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Porchfest 2023 guide: Somerville's iconic music festival is back
Tomorrow is Somerville's big day as Porchfest 2023 brings over 350 musical acts and other artists to front yards, stoops, open garages and yes, porches, all over the city.What's happening: Porchfest is a little different from your normal music fest. Instead of stages, concessions and port-a-potties, Porchfest is decentralized, with bands playing in pockets all around the city, up close and personal in front of roving attendees.Last year, over 200 groups performed music from nearly every genre imaginable.Details: The music kicks off at noon in the western portion of Somerville (west of Willow Avenue).Performances between Willow and Central Street start...
Porchfest 2023 guide: Somerville's iconic music festival is back
Tomorrow is Somerville's big day as Porchfest 2023 brings over 350 musical acts and other artists to front yards, stoops, open garages and yes, porches, all over the city.What's happening: Porchfest is a little different from your normal music fest. Instead of stages, concessions and port-a-potties, Porchfest is decentralized, with bands playing in pockets all around the city, up close and personal in front of roving attendees.Last year, over 200 groups performed music from nearly every genre imaginable.Details: The music kicks off at noon in the western portion of Somerville (west of Willow Avenue).Performances between Willow and Central Street start...
Voters say Boston's best main street is Hanover
Hanover Street is Boston's best main street, at least according to Axios Boston readers who had the North End's main drag coming out on top in our tournament.220 of you voted in the final round of the bracket-style tournament to give Hanover Street the win over Tremont Street in the South End with 59.1%.Though it no longer has the al fresco dining options that popped up during the pandemic, Hanover Street is still packed with more restaurants and red sauce per square foot than anywhere else in the city.Deehan's thought bubble: My favorite spot along Hanover is Caffé Vittoria, though I don't know if I could do quite as much caffeine there as I used to.Get more local stories in your inbox with Axios Boston.
Voters say Boston's best main street is Hanover
Hanover Street is Boston's best main street, at least according to Axios Boston readers who had the North End's main drag coming out on top in our tournament.220 of you voted in the final round of the bracket-style tournament to give Hanover Street the win over Tremont Street in the South End with 59.1%.Though it no longer has the al fresco dining options that popped up during the pandemic, Hanover Street is still packed with more restaurants and red sauce per square foot than anywhere else in the city.Deehan's thought bubble: My favorite spot along Hanover is Caffé Vittoria, though I don't know if I could do quite as much caffeine there as I used to.
Boston concerts to see this week: Chris Isaak, Akon, The 1975, Air Supply, Tool.
Chris Isaak, Akon and The 1975 play gigs in Boston this week — and that's just Sunday night. Check out our curated list of concerts for shows by Air Supply, Nick Carter, 6Lack and Tool.FridayAustralian soft rock royalty, Air Supply plays at the Chevalier.Menzingers are at Roadrunner.6Lack brings his "Since I Have A Lover" tour to MGM Music Hall at Fenway.SaturdayChristian rockers Needtobreathe come to MGM Music Hall at Fenway.Gorgon City plays at Roadrunner.Ian Munsick is at the House of Blues.The Family Township plays at Faces Brewing.SundayEnglish popsters The 1975 cross the pond to visit TD Garden.Akon, the Senegalese singer...
Boston City Council map headaches return
The Boston City Council has to revisit the contentious debate it had last year over its own political boundaries.Catch up quick: City Hall was thrown a curveball by a federal court Monday when a judge rejected the map passed by councilors last year that was supposed to be enacted for this year’s elections.The judge ruled there was evidence that race played too large a role in determining the new district lines, so the Council must now draw up a new map.Flashback: The Council approved the district map last fall in a 9-4 vote that split the panel between progressives and...
Boston's Museum of Fine Arts will host adult Lego night
The Museum of Fine Arts isn't exactly known for model-building, but its courtyard will be dedicated to Lego creativity next Thursday.What's happening: Adult Lego Night will be from 6–9pm next Thursday. It’s in celebration of the museum’s exhibit on the legendary Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai.Details: The event is hosted by Lego Discovery Center and is free with museum admission ($34 with the special exhibit).Plus: On display in the separate Hokusai exhibit is master builder Jumpei Mitsui’s large-scale Lego model of Hokusai’s "The Great Wave off Kanagawa."The 50,000-brick model took more than 400 hours for Mitsui to complete.
