posts under construction

On April 16 through April 19, water main replacement work will take place at the Boston Avenue & Winthrop Street intersection. Road closures and detours will be posted daily from 7AM to 4PM at these locations: 

Boston Avenue @ College Avenue WESTBOUND: Drivers will be detoured to George Street and then to Winthrop Street. 

Winthrop Street @ Capen Street SOUTHBOUND: Drivers will be detoured to Capen Street to North Street, and then to Winthrop Street  

The eastbound lane on Boston Avenue and northbound lane on Winthrop Street will remain open. MBTA access will still be available during these times.  

Please observe all traffic signage for this duration and use alternative routes if possible.  

Thank you for your cooperation while the City improves its infrastructure. If you have any questions regarding the project, contact the Engineering Division at 781-393-2474. 

Road closures on High Street and significant traffic disruptions to occur from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Monday, April 29 

(MEDFORD)—World War II veteran and Medford resident Manuel John Pimentel will be laid to rest following a funeral service at Saint Joseph’s Church on Monday, April 29 at 11 a.m. A funeral procession will then follow Corporal Pimentel to a cemetery in Cambridge. 

Having enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in 1939 and serving with Company A, 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, Corporal Pimentel was killed in action on September 24, 1942, on Guadalcanal. A recent excavation of the site uncovered his remains and his family was contacted. He will now be buried with full military honors at the Cambridge Cemetery.  

Accompanying Corporal Pimentel and his family throughout the funeral procession with be several veteran motorcycle organizations. Due to the presence of the veteran motorcycle organizations, there will be significant noise throughout the community, so please plan accordingly. 

The service will begin at 11 a.m. at Saint Joseph’s Church on High Street. The group will then travel down High Street to the Rotary, down Winthrop Street to Route 16 (Mystic Valley Parkway) and into Cambridge. 

During the procession there will be significant traffic disruptions along the route, with police blocking access. Additionally, High Street will be closed from Governors Avenue to the Rotary from about 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.  

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Big sweep on all public roads in Medford to take place over several weeks, Full schedule at www.medfordma.org/street-sweeping 

Cars must be moved from street on designated street sweeping days or will be subject to enforcement 

(MEDFORD) — The Medford DPW will conduct spring street sweeping over the course of several weeks, beginning on Monday, April 22. In the interest of public health and public safety, the DPW will proceed with the spring Big Sweep over several weeks to clear leaves and debris from streets and catch basins, allowing for proper drainage of water and making sure that our City’s streets are clean and safe. The DPW conducts two Big Sweep events on all secondary roads twice each year, once in the spring and once in the fall.  

Street sweeping will be conducted Monday through Friday, between the hours of 8 am and 6 pm. Street sweeping is divided into 14 zones with one zone conducted each day. The full schedule and a list of all 14 zones can be found at www.medfordma.org/street-sweeping. In the event of heavy rain or severe weather, sweeping may be cancelled on that day, and would be rescheduled for the end of the regular schedule. All updates will be posted on www.medfordma.org as well as the City’s social media feeds.  

To be notified of specific dates of street sweeping in your neighborhood, residents are reminded to sign up for the City’s Reverse 911 call and email system. You can log in or sign up at www.medfordma.org/alerts, or email alerts@medford-ma.gov to check your status or to sign up. The City will send out one general call as well as specific calls for dates and times of each zone.  

 Parking Information  

1.     There is NO PARKING on the designated street while sweeping is taking place between 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM. Cars that remain parked on the streets designated for that day will be subject to enforcement, including ticketing and towing.  

2.     Parking will be allowed on main roads from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm during the Spring Street Sweeping schedule.  

3.       Tickets can be appealed at https://www.medfordma.org/departments/parking, or through this link. To discuss any parking-related issue, please contact Medford’s parking office at 781-393-2501.  

If you have questions about the street sweeping schedule, please contact the Department of Public works at 781-393-2417.  

