painting
Let’s take a look at the events of the 1630s when speculators drove up the prices of tulip bulbs to dizzying heights. The development of Dutch flower painting and the phenomenon known as “tulipmania” share the same root causes in 17th century Netherlands; that is, an interest in objects of great appeal and rarity, whether just for their beauty or their scientific notoriety. But what was really happening and has it been overblown in history? We will discover where the practice of flower painting began for the Dutch, in response to the value of live flowers; a practice of painting beautiful still lives that continues today.
250th Anniversary of the Henry Knox "Noble Train" of Artillery (Main)
Join Revolution 250, Boston Celebrations, Hobby Knolls Stables & the Henry Knox Artillery as wells as citizens of the towns of Weston, Waltham, Watertown, and Cambridge for a commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the epic 1776 adventure of Henry Knox and his "Noble Train of Artillery" trekking across Massachusetts on their way to Boston.
The commemoration at 2:00 p.m. follows a procession from the Cambridge Common at 1:00 p.m. that will travel to Joan Lorentz park led by the Sudbury Ancient Fyfe & Drum Corps and finishing with teams of Clydesdales pulling replica sleds and cannons which began their journey in upstate New York.
A for AI Series: AI for Content Creation (Hybrid)
Discover how AI can make creative work more fun and accessible. Learn simple tools for writing, audio and video editing, graphic design, and social media — even if you’ve never created content before. Do you have any accessibility or language support needs? Please submit this form and we’ll do our best to meet your needs. This hybrid event will take place in-person in the Learning Lab at the Main Library and on Zoom. The Zoom link will be sent to all registered participants one hour before the event's start time.
Led by The Hope Group, an award-winning Boston-based AI education team, in collaboration with the Cambridge Public Library.