New bill would crack down on toxic culture in youth sports
A top Beacon Hill Democrat wants to put curriculums in place to combat what some describe as a toxic culture in school sports.Driving the news: There have been numerous incidents involving racism, antisemitism and anti-LGBTQ hate speech between players at youth sports events in Massachusetts in recent years. In 2016, for example, Catholic school athletes targeted antisemitic chants at rivals from the Jewish community in Newton.Senate Majority Leader Cynthia Stone Creem wants to counter that trend. She introduced a bill that would create curriculums to reshape school sports around social and emotional learning.Rep. Kay Khan is sponsoring a companion bill...
Clarifying the MBTA's rules about eating on public transit
On the one hand, you get to scarf down your Dunkin' breakfast tacos on the way to work, or maybe kill time while your train is going 10 mph through a slow zone.On the other, you might gross out some more squeamish fellow passengers or leave scraps to feed the legions of rats that prowl the platforms.What's happening: The T stirred up some confusion among riders when it tweeted Monday to "please avoid eating or drinking while on vehicles & in stations," even though many MBTA stations sell food and drinks just feet from the tracks.The MBTA's official rules state that "food and drink must remain in closed containers." But then it asks nicely that you "avoid" eating and drinking.An MBTA spokesperson told Axios there are no fines or tickets issued for eating or drinking on the T.The T also says the rule has not changed recently. So you really shouldn't have been eating this whole time.Get more local stories in your inbox with Axios Boston.
Clarifying the MBTA's rules about eating on public transit
On the one hand, you get to scarf down your Dunkin' breakfast tacos on the way to work, or maybe kill time while your train is going 10 mph through a slow zone.On the other, you might gross out some more squeamish fellow passengers or leave scraps to feed the legions of rats that prowl the platforms.What's happening: The T stirred up some confusion among riders when it tweeted Monday to "please avoid eating or drinking while on vehicles & in stations," even though many MBTA stations sell food and drinks just feet from the tracks.The MBTA's official rules state that "food and drink must remain in closed containers." But then it asks nicely that you "avoid" eating and drinking.An MBTA spokesperson told Axios there are no fines or tickets issued for eating or drinking on the T.The T also says the rule has not changed recently. So you really shouldn't have been eating this whole time.
Mass. Senate may push for more progressive tax cuts
The fate of tax breaks for Massachusetts' richest is in the hands of Beacon Hill's most liberal legislative body.What’s happening: Lawmakers are trying to figure out how much tax relief state coffers can absorb after last month's revenue intake fell far short of expectations.State of play: Gov. Healey and the House prefer tax breaks across the income spectrum. That includes lowering taxes on lucrative investments and estates to keep the richest residents from moving.Yes, but: The Senate, which skews further left than the House or Healey on fiscal issues, could force a package that prioritizes tax breaks for lower- and...
Meet the new leader of Boston’s African American history museum
The Museum of African American History’s new leader is a Boston-area native.Driving the news: Noelle Trent will take the helm of the museum in Boston and Nantucket as its president and CEO on June 12.She’s wrapping up a seven-year term as director of interpretation, collections and education at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis.The big picture: The museum has preserved Boston’s abolitionist history and specifically the African Meeting House, where abolitionists like Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison spoke.Trent's new role comes as the museum prepares to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the African Meeting House in Nantucket (2025)...
Meet the new leader of Boston’s African American history museum
The Museum of African American History’s new leader is a Boston-area native.Driving the news: Noelle Trent will take the helm of the museum in Boston and Nantucket as its president and CEO on June 12.She’s wrapping up a seven-year term as director of interpretation, collections and education at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis.The big picture: The museum has preserved Boston’s abolitionist history and specifically the African Meeting House, where abolitionists like Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison spoke.Trent's new role comes as the museum prepares to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the African Meeting House in Nantucket (2025)...