Street Schedule & Zones (please note that some zones appear out of order due to trash pickup schedules)  

Zone 1 – Monday, April 22  
Zone 2 – Tuesday, April 23  
Zone 3 – Wednesday, April 24  
Zone 4 – Thursday, April 25  
Zone 5 – Friday, April 26  
Zone 6 – Monday, April 29  
Zone 7 – Wednesday, May 1  
Zone 8 – Tuesday, April 30  
Zone 9 – Thursday, May 2  
Zone 10 – Friday, May 3  
Zone 11 – Monday, May 6  
Zone 12 – Thursday, May 9  
Zone 13 – Tuesday, May 7  
Zone 14 – Wednesday, May 8  

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The City is hosting its second-ever Arab American Heritage Month Series with a slate of events throughout the month of April. The series will be hosted by the Arabic-speaking Medford Connector, Charbel Hayek, and Community Liaison, Samira Hayek, from the Medford Community Engagement Team.  

The team is hosting three events throughout April to celebrate Arab American Heritage Month, and educate the community about traditions, history, music, food, and culture. Movie Night is on April 8 from 6pm-7:30pm at the Medford Public Library, Kids’ Activity Night is April 17 from 5pm-6:30pm at the Medford Public Library, and Traditional Dress Night and Contest is April 27 from 3pm-6pm at the Andrews School Gymnasium. 

The Medford Community Engagement Team is a multicultural and multilingual team made up of Medford Connectors and Community Liaisons from the Arabic speaking community, Spanish speaking community, Brazilian Portuguese speaking community, Haitian community, and African American community. They are funded through a variety of grants, including the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) grant and aim to improve accessibility to City resources for all.  

With questions, call the Multilingual Resource Line at 781-475-5644.  

To find more details on upcoming City events, visit medfordma.org/events.  

Mayor and leadership of City Council and School Committee announce timeline to release proposal for significant financial investments in capital needs and operations 

(MEDFORD)—The Financial Task Force, a group comprised of City Councilors, School Committee Members, City staff and the Mayor, have been meeting regularly since early fall to analyze the current fiscal landscape of the City, identify key budget priorities and develop a sustainable strategy that produces tangible results for the community in the upcoming FY25 budget.  

The group will release a proposal for major financial investments in city and school capital needs, school operations expenses and street and sidewalk work by the end of the fiscal year on June 30th. 

The Financial Task Force will review all options available under state municipal finance law to determine the best approach for funding Medford’s pressing needs. The options may include debt exclusions, where voters would consider raising the property tax levy for a defined period to pay for capital projects such as a new public High School, and Proposition 2 ½ override ballot measures, which if approved by voters, would allow Medford to increase its tax levy by more than the state-mandated constraint of 2.5 percent.  

In other municipalities where voters have approved debt exclusion and override proposals, this measure has allowed for permanent increases to operating budgets, enabling cities to keep pace with inflation/fixed cost growth and make progress on funding public schools and essential city services.  

The Financial Task Force will prioritize funding capital projects, such as the construction of a new Medford High School, Fire Headquarters and urgent operating budget needs for Medford Public Schools.   

“There have been significant fiscal challenges over the past four budget cycles, and though we’ve made progress reducing our reliance on one-time funds, we still need to be strategic about how we deploy our resources,” Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn said. “We have major capital investments on the horizon, and we must work collaboratively to further strengthen our financial future. I look forward to working closely with my fellow elected officials and residents to ensure that we are prepared for what lies ahead.” 

The task force was established after the Mayor and Council leadership reached an agreement to pass the FY24 budget last June, and now as the fiscal year is coming to an end, the group is working collaboratively to deliver a meaningful financial plan that meets the needs of the community and strengthens the City’s economic outlook.  

The members of the Financial Task Force are:  

• Mayor and School Committee Chair Breanna Lungo-Koehn 

• City Council President Isaac B. “Zac” Bears 

• School Committee Vice Chair Jenny Graham 

• City Council Vice President Kit Collins 

• Chief of Staff Nina Nazarian 

“Pressing needs for major capital projects and additional funding for our public schools and city services demand bold action,” said Council President Bears. “I’m confident that the community will rally around a plan to build a new Fire Headquarters and provide urgently needed operating funds for our schools and city departments starting this year as we prepare for the biggest investment our city has made in 60 years – building a new Medford High School.” 

“I am thrilled to see all branches of our city’s government collaborating to create a thoughtful and comprehensive plan to fund Medford’s future,” said School Committee Vice Chair Graham. “We are at the beginning stages of our project to replace and reimagine Medford High, but having a plan to fund our share of the cost now will help us move through the project at an accelerated pace. We are also working to reverse a history of deferred maintenance so that all our buildings can support learning for our students for many years to come.” 

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