Boston's sluggish downtown recovery
Data: University of Toronto; Chart: Alice Feng/AxiosFoot traffic around Boston’s Financial District is barely half of what it was pre-pandemic.That's according to anonymized mobile device connectivity data analyzed by researchers at the University of Toronto's School of Cities.The big picture: Boston’s sluggish recovery is partly due to its heavy concentration of workers in financial services and tech — many of whom decamped elsewhere during the pandemic — and a shortage of affordable housing, especially downtown.Why it matters: Downtowns became ghost towns during the height of the pandemic as people sought to "flatten the curve" by staying home as much as...
Boston's sluggish downtown recovery
Data: University of Toronto; Chart: Alice Feng/AxiosFoot traffic around Boston’s Financial District is barely half of what it was pre-pandemic.That's according to anonymized mobile device connectivity data analyzed by researchers at the University of Toronto's School of Cities.The big picture: Boston’s sluggish recovery is partly due to its heavy concentration of workers in financial services and tech — many of whom decamped elsewhere during the pandemic — and a shortage of affordable housing, especially downtown.Why it matters: Downtowns became ghost towns during the height of the pandemic as people sought to "flatten the curve" by staying home as much as...
A program is securing jobs for Ukrainian refugees in Boston
Alina Chernyakova, a Ukrainian education expert, lost her home, her husband and her livelihood after the Russian invasion. But she rolled through Logan Airport on Thursday with a renewed sense of purpose.What’s happening: Chernyakova arrived in Boston ready to start her job as a teacher at Temple Beth Shalom in Needham, thanks to a coalition of nonprofits behind the Jobs Sponsorship Program, which secures jobs for refugees as soon as they arrive.Why it matters: Accelerated job placement means one less hurdle for refugees to overcome when they come to the U.S. — and one less job vacancy as the nation...
Vote for Boston's best main street
Bracket: Axios VisualsThe main streets of our neighborhoods are what hold communities together.We asked you earlier this month to nominate the streets in town that really show off their neighborhoods.Now it's time to decide the best street in Boston with a good old-fashioned bracket tournament.So, which roads connect the businesses and residents of Boston and centralize restaurants, cafes and shops to show what a neighborhood is all about?Vote here in the battle of the main streets!Get more local stories in your inbox with Axios Boston.
Vote for Boston's best main street
Bracket: Axios VisualsThe main streets of our neighborhoods are what hold communities together.We asked you earlier this month to nominate the streets in town that really show off their neighborhoods.Now it's time to decide the best street in Boston with a good old-fashioned bracket tournament.So, which roads connect the businesses and residents of Boston and centralize restaurants, cafes and shops to show what a neighborhood is all about?Vote here in the battle of the main streets!
How to crush the SoWa Open Market this year
One of Boston's newer rites of spring happens Sunday – the SoWa Open Market reopens for the season.Why it matters: SoWa Open Market is one of Boston's largest marketplaces for crafts, art, antiques, specialty foods and products from the region's farms.It's also super popular, with between 1,500 and 2,000 visitors descending on the "south of Washington" street complex on any given Sunday when the weather's nice.The market operates from 11am to 4pm every Sunday through October.And starting later this month, the market will host a "Summer in the City" concert series every second Sunday of the month through September.Berklee College...
Jakob Dylan, Young Pleit and other Boston-area concerts this weekend
There's so many pop acts in town this weekend, we don't even know where to start. And there are plenty of indie and alternative rock, jazz and traditional acts playing too, so get out there and see a show.Here's our curated list of concerts to see:FridayJakob Dylan's band The Wallflowers bring "One Headlight" and more to the Cabot Theater — 8pmThree True Outcomes does their local emo/alternative thing at Lilypad — 10:30pmMilque are at the Midway — 9:30pmObituary and Immolation impale the Middle East Downstairs on a blade of death metal — 6pmPost-hardcore emo from Finch is at the Paradise...
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